Air Zermatt completes over 2,000 rescue missions a year, sometimes under the most difficult conditions. At the Air Zermatt Training Center ATC, rescuers share this wealth of experience with professionals and laypeople from all over the world. Silvana Candiani from Argentina recently took part in the HEMS Crew Member course.

Her inspirational life story earned her a scholarship from Air Zermatt and the Swiss Sherpa Foundation.

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Barreal is a village in the mountains of San Juan province (Argentina), located about 2.5 hours northwest of Mendoza. The village is at 1650m and is the starting point for expeditions or trekkings to the Mercedario (6720m) or the Ansilta mountains.

In the village there is a group of climbing freaks, who started a climbing school for children and adults. The aim of the climbing training is that the children and adolescents learn to appreciate and get to know the nature in their valley and thus pursue a meaningful activity in their free time.

End of April 2023 we visited this climbing school and were able to convince ourselves that this project makes a valuable contribution to the preservation of nature and the promotion of children and young people. They learn not only climbing, but also how to behave in nature and in the mountains and how to organize trekkings with care for nature. 

The Swiss Sherpa Stiftung will support this project financially and pay for the salaries of the climbing teachers and some infrastructure likethe climbing wall or harnest and climbing shoes. 

Goal: To show the children and young people the the value of their beautiful nature. It also opens up professional opportunities for the villagers in the field of trekking and mountaineering.