A young man from the United States is attempting to fly solo around the world with the goal of raising money for cancer research.
Ethan Guo set off from Memphis, Tenn., about a year ago and touched down in Pitt Meadows on Tuesday night after a nine-hour flight from Alaska.
“I wanted to stop at Canada before I headed back to the United States. And I thought Pitt Meadows would be a great place to stop at. A great city. It’s also in proximity of Vancouver,” Guo said moments after landing on the tarmac.
The 19-year-old is raising money in honour of his cousin, who was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer last year. He’s hoping his adventure draws enough attention that he will raise at least $1 million.
“I was looking for a challenge. I was looking for putting myself in a difficult position, opportunity to grow, to learn more, and to have a potential of making a positive impact,” Guo explained. “While preparing for this journey, my cousin was diagnosed with Stage 4 blood cancer, and so I was trying to see what I can do to help. There’s not much I could do, so I started reaching out to hospitals, patients, doctors, and asking, ‘Hey, I’ve worked with you guys. What can do to help?’ And eventually came project Flight Against Cancer.”
Along with raising money, Guo is also hoping to become the youngest person to fly solo to all seven continents.
So far on his journey, he’s touched down in Europe, Africa, all over Asia, and Australia.
“Having the opportunity to really see firsthand these different cultures and different countries … and learn about the world, I’m very grateful for that experience, and am really fortunate to have this experience, and at the same time, I’m able to document these experiences to share around the world, and hopefully show the world that we’re quite similar to one another,” Guo explained.
Guo says he’s so far raised about a hundred thousand dollars, but he’s confident he’ll reach his goal by the time his journey ends.
source & photo: City News
