Evan Jacobsen

The definition of a sports fanatic, 17 year-old Evan spends most of his time outside classes at San Clemente High School involved in athletics of every sort. Evan is an offensive center and starting long snapper for the school’s varsity football team, and is passionate about weight lifting and climbing.

Through mid-2011, Evan will be training for and climbing the tallest peaks on each of the world’s seven continents (aka The Seven Summits.) Having summited his first 10,000+ foot peak when he was only 10, Evan got the climbing bug after hearing his father’s stories of summiting Mt. Aconcagua in Argentina – one of the summits on Evan’s agenda.

Evan couldn’t get enough of his father’s tales of trial, camaraderie and exhilaration upon reaching the summit. His father recounted the tale numerous times at Evan’s prodding. Evan drew pictures of the mountain as he envisioned it. He couldn’t get it out of his mind. The only logical solution was to climb mountains himself, so Evan asked his father if he, too, could take up climbing. His father agreed, and the rest, as they say, is history.

A lofty goal like climbing the Seven Summits means serious commitment. Evan trains daily by doing cardio and lifting weights. Unlike the rest of us, Evan’s cardio training involves wearing a weighted vest to simulate the pack he will carry on his climbs. Running, stair climbing and weekend hikes are all part of his regime. But the physical training alone won’t be enough to succeed - psychological preparation is just as important.

When he’s not working out, Evan enjoys all the other things teens live for – music, movies, and hanging out with his friends and cousins. Evan hopes to play football for USC one day, and then perhaps find a career in filmmaking, preferably directing. Evan’s produced a couple of amateur films, and has a particular affinity for action and mayhem, a la ‘The Godfather’. What teenage boy doesn’t?

What is perhaps different about Evan is his desire to help others obtain the most basic of human comforts, like a safe place to sleep. Adding to the pressure of preparing for and climbing seven tremendously tall mountains is Evan’s goal is to raise money over the next several years for international home building charities like Habitat for Humanity, The Fuller Center for Housing, and others. He plans to start small, with local, grassroots efforts. Evan hopes that word of his efforts will spread worldwide, bringing in much needed dollars to aid in the building of homes for families.

“I love movies,” states Evan. “And to paraphrase a line from one of my favorites, ‘We all have to decide what to do with the time given to us.’ I’ve decided to do my part to help build homes for families around the world. Having a safe shelter to sleep in, a place to call home – that shouldn’t be an impossible dream.”