News & Events

Journalism ’03 graduate Jaime Stein has made it to the top.

On Aug. 15, Stein climbed 19,341 feet up Africa’s highest peak – Mt. Kilimanjaro – to help his fellow Canadians. Stein and a team of 25 people raised $350,000 to create a new national public umbilical cord blood bank for Canadian Blood Services.

“I’m a big believer in Canada and that we’re able to provide free healthcare to help everyone,” Stein said. “It’s important to provide an opportunity to be cured.”

Stein’s inspiration for taking on this challenge was his father Howard, who passed away in 2006 from leukemia. Stein personally raised $26,500 for the cause, while his employer, ING Direct, supported the #Climb4Cord initiative, contributing $100,000. Stein is continuing to raise funds, hoping to boost the team’s total to $400,000 by the end of the month.

“I went in with the mentality to get a little amount from as many people as possible,” he said. “It’s not the biggest donation but the most donors. In the end, 260 people donated and it all spiraled through social media. People re-tweeting and creating blogs helped spread the word across Canada. Friends came through in creating logos, t-shirts and hashtags.”

Stein trained for almost eight months, going on a three- to four-hour hike every week plus working with a personal trainer twice a week on lower-body exercises. Through social media he even invited the public to hike with him. He credits a team of 100 people that helped him prepare for the seven-day trek to the top of the mountain. And it was the strength of his team and his father’s inspiration that that helped him meet his most grueling challenge. On the third day of the climb, two hours into a seven-hour hike, Stein experienced altitude sickness and had to lag behind the rest of the troop.

“I learned what mental strength is,” he said. “Until you’re forced into a situation like the third day, to dig deep and be mentally strong – that’s a huge takeaway for me.”

And while the climb up Mt. Kilimanjaro was a test of physical and mental wills, it also allowed Stein to tap into his Ryerson journalism education.

“Having a journalism degree from Ryerson and learning how to tell a story absolutely contributed to my goal,” he said. “Because this story all started with my dad. It all came from my time at Ryerson.”

Donations are being accepted until Sept. 30. To donate, visit http://campaignforcanadians.ca/climb-4-cord/.