Family and friends of Luton woman set to climb Everest in her memory

Family and friends of a Luton woman have pledged to climb Everest in her memory – and are appealing for help to make it happen.

Nadia Mulara and a team of climbers will be heading to Everest in April 2027 in honour of Nadia’s sister Zena Sharifa Saher, who died in October 2023.

But before that, they will tackle Kilimanjaro in January 2025, Mera Peak (and Everest base camp) in April 2026, and Aconcagua in October 2026.

Nadia will be joined by Zena’s best friend Bex Stripe, Zena’s “spiritual godfather” Sir Mostafa Salameh, seasoned mountaineer Lapka Tsheri, and filmmaker Leonardo Avezzano. Nadia’s twin sister Sonia will join the team for the first three peaks, and their sister Janan is working behind-the-scenes to support the fundraiser.

Nadia, 39, said Zena ‘lit up every room and lifted every heart’.

She said: “Zena loved to dance, and later she sang and learned the guitar. She was very big on health, wellness, yoga, hiking, and she loved travelling, her family, and friends – treating everyone she met like a best friend, and her best friends like family. There was no one like her, Zena was just so full of life and wanted to experience everything.

“We’re a spiritual family and believe in an afterlife. We desperately wanted to hear from Zena’s spirit and when two different psychics reached out to my other sisters and said ‘Zena wants us to do everything we said we were going to do and she will live through our eyes’. I knew it was her. I felt her energy, it’s what people were drawn to.

"I’d always wanted to climb a mountain. I remembered how Zena was in awe of her Godfather Mostafa and that he had climbed Everest. I thought, no I can’t do that, this was the tallest mountain in the world and I am just little old me, who complains of the cold and a bad hip.

"I wanted to know what my family thought because their opinions mean a lot to me, and once I contacted Mind BLMK and opened a Givestar donation page, my parents realised I was serious.”

She added: “It’s not so much about getting to the top, for me, it’s about the journey. The physical struggle, getting out of my comfort zone and knowing I can do it. I’ve always felt I had more to give but I was too scared to act on my dreams.

"The part I am most looking forward to is raising awareness for Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) and inspiring people to overcome their mental mountains. I hope to show them that if I am strong enough to do this, as a mental health sufferer, then they are strong enough to get through their mental struggles too.”

Nadia said she can’t wait to face the challenges of each climb.

She said: “The Khumbu Icefall is probably on my mind more as, like Mostafa, I am scared of heights. That’s why I’m practicing in my garden. Walking with crampons attached to my boots while I attempt to walk over a rickety ladder, placed over a large crevasse between two blocks of ice from a moving glacial river, definitely has me contemplating what I’m doing - and yet, I have never been more determined to do anything in my life.

“Strangely, I don’t have any fear about it just excitement. I can feel Zena jumping for joy and shouting ‘yes, go Nardy’. She’s sent me signs that I am on the right path. I know it’s hard to move on, to watch the world carry on as though your loved one never existed. But they did exist and they will continue to exist in your heart and in your memories.”

Zena’s sister Sonia, 39, said: “I’m not the same person I was. I can’t be that person again. A huge part of me is gone and I have to learn to live a new life, Sonia 2.0. Zena was a part of us: the power of four. We still have that power. It never died.

"I’m really excited about Kilimanjaro, and I’d like to participate in all the other climbs if time allows – but I don’t want to be away from my young children for too long. I want to bring awareness to BDD and the incredible work that MIND is doing.”

She added: "Zena always wanted to open a yoga retreat in Bali. She wanted to climb mountains. She wanted to help people to heal. We’re living our lives with her behind our eyes. She’s with us every step of the way and she lives on beside us. We get to show her what she longed to achieve. We want to make her proud.”

The group is appealing for support through donations and sponsorship to help cover the cost of the climbs. To sponsor the team, email [email protected] or visit the group’s Givestar page to donate.