Edmund Hillary was born in Auckland, New Zealand on July 20, 1919. His parents were Percival Augustus Hillary and Gertrude Clark. He was the middle child. His older sister was named June and he had a brother named Rex. When he was little his family lived five miles from his school and when his father gave him money for the bus he saved it and ran to school and back. His mom was a teacher who taught him his lessons and he was able to go to high school at age 11. He had to ride the train for four hours to and from school. To take up the time he read adventure stories. Edmund quit school to work for his father full-time as a beekeeper. When he was 16 he went on a school ski trip. He loved the mountains and he would often go to the mountains to hike and ski. In 1944 during World War II he joined the New Zealand Air Force. He fought for the Allied Forces and while serving in the Air Force he was badly burned in battle. He worked hard to get better so he would be able to climb mountains again. By the time he climbed Mt. Everest he had already climbed 11 different peaks 20,000 feet or higher in mountain ranges in New Zealand, the Alps and the Himalayas.
