Standing 19,340 feet above sea level atop Uhuru Peak, Mount Kilimanjaro, Southmont graduate Jonn Bowersock beheld a horizon of sunrise, snow, and endless wonder.
Bowersock, class of ‘99 and Army National Guard veteran, had trekked for a week to make it to this point. Through high altitudes, frigid temperatures, and daunting terrain, he and 28 fellow sojourners climbed for more hours than they slept, staving nausea with sips of soda and ibuprofen.
“We were above the clouds,” Bowersock said, recounting his physical and spiritual experience. “It was God’s country. It was breathtaking. You almost have to see it for yourself.”
By the time the group made it back down to a safe resting altitude from Uhuru Peak, they had been on their feet for 15 hours straight.
“You get to certain weak points where you’re praying to God and just saying, ‘Hey, I know you got me; hey, another step forward; hey, I know you got me’ – but it’s just having a moment, a one-on-one moment, saying thank you, being in such awe and gratitude.”
Spirituality is a driving force in Bowersock’s life. He began climbing in 2022 when Kristen Hodge, a board member for the Christian Missionary Fellowship, invited him along with his mentor Lee Smith to hike the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim. The 11-hour, 26-mile journey raised funds for Missions of Hope International, a Kenya-based nonprofit providing humanitarian aid, healthcare, schooling, and spiritual education to disadvantaged communities in Africa. The expedition ultimately inspired him to take on the challenge of hiking Kilimanjaro, once again partnering with the Fellowship to raise funds for Missions of Hope.
“It was my first ever global mission trip, and to really interact [with] and to really see first-hand the experience of a third-world country is devastating — but they’re so happy,” Bowersock said.
“They chase Christ. They’re very God-driven people. They’re OK with their circumstances because they know that there’s always a better place out there. I think bringing that perspective home allows me to have a little bit more empathy and patience and see what else we can do for people in our own communities.”
The journey was not embarked upon without preparation — mentally, physically, and spiritually. For a year prior to the trip, Bowersock ran, hiked, and prayed daily. Nevertheless, he encountered some challenges.
“The Barranco Wall is a 1,000-foot free climb,” Bowersock said. “If you look to the right, you see clouds. If you look down ... I felt like death at times. The hardest point was [when we] had to cross this 10-foot section and [we] were hugging a rock. I’ve always had a fear of heights, so I basically freaked out for a quick minute and had to regain composure.
“When I had saw the clouds to my right and I hugged that wall, I just prayed — ‘Just get me through this section, and then I’ll be able to keep looking up and not look down.’”
Bowersock is no stranger to struggle. Having experienced addiction for several years as a teen and into adulthood, he knew at some point he would need to transform his life, if not for his own sake then for his wife and three children. He found the missing piece at Connection Pointe, a Christian church in Brownsburg where he met Smith and countless others who helped broaden his perspective and turn his life around.
“I had a rough growing up. I’m not saying my parents never loved me, but I felt like love was very hard to get. But over the past couple years, I’ve been able to have a mentor like Lee Smith. He is like a father figure in my life that really gives me guidance and understanding and allows me to ask questions.
“I think when men are vulnerable in life and share emotions, that’s truly when you actually start to conquer life a little bit. Most men are just tough and rough and we just don’t want to share emotions or we want to keep it bottled in. And I’m telling you, it doesn’t matter what you’re going through or what trials and tribulations you’re going through — when you have an inner circle of men that you can share those experiences, those heartbreaks, those trials with and you can just be free, it just changes your life forever.”
As far as climbing, Bowersock also finds motivation in those around him.
“You lean on the people beside you,” he said. “You talk through your emotions. You have to be vulnerable. You can’t keep it inside. It doesn’t matter if it’s a happy moment, a bad moment, a sad moment – you have to share it. I think when you talk about some of the stuff that impacts you, it allows you to take a breath. It allows you to say, man, this is off my chest now, I’m good to go.”
Over the past few years, Bowersock has made it his mission to return the support he’s received from others. A servant-leader at heart, he emphasizes the importance of community and strives to put others first.
“You have this respect for one another because you’re all doing the same thing. It doesn’t matter what somebody else is going through; you step up no matter what. If someone needs extra water, you give them extra water. If someone needs electrolytes, you give them electrolytes. Because at the end of the day, we had so many people that had extra stuff. So I think if you need to slow down because you need to just hang out to have a conversation with somebody, I think you slow down and you have a conversation with somebody. It’s not a race. Over in Tanzania, they call it ‘pole, pole’ — slow, slow. It’s all about slowing down life, right? Understanding who you’re with and building camaraderie in those relationships.
“Over the past couple years, I think I’ve learned to truly be a servant leader. I think ultimately other people are more important. I’m not saying that our lives aren’t important, but other people’s lives are way more important. ... I think when we finally have a chance to really reflect on that – to truly be a servant leader and really serve other people — it’s a glorious defeat.”
Bowersock shared these words of inspiration to high schoolers who may be struggling like he did:
“We all have choices in life. I used to be that kid that bullied everyone,” he said. “Just respect your peers. Allow everyone to share their own emotions. Empathy goes a long way. Empathy, as I’ve learned over the past few years, is critical, because you never know what an individual is going through. Live your life and know that your peers are there to support you. And I think if you’re going through struggles, don’t hide it – just ask.”
Although Kilimanjaro was once-in-a-lifetime for Bowersock, he hopes to someday revisit Kenya to continue his mission to further education and living conditions for African children in vulnerable communities. As for mountaineering, Mount Everest may be next.
“On the mountain, when you move up and you get tired or you get weary or out of breath, you can always stop and you can always go forward again. Ultimately, you can always go forward in life. And if you’re having a hard time or you’re going through some trials and tribulations, it’s OK to stop. You’ve just got to push forward again. Even though circumstances might be tough — financial hardship might be tough, experiences might be tough, marriage might be tough — I think there’s always a way through that,” he said.
“Life’s not a hurry. It really isn’t. If you slow down, ask questions, become vulnerable, share your emotions — you can conquer the world.”
