Half-century trek for Stourbridge mum (From Stourbridge News)

Half-century trek for Stourbridge mum

11:36am Friday 5th February 2010

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A STOURBRIDGE mum is following in celebrity footsteps to celebrate her half century by climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.

Gloria Bates is taking on the Tanzanian peak to mark her 50th birthday and raise cash for Children In Need.

The mother-of-two, from Parkfield Road, will be taking the same route as comic relief stars including Cheryl Cole and Ronan Keating, who trekked up the mountain last year, to reach the summit at an altitude of 20,000 feet.

Gloria, who celebrates her birthday on Sunday February 7, said: “The challenge of Kilimanjaro is going through different eco-systems, from rain forest to arctic conditions.

“For my birthday I kept saying I wanted to go away, I didn’t want a big party, people said ‘are you going on a cruise?’.

“I didn’t feel old enough for that, I wanted to do something more exciting.”

Gloria, who works as an accountant, says she may have to face her biggest fear before getting to base camp.

She said: “I don’t like flying, the worst part is going to be the flight.”

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