BY KAREN BOSSICK
Former NFL wide receiver Mark Pattison will show an encore presentation of his Emmy Award-winning NFL 360 film “Searching for the Summit” at 6 p.m. Thursday, June 16, at the Sun Valley Opera House.
The film documents his climb to the top of Mount Everest to complete his goal of climbing the tallest peaks on each of the seven continents. It won a 2022 Emmy Award for Best Picture.
The evening will be hosted by John Foley, former lead solo pilot of the Blue Angels, best-selling author of “Fearless Success,” an expert in the “How of High Performance Teams” and “The Guru of Gratitude.” As a Blue Angel, Foley flew at speeds of more than 500 miles per hour in formations as close as 18 inches apart.
Following the screening Pattison and Foley will hold a Q&A discussion on the Sun Valley Opera House stage.
In addition, the screening will include a short music moment from Delta Blues country star Steve Azar, whose musical sound traverses a blend of country, blues, folk and rock ‘n’ roll, a genre he calls “Delta Soul.”
A suggested donation of $10 at the door will benefit Higher Ground to help launch a new mountaineering skills program.
Pattison summited Mount Everest on May 23 2021, despite being snow blind in one eye, enduring 40 mile-per-hour winds and having to go without supplemental oxygen for part of his journey. He raised $56,972 for epilepsy awareness through the Sun Valley-based Higher Ground in conjunction with the climb. Pattison is very familiar with epilepsy having watched his daughter Emilia battle it.
“The life and death stakes of Everest will always be compelling. But it’s the access to Mark’s emotional and spiritual journey that makes this project truly special,” said NFL 360 Creative Director Trent Cooper. “We have followed Mark for years. He was wrestling with some things that many competitive athletes struggle with when their playing days end—a sense of purpose… Identity… He was brave enough to let us in.”
Pattison, who now lives in Ketchum, played for the Los Angeles Raiders, New Orleans Saints and Washington Huskies. He is currently training to climb the 15,771-foot Mont Blanc and The 14.702-foot pyramid-shaped Matterhorn—two of the highest summits in the Alps and Europe after Mount Elbrus, which Pattison climbed as part of his Seven Summits journey.
