THE TRUSTEES are volunteers and privileged to give their own time and to pay their own expenses whilst working on HTUK business.
REBECCA STEPHENS MBE - Chairman
Writer and lecturer who in 1993 became the first British woman to climb Mount Everest. Whilst sitting next to George Lowe at a charity dinner Rebecca was invited to become a Trustee and now raises money where she can. Now living in Sussex with her partner and daughters.
GRAHAM WRIGLEY - Vice Chairman
Sat on the management board of Permira from 1989 to 2006 as it’s value grew to $30bn, becoming one of the world’s largest private equity firms.
Now embarked on a second career around international development, beginning with a Masters degree in Development Studies at The School of Oriental and African Studies in London (SOAS), Graham focuses on sustainable private sector growth in poor countries.
In the SME world he is Chairman of Aureos (with $1.1bn in funds and 29 offices it is the largest SME investor in the world) and on the Board of Manocap (a private equity fund based in Sierra Leone), whilst also working in the Microfinance field in India and Nepal.
Graham is also a visiting professor to INSEAD. He first visited Nepal in 1981 where he had a chance meeting with Sir Edmund Hillary and became involved in fund raising for the Trust thereafter. He and his wife live in Surrey with their 4 children.
graham@chilworthmanor.net
MARY LOWE
Mary was born in Derby. Trained as a Physical Education Specialist. Followed a career in teaching in Bristol and Brighton, and teaching within Outdoor Education. For 8 years Adviser in Physical Education to Hampshire LEA. For 16 years was Her Majesty's Inspector of Schools in England.
Inaugural Trustee of the Sir Edmund Hillary Himalayan Trust UK, and has served as Secretary since the early days.
George and Mary Lowe live in Derbyshire.
sec.htuk@tiscali.co.uk
GEOFF WOLSTENHOLME
Our Treasurer and Trustee, is married with two daughters and lives in Chandlers Ford in Hampshire.
Geoffrey was a tax partner with Ernst & Young for over twenty years and has now retired.
He has many sporting interests including playing tennis and golf. He visited Nepal as a member of a trekking group to Kala Pattar in 2002 which was led by his late brother, Peter who previously served as Treasurer of the Trust since its inception.
wolstenholmeg@btinternet.com
CHRIS GODDARD
is a UK solicitor, living and working in London. He became involved in the Trust after teaching at Khumjung School for four months in 2001. Now married he lives with his wife in London.
christopher.goddard@herbertsmith.com
DAVE CAPPS
Dave was born in that year “53” with a fascination of Everest, Hillary & Tenzing from earliest memories.
In 1984 he visited the Everest region to fulfil a “trip of a lifetime” and fell in love with the country and its people.
He was part of the 40th anniversary reunion party leading to becoming a trustee a year later.
He has also trekked and climbed all over Solu & Khumbu visiting as many Trust projects as possible.
Dave lives in the south of England.
Anjucapps@btinternet.com
SUSAN BAND
SUE LEYDEN
Sue Leyden is the second of Lord Hunt's four daughters. As a young girl, her father taught her to climb on the rocks in the forest of Fontainebleau, in France, and later in Wales and in the Alps. During the 1960's she took part in expeditions to Greenland, Greece and Ethiopia, with her father, George Lowe and Dick Allcock. For 10 years she lived and worked in Chile, where she and her family travelled extensively, the length and the breadth of the country. On their return she worked for many years as a local authority educational psychologist, then as school advisor/inspector for children with special needs. She is now an independent educational consultant and a keen walker and skier. In 2007, she walked the Everest trail for the first time, with two of her 3 sons, to mark the 50th anniversary of the 1953 expedition.
JOHN WALTON
formerly deputy head of King's St Alban's, the junior school to King's School Worcester. In 1990 he founded the King's School Himalayan Club, taking Sixth Form pupils to the Nepal Himalaya. He met George and Mary Lowe in the early days of the club and asked George to be Patron.
To date nearly 700 have travelled from Worcester to the Himalaya and other great mountain ranges of the world, becoming fully involved in a number of projects, both trust and non-trust, raising approximately £250,000. He lives in Worcester.
j_walton2@hotmail.com
MICHAEL WESTMACOTT
The Trust was delighted to maintain the 1953 Everest connection when Michael Westmacott agreed and was appointed a trustee at the October 2007 AGM.
Michael, born in 1925, read mathematics at Oxford after service with the Indian Army Engineers at the end of the second world war. He had climbed a lot in the UK and the Alps before going to the Himalaya for the first time on the successful 1953 Everest Expedition. His main job on this expedition was in the Ice-fall – helping to pioneer the route, later keeping it open and finally descending with James Morris to get the news of the ascent to London. (The news arrived at Buckingham Palace the evening before the Queen’s coronation). After Everest, he continued to climb extensively, making first ascents in Peru, the Hindu Kush and northern Alaska. He has been President of the Alpine Club.
Trained as a statistician, Michael worked in agricultural research and then in Shell International until retirement in 1985. He now lives with his wife Sally in the English Lake District. He helped to develop and is responsible for the ‘Himalayan Index’, a database covering over 2500 peaks of 6000m and above, with references to ascents and attempts on them. This is published on the Internet by the Alpine Club Library.
TONY ASTILL
lives with his wife Elaine in the New Forest.
In 1963 he joined the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary as a Police Cadet and spent 1966 with Voluntary Service Overseas as a housemaster at St. Christopher’s School in Swaziland which helped him attain the Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award. Later he became a housemaster, PTI and instructor of outdoor pursuits at the Hampshire Police Cadet Training School. He had a spell as temporary instructor at the Outward Bound School, Ullswater and gained the Mountain Leadership Certificate at Plas y Brenin.
A second career followed at Mirror Group Newspapers, but now his interest in mountains has become his profession for the past 20 years; dealing in old mountaineering books and fine mountain paintings.
In 1995 accompanied George Band on the 40th anniversary trek to Kangchenjunga and in 1998 to the east of Everest which added to 12 years of research and writing his self-published book 'Mount Everest : The Reconnaissance 1935' which won the coveted James Monroe Thorington award for best book in mountaineering history at the Banff Mountain Festival in 2006.
Tony is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, an associate member of the Alpine Club and a member of the Himalayan Club.
astill.tony@gmail.com
CHRIS BONINGTON
Sir Chris Bonington CVO, CBE, DL is one of Britain’s most famous mountaineers. Born in London in 1934 he joined the Army after time at Sandhurst, and quickly discovered his love of mountains. He started climbing very seriously in the Alps and then moved to the Himalayas. In 1975 he was leader of the famous ascent of the South West face of Everest. He has since explored mountains, oceans, and remote areas around the world. In 1985 he achieved a life time ambition and he reached the summit of Everest. He knows the Sherpas very well, and has huge admiration for this hardy and generous mountain people. We were delighted to have Chris as our patron, following Lord Hunt, leader of the 1953 Everest Expedition. After the death of Sir Edmund Hillary, Chris was kind enough to accept our invitation to become our President.
http://www.bonington.com
GEORGE BAND
Sadly George passed away on 26th August 2011.
George Band, born in Taiwan in 1929, is British and was educated at Eltham College, Cambridge and London Universities.
At the age of 23, he was the youngest member to be chosen for the first successful Everest Expedition in 1953 led by Colonel John Hunt (later Lord Hunt) when Hillary and Tenzing reached the summit on 29th May just before the Coronation. Two years later with Joe Brown on Charles Evans’ Expedition, he was the first to climb Kangchenjunga, at 28,169’, the world’s third highest peak, then the highest unclimbed. Out of respect for the Sikkimese, who consider the mountain sacred, the top was left untrodden. In between these and other expeditions in the 1950s to the Alps, Karakoram, Peru and the Caucasus, he proved a popular lecturer.
In 1957, he began an international career with the Royal Dutch/Shell Group. He continues to enjoy modest climbing and escorting treks for 'Far Frontiers' in the greater ranges, having recently visited India, Nepal, Sikkim, China, Tibet and Bhutan. Since the mid-1980s he has been Chairman of the Mount Everest Foundation, President of the Alpine Club, on the Council of the Royal Geographical Society and President of the British Mountaineering Council. In September 2003, he succeeded George Lowe as Chairman of the Himalayan Trust UK.
In May 2003, his book 'Everest: 50 Years on Top of the World' written specially for the Mount Everest Foundation to mark the Everest Jubilee, was published by Harper Collins and immediately became a best seller! A paperback edition entitled 'Everest Exposed' was published in April 2005. This was followed in October 2006 by 'Summit : 150 Years of the Alpine Club' to mark the 150th. Anniversary of the Alpine Club, the world's first mountaineering club, which was founded in 1857. For services to Mountaineering and to Charity George was awarded an O.B.E. in 2008
His wife Susan, who is now also a Trustee, lives in Hampshire and from three grown up children there are now six grandchildren.
GEORGE LOWE C.NZ.M., O.B.E was born in Hastings New Zealand. 'Manpowered' to train as a schoolteacher in the last war year. Spent College holidays at Mount Cook in NZ Southern Alps as assistant to the chief guide. Met Ed Hillary who returned from the Pacific War to spend his gratuity of £60 in hiring the chief mountain guide to learn mountaineering.
1951 First NZ Expedition to the Himalayas to Garwhal in India. Hillary, Lowe, Cotter, Riddiford. 1st. ascent of Mukut Parbat.
1952 To Nepal. Cho Oyu expedition, not to climb the mountain but to explore physiology and oxygen flow rates. With Shipton, Hillary and Evans explored 60 miles around Everest.
1953 British Everest Expedition led by John Hunt. Ist ascent by Hillary and Tenzing on 29th May. Lowe and Gregory and Ang Nima Sherpa supported summit pair and placed Camp 9 1,000' from the summit of 29,035' (8850m)
1954 NZ expedition to Makalu with Hillary. Summit not reached, evacuation of injured climbers. Met Fuchs and was invited to represent NZ on the Commonwealth Trans Antarctic Expedition (TAA) Given the task of filming the first crossing of the Continent.
1955-58 TAA. Travelling at over 3,000m altitude, depth soundings of the ice made across the continent proved that Antarctica was a land mass beneath the ice. Returned to London from NZ on the first commercial flight over the North Pole to Amsterdam. Worked on the film 'The Crossing of Antarctica' which went on general release to cinemas. Lectured widely in UK and Europe.
Helped Sir Ed Hillary with the publication of his book 'High Adventure' and co-wrote with Ed 'East of Everest'.
1959-'63 Taught at Repton School, Derbyshire, UK.
1960 Silver Hut Physiological Expedition in Everest area and 'Yeti Expedition' to Rowaling .
early 1960's Expeditions with the John Hunt Exploration Group for young people to Greenland, Greece and Ethiopia. Expedition with Hunt to the Pamirs with a British/Russian team.
1963-'73 Deputy, then Principal of The Grange School, Santiago, Chile.
1973-'84 Her Majesty's Inspector of Schools in England.
1989 With others, set up the Sir Edmund Hillary Himalayan Trust UK and elected as the first chairman from 1989 to 2003, then continued serving as a Trustee until 2008, when he succeeded Sir Chris Bonington as Patron of the Trust.
Welcome to the Himalayan Trust UK
