Hi Dad. I did it! - Wolverhampton man's 'barmy' Kilimanjaro challenge in memory of his father
When Wolverhampton Rotary Club president Mike Boyce told his father he was planning to climb one of the world's tallest mountains, he called him 'barmy'.
The next day, 83-year-old Barry died suddenly from a heart attack – inspiring his devastated son to take on one of the toughest challenges he had ever faced.
Mr Boyce had become a keen walker, embarking on treks up Ben Nevis and Scafell Pike – but had never tackled anything on the scale of Mount Kilimanjaro.
When told of the climb, Mr Boyce's father, who established the Daisy Fresh and Essential supermarket in Compton, said: "I think you're absolutely barmy Michael – but I would be very proud of you."
With his father's words ringing in his ears, he started the ascent of the 19,341ft peak in Tanzania. And now he has raised nearly £3,500 for charity, with donations continuing to flood in.
And as 57-year-old Mr Boyce reached the summit, he held aloft a message that read: "Hi Dad. I did it!"
He admitted his father's comment kept him going as he battled altitude sickness.
He said: "The combination of everyone's support and thinking of dad helped me get through it."
Mr Boyce prepared for the 50-mile climb with walks on the Wrekin and Snowdon, averaging about five miles a day.
The trip started with torrential rain, and as the climb proceeded and the air grew thinner, his biggest fear was headaches and nausea.
He added: "The effects of altitude sickness can be very disabling. At first I seemed to be lucky and to have escaped, except that for the first two nights I just could not sleep.
"Because of this I was pretty shattered when altitude did begin to take effect, as we made more height.
"The final ascent on the fifth night was the longest and hardest six-and-a-half hours of my life.
"Many people climb higher, in far worse conditions and this climb has given me a small sense of what others go through to achieve their dreams. For me though, for now anyway, this was my dream."
Money raised will go to Compton Hospice, the Moving Mountains Trust, which helps poverty-stricken residents in Kenya, Nepal and Borneo, and the Rotary Charitable Trust.
Barry Boyce died the day before his 84th birthday. He became known by thousands of shoppers over the years after opening the Daisy Freezer Centre in 1976 which his son now runs.
