On Thursday, July 12, all 74 Session A students came together at the Flushing YMCA for the End-Session gathering. A sense of forlornness seemed to hang in the air in the Assembly Room, the same room where the students had had so many gatherings before, with this gathering being the last one the students would have. Still, the room was alive with much chatter and laughter.

The Certificate Presentation Ceremony began shortly after with Certificates being presented to each student. The students received their respective certificates with much joy and accomplishment, and there were some students who shared their experiences and takeaways from their time spent on the internship.

Lijin Kan, a student from the National University of Singapore and also from the Student Advisory Board, said, "I really appreciate this opportunity for me to come on this internship. I have learnt so many life lessons which would definitely come to be useful for my future. I would also like to thank EK for everything that she's done for us to make our internship experience a memorable and meaningful one. I have really made a new friend, along with many other lifetime friendships."

To end off the night, everybody gathered to take a final group photo. It was a heartwarming sight to see 74 individuals, who started off as strangers coming from different backgrounds, now leaving the program as friends.

That night, one could really experience the family spirit of "We're All in the Same Boat", which is the motto of the program. Everybody was weaving in and out of different groups of friends, taking photos and exchanging contacts. The gathering concluded the first session of the Cross-Cultural Internship Program (www.theccip.com) 2012.