Saturday morning arrived a bit overcast. I got up early to have breakfast with Gene, Barry and Sammy before they went on their great adventure, which included meeting more than one Chief and ceremonies involving at least one bottle of schnapps!!

After they left I walked along the beach alone. I looked out to sea and thought about all my experiences over the last couple of weeks. Each credit union we visited was completely different than the previous one but they all had one thing in common. The staff and boards were very interested in what Larry and I had to say. At times I felt overwhelmed that these intelligent, educated people were looking to me for advice and assistance.

There were times when we would have a simple suggestion that was met with such gratitude. At times, one manager or board member would show us a policy or form they had created, asking for our opinion and upon review, we could not make it better it was so well thought out. When we would present our reports to the credit union boards and staff, the questions we were asked really showed us that they understood where we were coming from and were so excited to move the credit union system in general, and their credit union in particular, forward.

I thought of all these things as I walked along the beach, picking up shells to take home for my daughter's art projects. The beach was very, very clean so shells were few and far between.

Because this will be the end of this technical assignment, I do not know when I will return to Ghana, unlike last year when I knew I would return in 12 short months. The group of 10 coaches, and our "handlers" (from CUA and CCA) as I like to call them, have become more like family than co-workers. I will miss them all, but not right now.

I was the official welcoming committee when the rest of the group arrived from Accra. All the coaches and several interns (university graduates spending 6 month terms working in Ghana with the credit union system) showed up at lunch time. After huge hugs all around and a few quick stories of their trip, we were presented with a wonderful buffet lunch of western and Ghanaian food. After lunch which involved a great deal of catching up, the big waves called us and we spent some time trying not to drown or swallow the salt water. Let's just say that nobody drowned. A couple of Ghanaian women that had been part of the "Women's Mentoring Project" a two years past came for a visit. One of the women had stayed at Margaret's CU so they caught up on old friends. I am reminded once again that it is a very small world.

We are all going to CUA House now to present our final reports so I will say "until later................................"

Marcia