A few days into his Raleigh International experience in Malaysia, 18-year-old Anthony Leevon Swan wanted to go home. He was sick of sleeping under mosquito netting, trekking miles every day and eating tuna fish and crackers for dinner.

Anthony was one of 13 Bermudian ?venturers?, ages 17 to 25, who went to Malaysia and Namibia this year as part of Raleigh International Bermuda.

This programme helps young Bermudians to uncover their full potential by sending them abroad to work with youth from other countries on challenging environment and community projects.

?After six days I was homesick,? Anthony said at a slideshow presentation held on Tuesday morning at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute (BUEI). ?A Raleigh facilitator took me for a walk. She talked to me about self confidence. That?s when I decided that I would stay. After that, I really started to enjoy it.?

Doubts surfaced again when Anthony was faced with a laborious sunrise walk up a mountain.

?I was cold and my knee started acting up,? he said. ?They told me I would have to get up at 2 a.m. I sat down. I said ?can I really do this? Do I want to stay here? Do I want to go to the top of the mountain??.?

Anthony chose the top of the mountain. He and his teammates arrived at the summit just in time to watch the sun come up.

?I decided I would finish it, and I was one of the first ones to the top,? Anthony said, his face beaming with obvious pride.

Other students in Malaysia included Atiya Symonds, Alana Burchell, Alex Dill, Antoine Williams, Terrina Nolan and Taneah Bean. The Namibia team comprised of Deshun Richardson, Kacey Smith, Kelly Savery, Nakia Foggo, Tomika Easton and Terrieka Simmons.

The Raleigh International group returned to Bermuda only 15 days ago after three months overseas.

Raleigh International recruited young people through meetings held at CedarBridge Academy, Berkeley Institute, community centres and the Adult Education Centre.

For Raleigh International organisers there were some students who stood out immediately at meetings.

Once selected, participants went through nine months of vigourous training in Bermuda before going off to Namibia or Malaysia.

They did a one-week training camp on Paget Island, a five-day survival camp at Spittal Pond in Smith?s Parish and then another training camp with the Bermuda Regiment when they walked the length of the Island.

They learned basic outdoor skills, such as how to cook in the field, how to cross rivers, how to throw out ropes in an emergency, and how to use a radio and an old fashioned compass.

One picture in the Tuesday slide show was a closeup of a heavily bandaged and blistered foot.

?This picture shows that my feet didn?t hold up too well in the field during our training in Bermuda,? said Nakia Foggo, 18, who went to Namibia. ?I got a million blisters, and a cut. I learned that when you get boots, make sure that you break them in first.?

In Bermuda, the venturers also did team-building exercises and community service, such as cleaning a beach or pulling up nuisance trees. For many of the venturers, the scariest exercise was learning to abseil down an 80-foot cliff.

At Scott Stallard?s Olympic Club gym they worked out to strengthen their bodies and used the climbing wall.

These workouts turned out to be vital, because it was not uncommon for the venturers in Namibia or Malaysia to spend more than seven hours a day trekking up mountains and across rough terrain.

Once in their respective countries, the Bermudian students were split up and placed into groups of students from all over the world. They slept in tents under the stars and under mosquito netting. The bathroom was ?au naturel?.

They took part in a number of community projects. In Namibia students helped to build a new habitat for captive vultures for the Rare Endangered Species Trust (REST).

?We put out fresh meat and got our 500 vultures,? said one Raleigh participant. The Namibia Venturers also worked for ten weeks to build a school.

One venturer, showing a picture of a crude hut in Namibia used as a school, said: ?When you come from a developed country where you have everything and then come to Africa ? where you see commercials ? ?give us 10 cents and we?ll make a child happy? ? that true. No matter what the children have they are happy. It really changes your perspective.?

In some cases, the Bermuda students were the only black members of their groups, having been separated from the other Bermudians.

Sadly one down side of their otherwise positive experiences with Raleigh was learning to deal with the racist attitudes of some of their fellow venturers from other countries.

For many of them, particularly Terrina Noland, 19, this was difficult to deal with.

?The majority of the people in my group were prejudiced, and God helped me to overcome that,? Terrina said.

She also realised some of her problems with the group had to do with her own reactions. She tried hard not to react to the adversity by isolating herself.

?I had to learn about team work. I learned that it is not just one person who makes up a team,? Terrina said.

Eventually, she made friends with many people in her group. It was a learning experience for everyone, not just Terrina.

?I gained a lot of self-confidence from being there,? Terrina said.

When the 2006 tour of duty was over, the Malaysia Raleigh director, Rory Hall, wrote to the Bermuda organisers: ?They arrived in Malaysia homesick suffering from culture shock and exhaustion.

?In the proceeding weeks they proved their doubters wrong. They immersed themselves into the culture. We enjoyed seeing their potential come to life.

?I hope they arrived home filled with pride in what they had done. I would hate for them to slip back to where they were before without exploring their opportunities.?

At the end of the presentation, venturers gave Raleigh Bermuda executive director Karen Diel a framed photograph of their activities. Mrs. Diel will be stepping down as executive director to allow Kristen White to take her place.

?I am just giving up the leadership,? she said. ?I?m not going anywhere. I will still be volunteering.?

Raleigh International Bermuda chairman Michael Spurling closed out the slideshow by mentioning some of Raleigh International Bermuda?s success stories. One student decided to go on to college based on her Raleigh experience. Another former venturer interested in law had been placed in a law firm for an internship.

?She was supposed to stay for two weeks and she ended up staying for nine months,? Mr. Spurling said.

He thanked the programme?s sponsors, the major one being the Ministry of Community and Cultural Affairs. Mr. Spurling said Raleigh International Bermuda is also interested in expanding its sponsorship to include community-based schemes.

?For example, employees in a large organisation such as a hospital could all donate ten dollars, and then choose a young person to go on a Raleigh expedition.?

Although venturers are expected to raise $1,000 to help send themselves overseas, it costs about $12,000 per venturer including airfare, medical, training and administration.

Next year, a new group will be sent to Borneo and Namibia.

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