Following her husband’s death in the Christchurch earthquake in 2011, Forgotten Sherpas of Nepal Trust chairwoman Margaret Stocker (68) said her involvement in aid work had given meaning to her life.
"Being able to do this gives me a huge sense of fulfillment and purpose. We’ve been able to see the difference we’ve made," she said.
The trust was founded in 2008 to help isolated and impoverished villages throughout Nepal.
Most of the villages it helped did not have access to modern medicine or clean water, leading to widespread illness.
Members of the trust often treked for days to get to village sites.
"Some of the people we help are living at 2000m-3000m altitudes, making them extremely hard to get to."
Since 2008, the trust had built solar lighting, 115 clean chimneys and two health-care clinics over multiple regions.
"Being a nurse, I was born to help people. We’ve come a long way over the past 13 years."
Her membership in the Geraldine Tramping Club alongside trust founders George Hunter and Neil Stocker led to her first trip in 2010. She has been back at least half a dozen times.
She would fly to Nepal next Friday to provide relief for the first time since pre-Covid.
"I’m feeling quite excited about going and reconnecting with the many friends we’ve made," she said.
She would be accompanied by her friend, Dunedin resident Debe Stewart (63), who is on her first trip to Nepal. "I’m a little nervous, but I feel relaxed knowing I’m going with Marg.
"She’s the strongest person I know," Mrs Stewart said.
Mrs Stocker would be in Nepal for two months to celebrate the building of a health clinic in the Okhaldunga district.
The trust’s work could be linked to Sir Edmund Hillary, who provided aid in Nepal during the 1960s.
"I can see how Sir Ed fell in love with Nepal and its people. They’re compassionate and caring people," she said.
Mrs Stocker and Mrs Stewart would spend time in the Himalayan Trust Nepal office, where Sir Edmund Hillary once worked.
