A SUMMERVELD resident is on a mission to trek to the world-renowned Everest Base Camp to carry a message of hope and raise awareness on organ and tissue donation.

Bronwyn Forbes-Hardinge, a lifestyle journalist with Get It magazine and an ambassador for Hero777 (an organisation affiliated with the National Organ Donor Foundation in South Africa) is aiming to champion the issue in the hopes of inspiring others to become organ donors. 

According to Forbes-Hardinge, a single donor can save up to seven lives through organs and help more than 50 people through tissue donation. 

She has already conquered several of South Africa’s peaks and mountains, including Mafadi, Rhino Peak, Sani Pass, Thabana Ntlenyana, the highest mountain in Southern Africa and Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa.

She climbed Kilimanjaro in 2024 and said her passion for climbing for a purpose started with a hike in the Transkei. 

“It was a life-changing journey. I was really unfit at the time and I think being in nature and surrounded by beauty inspired me and got me thinking about what’s next. When I returned to Durban someone at work mentioned Kilimanjaro and it was like a lightbulb moment. A day later I was researching everything I could and eight months later I stood on top of Uhuru Peak. I also wanted to raise awareness for something I was passionate about and being a Hero 777 ambassador I made it my mission to get as many people to sign up as organ donors,” she said. 

While she has been touched personally by loved ones around her in need of organ transplants, her journey into becoming an organ donor started when she was in Standard Three (Grade Five).

“I remember it as clear as day. We were all sat in the hall and the principal was telling us about school pastor donating a kidney. I remember a collective gasp from everyone and it got me thinking, someone can give a kidney without dying. It was sort of a seminal moment and I wanted to sign up as soon as I can.  I always had it in my head I wanted to save a life, always gave blood,” she said.

Her latest trek to Mount Everest Base Camp, which sits at an elevation of more than 5 300m (17 598 feet) in Nepal, will see her go over three passes.

“It will be tough because of the conditions but I have a great support system behind me. For me the journey is part of a bigger picture on driving organ donor awareness,” she said.

To follow Bronwyn’s journey, you can find her on Instagram and TikTok.

• If you would like to become an organ donor in South Africa, register for free through the Organ Donor Foundation website or call their toll-free line at 0800 22 66 11. 

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