Suzanna’s back Doing it For Dom and this time she’s taking on the highest mountain in Africa.
Talking to Suzanna Mavity about her impending expedition to Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, there is no sense of hesitation or backing out. Suzanna is one of those people who when she puts her mind to it, sees the end goal clearly and won’t let anything stop her or get in her way. Not even one of the world’s highest mountain ranges!
A well known personality within the property industry, Acaboom’s Sales Director first started Do It For Dom in 2018 together with Kerfuffle’s Simon Whale, after the much loved and popular estate agent Dominic Subbiani was diagnosed with Huntington’s Disease. The disease is progressive and fatal, with no cure, and is passed along the generations.
Dom’s agency FBM in Tenby is well known in the industry and was always a big presence amongst the Fine & Country and Relocation Agent Network members. It was natural therefore that Dom’s many and varied friends from the industry rallied round him to support him and the Huntington’s Disease research charity.
“In many ways it is fitting that I’m doing this particular challenge, because when we started Do It For Dom in 2018, the first challenge that we organised was a climb of Mount Snowdon. This is a world away from that, but Dom always was an agent worth climbing mountains for.” Says Mavity.
Do It For Dom has been massively successful in raising almost £200,000 since 2018, but when Covid meant that the events planned for 2020 had to be cancelled, Suzanna was keen to do something that “told everyone that we had not forgotten about our friend Dom and that we were going to try harder than ever to raise these much needed funds.”
It takes a lot of guts to attempt to climb Kilimanjaro solo. So when I asked Suzanna if she’s ever done anything like this before, she was extremely incredulous. “Anyone who knows anything about me, knows that I don’t necessarily spend my time climbing mountains, but recently I have been getting some training in, here on our home turf, climbing various different mountains but still nothing like the beast that awaits me in Tanzania!”
The trek will take 8 days to complete and Suzanna will be carrying out this massive feat as most of us settle down to tuck into our Christmas dinner. “I’m spending Christmas climbing mountains and there are some practical challenges to overcome in doing so. I will have to carry my own equipment, including food supplies and several power banks to keep my phone going!”
Famously, Suzanna’s mobile phone is never out of sight and she is always keen to answer enquiries from estate agents, regardless of where she is. But this time she gets by with a little help from her estate agency industry supplier friends.
“The lovely people at Moneypenny have very kindly joined as one of my corporate sponsors and they will be ensuring that all my calls get answered even if I am stuck up a mountain and out of range!”
Suzanna hopes to raise £10,000 for the Huntington’s Disease Association and is calling on all estate agents and suppliers to pitch in and sponsor her in this endeavour. “I have a number of corporate sponsorship opportunities and I’m happy to put a few For Sale boards up around my tent as we approach the summit! But seriously, this is a massively worthy cause, we are doing this for Dom and other people like him who have had their lives suddenly upturned by their diagnosis, I would love for anyone who is able, to donate whatever they possibly can. It would mean the world to me and I know it means the world to Dom and his family.”
People can support Suzanna’s challenge here
