Stacy Allison
First American Woman to Climb Mount Everest

Stacy’s climbed the world’s most famous mountain, now she’s helping organizations across the globe scale their own monumental challenges.

Stacy Allison brings a vast range of experiences and knowledge to her energetic and dynamic presentations. Stacy is best known as the First American woman to summit Mt. Everest. She is also president of Stacy Allison General Contracting, a residential building company. She serves on the Board of Trustees of National University and is the Chairperson for The American Lung Association of the Pacific Mountain Region's fundraiser, Climb for Clean Air. Remarkably, she is also a successful author and committed mother of two. In her spare time, Stacy runs marathons.

At the age of 21, Stacy began major alpine climbing in earnest and achieved rapid success. Within a year, Stacy reached the top of Alaska’s Mt. McKinley, the highest point in North America, and was part of the first successful women’s ascent of Ama Dablam, the 22,495 foot peak known as Nepal’s Matterhorn. These accomplishments provided the groundwork for much greater accomplishments.

On her first attempt on Mt Everest, Stacy did not summit. She describes the challenge: “The worst storm in forty years trapped us in a snow cave at 23,500 feet for five days. Turning back can be the most important yet difficult decision of all, particularly when there is so much pressure to succeed.” Stacy reflects, “If you see yourself as trying to beat the mountain, eventually the mountain will win. You don’t conquer mountains, you cooperate with them.” Stacy returned to Mt. Everest with the Northwest American Everest Expedition. On September 29, 1988, after twenty-nine days on the mountain, Stacy became the first American woman to reach the summit of Mt. Everest, the world’s highest mountain at 29,028 feet.

Stacy then went on to become the leader of a successful K2 expedition, the world's second highest mountain, considered to be the most difficult peak on Earth to climb. Three of the team of seven made it to the top; after an accident to the third, in keeping with her view of teamwork and leadership, Stacy and the others descended. "In any endeavor, leaders should inspire members of the team with a passion for success," Stacy says, "but within the framework of team effort. One of the most crucial things to realize, feel and remember is that when one team member succeeds, the entire team succeeds."

Stacy’s experiences extend well beyond the mountains. She also owns and operates Stacy Allison General Contracting. She and her team of builders specialize in high end restorations. Stacy and her team steadfastly preserve the charm and integrity of classic old homes, while achieving financial success.

In the spirit of giving back to her community, Stacy Chairs the American Lung Association of Pacific Mountain Region’s fundraiser, Climb for Clean Air.

Stacy’s first book, Beyond The Limits: A Woman’s Triumph on Everest, is a suspenseful, triumphant adventure story. Her second , Many Mountains to Climb; Reflections on Competence, Courage and Commitment is an exciting anecdotal account of climbing challenges practically applied to help you plot your way more surely to professional and personal success. Stacy also contributed a chapter on Leadership in the book, Upward Bound, published by Crown Publishing. Stacy’s mission is to motivate people to move beyond limitations and reach for their dreams. She challenges her audiences to lay the foundation for risk taking by accepting full responsibility for their lives. She also emphasizes the importance of recognizing and valuing everyone’s contribution as a team member in life’s pursuits.

Mountains, though seemingly a planet apart from the world of business, are a rich source of practical insights for executives, managers and individuals alike. They are high-altitude laboratories for leadership, team dynamics, risk-taking, vision, and change management. Stacy combines her mountain experience with her business knowledge to create keynotes that consistently hit the mark to inspire and provide tremendous take home value.