The Irish have always been a nation of adventurers, a people that can’t help themselves but feel the call to travel aboard, to holiday, to explore and to emigrate. Despite this love of travel, we can’t help but think of Ireland and those we left behind as home and family. Sadly, there are those that never get to say a finale goodbye to the loved ones they left behind. The brave souls that due a sudden tragedy find themselves taking their finale breaths far from the ones they left behind.

It’s these families that are struck with such a terrible loss that struggle the most at simply starting the process of healing and grieving due to the enormous costs that come with getting the body of their one loved one home, because sometimes the longest journey you take is the one your family has to carry out for you. The cost per repatriation can reach up to GBP12,000 or more depending on the circumstances of the death, local charges and hospital release costs.

The Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust is a charity that aims to alleviate the financial hardship of bereaved families repatriating the body (bodies) of loved one(s) who have died abroad in sudden or tragic circumstances back to Ireland. As of June 2013 the KBRT have repatriated 701 loved ones to their families in Ireland from countries all across the globe including Australia, Argentina, South Korea, USA, Canada, Ecuador, Cambodia, India, Uganda and more.

We are three friends who plan on making the two-week ascent up to Everest base camp. This is a journey we thought would be perfect to do in aid of such a worthwhile cause. All funding for the trip is already covered by ourselves meaning all the money donated is being directed straight into the charity.

Thank you for the support

Ferdia O'Connor, Sean Cleary and Carl O’Regan