CrossCountry makes dream come true for Sebby

Make-A-Wish is the leading wishgranting charity that grants wishes to children and young people fighting life-threatening illnesses. The charity and CrossCountry worked together to ensure Sebby had a truly special day he will never forget.

Sebby, who is suffering from an aggressive form of leukaemia, gets tired quite easily and has to go to hospital frequently. As Sebby enjoys nothing more than going fast, CrossCountry organised the trip for Sebby, his nine year old sister, Lorien and Dad, Jay to give Sebby a surprise for being so brave.

Sebby, Lorien and Jay took the 09.25 CrossCountry Voyager from Plymouth to Exeter along with Driver Manager, Adrian Bartlett and Driver, Dave Hanna. They travelled in the cab of the train and Dave explained to Sebby how the controls worked. On the return journey, the 10.48 from Exeter, Sebby was able to ride in the cab of a refurbished High Speed Train (HST.) He also received a CrossCountry model train set and a bag of CrossCountry goodies to remember his day by.

Jay Salmon, Sebby's Dad, said: "We have all had an absolutely wonderful day. Sebby has been made to feel so special and has really enjoyed himself. CrossCountry and Make-A-Wish have been fantastic, there are no words to describe how great the day was and we couldn't have wished for anything more."

Please find notes to Editors, CrossCountry facts and figures below.

CrossCountry has moved offices. Our new address is CrossCountry Communications Department, 5th Floor, Cannon House, Priory Queensway, Birmingham B4 6BS

Notes to editors

CrossCountry started operating on 11 November 2007. The franchise, which is the most extensive in the UK, will run until 31 March 2016. For further information on CrossCountry services and future franchise plans log on to www.crosscountrytrains.co.uk

CrossCountry is part of the Arriva group which operates transport services in twelve European countries, employs more than 40,000 people and provides more than one billion passenger journeys every year. For more information about the Arriva group visit www.arriva.co.uk

Make-A-Wish grants magical wishes to children and young people fighting life-threatening illnesses. The charity was founded in the UK in 1986. www.make-a-wish.org.uk.
Registered charity number 295672/SC037479

CrossCountry facts and figures:

STATIONS SERVED: 118
ROUTE MILES: 1,654
WEEKDAY SERVICES: 293
PASSENGERS CARRIED: Over 30 million passenger journeys a year anticipated
ANNUAL TRAIN MILEAGE: Approximately 16 million
EMPLOYEES: Approximately 1,700
LONGEST TRAIN SERVICE: 08.20 Aberdeen to Penzance (774miles)

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Contact Information

CrossCountry Press Office: [email protected]

About CrossCountry

CrossCountry is a long-distance passenger train operator, with a network stretching from Aberdeen to Penzance and from Stansted to Cardiff and calling at over 100 stations. Based in Birmingham, CrossCountry connects seven of Britain’s 10 largest cities and delivers 240 services every weekday, equating to over 42 million passenger journeys each year.

For further information on CrossCountry services, visit crosscountrytrains.co.uk or visit one of our social media platforms via X @crosscountryuk or Facebook at facebook.com/crosscountrytrains