Reaching A Peak For Hospice

The director of Hospice and Palliative Care Services for Agnesian HealthCare will be raising money for hospice education and drawing attention to it as he readies to climb Mt. Everest next March. Fifty-two-year-old Andy Land of Fond du Lac kicked off the effort with an announcement at the Fond du Lac YMCA Wednesday. The $40,000 cost of the epic journey is covered so every dollar raised in the Climbing for Hospice campaign will go toward educating the public about hospice in Wisconsin and training hospice staff and volunteers. The challenging feat involves 6000 more vertical feet than other mountains he has climbed and he will need to use portable oxygen for the first time. His training regimen includes a minimum of two hours a day at the Fond du Lac YMCA where he works with a trainer and chalks up many miles on the treadmill. Land is hoping people who already understand the benefits of hospice or have been touched by hospice care will support his cause, as well as those who admire his courage to try to reach the summit in mid-May next year. Only five Wisconsin residents have made it to the top. “I will do my very best but if I don’t get all the way to the summit, I feel it is not wasted effort. I’ve still accomplished the goal to spread the word about hospice,” he said.  For more information on Land’s climb and how to support Team Andy: www.climbingforhospice.org or call Hope of Wisconsin at (800) 210-0220.