Richard Branson's blogVirgin Unite and Virgin Galactic

Virgin Unite Staff Connection Trip 2010!

Virgin Unite's fundraiser

2 May 2010 days to go
Each year, Virgin Unite brings together 10 Virgin staff from across the Virgin Group for a week of hands on volunteering in South Africa in the community surrounding Ulusaba, Richard’s private game reserve. The Virgin Unite Staff Connection Trip 2010 Team will be leaving for South Africa on 2nd-8th May and between now and then are planning to fundraise up a storm for Pride ‘n Purpose! Pride ‘n Purpose work on a non-profit basis and are committed to the upliftment of disadvantaged communities living adjacent to the reserve. They assist with basic needs such as food, water, and health services, while also helping people to help themselves through education, social and economic empowerment. We are lucky to have a great team from across the Virgin Group: UK - Wes Brannigan, Virgin Atlantic; Satesh Melwani, Virgin Active; Nick Thurston, Virgin Media; Jon Harrowven, Virgin Money India - Lakshmi Karanth, Virgin Mobile India Australia - Natalie Ryan, Virgin Blue USA - Ben Eye, Virgin America; Christine Choi, Virgin Management USA Canada - Nancy Tichbon, Virgin Mobile CA South Africa - Donne Potgieter, Virgin Mobile We are all very excited about this once in a life time opportunity and really appreciate you taking the time to sponsor us. Thank you, The Virgin Unite Staff Connection Trip 2010 Team! Click here to find out more about the team or follow their blog
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Pride n' Purpose

Committed to improving the lives of disadvantaged communities in the Ulusaba region of South Africa.
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How I'm doing

Total so far
$18,817
Target
$22,849

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Date Display Name Message Amount Gift aid* Offline Total
23 June 2010 Melinda McDougall Satesh - what a fantastic opportunity and I know you will have made the most of it. Well done and thoroughly deserved $73.81 Yes No $94.47
19 May 2010 Jim Cahillane CHRISTINE - WELL DONE! $100.00 No No $100.00
19 May 2010 Alistair McGregor Great work Virgin Unite $173.58 No Yes $173.58
06 May 2010 Trish and Tom Go bond girl go! $100.00 No No $100.00
06 May 2010 Trish and Tom Go bond girl go! $100.00 No No $100.00
04 May 2010 James Bozanich Way to represent Virgin America, Ben! $25.00 No No $25.00
04 May 2010 Alix & Jim Brown Go, Christine! Edgemont is proud ;-) $36.00 No No $36.00
03 May 2010 Anita & Jeremy Jon - Well done you! So proud of what you are going to do. $30.56 Yes No $39.12
03 May 2010 Neeta and Prashil Go Choi! $50.00 No No $50.00
03 May 2010 Priya Bery Yeah Christine. finally you're on ur way to SA. Enjoy. xxpriya $50.00 No No $50.00
03 May 2010 Suresh Sani Thanks to all of you. Satesh, all the best ! $100.00 No No $100.00
02 May 2010 Nick Thurston Virgin Mobile Trowbridge $358.90 Yes No $459.40
01 May 2010 Jon's other half Have a fantastic trip, love you! $76.73 Yes No $98.22
01 May 2010 Simrit Kang Hi Laksh. You go gurl!!! $7.67 No No $7.67
01 May 2010 Nathan Rosenberg Good luck everyone! I love cats, karaoke, and America. $176.00 No No $176.00
01 May 2010 Candice & Mirko Rossi Well Done! wishing you the most amazing experience! Well Done Donne, so proud of you! $92.08 No No $92.08
30 April 2010 Joe Gaunt Well done Satesh $15.19 Yes No $19.45
30 April 2010 Jayshree & Sangeeta Sathya Sai Blessings for you Satesh $151.93 Yes No $194.47
30 April 2010 Nirmal Saverimuttu Congratulations to all. Go Choi! $50.00 No No $50.00
30 April 2010 Tania's friends Laxmi, Wish you all the best in your efforts. Proud to know someone who knows you. Keep up the good work and enjoy your time. $151.93 Yes No $194.47
30 April 2010 Virgin Money A Great Dutch Auction $168.64 Yes No $215.86
30 April 2010 Cristiano Ronaldo Sorry cant be there with you busy in Madrid $895.62 Yes No $1146.40
30 April 2010 Rumsheed Lakshmi this is from Kerala... $13.67 No No $13.67
30 April 2010 Dave & Charmaine Phillips Proud of your committment to this wonderful cause - Enjoy!! Donne' hope the experience is great. $269.14 No No $269.14
30 April 2010 Harsha wish you all the best lakshmi, do well, be safe $11.39 No No $11.39
30 April 2010 Rahul Gaikwad Wish you all the best Lakshami for this noble endevour.....proud of you....... $21.27 No No $21.27
30 April 2010 Woozae Kim I'm so proud of you for taking this journey! You will bring MUCh love and raise awareness for these children. $100.00 No No $100.00
29 April 2010 Andrew Bridge Way to go Christine and Nance! From a connection trip alumni...what a great experience! $98.50 No No $98.50
29 April 2010 David Beckham Go Jon! Me, Victoria and the kids wish you a fantastic trip $773.73 Yes No $990.38
29 April 2010 Salina Munoz Congratulations! Share your smile and your love--way to make a difference!! $10.00 No No $10.00
29 April 2010 Briege Goodman Well done Nick for being chosen :) You will have an amazing experience. Love you xx $22.89 Yes No $29.30
29 April 2010 Adam Wells sounds like a brilliant experience - enjoy it & good luck! $100.00 No No $100.00
29 April 2010 The Thompsons Good Luck Christine. Can't wait to hear about the trip $150.00 No No $150.00
29 April 2010 Jcottineau Have a great time and we expect a Spark! session when you get back. $50.00 No No $50.00
29 April 2010 Marc Holzapfel Go Christine! $50.00 No No $50.00
29 April 2010 srikanth punati way to go lakshmi $21.82 No No $21.82
29 April 2010 Jimmy George C hi Lux, wish u an eventful stint, rock n roll! $45.78 No No $45.78
29 April 2010 Marc Let's go to IronMan! :) $20.10 No No $20.10
29 April 2010 Jennifer Canipe Wishing you an extraordinary trip and looking forward to the amazing photos and stories! $30.00 No No $30.00
28 April 2010 DJ Venus i hope you learn lots. THANKS for giving back and making a difference! $10.00 No No $10.00
27 April 2010 Inflight Instructors Have Fun! Chris, Patrick, Erin, Sam and Marc!! $100.00 No No $100.00
27 April 2010 Barbara Russell Make the best of the experience Ben! $50.00 No No $50.00
27 April 2010 Amy Burr Good luck and enjoy Ben! $50.00 No No $50.00
27 April 2010 Arpita Gupta Love ya for wat u've being doing and have done so far.. Keep it up!!!! Always there with you. muaaaaaahhh love Arps $22.60 No No $22.60
27 April 2010 Rajesh Krishnan Great work Lakshmi , all the best $30.00 No No $30.00
27 April 2010 Charlotte Goodman Remember to play as hard as you work! Have fun all of you.... $153.87 No No $153.87
27 April 2010 Aileen C Best of luck Christine! $150.00 No No $150.00
27 April 2010 Jayne You go girl! do good for all of us $25.00 No No $25.00
27 April 2010 Leah Hung Best of luck Christine & Ben! $50.00 No No $50.00
27 April 2010 Nikunj Hey Lakshmi.... keep it up $10.00 No No $10.00
27 April 2010 Ankur Best wishes Lakhsmi $15.39 No No $15.39
27 April 2010 Adam G Congrats Ben $25.00 No No $25.00
27 April 2010 Rachel Pearce Nat, you should be so proud of all the hard work you have put into your fundraising, hope you have an amazing time. $50.96 No No $50.96
26 April 2010 Jenn & Pam Thanks for the help, girls... ~Ben $50.00 No No $50.00
23 April 2010 Natalie Ryan Help Nat, Help Unite Raffle : money raised :) $1856.21 No No $1856.21
22 April 2010 Gabby Agbonlahor Best of luck Wes - Will be an awesome experience. $768.13 Yes No $983.21
21 April 2010 Darren Nash Awesome effort Satesh, proud and defining $30.66 Yes No $39.25
21 April 2010 Christina Houghton Good Luck Satesh and all the team! $15.33 Yes No $19.63
21 April 2010 Zatyiah Knight Go Wes! Go Wes! Go Wes! $613.29 Yes No $785.01
21 April 2010 John Winter $153.32 Yes No $196.25
21 April 2010 Vanessa and Cordell Brewer Brilliant $40.39 No No $40.39
21 April 2010 Greg Phillips Well done, hope you all have an awesome experience, especially Donne :) $538.53 No No $538.53
20 April 2010 Doug Harrison Sweet effort man. Did Canary proud $30.58 Yes No $39.14
20 April 2010 Sam Bell Satesh and Michelle - enjoy those classes, fantastic effort guys! $30.58 Yes No $39.14
20 April 2010 Andrew Judge Well done Satesh - Fantastic effort! $76.44 Yes No $97.85
20 April 2010 nigel Reo Coker My mann wes $687.99 Yes No $880.62
20 April 2010 Marie Radimsky Go Ben!! $35.00 No No $35.00
19 April 2010 Geo Gaile Make the world a better place while having fun, Ben! $20.00 No No $20.00
19 April 2010 Jen Larson Have a great trip! You ROCK $25.00 No No $25.00
19 April 2010 Gareth Edmondson-Jones Yay, Ben! $25.00 No No $25.00
19 April 2010 Prashanthi Reddy Go Lakshmi Go !! $15.00 No No $15.00
19 April 2010 Brad All the best Wes! $383.95 No No $383.95
19 April 2010 leslie tobin Have a wonderful trip Ben! I cannot wait to see you awe inspiring photos! $25.00 No No $25.00
19 April 2010 Kyle McDaniel :-) $40.00 No No $40.00
19 April 2010 Kary Tritt Have a great time Ben-what a unique opportunity! $20.00 No No $20.00
18 April 2010 Satesh Melwani Sending you my support.... Love Ratan $153.61 Yes No $196.62
18 April 2010 David Cush Ben...Nice to see that you will finally do an honest days work. Congratulations and have fun. $500.00 No No $500.00
17 April 2010 RAJA SANTOSH Best of luck Lakshmi $30.92 No No $30.92
17 April 2010 simon ghazzar Ben..we 've been friends for more than 12 years...I am from northern africa....what will you be doing during your trip to south Africa will make me feel more honored to have you as a close friend.... $20.00 No No $20.00
16 April 2010 Frances Fiorillo Ben, you will makes all your colleagues at VX very proud. $250.00 No No $250.00
14 April 2010 Lou Simpson Well done Nat, you are doing such a fantastic job! xxx $13.90 No No $13.90
14 April 2010 Satesh Melwani Lots of love always $165.97 Yes No $212.45
14 April 2010 Sally Elliott What a unique opportunity to put something back and a real feather in your cap to be one of the chosen few. Well done Satesh! $15.37 Yes No $19.67
14 April 2010 Evelyn Walsh Well done Ben, so proud of you! $55.00 No No $55.00
14 April 2010 Cheryl and Roy Perry Ben, I'm excited that you will be part of this noble effort. Can't wait to see the photos and hear all about it when you return. Have a fun and safe trip. Love, Mom $20.00 No No $20.00
13 April 2010 Jon H well done have a good time $61.75 Yes No $79.04
13 April 2010 garrett nice one satesh $38.59 Yes No $49.40
13 April 2010 Simon SS Satesh - have a great time. Put some pictures up at the club when you get back. $30.87 Yes No $39.52
12 April 2010 Rich R Go Satesh :) $30.75 Yes No $39.35
12 April 2010 sharon w well done satesh $15.37 Yes No $19.68
12 April 2010 Robin GL Well done Satesh! $38.43 Yes No $49.19
12 April 2010 Rui Well done Satesh - very impressed!! keep going! $38.43 Yes No $49.19
12 April 2010 Jeffrey & Ann Well done Satesh $38.43 Yes No $49.19
12 April 2010 Robert Keep going Satesh $38.43 Yes No $49.19
11 April 2010 Lisa Go Nat!! $46.65 No No $46.65
09 April 2010 Virgin Blue 'Villagers' Virgin Blue Head Office staff supporting Nat! $1389.51 No No $1389.51
08 April 2010 Sumit ATB! $10.67 No No $10.67
06 April 2010 Priyesh and Rohini :) $112.91 No No $112.91
06 April 2010 shankar Good luck $4.58 No No $4.58
05 April 2010 Dayna Nelson Virgin America Ben- Wishing you an experience filled with laughter, hard work, adventure and lots of South African hospitality. We KNOW you will be taking lots of photos! Big Howdy! to Joni and Christie who I know will make your trip EXTRA fun and run smoothly. $25.00 No No $25.00
02 April 2010 Sunil Sani Good Luck!!! $100.00 No No $100.00
02 April 2010 Satesh So proud of you!!! $164.10 Yes No $210.04
01 April 2010 Aaron Power Good Luck Nat, what a great opportunity!! Here is a little help so you can reach your fund raising goal. Good Luck!!! $46.03 No No $46.03
29 March 2010 Virgin Mobile SA Thank you to (Very long): Kevin (R200), Lana (100), Lauren (R200), Jana (R200), Glen (R100) AND DEON R1000!!! Love you guys - Donne' $242.71 No No $242.71
27 March 2010 Rory Buckley Have a great time all $370.33 Yes No $474.02
26 March 2010 Justin Stover Congratulations Christine & Ben! $50.00 No No $50.00
26 March 2010 Harsh Lakshmi is a rock star!!! $7.44 No No $7.44
25 March 2010 Nita Good Luck Satesh, great oppurtunity for what you love doing. $30.07 Yes No $38.49
25 March 2010 Sally & Graeme Woodings Supporting Nat and Virgin Unite $91.94 No No $91.94
25 March 2010 Lucy Good luck Nat. enjoy this wonderful opportunity $18.39 No No $18.39
24 March 2010 Candice & Jared We are very proud of you! Enjoy and treasure every moment. Love ya dearly x $40.93 No No $40.93
23 March 2010 Lorri Brito Good Luck Christine!!! $25.00 No No $25.00
23 March 2010 Birdie no mesg $50.00 No No $50.00
22 March 2010 Audrey Fix Schaefer Go, Christine, go! (18 x 2 = good luck) $36.00 No No $36.00
22 March 2010 Jim Pattison Good luck Ben $25.00 No No $25.00
22 March 2010 Steve Sharp Great work as always Satesh! $15.02 Yes No $19.23
22 March 2010 Rachel Underwood What a fantastic opportunity Nat! Good luck with the fund raising. $137.37 No No $137.37
22 March 2010 Robin & Wendy Good luck Christine. What an amazing cause & adventure. $50.00 No No $50.00
21 March 2010 Chalmers family Congrats Nat, you lucky duck! $27.46 No No $27.46
20 March 2010 Jyoti B Dear Satty, Wishing you a safe a fruitful trip. They're lucky to have you in S Africa! $76.26 Yes No $97.61
20 March 2010 Ashwin & Rita Well done Satesh. Hope you have a great time in Ulusaba. You deserve it! $16.78 Yes No $21.47
19 March 2010 Sandhya Happy to support Lakshmi and team $60.00 No No $60.00
19 March 2010 Satesh Congratulations, Make the most of the opportunity $32.16 Yes No $41.17
18 March 2010 Julie Roe Well done Sitesh. Hope the project goes well. $45.70 Yes No $58.50
18 March 2010 Rajesh kumar Kori Good Job Lakashmi $30.47 No No $30.47
18 March 2010 Lakshmi Thank u guys for making me part of this noble work :)! $22.07 No No $22.07
18 March 2010 Ravi Vakil Gud work... $21.33 No No $21.33
18 March 2010 Gautham CB Gr8 work Guys! $18.00 No No $18.00
18 March 2010 Siddhartha Bless you Lakshmi and this project $76.17 No No $76.17
17 March 2010 Sunil Daswani Good Luck Satesh $75.26 Yes No $96.33
17 March 2010 Israni Family Congratulations, Satesh. Wishing you Good Luck for this wonderful project and a life enhancing experience. $75.26 No No $75.26
16 March 2010 Michael Fischer-Colbrie Congratulations Benjamin Eye, you will do great over there $10.00 No No $10.00
16 March 2010 Adam Arenstein Congratulations all! I look forward to the energy you'll bring back. $25.00 No No $25.00
16 March 2010 Karan Singh Go Lakshmi Go !! $7.60 No No $7.60
16 March 2010 Karan Singh Great work lakshmi :) $1.52 No No $1.52
15 March 2010 Michele O'Connor Ben: Send pics! You will be an great ambassador for Virgin America. $25.00 No No $25.00
15 March 2010 Sean Farrell Congratulations Satesh. You fully deserve this opportunity and I know you'll make the most of it. Sorry I couldn't sponsor you more! $75.96 Yes No $97.23
14 March 2010 Melanie Underwood Fabulous achievement Natalie. I am so very proud! $91.61 No No $91.61
14 March 2010 Prashanth Its easier to give money rather than time. Go Laksmi! $15.16 No No $15.16
14 March 2010 Toni & Jarrod Muir Great work Nat. Looking forward to hearing all about it. $27.48 No No $27.48
12 March 2010 Dave & Yolanda Ferguson Congrats Nat - make Australia proud!! We hope you accomplish alot for the people of Ulusaba. Enjoy the experience!! $27.41 No No $27.41
12 March 2010 Labrina Guyton Congratulations and have a safe trip!! $25.00 No No $25.00
11 March 2010 Harvey Stein $100.00 No No $100.00
11 March 2010 Douglas Stolls Go Ben! Scope it out so we can build some libraries there too---next project!! $25.00 No No $25.00
11 March 2010 Lynn Lapin Congratulations, Ben! Have a wonderful experience and a safe journey.Good Luck to you and the whole 2010 team. Love to you! $25.00 No No $25.00
10 March 2010 Raghuram Proud of your purpose! Good job! $25.00 No No $25.00
07 March 2010 Subita Well done to all of you!!! What a great opportunity!! Wishing you all a safe and successful trip... We love you Satesh and are so very proud of you brother dear... $163.51 Yes No $209.30
04 March 2010 Sara & Andrew Wells Congratulations guys, we hope you have an amazing experience, especially our Natalie from Virgin Blue, a deserving winner, go Natalie!! $9.05 No No $9.05
*Remember, if you're a UK taxpayer, please use Gift Aid and an extra 28% will be added to your donation at no extra cost to you. That's more bang for your buck. Online donations $16,723.29
Gift Aid $1,920.08
Online Total $18,643.37
Offline donations $173.58
Total so far $18,816.95