Good work: Cork woman taking on Kilimanjaro for local primary school 

Lenore Good to raise funds to ensure the children who travel miles to school at foot of mountain have food, school supplies and stationery

Lenore Good with some of the children at Stella Maris primary school.

When she first visited Tanzania in 2021, Cork woman Lenore Good had no idea how much the children of Stella Maris primary school would impact her.

The mother of six first climbed Kilimanjaro in August 2021 while raising money for a number of local Cork-based charities close to her heart but this year, she is returning to help the 510 children who travel miles to attend Stella Maris Primary school every day.

Undertaking a new route, Ms Good will this time take on Kilimanjaro with a group of 13 others in the hopes of raising enough money to continue to feed the children while they are at school and ensure they have everything they need to continue their education.

It was during her trip in August 2021 that Ms Good first visited Stella Maris primary school at the foot of Kilimanjaro and met the children who attended. After that, she knew she wanted to help.

“There is nothing that can prepare you for the level of poverty but yet the kids are so happy and they have absolutely nothing,” she said.

They come from very difficult and very sad backgrounds, and they don’t have many adults that can show up for them. The only consistent thing they have is their school.” 

With the nickname ‘Mama Christmas’, Ms Good has continued to do what she can for the school, and shares their story through her blog, Out in the Sticks With Six.

Lenore Good: 'There is nothing that can prepare you for the level of poverty but yet the kids are so happy and they have absolutely nothing.'

During her most recent visit in March, she decided to take the plunge and take on the second climb in aid of the school and the children who rely on it.

“I didn’t anticipate going out there and the people living there impacting me as much as they did," she said.

The aim this time around is to raise funds to ensure the children have food, school supplies, stationery and maybe even some new furniture. 

While the children are used to seeing visitors come and go while they climb Kilimanjaro, seeing people such as Ms Good returning to the school and continuing to visit gives them “hope”.

“They know I’m coming back but they don’t know that I’m doing the climb for them so that is going to be a bit emotional, telling them that actually, people are coming to help them now instead of only just to do Kilimanjaro."

To donate, visit Lenore Good’s fundraiser on  gofundme.com or @outinthestickswithsix.