Unfortunately, my trek to Kilimanjaro was cancelled because of COVID travel restrictions. While I am disappointed not to take on Kilimanjaro, I am proud and grateful for the $4,688 we were able to raise together for the Arthritis Foundation. What's more, thanks to 2x and 3x matching campaigns by Blue Emu and Hyland's Inc, respectively, around the times of donation, raising the $4,688 lead to a huge total donation of $11,041 to the Arthritis Foundation.

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On the 5th of September 2020, I will embark on an 8-day trek to the summit of Mt Kilimanjaro with my brother Warren (you can check out his page here ) with the aim of raising $5000 for the Arthritis Foundation.

So what would inspire me to trek for over 50 hours, traversing 130,000 steps, to 5895m above sea level?

It all starts with the owner of that beaming smile in the cover photo, my late grandfather Oliver Murray, Jollie Ollie, as he liked to be called. He lived up to his name except when it came to things like stairs, putting on his shoes, or getting in and out of the shower. As I was growing up, I saw firsthand how arthritis made everyday tasks become daily struggles that impacted his quality of life. So in 2014 I conducted a yearlong college engineering project into improving the successful aging process to see what I could design to make his life better.



In this year I researched all about common ailments of the elderly such as dementia and arthritis and I visited nursing homes to see how these ailments impacted their daily lives. I decided to focus on an issue I saw with people handling kettles and pitchers, which inspired me to design an ergonomic water pitcher. This water pitcher design was created to help those with arthritis in their wrists by alleviating some of the strain on their wrist by redistributing the weight of the pitcher.

Passionate about pursuing this idea but without the business knowledge to launch it, I joined the ESTEEM program at Notre Dame where I spent 11 months developing the business plan that will be the foundation for me to launch this pitcher in the future and get it into the hands of the people who need it.


Helping those with Arthritis is a cause that is close to my heart and I have been contributing to this cause for over 5 years now through the designs and projects I have been doing. This year I want to take it one step (well actually 128,263 steps) further by climbing Mt Kilimanjaro, the tallest mountain in Africa, to raise money for the Arthritis Foundation and their research to find better treatments and eventually a cure for arthritis.

Arthritis is a debilitating disease that affects over 350 million people worldwide, adults and children alike. Like me, it is likely that you have a loved one that has suffered from arthritis and you know how much it would mean to this person to be freed from this burden. 

This is why I am asking for your support to take on this challenge and help me raise money to better the lives of the grannies, grandads, sons, and daughters with the life-transforming research that this money will help fund.

You don’t have to donate, even a share can go a long way, but any donations are greatly appreciated.

Many Thanks,

Tyron