Climber with MS aims for famed peak

A Wisconsin woman is heading for Nepal this weekend and plans to climb to reach her seventh summit, in spite of a crippling diagnosis a decade ago.

Bayfield resident Lori Schneider plans to spend the next two months climbing Mount Everest -- the last of seven summits -- to fulfill a lifelong dream.

Schneider doesn’t consider herself your average mountain climber. And she isn’t. Average mountain climbers haven’t climbed six of the so-called “Seven Summits”, the highest peaks on each continent. Average climbers aren’t retired special education teachers, or 55 years old.

“But also, I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, back in 1999,” adds Schneider. “At that time, I feared that I might lose use of my leg and accelerated my love of climbing and tried to really complete the Seven Summits while I was in good health.”

She’s also harkening back to the teacher she once was. She wants to inspire others, even if they have limitations.

“When I was diagnosed with MS, I was afraid,” she says. “I was afraid of losing myself, my identity. So through mountain climbing I took back some of that power. So through empowerment through adventure, I speak to groups and remind not let those labels that people give us define who you are and really to live your dreams and not be afraid to try.”

Schneider’s sojourn will take her to Nepal Sunday. She hopes to conquer the seventh summit before June.

People can track her journey online at www.empowermentthroughadventure.com/biography.htm

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