Cleric climbs Mt Everest with a message: epilepsy is not witchcraft

For 17 days, Rev Fredrick Beuchi climbed through the unforgiving slopes of the Himalayas, each breath growing thinner as the mountain rose, with each step carrying a message that began long before he ever saw Mount Everest.

Then, at 5,348 metres above sea level, he finally stood at Everest Base Camp. Far behind him were 130km of steep trails, exhaustion and three days of delayed flights. But for the Methodist Church of Kenya cleric, the journey was also a continuation of a campaign shaped by his experience caring for his younger sister and wife, both of whom live with epilepsy.