First of all, I’d like to thank all of you on behalf of The Last Well for your prayers and support during the most challenging moment of my life: the Summit of Mt. Elbrus in Russia last week. As you may have read 8 of the 11 of our team made it to the summit of Mt. Elbrus, the tallest peak on the European continent. I’m so proud of our team, not just for summiting but much more importantly because through his expedition we raised $250,000 to provide clean water in Liberia in Jesus’ name, reaching our goal for our first expedition!
I’d also like to share a little from my dicey moments on the mountain to illustrate the importance of a great team! On Tuesday morning around 10am we had reached the saddle of Mt. Elbrus. The saddle is the ridge between the East and West peaks of Mt. Elbrus and this is the last break before the final 1.5 hour push to the East Summit of Elbrus. At this point we had been climbing for about 7 hours and over 4,500 vertical feet. When I reached the saddle I put my backpack down and tried to get out my water and some food but I kept stumbling and was having some trouble seeing. Our guide, Tap gathered our team together and said, “This is it guys, the last push. If you don’t think you have the energy to get to the summit and back down to summit camp, don’t go because either we all make it or none of us make it.” Gulp! Todd Phillips and I looked at each other, doubting whether we should jeopardize the whole team if we couldn’t make the summit. Several times we changed our minds but then finally decided to stay back so that the stronger climbers could make the summit.
But then Andrew Good spoke up and said, “We’re doing this as a team. Either we all make it or none of us makes it!” That was the vote of confidence we all needed. We made our way up the summit and all 8 of us made it to the top….together.
On the way down, my dizziness and lethargy started to really kick in, as well as a complete white out due to a rough snowstorm. What I didn’t know at the time is that I had cerebral edema, an altitude disorder due to lack of oxygen that causes the brain to swell, a loss of motor functions, and blackouts. The only cure is to get down to a lower altitude ASAP! About 45 minutes into our descent I completely blacked out…
I woke up on the mountain at about 14,000 ft still hiking downward toward our summit camp. When we finally arrived at camp my team began to tell me what they did to get me down safely. Tom Heffernan, Rob Newton and Zach Casper each played a huge part in helping me down the mountain to safety. Of the whole team, not one guy complained or left me, but each one went above and beyond what he had left in the tank to make sure we got down safely. It is not an exaggeration to say that these guys saved my life.
This is what a great team is all about. Helping each other even when it’s inconvenient, carrying each other’s burdens, sacrificing our own interests for the interests of others, an all-in attitude. I’m still processing through the impact each of these guys made in my life, but the lessons I’ve learned about teamwork will be with me forever.
Thank God for these guys!
Nate Keeler
