He returned to USA in 1972 to Roseville, Minnesota and graduated from Ramsey H.S. in 1975. He joined the U.S. Army and served as a medic in the in Germany during the Cold War (1975-1977), and received the Army Commendation Medal. Mortenson attended Concordia College, Moorhead, Minn. and later graduated from the University of South Dakota, Vermillion, S.D., in 1983 with a degree in chemistry and nursing.
In July 1992, Mortenson’s younger sister, Christa, died from severe epilepsy, on the eve of the day she was to drive from Minneapolis to Dyserville, Iowa to see the place where the movie, “Field of Dreams” was filmed. A year later, to honor his sister’s tragic death, Mortenson attempted to climb Pakistan’s treacherous K2, the world’s second highest mountain.
Following the K2 ascent, an exhausted, emaciated and weak Mortenson stumbled into a local village, named Korphe, where he was nursed back to health by impoverished mountain villagers. There, he found out that the literacy rate was only 3% and one out of three children born dies before the age of one.
In appreciation for their hospitality, Mortenson vowed to return and help build a school. From that rash promise, grew one a humanitarian campaign in which Mortenson has dedicated his life to promote education and health, especially for girls, in remote, often volatile regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. As of 2006, he has set up over 55 schools which provide education to over 24,000 children, mostly in regions without schools.
His efforts have not been without difficulty. He has received two fatwehs by enraged Mullahs angered by his attempts to educate girls. In 1996, he survived an eight day armed kidnapping in the tribal areas of Pakistan, and escaped a 2003 firefight by feuding Afghan warlords, by hiding in a truck under putrid animal hides going to a leather-tanning factory. After 9/11, he received hate mail and death threats from his fellow Americans for helping Muslim children with education.
In the rural communities of Afghanistan and Pakistan, Mortenson is a living hero, where he has gained the trust of Islamic leaders, military commanders, village elders and tribal chiefs for his tireless effort to champion girls’ education. He is one of few Americans working extensively in the region now considered the front lines of the war on terror.
“You can build roads, put in electricity, drop bombs, or hand out condoms, but until the girls are education: peace and prosperity in a society will not happen”, says Mortenson.
Mortenson’s cross-cultural expertise has brought him to speak on Capital Hill, DC think tanks, the Pentagon, Dept. of Defense, outdoor groups, universities, schools, churches, mosques, synagogues, business and civic groups, women's organizations all across America.
Tom Brokaw calls Mortenson, “one ordinary person, with the right combination of character and determination, who is really changing the world”.
Representative Mary Bono (Rep. Cali.) calls Mortenson, "a true American hero, whose creativity, courage and compassion exemplifies the true ideals of the American spirit".
Al Neuharth, founder of USA Today, says "Mortenson doesn't just climb mountains. He moves them, and through his dedication and determination, he's given hope and changed the lives of thousands of children in a region of turmoil”.
While not overseas half the year, Mortenson, 49, lives in Bozeman, Montana with his wife, Dr. Tara Bishop, a clinical psychologist and his two children.
Mortenson’s biography, “Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission To Fight Terrorism and Build Nations…One School At A Time” was a New York Times best-seller in March 2006. It was published in paperback in February of 2007. |
Publications
Mortenson and author David Oliver Relin co-author of Mortenson biography: "Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Quest To Change The World, One School At A Time"; New York: Viking Press / Penguin Publishing, published March 2006 (ISBN 0670034827)
Inspirational chapter in: "Chicken Soup for a Better World", Jack Canfield, et al., Deerfield Beach: HCI Books, August 2005 (ISBN 0757303129)
Contributing author for "The Difference a Day Makes"; Karen Jones, Novato: New World Library, 2005 (ISBN 1577314751).
Mortenson wrote a summary and chapter in "Sustainable Development in Central Asia"; Shirin Akiner, Sander Tideman (editors), Surrey: Curzon Press, 1998. (ISBN 0312219318) |
