A FORMER Helensburgh resident has achieved his "lifelong ambition" by scaling the world's highest mountain for a leading children's charity.
Andrew Leslie was part of the 11-strong group of men and women, known as Team Uprising, who travelled to Nepal to trek at ultra-high altitude in the Himalayas.
Andrew, 37, who grew up in the town but now lives in Portland, Oregon, and his fellow mountaineers raised almost £50,000 for the NSPCC.
Many of those in the group are survivors of child abuse.
Andrew is not an abuse survivor himself, but agreed to join his close friend Giles Moffatt, who suffered abuse as a young boy at Edinburgh Academy, on the epic mission in support of the charity.
They reached Everest Base Camp on April 12 but continued further up the mountain in a bid to reach the summit by the end of May.
Andrew made it to the summit of Everest on May 21, with three Sherpa guides and colleagues - PK Sherpa, Mingma Sherpa, and Sonam Sherpa.
The 37-year-old said he was thrilled to complete his lifelong ambition of getting to the top of Everest.
He said: “It was really special to climb with this group of survivors.
"We were all brought together by a passion for mountains and the transformation they are capable of creating, but there was a much deeper purpose to this expedition.
"Many men in the group had a shared traumatic experience in childhood, so our climb aimed to raise awareness of the impact of this kind of abuse.
"With everyone reaching base camp and some of us going on to climb Everest, we took a terrible childhood experience and turned it into something really positive which we hope will help prevent abuse happening to children.
“The money raised for the NSPCC will be used to help keep children safe.
“This journey pushed me to my physical and mental limits more than I ever thought possible, and the perspectives gained together with this group will last a lifetime. It’s a journey that has left me changed for the better.”
Giles, who lives in Rye, East Sussex, said: “A year ago, the members of Team Uprising were strangers, now we are friends for life.
"Eleven of us made it to base camp and one of us made it to the summit with support from our Sherpa guides.
"Most importantly, everyone made it back safely. Out of evil, much good has come.”
The £48,106 raised by the group will go towards supporting NSPCC services.
These include Childline, the charity’s free counselling service for children, the adult Helpline for reporting concerns about a child and the charity’s educational programmes, such as Talk PANTS and Speak Out Stay Safe, which aim to help prevent child abuse and neglect.
Young people looking for support can contact Childline on 0800 1111 or visit childline.org.uk.
Any adult concerned about a child can contact the NSPCC Helpline by calling 0808 800 5000 or emailing help@NSPCC.org.uk.
Donations can still be made to the group's online fundraiser at justgiving.com/team/uprising.
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