Don't cry because it's over, laugh because it happened: 09C wraps up.

Goodbye, and thank you.

Thank you to all the blog followers who came on the India 09C expedition via the wonders of cyberspace. To those who commented on the blog (probably when they should have been doing work!) to get messages to their loved ones on expedition, you made a huge difference to the venturers and project managers out on the sites.

Thank you to all the parents and friends who encouraged the venturers and volunteer managers of 09C to put away 10 (or 12, or 14) weeks of their lives to join a Raleigh expedition and make a difference in the world, both to themselves and those who have benefited from our projects.



Thank you to the Raleigh head office team who have been a huge support to the volunteer managers and permanent staff on the ground in the Mysore field base.



Thank you to the Raleigh permanent staff: Country Programme Manager Mark Ashby, Facilities Manager Deepak, Host Country Venturer coordinator (the immensley talented) Vijay, Logistics Manager Amanda Ockwell, drivers 60/60, Girish and Manju, security guard Ashok, to the cleaners and the caterers, to Ravi the taxi driver: Thank you for making 09C an amazing expedition.

To Country Director Gavin Shelton (pictured below, with Helen), who today hangs up his Raleigh t-shirt for the last time, we all thank you and wish you all the best. Those who have worked with him know the time and effort Gavin put in to getting the Raleigh India expedition off the ground to become a roaring success has been extraordinary. The story of Mark and Gavin arriving in India with nothing more than a credit card and a laptop with a view to creating an expedition base is fondly (and often) recounted.

To the volunteer managers Ivan, Julia, Dani, Jenny, Neil, Lucy, Caz, Dr Andy, Andrew, Paul, Savage, Liz, Matt, Joey and Anni: You came from all walks of life to join Raleigh 09C, thank you for committing to making this expedition something truly extraordinary.



And to the venturers:

Well done!! Thank you for choosing to make a difference to your lives, and to the world around you.



Make Raleigh count: take this experience with you and apply it to your lives.



Join the Raleigh alumni group, load your pictures to Facebook, and make a lot of noise about your Raleigh experience so that others might have the chance to take the same journey.



In a phrase often quoted by Gavin Shelton from anthropoligist Margaret Mead:



"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed it's the only thing that ever has."



PLUG: Our amazing photographer Ann Taylor will be heading back to the UK in the coming weeks. She has done a remarkable job capturing the story of the Raleigh 09C expedition. And she's not too bad at portraiture either, check these out!


(above: Fieldbase medic Caz Stephens)

(Below: the three witches of field base, from left: Dr Julia Mitchell, Blog Boss Rule, Deputy Programme Manager Danielle Esterhuysen)You can check out Ann's website here, she's available for photographic work in the UK's north-east.

All the best everyone,

The 09C team