Tom Fudge: Greg Mortenson was the son of American Lutheran missionaries. He spent part of his childhood in Africa. But in the early years of his adult life, he didn't seem too interested in following in his parent’s footsteps. In fact, he had become a bit of a California climbing bum. But that was before he took a stab at one of world's great climbing adventures; the peak called K2, in the Himalayan mountains of Pakistan. In his descent from the summit that he didn't quite reach, Mortenson was separated from his climbing buddies. He became weak, hungry and disoriented. That's when the people of a poor tiny village called Korphe found him, took him in, and cared for him.
What followed makes for one of the greatest modern stories of philanthropy, and it's a story told in the book Three Cups of Tea . Greg Mortenson co-wrote the book with journalist David Oliver Relin.
David Relin will be giving a lecture, answering questions, and signing books at the La Jolla Public Library , tomorrow, Jan. 30 at 7p.m.
Three Cups of Tea is currently the featured book in One Book One San Diego , a program sponsored by KPBS and the San Diego Public Library.
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