I have posted some items on Facebook as they have happened. Graduations of students have been taking place throughout the month. The first that I attended was Kamiesha's. She is a brilliant girl who was the first in her neighborhood to go to a prestigious high school. She transferred from St. Catherine's High School to Wesley College for 3rd and 4th Form. She actually graduated with the highest grade point average, but missed out on being valedictorian since she had not completed all four forms at the school. No one can take away her awesome performance, though! And I was honored that she included me with an invitation to the ceremony! With her permission, I am posting these pictures!
Now we wait for word whether Kamiesha will receive a Taiwan scholarship for four years of university study in Taiwan! Fingers crossed!
I also attended a Primary School graduation for two of our residents. Melissa and Jervis Fisher came from Punta Gorda and their Laugh out Loud Children's Center to attend, as well. It was great fun to see them and share in the ceremony! However, after two hours, I left before it was over! At first I was a bit dismayed that a Primary School graduation would be so lengthy and ceremonious...until I realized that it is the end of mandatory education and the only graduation that many of the students may ever attend. That fact concerns me.
Another adventure was my opportunity to go to Price Barracks, the Belize Defense Force base and former and current British military base. I say former and present as the British government gave part of the base to the Belize military, yet maintain a presence on another part of the base. I was headed for the Flagstaff Mess in the British part to meet a young woman. I passed through the gate, turned over my drivers license, then followed directions: go over two humps (it was actually 3), turn right, go over two humps, stay left...you can't miss it! I was not so sure! But I made it! And what a pretty area...trimmed grass, full of trees, and a cool breeze. To get to the base, I drove down the opposite (to the terminal) side of the International Airport, past the Coca Cola plant and the Belikan Beer plant! Very interesting!
Summer brings many volunteers from the U.S. An interesting group came to the Children's Centre and performed dances for the children, as well as to interact with the kids. The group performed beautifully on what must have been a very different stage for them: a rough, cement outdoor basketball court! The DMCCC children were captivated, then learned dances with the visitors teaching them new moves!
Last Wednesday, I got up at 4:30 AM to get ready for my next adventure (see below). I heard a siren about 15 minutes later, and ran upstairs to see lots of smoke coming from the east. As it turns out, a fire began in Kimmie's Bar along the waterfront. The buildings in that area are old and wooden and a strong breeze was blowing. The fire spread rapidly. I watched a You-Tube video taken at the scene, and it differs from the "official" story from the fire department, as I saw only one small hose directed at the fire, with people yelling "there's no water!" It was an odd sight since a whole sea of water was just to the side. Unfortunately, a young woman was killed in the fire (one of the hazards of burglar bars on the windows). A fact of life in living here is the weak infrastructure, exemplified by the response to the fire.
The next adventure was a trip to Corozal, the northernmost district. As I was riding along with a social work supervisor and four children, I was at DMCCC before 7:00 AM. "7:00 AM Sharp" meant 7:30 AM, but who's counting. So picture this: a small, red Nissan pickup with front and back seats, the driver and social worker up front and four children and me in the back seat, of course with no seat belts! We drove north to Ladyville where we stopped at the Shell station to get gas. Well, the credit card would not work, so we headed back south to Belize City to the Shell station there. No luck with the credit card. Then we went to the Department of Human Development headquarters in downtown Belize City to inquire of the powers-that-be what the problem with the card might be. Apparently, the fuel credit allowance was at its max. So the children and I returned to the Centre. I went back to work in my office, seeing children. Then I received word that we may be going to Corozal after all! So I called Dave to bring me some lunch and quickly ate it, not a bit sure what the rest of my day would look like. About 12:30 PM, the social worker and driver again showed up in the red pickup. The children were in line to go eat lunch, so they took a bit of time to eat and change back into their "decent" clothes. We had fuel in the truck! But we also had powerful food smells, so everyone rolled down their windows (or as they said, "lowered the glass") and off we went at 20 miles per hour above the speed limit! I had been as far north as Orange Walk, then began seeing new territory. The fields of cane are still being harvested, and it was a pretty rural area. We rounded a turn two hours after leaving the Centre to a beautiful view of the Sea!
In the town of Corozal, we stopped at the Department of Human Development district office. We picked up the acting social worker of that district to go to the children's family home. Now we had EIGHT people in the pick-up truck--one small child went to the front seat to sit on the social worker's lap, while the 3 other children, the acting social worker, and I squeezed into the back seat! We managed to get the door closed and locked, laughing all the way! The social worker and I had worn the same colored blouse, and we commented that we just blended into one blob of teal in the back! We drove through a few small villages until we arrived at the village where the children lived. The house, set back in a field of green, was a small cement home, expanded from two rooms to four, three of which had beds for sleeping and one kitchen. The out-house was in back, as was running water (I think). The house was clean as could be, and we all sat in the "living" room where a wonderful breeze blew through, keeping the house very pleasant. The television was on, and as any of you who have worked in in-home therapy will understand, the mother immediately turned the T.V. off! Wonderful manners (and not my typical experience with in-home counseling). The hour long session was really difficult with my job to confront the mother on how she will do things differently so that the children remain safe. (The step-father did not attend, which is a story itself.) Apparently, the social workers were satisfied, and over my objections, left three of the four children with the mother, with the teen-age child returning to gather belongings together before going back by bus in a couple of days. (For the sake of understanding the kind of issues with which I deal, the teenager ran away the following day, not wanting to return home.) Then, after 5:00 PM, the two social workers, teenager, and I returned to the main office, where we picked up another social worker, whom we drove to downtown Orange Walk. The news was correct when they said that week that construction would begin on the main street of Orange Walk! What a mess to drive through!
Our poor driver then had to drive us all back in the dark (sun sets about 6:30 PM), first taking the social worker to Hattieville to her house. We returned to the Centre to drop off the teenager and then went to my house to drop me off at 7:45 PM--13 hours after I'd left home! What a day!
On Friday I did not go to work, as I went to the airport to pick up the first of the Dunedin, FL mission team! Laura Connelly came, as did Natalie Lanni, this time with her husband and two children! What fun to meet them!
(Are they coming? Oh, yes, here they are!)
In between the tasks of this challenging week, I planned and organized a dinner party for the 20+ volunteers, plus a few dedicated people from Belize City. I wanted the Florida people to have food of Belize: Puerco Pibil, pickled red onions, black beans, coconut rice, tropical fruit salad, corn tortillas from the local tortilleria, and homemade ice cream in 5 flavors from the "Ice Cream Shoppe!" I hope that everyone had as much fun as Dave and I had in hosting them! Dave and I moved furniture to line the walls so that all could fit!
The weather cooperated with heat, but a strong breeze to help keep the temperature bearable. After dinner, Laura held her devotional, a part of the Belize team's custom. I was amazed to hear the volunteers, who come annually, talk about how different the Centre feels to them, with children being kinder and more patient and respectful! While I wonder if they just hit a good day (!), they (and Dave) made me cry with their acknowledgements of my part in the changes. Perhaps it is a case of watching grass grow, but I see only what needs to be done. What an overwhelming end, for me, of the evening!
And now begins a week of busy-ness! Volunteer activities, end-of-the-month duties, beginning-of-the-month responsibilities, crises, and an all-day training in 10 days that I have to finish preparing!
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