Carina Dayondon drew from her experience as the first Filipina to scale the Seven Summits as she encouraged participants in the Ayala Foundation’s ‘Maging Handa: Upskilling Disaster Responders’ program to climb their own mountains in life and overcome them through resilience and teamwork.
Dayondon, the second Filipina to reach the peak of Mt. Everest and the first to summit the seven highest mountains on each continent, was one of the distinguished speakers at the event held at the People’s Center in Borongan City on October 4.
“I challenge all of you to continue climbing your own Everest in life. It doesn’t have to be a literal mountain. It could be related to your organization, your training, your family life, your education, your business, or your involvement in disaster response. These are the unique ‘Everests’ in each of our lives. No challenge is insurmountable when we work together as a team. Our resilience knows no bounds,” said Dayondon, a lieutenant commander in the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).
As part of the first Philippine Mt. Everest Expedition team in 2004, Dayondon had to endure a three-year training to help her prepare for the “physically, mentally and emotionally demanding” task ahead. This means that she had to spend months away from her family to train in mountains outside the country for acclimatization. She had no source of income as she could not work after fully committing herself to the cause. She had to join – and win – an adventure racing competition to save their family home that was foreclosed by the bank and to help finance her siblings’ schooling.
In that span, 34 hopefuls quit. But not Dayondon.
“Even me, I’m reminded na nakaya ko pala ‘yun. Ang lakas pala ng loob ko noon which is I’m also anchoring myself from there. If may challenges akong hinaharap, nakaya ko nga ang Mt. Everest. Parati ko ‘yun pinanghahawakan,” said Dayondon.
On her ascent to the world’s tallest peak sixteen years ago, Dayondon braved the biting cold and the harsh environment. She slept in uncomfortable tents; she had to eat fast or risk losing her food to the freezing weather; she had no appetite due to the high altitude that made her feel she was on a long-term hangover; she did not take a bath for three months.
To contact her family, she had to use a satellite phone which was costly. Funding for clothes was a problem, too – she bared that her gear, as well as those of her teammates Noelle Wenceslao (first Filipina to reach the peak of Mt. Everest) and Janet Belarmino (third Filipina to do so), came from a thrift shop until they were able to raise just enough funds to buy their down suits.
Along the way, Dayondon saw the sick, the dying and the dead, unsuccessful climbers.
“Nakakatakot na maging kasama ka sa statistics nila,” recalled Dayondon.
But through unity and teamwork, Dayondon, together with Wenceslao and Belarmino, was able to raise the Philippine flag atop the highest point on Earth. The trio became the first Southeast Asian women to summit Mt. Everest and the first women in the world to traverse it from the north face in Tibet to the south side in Nepal.
“Maraming challenges along the way pero hindi kami nagpatinag. Dahil sa teamwork at unity, na-overcome namin ang mga iyon. Talagang maipagmamalaki natin ang galing ng mga Pilipina,” said Dayondon.
“When we climb, there’s no pot of gold. There’s no immediate reward. The only satisfaction is that we proudly waved the Philippine flag atop Mt. Everest, showcasing our indomitable spirit.”
The dream did not stop there. And the challenges, too.
The next goal was to conquer the Seven Summits. She had five more to check off her list after also scaling Mt. Denali, North America’s highest mountain, in 2006 as a pre-climb for Mt. Everest. But the road became all the more difficult – her sister, her biggest fan in mountaineering, got diagnosed with breast cancer which eventually metastasized to the lungs. She did not make it.
Through all these, Dayondon drew inspiration from her sister’s brave fight against the Big C to press on with her dream. Her sister was her biggest fan in mountaineering, so Dayondon knew that her sister will guide her in her journey. Dayondon was able to climb Mt. Elbrus (in Europe on 2013), Mt. Kosciuszko (Australia, 2014), Mt. Kilimanjaro (Africa, 2015), Mt. Aconcagua (South America, 2018) and lastly, Mt. Vinson Massif (Antarctica, 2018) to complete her 12-year quest of reaching the seven highest peaks in each continent.
Her story, she says, is a story of resilience which mirrors those of other Filipino women who rise above adversity and achieve the extraordinary.
“This is the story of many Filipinas. When faced with a great challenge, we become extraordinary and go beyond our limits of being resilient and courageous. Napapatapang at napapatibay pa tayo imbis na panghinaan ng loob. Basta determinado tayo sa mga bagay na gusto nating abutin,” said Dayondon.
Dayondon related rescuing to climbing, wherein one relies on teamwork to achieve a common goal. It is never about the self – it is about what each member of the team could contribute to saving lives, no matter how small.
“Climbing mountains and being in the field of disaster is the best platform to show unity and teamwork. Kasi hindi tayo diyan nagpapagalingan, ‘Ah, ako lang ang magaling. Ako lang ang dapat mag-responde.’ Team dapat. Kapag nasa field kasi, disaster ang resulta kung hindi tayo united at wala tayong teamwork. Dapat alam nating gampanan ang kanya-kanyang nating role,” she said.
Dayondon works for the PCG’s K9 field operating unit in Northern and Northeastern Mindanao.
“Gaya ng pag-climb namin, malaki o maliit, pareho lang nag-contribute. Ang common goal here is we are in the field to save lives,” she said.
#BoronganonDisiplinadoAko #MagingHanda #MagingMagiting #ZeroCasualty
Photos courtesy of: ESNCHS The Courier and ESNCHS Ang Sinag