On March 1, Eli was on a plane from Kathmandu to Los Angeles with his father, celebrating both World Down’s Syndrome Day and the fulfillment of a dream.
The Oregon resident, at the tender age of fifteen, had just become the first teenager with Down’s Syndrome to make trek to Mount Everest Base Camp in Nepal.
Eli’s dad, Justin Reimer, who made the trek with him (along with a team of seven) told Time magazine, “We’re able to celebrate that as we departed Katmandu with
[Eli] just completing something that as far as we know, no other teen with Down Syndrome [in the U.S.] has done, so it’s monumental.”
Besides setting this record, Eli’s journey also raised $85 000 in donations for The Elisha Foundation, which supports individuals affected by disability.
The 70-mile-trek to the Nepal Base Camp (which sits at nearly 18,000 feet) took the Reimers ten days.
Leave A Comment