Feb 28, 2013

Women of Black History: Sophia Danenberg

“It’s not really about having the ability to climb. It’s about this ability to say, ‘I can do it really well.’ “-Sophia Danenberg. Positivity is the key to success! Today we are honoring Sophia Danenberg, the first African American woman to climb to the summit of Mt. Everest!

Growing up in an “indoorsy” household didn’t change the fate of mountain climber, Sophia Danenberg. After college Sophia was introduced to mountain climbing and her mountaineering hobby would develop into a passion. After climbing several smaller mountains, she was encouraged to climb Mt. Everest. Sophia was going to climb Mt. Everest on and unguided tour, not even sure if she would try to make it to the summit.

Most climbers make it to Camp Four on Everest and Sophia’s goals were no different. She said, “The goal was to get to Camp Four. The first time I really went, ‘Jeez, I really want to do this,’ was when I was making the decision to go for the summit.” She was successful at reaching the summit and exceeded her goals! Her perseverance through the conditions and frostbitten cheeks lead her to a place in history and an inspirational story encouraging everyone to develop a passion and not take themselves too seriously.

I was so happy to come across Sophia’s story because she was able to turn her hobby into her passion and conquer even more than her goals set out to do. We can truly see from Sophia that as long as you believe in yourself you will make it to end, and enjoy the journey along the way.