BEAT

SUMMITING OBSTACLES

Entrepreneur and Mount Everest summiter Jeff Gottfurcht refuses to quit when things get tough

Bad news can often stop people dead in their tracks, but not for Jeff Gottfurcht. It fuels him forward. At age 27, while in the middle of his 14-year career on Wall Street, the California native was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune and inflammatory disease that mainly attacks the joints. Gottfurcht’s doctors warned him that he would be in a wheelchair by age 40. Instead, Gottfurcht summited Mount Everest. “I had no time to celebrate at the top because I knew my journey was only halfway complete. The celebration took place when I was back home safe with my family,” he says. Before this, Gottfurcht had successfully climbed a majority of the Seven Summits, the highest mountains on each of the seven continents, and other mountains around the globe. However, Mount Everest was always the goal. Once Gottfurcht achieved it, he decided to shift his focus. “As I reflect, I realize I was not climbing mountains so people could see me, but so I could see the world and change it,” he says. Thus began his philanthropic work and advocacy. Gottfurcht now travels the world to speak about rheumatoid arthritis, inspiring those diagnosed with autoimmune diseases to achieve their dreams no matter what. “I enjoy being an example for those who are told they cannot do something when they can,” says Gottfurcht, whose philanthropic efforts earned him the title of Man of the Year by the United Nations and its International School in 2010. His desire to change the world continued. In 2019, Gottfurcht created Cyber Dive, a social media monitoring platform that allows parents the to gain insight into their children’s online experiences. The entrepreneur was inspired to create Cyber Dive (www.cyberdive.co) after following the story of a young girl who was sexually assaulted. Photos of the assault were posted all over social media, making the young girl a victim to relentless online bullying. Gottfurcht, a concerned dad of three, said “enough.” “I knew something needed to be done to protect children from this type of online abuse and wanted to give parents peace of mind when allowing their children to explore social media,” he says.

BY ELIZABETH LIBERATORE / PHOTO BY CLAUDIA JOHNSTONE