15 YEAR OLD WITH DOWN SYNDROME SCALES MT. EVEREST

Courtesy of Hamodia’s Binyan Magazine

     A 15 year old Oregon boy has become the first teenager with Down Syndrome to reach the Everest Base Camp on the world’s tallest mountain. Eli Reimer reached the 17,500 foot high camp in March, after hiking for 10 days.

     “To be standing there…and see the smile on Eli’s face and the sense of accomplishment that he had…it was humbling, it was inspiring, just an amazing moment,” his father said.

     Eli is thought to be the first teenager with Down Syndrome to reach the base camp, but a 35 year old man with Down Syndrome has also done so.

     Eli’s doctors gave him the go ahead to attempt the clinb. “We monitored his blood and oxygen…levels as we went up,” Mr. Reimer said. “And his numbers were consistently, significantly higher than everyone else’s…He was actually leading us…Eli was our guide.”