Friday, June 9 from 7-8pm
Plus, special book signing with the authors from 8-8:30pm
Join Pemba Sherpa and his co-author, Jim McVey, to hear Pemba's inspiring story of a Sherpa who bridged the worlds of America and Nepal to improve the lives of his people in Nepal, the story of the Sherpa people, the dangers they face as expedition workers in the Himalayas — and the alarming state of the climbing industry on Mt. Everest today.
$12 Adults & $8 Student/Youth/Veteran/Military/Seniors
Regular ticket prices apply. Groupons can be used too!
Bridging Worlds brings us Pemba Sherpa's unique perspective on the vastly different worlds of Nepal and the United States. Pemba and his co-author, James McVey, take the reader on Pemba's life journey from a poor, remote Nepalese village in the Khumbu, to accomplished mountaineer, expedition leader, and successful U.S. businessman - and back to Khumbu where his journey began, to build a bridge, hydroelectric power plant, and bring hundreds of thousands of dollars in earthquake relief to his native people.
Moreover, Pemba and James tell the story of the Sherpa people, their history and culture, and their central role in the Everest expedition industry. From a Sherpa's perspective, Pemba details the exceptional dangers Sherpa's face as expedition workers in the Himalayas, the poor wages they earn compared to the millions of dollars collected annually by the government in permit fees - and the alarming state of the climbing industry on Mt. Everest today - not the least of which is the amount of garbage and human waste on Everest that threatens the water supply system of Khumbu.
Bridging Worlds: A Sherpa’s Story was a 2021 Colorado Book Awards Finalist.
Jim and Pemba at Sherpa's Adventure Restaurant.
Pemba Sherpa was born in the remote Khumbu region of Nepal, where he distinguished himself as a mountain guide. At 19, he migrated to Boulder and founded Ascent International. He is the owner of Sherpa Chai Tea Company and Sherpa's Adventurer Restaurant in Boulder. As a result of his success in business, Pemba has been able to devote his life to helping his native people of Nepal, where he has built a bridge, hydroelectric plant, and is planning a medical clinic. He has led more than 20 trips to Nepal for the Colorado Mountain Club. In 2015, with the help of the CMC, Pemba raised $110,000 in earthquake relief funds for those villages.
James McVey worked as a professor for thirty years at the University of Colorado and the University of North Carolina-Charlotte. His fiction and nonfiction have appeared in literary journals around the world. He is the author of five books, including:
- Loon Rangers (Saddle Road Press, 2021)
- The Way Home: Essays on the Outside West (University of Utah Press, 2010)
- The Wild Upriver and Other Stories (Arbutus Press, 2005)
For more on his life and work, you may visit: www.jamesmcvey.org