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Wendy Booker’s energy seems endless – it takes more than mountaineering, marathons, cycling, skydiving and Multiple Sclerosis to tame her passion for adventure.
In June of 1998, this mother of three was diagnosed with relapsing-remitting MS after experiencing balance problems, blurred vision and numbness on her left side. When first diagnosed, Wendy was devastated. But it took very little time for her to transform anguish into inspiration. She immediately turned her hobby of casual running into a continuous pursuit and has now completed ten marathons.
Mountain climbing became the next conquest. In 2002 at the age of 46, Wendy joined a team of mountain climbers with MS who were attempting to climb Mt. McKinley (Denali) in Alaska. Although that expedition did not end in a summit, she was not to be deterred. Taking on one of the toughest mountains in the world a second time, Wendy became the first person with MS to stand atop Denali in 2004.
That feeling of accomplishment propelled her next aspiration: to climb the highest mountain on each continent. Four years later, Wendy successfully reached the top of six mountains on her list – Mt. Kilimanjaro, Mt. McKinley, Mt. Elbrus, Mt. Aconcagua, Mt. Vinson Massif and Mt. Kosciuszko – the first person with MS to summit six of the Seven Summits. After two attempts on Mt. Everest in 2009 and 2010, Wendy accepted that she had pushed MS to the highest it would allow her to go. She has found contentment in climbing 6 ½ of the Seven Summits and using the experience to empower others facing adversity to never give up and continue to scale new heights.
Wendy’s passion, strength and tenacity are garnering attention from national and international press, and her career has evolved from interior design to motivational speaking around the globe. The mission is always to educate, motivate and encourage anyone facing a challenge in life to push through and climb on – the view from the top is breathtaking.
Wendy’s story is about overcoming obstacles – whatever they may be – through a journey of self-discovery, serendipity and stubbornness. She is a mountaineer, an adventurer, an explorer – and she’s not done yet. Her new goal is to complete the Polar Trilogy: the North Pole, South Pole and Greenland. On April 23, 2011 Wendy accomplished the first stage of the Trilogy by mushing to the top of the world, the North Pole. Next stop… the South Pole – she’s on her way right now!
Click below to view her recent guest appearance on the Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson, and hear all about her expedition to the North Pole via dog sled!
