DAV Cologne – Adventure Sports

“School up”: Alphorns as cornucopias

Stefan — Sat, 25 Mar 2017 21:25:40 +0000

Ralf during his presentation in Cologne

Tailwind. There was a lot of it for our “School up!” project yesterday. The Rhineland-Cologne section of the German Alpine Club (DAV) had invited to a charity event to support the reconstruction of the school in Thulosirubari which had been destroyed by the earthquake in Nepal in 2015. The hall in Cologne was sold out. About 400 mountain lovers had come to be taken away by Ralf Dujmovits to the highest mountains in the world. At the end of June 2015, I had launched, along with Ralf and the Austrian top climber Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner, “School up!” to rebuild the “Gerlinde and Ralf School” as soon as possible. All proceeds of the evening in Cologne flowed into the current construction work in the small village, about 70 kilometers east of Kathmandu.

Still all fingers and toes

Construction site in Thulosirubari

At the beginning of the event, I showed some pictures of what has happened in Thulosirubari since the devastating earthquake. Then Ralf started his presentation. The first and so far only German, who has climbed all 14 eight-thousandths, told with a lot of humor and impressive pictures and videos his personal story in the Himalayas and Karakoram. About special companions, setbacks, moments of happiness. “After all, I still have all my fingers and toes, in contrast to many other expedition climbers,” said the 55-year-old – who also revealed his next project (my interview with Ralf on Tuesday here in the blog).

Donations doubled

Before and after the presentation as well as during the break, DAV volunteers collected donations among the visitors. The boxes filled rapidly. Kalle Kubatschka, head of the Cologne mountain friends, had announced that the DAV section would double the money collected in the boxes. And then there was another big surprise for Ralf and myself. In the name of the “Mutzbacher Alphornblaeser”, a music group of mountain enthusiasts from Odenthal near Cologne, Stefan Wiemer handed over a symbolic check for 2500 Euros for “School up!”.

The alphorns as cornucopias, great! Just like the commitment of the many lovely people from the Cologne DAV section, who selflessly served this great cause.

Class fund for “School up!”

Ralf and I were enthusiastic about the many contacts with spectators, who strengthened us in our commitment for “School up!”. So a teacher told me that she still had a surplus in her class fund and would now like to donate it to the children in Thulosirubari. I can not say enough thanks. Also in the name of Ralf, Gerlinde and of course the people in the mountain village in Nepal.

For all, who could not be in Cologne, but want to support “School up!” the bank account of the donation campaign:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V.
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

Update 29 March: After all the receipts have been counted, there is a total of 7,738 Euros for “School up!” – in a single evening. Excellent! Once again a huge thank you to all who made it possible.

“School up!”: Second floor plate almost finished

Stefan — Fri, 10 Mar 2017 13:20:39 +0000

Plate of the second floor

The relatively dry winter in the Nepalese district Sindhupalchowk has played into the hands of our aid project “School up!”. The construction work for the new school in the village of Thulosirubari, about 70 kilometers east of Kathmandu, could be continued almost without interruption. Meanwhile, the plate of the second floor is practically finished. The goal of completing the construction work (except for the painting) before the monsoon starts in summer seems realistic. The constructors of the new large Berlin airport who have not come to an end for years could take an example of such effectiveness (in Nepal!). Here are some more pictures:

[See image gallery at blogs.dw.com]

Get your tickets for the “School up!” benefit event!

Meanwhile the preparations for the benefit event on 24 March in my home town Cologne in favor of “School up!” are in full swing. On this evening, Ralf Dujmovits, the so far only German climber who has stood on the summits of all 14 eight-thousanders, will report in an exciting lecture about his mountain adventures. Tickets can be bought online via the Rhineland-Cologne section of the German Alpine Club (DAV). The demand is fortunately high. So do not wait too long, it smells like sold out! All revenues from the event will go into the construction of the new school in Thulosirubari.
We still need more donations to finance the construction work. Here again the bank account in Germany:

A thousand thanks to all supporters of “School up!” – you are great!

Construction site with heart

Stefan — Tue, 31 Jan 2017 14:38:44 +0000

The ceiling of the first floor is concreted

Four are standing around and discussing, one is working. This image is known from public construction sites in Germany. The situation is quite different in Thulosirubari, a small village about 70 kilometers east of Kathmandu. There the new school is being built with great enthusiasm – made possible by your donations for our aid projekt “School up!”. “All villagers are happy to be able to help with the work,” says Shyam Pandit, liaison man of the German aid organization “Nepalhilfe Beilngries” in the Himalayan state. Devi Dulal, head of the local school committee, is also delighted: “This will be a unique building for us. The work on this is very satisfactory for us.” The old school had been so badly damaged by the devastating earthquake at the end of April 2015 that it had had to be demolished. At the end of June 2015, I had launched – along with the extreme climbers Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner and Ralf Dujmovits – “School up!” to rebuild the school as quickly as possible. In the meantime, the ceiling of the first floor has been concreted. Here are some impressions of the construction site from the past weeks:

Positively contagious

For the people of Thulosirubari the construction work on the new school is a matter truly dear to their heart – and contagious. “Some villagers have begun to rebuild their homes,” Shyam reports. “They look closely at the blueprints for the school and build their houses accordingly.” Almost all buildings in Thulosirubari had been destroyed or damaged by the earthquake almost two years ago, 75 villagers had been killed.

Grab your tickets

Ralf Dujmovits

Even though the school is becoming more and more real, we have not yet reached the goal. We need more donations. As reported before, the Rhineland section of the German Alpine Club (DAV) supports us by organizing a charity event for “School up!” on 24 March in Cologne. There, Ralf Dujmovits, the so far only German climber who has scaled all 14 eight-thousanders, will report in an exciting lecture about his mountain adventures. All revenues from the charity event will go into the construction of the school in Thulosirubari. So, don’t miss it! Online ticket sales via the DAV Cologne is on.
And for those who simply want to support our project “School up!” by donations, here again the bank account in Germany:

It would be great if you could tell your friends about “School up!”. Thank you so much!!

“School up!”: Investment in the future

Stefan — Wed, 04 Jan 2017 14:35:19 +0000

The building is taking shape

It is certainly no mistake to start a new year with good news: the construction work at the new school in Thulosirubari continues to progress at a high rate. “The contractor’s target is to handover the new finishing of this new school building of Thulosirubari (Gerlinde and Ralf School) by the end of April 2017,“ writes Sunil Krishna Shrestha, the liaison man of the German aid organization “Nepalhilfe Beilngries” in Kathmandu. If the “speedy work” continues, the entrepreneur will fulfill his contractual obligations, says Sunil. Until now, the goal was to complete the construction work on the building (without painting) of the new “Gerlinde and Ralf School” at the latest until the beginning of the monsoon in summer. In this slideshow you can follow the construction progress since early December:

Targeted aid

You can see, our project “School up!” is living. Thanks to your donations, the people of Thulosirubari, a small village 70 kilometers east of the capital, can now look ahead more optimistically. The education of their children is dear to them. They know: It is an investment in the future. We have not yet reached the goal. Please continue to donate and tell your friends of our project to rebuild the village school that was destroyed by the devastating earthquake in April 2015! All funds for “School up!” flow into this construction project, if you specify the purpose “Gerlinde and Ralf school”. I will continue to report on the progress of the construction work in my blog. Here again the bank account in Germany:

Ralf Dujmovits

Tickets already on sale

And here once again the hint to the charity event of the German Alpine Club (DAV) for “School up!” with Ralf Dujmovits on 24 March in Cologne. The so far only German who has scaled all 14 eight-thousanders will be talking about his adventures on the highest mountains of the world. All revenues from the charity event will go into our project “School up!”. Online ticket sales via the DAV Cologne is on. Grab tickets in time!

“School up!”: Construction work continues even in winter

Stefan — Mon, 19 Dec 2016 13:09:10 +0000

Foundation work almost finished

“We are so happy seeing the re-construction – and that the building is designed to resist earthquakes,” says Hari Bikram, the 43-year-old headteacher of Thulosirubari. The construction work in the small mountain village 70 kilometers east of the Nepali capital Kathmandu continues at high speed. “The plinth work has almost been finished,” Shyam Pandit, Nepalese liaison of the German relief organization “Nepalhilfe Beilngries”, writes to me. I wanted to know from him whether the work will be stopped in winter. “No stop. I will continue construction work,” the contractor replied, says Shyam. However, it’s going to be a little slower in the cold season than now.

Students still feel panic

With joint forces

“It is a good feeling to know that our children are getting a good education, and without fear when the building will be finished,” says headmaster Hari Bikram. “Even now they still feel panic. The students say they can hardly wait to move from the TLCs (Temporary Learning Centers, which were made of corrugated iron) to a new safe building. We are so proud of all donators.” The fact that the new school is being built is due to all who have given money for our project “School up!”. I had launched the campaign in June 2015, along with the climbers Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner and Ralf Dujmovits, after the old “Gerlinde and Ralf School” in Thulosirubari had been so badly damaged by the devastating earthquake on 25 April 2015 that it had had to be demolished. “We hope that the new building with twelve classrooms will be finished before the monsoon next summer,” Shyam Pandit writes.

DAV charity event in Cologne with Ralf Dujmovits

Ralf Dujmovits

We have not yet reached our goal and need further donations. You should save a date: The Rhineland section of the German Alpine Club (DAV) supports our “School up!” program with a charity event on 24 March in Cologne. Ralf Dujmovits, the so far only German who has scaled all 14 eight-thousanders, will be talking about his adventures on the highest mountains of the world. We will also present current pictures from Thulosirubari that evening. All revenue from the charity event will go into the project. Online ticket sales via DAV Cologne have already begun.

That’s a nice Christmas gift for a mountain friend, right? And if you’re itching to donate just before the Christmas season, the children in Thulosirubari would be pleased. Here again the bank account of “School up!”:

A thousand thanks to you all!