ELLIOTT BOSTON III Climbs Seven Peaks - Brief Article

THE words of his dying grandmother had a great impact on 15-year-old Elliott Boston III. It didn't matter how many degrees or how much money he obtained, she told him, adding, If you can't give anything back, what good are you?"

Years later, after he developed a passion for mountain climbing, Boston heeded his grandmother's words and set out to become the first Black person to scale the world's seven tallest mountains. Since August, the stockbroker trainee has climbed two of the seven: Mount Elbrus in Russia and South America's Aconcagua. He is scheduled to begin a three-week trek up Alaska's Mount McKinley in June. He also plans to conquer Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro, Mount Vinson in Antarctica, Carstensz in Indonesia, and the 29,000-foot Mount Everest in Nepal, the world's highest peak.

This two-year expedition can help expose youth to something new and different, Boston says, and give children a positive role model. "You can say, `I don't want to be a role model,' but when you're in the limelight, you are, regardless," says the Newport Beach, Calif., resident. "We need to have more people who are strong, Black role models for not only African-American kids, but kids in general."

After he saw a movie about mountain climbers in 1992, Boston signed up for a rock climbing class. He spent the next three years climbing summits more 10,000 feet in the U.S. before reading the books Seven Summits and Black Firsts: 2,000 Years of Extraordinary Achievement. The only person he found listed in the chapter on exploration was Matthew Henson, who, with Adm. Robert E. Peary, became the first to reach the North Pole in 1909. That's when Boston put the two ideas together and developed a way to give back to the community. "In this book, they talked about how the pioneers have to lead the way for others to follow," Boston says. "And so the expedition is set up to lead the way so that others can follow."

At first, Boston's wife, Christy, and his mother, Rosemary, were apprehensive about his quest. Christy, who doesn't climb, is not as adventurous as her husband. Boston raised the $810,000 necessary for the seven-summit expedition through his church and corporate sponsorships. His father, Elliott Jr., supports the excursion, likening the trek to Tiger Woods' impact on professional golf. "Twenty-five years ago, you hardly saw any African-Americans participating in golf," Boston says. "Not everyone is going to get into rock climbing, but if they [are inspired to] take a day hike or do some kind of exploration, then the expedition covers its objective."

Boston, 31, has other life objectives as well, which include finishing his MBA this year and becoming a licensed stockbroker. And though he has no children yet, he will continue to expose Black youths to rock climbing through his non-profit organization, the Pioneer Climbing Expedition. This way, Boston can give back in more ways than one. People need to know how to invest their money so that they can retire," Boston says. "If that involves my spending three or four hours doing a free seminar, then I'll do that. If it takes me getting three or four kids to go to a rock gym and do some climbing and get them involved, then I'll do that."

His grandmother would be proud.