2010 BELIZE MISSION

WEEK ONE - YouTube Video

2010-03-17T05:12:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSZ9jrRgqWY

2010-03-09T13:11:00.000-08:00

So as promised, now that i'm home, i'll upload some pictures. Unfortunately, I seem to be having some sour luck lately, for some reason my computer wont recognize that my memory card has pictures on it. So until I can figure that out, here are some pictures (about 1 a day) taken by Alyssa Hayter. Enjoy, and expect to see alot more soon!

The kids at St. Hilda's lining up for morning snack

Remember that massive tickle fight I mentioned? Note my face..these children were RELENTLESS

One of the classrooms at St. Hilda's

Teaching some St. Hilda's children how to be puppeteers

Setting up for our show at the High School

Lionel Hayter entertaining the St Barnabas children with Andy the dog

The Cathedral Puppeteers at St Barnabas with our very own Belizian Puppeterr, Ashley

Bev with the newly established St Hilda's Puppeteers

Everyone excited for a fun filled afternoon Friday; filled with Puppet shows, jokes, and dance

2010-03-07T09:17:00.000-08:00

Unfortunately this will be our last Belizean Blog post. On Friday we had a relaxing evening in Belize City. Then yesterday we took the 9am Ferry out to Caye Caulker. We could not have asked for better weather for the day. It looked bleak when we first arrived; rain started to fall as we slipped into our snorkeling gear. Luckily by the time we arrived on our first dive spot, the sun was shining and the weather was scorching. We had three dive spots on our 3 hour trip out onto the reef. The first was kind of an 'orientation dive'. We stuck as a group, and our guide gave tips on ways to snorkel and pointed out types of fish, as a way to teach everyone who was new to snorkeling. Our second stop was really exciting. We went to 'Ray Alley'; We swum with literally 40+ Sting rays ranging in a wingspan of 2 to 5 feet. For those of us who were brave enough, we even got a chance to swim close enough to pet them. Our third stop was more along the lines of the first stop. Its reported there that George may have spotted a Nurse shark on that stop. By the we arrived back on Caye Caulker the sun was burning us to a crisp. We had a delicious lunch in a little local restaurant on the beach, then split into groups to spend our afternoon shopping in the islands little shops. By the end of it, most of us couldn't move we were so cooked, but personally I don't mind. It was all worth it to get to spend the day on that beautiful island. By the evening we were pretty much burnt out, but before we went to bed had a lovely dinner in Old Belize.

This morning we woke up early to make it to the 7am service at the Cathedral in Belize City. For the first service we preformed the show for the Sunday school, and I even got the chance to read the second lesson. For the second service at 930 we preformed the show again for the entire church. We just returned from the 2 services, and are about to have lunch, one more devotional, and then pack. We get picked up to go the the airport at 230, and are suppose to fly out 4 ish. We should arrive in Texas by the early evening. Might even get a chance to do some sight seeing on our night over there!

So until Texas..this is truly goodbye from Belize. It has been an amazing mission for all of us, and im sure one that will be close to our hearts for the years to come. I'd like to thank the team back home, for keeping us in their prayers, and for the entire congregation, both at the Cathedral and abroad, for keeping us in your thoughts.

See y'all in Texas.

(we're practicing our accents already)

2010-03-05T06:09:00.000-08:00

I usually don't do a morning post, but from what I've heard internet will be hard to come by in Belize City, so this may be the last post until we reach Texas.

This morning the group got up early (Lionel George and I got up at 5 to see the sunrise, the rest got up at 6), to go see the "Great Belize Canoe Race" (...or something like that). Its been an annual event for the past 10 years in which about 40 canoe teams race up the river from San Ignacio to Belize City. The race is spanned over 4 days, and always has a huge turn out for watching. from there we walked up to Pops for a very crowded breakfast. In about 15 minutes we're heading to St. Hilda's one last time, and will be doing a puppet show amongst what from what I've heard will be a 'talent' show. Along with the show, there are going to be a children's dance (which i saw videos of from they're practice, they are really good) and some of the children we've trained to use the puppets will be doing a show of their own. All the families are invited to come, so it will be the perfect way to say goodbye to the school. After that we

re travelling directly into Belize City, and...who knows.

All i know is tomorrow... CAYE CAULKER (we're just a bit excited..). The weather has been a bit dodgey so far, but hopefully we'll be blessed with another sunny day.

So until Texas, adios, sianara, and we'll see you on the other side.

PS- I have no idea how to spell adios or Sianara

2010-03-04T15:21:00.000-08:00

Guess we got so caught up in the moment I have 2 days to update you on now. Lets start off with yesterday.

As always we strolled over to breakfast at pops, and then drove over to St. Hilda's for the morning. The group split up at that point; some taught puppeting, some helped with reading, and some of us started on our labor project for the week, making bookshelves. Then for the afternoon we headed over to the high school that Ashley, the student the Cathedral is sponsoring, attends. The group (which was about 200 students I'd say) all crowded around the puppet theater, which we set up in the basketball court. From there we took a last minute trip out to Xunantunich, a Mayan ruin 15 minutes from San Ignacio and over 135 ft tall. It was absolutely amazing to explore the ruins and it defiantly was an experience no one here will forget. From there we had a relaxing evening and headed to bed.

Today we followed a similar schedule as the day before. Woke up, went to Pops and headed over to St. Hilda's again. In the morning, some taught more puppeting skills while the rest of us finished up the bookshelves. Lunch was amazing fun today. Today was the hottest and sunniest day yet. About 36 and not a cloud in the sky. Needless to say we all got red today. While on the lunch break, we explored the houses surrounding St Hilda's (kind of a neighborhood where most of the school children's families live). We then headed over to the Saint Barnabas elementary to do some more puppet shows. It was unfortunate because I must say, I've never had a more excited group to see a show...and halfway through we lost power at the school. This didn't stir the kids one bit, so we finished the show without the music. Soon after the power returned, so we finished up our visit there will the full show, with more enthusiasm than ever. We also met a little mascot of the school today, an adorable stray dog named Spooky. We then headed back to The Venus Hotel for some much needed R&R, and in about 45 min are heading out to supper.

Hear it snowed in Fredericton today...

try not to be too jealous of us for our weather

Stanley is home ....

2010-03-03T11:31:00.000-08:00

After a wonderful few days in Punta Gorda, Stanley arrived safely home at 3:30am this morning.

Glad you made it safe and sound Stanley.

2010-03-02T17:15:00.000-08:00

I hate to break my promises, but you might not be seeing the pictures just yet. I've been sitting at my computer for the last 20 minutes trying to upload some pictures, but it seems to have gotten stuck on 16%. Do not fret though, I'll keep trying.

In the meantime an update for what happened today. We awoke this morning and had a delicious breakfast at Pops (for all you frederictonians, it basically sums up to a Belize version of the Cabin on the Woodstock road). We then headed out to St Hilda's for our first full day at the school. After setting up the Puppet theatre, We traveled from class to class in 2 groups, teaching the basics of puppeting to the children. We had a amazing lunch (if you have noticed...good food is a recurring trend here), which was followed by, what could only be described as the most chaotic tickle flight known to man. To sum up, 80% of the children attacked us in a huge swarm of tickling. While this sounds rather foolish, it was the greatest thing that has happened so far. the connections that were made between the children and our team was so heart warming. From that point on, the children were 100% comfortable around us, none showing any shyness at all. I thoroughly look forward to going back tomorrow.

We then spent the afternoon doing the Jonah Show for each of the classes. We were tuckered out by the time the bus rolled in to pick us up at 330, but I don't think any of us would have traded today for a chance to sleep in and relax. Since coming back from the school, a few have gone shopping, and then got ready to go eat. I'm currently sitting in our supper destination, Flavas. Once we're done here we'll be heading back to the hotel where Bev and I will be doing our bible study/devotional time on 2 Corinthians 12; 1-10.

anyway, time for supper, keep an eye out for the pictures....they'll get up eventually.

I SEE FOOD!

February 27 - March 1 Caye Caulker / St. John's Cathedral and Travelling Home

2010-03-02T09:19:00.000-08:00

Saturday

We had a nice breakfast delivered to us by the Diocese and then worked through some transportation and logistical issues for the week two team. Once we were all cleaned up we headed out on our water taxi to Caye Caulker. Doug and Ann strolled around the island as the rest of us headed out snorkling (since they have the second largest coral reef in the world!!).

This photo was taken less than a block away from the Anglican Guest House

where we stayed in Belize City

The view

Caye Caulker

On our way snorkling with beautiful coral, plants and fish, including dozens of stingray, two nursing sharks and a baracuda!

SUNDAY

Unfortunately I do not have photo's (yet) from our church service at St. John's Cathedral since the photo's were taken using Beverly's camera and she's still in Belize. The service was very uplifting. In particular we enjoyed the sermon, the singing of Happy Birthday and when each row joined hands for the singing of the Lord's Prayer. The minister was turning 70yrs old (at midnight ...since she's a leap year baby) and full of life. We chatted with members of the congregation after the service was complete, including the Bishop's mother. After the service we met up with three boys who had just taken an iguana out of a tree. It felt pretty neat holding it!

After church we had another meal delivered to us at the Guest House and then did devotions since we were so exhausted at the end of our full day on Saturday. Andrew then gave us a little tour around Belize City and then took us to the airport.

Saying "so long" to our new friend Andrew

Leaving Belize

We had a safe journey to Houston on Sunday night and when we arrived at the hotel we learned of Canada's win over USA in the gold medal game. We were so proud of "our boys"! We then enjoyed some yummy Texan pizza and called it a night since we had to get up at 3am.

Travelled on Monday from Houston to Newark and then a quick flight to Maine (after a 30 minute delay getting on the runway). The drive back from Portland was pretty clear, other than about an hour + stretch after Bangor. We were all (Doug, Ann, Susan, Brad, Sheila and Cindy) safely in our homes by 10:45pm.

March 2nd - Week One Team - Safe and Sound

2010-03-02T05:38:00.000-08:00

Good morning!

Just a little update to let you know that Doug, Ann, Brad, Susan, Sheila and Cindy arrived back in Fredericton at 10:30pm last night. We're thrilled to hear that the Week Two team has arrived safely. Looking forward to hearing all about their adventures.

Week Two safe arrival

2010-03-01T19:50:00.000-08:00

After a long and extremely tiring trip down, we have made it to Belize! It is beautiful here. We stepped off the plane to some nice breezy 28 degree weather. For all you who have been to Belize before, or have just returned, you know this is a rare occurrence (usually a lot warmer and a lot more humid with no wind). After a delicious lunch at Cheers, Andrew, the youth leader at the Cathedral in Belize City, drove us to St Hilda's Elementary to stop and say hi to the children. I know know about the rest of the team, but this certainly made my day. They were all smiles upon our arrival, and I know our entire team is extremely excited to be back again tomorrow. After that, (this was approximately hour 32 of our sleepless travel down) we checked into the Venus Hotel....and completely passed out. But that nice little catnap gave us the energy to enjoy a tasty supper at Han-nahs. Then after a relaxing devotional time, debriefing on our trip so far, we've settled in for a good nights sleep (something I greatly look forward to doing as soon as this is posted!).

There are far too many stories to tell and too many pictures to show over the past few days, but unfortunately we're on a bit of a time limit; I've got about 30 seconds till the internet cafe closes, so i'm working under the clock. If there are spelling errors, or sentences that make no sense whatsoever, please bear with me. But we are here, we are ok, and we are SO excited to get started.

I'll try to get in tomorrow at a more timely fashion. That way you can see some of the pictures that have been collected since the last post.

until then, Goodnight from Belize

-Cody McKay

The toucan has landed ...

2010-03-01T11:39:00.000-08:00

Quick update to let you know that the week one team has arrived safely in Portland, ME. We expect to be home in Fredericton by about 11pm.

Thank you all for keeping us in your prayers.

February 25th & 26th - PHOTO's

2010-02-28T14:00:00.000-08:00

THURSDAY

Morning Prayer

Beverly and Bill .....hard at work

School children sanding their new tables

The first six tables

Our "home base"

Cindy, Doug and Susan

Starting to paint Mr. Armando's Standard 6 classroom

This is the highest level of public schooling in Belize

(equivalent to our grade 8)

Doug painting all the high, bat dust, areas
Susan recruiting little Robert to help her stir the paint

The village bus

Brad enjoying some time with the children

Students from Mr. Armando's senior class, taking the tables into the chapel

Our team, just after watching Canada win GOLD in women's hockey

CANADA vs. USA

End of day devotionals

FRIDAY

"CANADA DAY IN BELIZE"

Beverly showing her national pride

Cindy enjoying some hugs and laughs

A couple students enjoying their new and improved classroom

Beverly with a few of the teachers from St. Hilda's

We gave them some educational gifts including, but not limited to:

practice books, dictionary's, wall posters, erasers, rulers etc...

Saying so long to Stanley as he awaits the bus

Group shot after presenting Mr.Armando with his newly painted & cleaned room

Photo includes Father Juan and his wife Maria and some curious little school children

Beverly tutoring David on reading

Ann and Doug teaching journalism

Group photo before the end of week assembly

Mrs. Ida Bennett addressing St. Hilda's students

This was the first time we saw all the tables occupied - Quite a sight!

Susan and Beverly look on with a little girl

St. Hilda's dance club perform for us

After the assembly we were each presented with a gift from students of St. Hilda's and we presented the school a plaque of Christ Church Cathedral (Aitken Pewter) for them to keep in the school chapel, as a reminder of our friendship.

February 25th & 26th - Day Four and Five at St. Hilda's

2010-02-28T10:54:00.001-08:00

Our muscles may be sore....but our hearts are full!
- Ann Deveau

THURSDAY

Doug, Susan and Cindy finished the preparations of Mr. Armando's classroom and then completed the first coat and half of the second coat. It's antique white since they have only two lightbulbs and rely heavily on natural light for the children to see what they're reading. Meanwhile, the rest of the crew finished building table #8 and #9. As they prepared to move them out into the yard we all started to realize that the safety of the tables would be of great concern. The school is nestled in the middle of a very unsafe area named Georgeville. Without security, they were certain that the tables would "go missing" within no time. The initial "solution" was to have the senior students move the tables into the rooms at the end of every day and out each morning. We only had to move them in once to realize that this solution would not be feasible. The tables are unbelievably heavy and the children would surely be at risk of injury. Some more brainstorming continued. Possibly have concrete buckets weigh them down somehow? Chaining them together wouldn't work. In the end it was decided to only make one more table (10 instead of 12) so as to not make the issue bigger than it already was. We have hired an electrician to visit the school on Monday to install security lights in the schoolyard so that the tables can be left outside. Unfortunately, solar lights are not an option. It brought the spirit of the group down a bit during the afternoon ...but we were happy to have been given the challenge and have the opportunity to work together to figure out a solution.

Hode's Sports Bar for supper so that we could show our true colors and watch Canada vs. USA women's hockey. We proudly stood and sang the national anthem when we took gold, joined by another Canadian sitting on the patio with us.

Back to the hotel for our devotional and off to sleep.

FRIDAY

Everyone gathered to say goodbye to Stanley as he took the bus to Punta Gorda to visit his former parish and many friends. His contribution, as a friend and spiritual leader for the week, was very much appreciated by our entire team.

Table #10 was made and the second coat of white was added to the senior classroom. Then, we added the morant blue to the front wall and of course "The Blue Door". The extra wood came in handy when we realized that the majority of the text books in the senior classroom were sitting on tables and the floor. Brad sprung into action with Bill and built a very sturdy five shelf bookcase. Mr. Armondo was thrilled to have his room painted, cleaned, organized and mopped ...but the bookcase was definitely the cherry on top. It was the first sign of joyful emotion from him all week. He stood so much taller on Friday than he had throughout the week, and we left confident that we had made a small difference in his life, and hopefully the life of his students.

Ann and Doug held a journalism class with Miss Carol's class. They would like to start a school newspaper and have a lot of creative ideas. We shared some tips and tricks with them and described the kinds of jobs they could get in the world of journalism when they grow up.

Around 2:30pm, Father Juan and his wife Maria visited with us and commended us on our accomplishments. Prayers were shared and then all the students, sitting proudly on their new tables, had an assembly. They danced for us and presented each of us with a token of appreciation. In turn, we presented them with a framed pewter ornament of Christ Church Cathedral and an NB flag for each child.

After many tearful goodbyes, we boarded our bus to Belize City. Thankfully Andrew was patient enough to wait for us since we were over an hour behind schedule. Time well spent.

We arrived to the Anglican guest house and then turned around and headed out to the Bird's Isle restaurant for dinner with Andrew. It was a lovely restaurant on the water's edge near St. John's Cathedral.

We ended our day with devotions about servant leaders and Jesus washing the disciples feet.

February 28th Prayer Request

2010-02-28T08:26:00.000-08:00

Good morning!

Today we ask that you pray for the following:

1) The children and teachers of St. Hilda's school
2) Safe travel for the two away teams, both today and tomorrow
3) Watch over Stanley on his journey
4) Build bridges between the local community of St. Hilda's and the mission team
5) The people of Chile in the aftermath of the earthquake
6) The growth of the Sunday school at St. John's Cathedral
7) ..and a prayer for the "shut-in" parishioners at both St. John's Cathedral as well as Christ Church Cathedral - at this morning's service there was a special plea for drivers to transport them to the church or to visit with them

Thank you,
Week One Away Team

Team 2 ready to go

2010-02-27T19:11:00.000-08:00

This is probably going to be slightly confusing for the next three days or so; by the looks of it, we have 3 people blogging on here all at once.

But to keep it straight, this is a little team 2 update. We are now back on track! After (hopefully) having a nice restful sleep tonight, we'll be heading to the Portland airport to begin our 2 day travel down to Belize City.

In the meantime we've been having a great time here in Portland. This morning, we had a delicious breakfast at our hotel. Then while George and I finalized the flight, the team headed over the the Maine Mall, for a stress relieving shopping trip. For supper we went to Chili's conveniently right next door to our hotel, and had possibly the most delicious dessert I've ever tasted. Sadly I forgot my camera for this.

On the note of camera, I've tried to upload the photos I've taken so far. While I like to call myself a computer expert, I have no sweet clue if this will even work.

Anyway, please keep us in in your prayers for a safe travel down, and If all goes well, i'll blog again in the Newark airport (we'll be sleeping in the baggage claim by the sounds of it..) or hopefully, FROM BELIZE CITY!

talk to you all soon

*these turned out backward. terribly sorry for the confusion, if you want to chronologically look at them start from the bottom and go up. NEXT TIME ill get it!

The Girls Room enjoying their House marathon in Portland after a long day of shopping

The boys room in Portland

Our Friendly's dinner on Friday night in Freeport

Beautiful sunny day for driving to Portland

Lini and Heather look excited to go!

Ready to leave the Church Hall Friday at noon

Saturday Feb 27

2010-02-27T06:17:00.000-08:00

Just a note to let you know that Team 1 has arrived back in Belize City safely after completing their work in St. Ignacio. They currently have no access to Internet where they are staying so further updates from the team may be limited until they can get connected.

Also, please continue to pray for Team 2 who are stuck in Portland until tomorrow evening.

Blessings
Mike Pope

2010-02-26T19:48:00.001-08:00

Hello everyone,

here is our first post from Mission team 2.

Sadly we have some bad news. After a long and grueling drive down in the snow, and a lovely dinner at Friendlys, we discovered our flight to Newark had been cancelled due to the record breaking snow that they've received. After a group meeting, George and I have booked a flight out of Portland Sunday evening, arriving in Belize at 1120am Monday. the is the fastest option; they first offered us a flight out Tuesday, so we are extremely thankful to the workers at Continental who when we came back (after they closed) came out and found us an earlier flight. Please Pray for our safe travel and a uncomplicated trip down. We'll have till Sunday, so I'll post some pictures of our journey down tomorrow morning.

until then, we've been travelling since noon, so its time for bed.

talk to you all tomrrow

February 26th - Prayer Request

2010-02-26T06:09:00.001-08:00

Our prayer request for today are:

1) Safe travels for team two, who are on route to Portand, Maine
2) Safety for all of our friends and family in Fredericton and beyond
3) Safe journey for our team to Belize City and Stanley's journey to Punta Gorda
4) Good health as we complete our work

As Ann said this morning ... "We may have tired muscles, but our hearts are full"

February 24th - Day three at St. Hilda's

2010-02-26T05:13:00.000-08:00

Day Three at St. Hilda's

Beverly with the children - looking at photo's from 2007

Beverly teaching Shari-Lee's class as she was out sick

(Otherwise the children would just be in the class and working on their own all day without instruction)

Hard at work sawing off part of the bolts

The FINAL product

Bringing out the first table - VERY heavy (Canadian Pine)

The crew

Brad drilling on the first maple leaf

Brad made these himself of oak and pine

The first children to sit down on the new tables

The two principles enjoying a chat on "table #2"

Some of the children couldn't wait to help sand the tables

Table #4

The tattoo parlour is officially open

Susan getting mobbed by one group of children...

Cindy getting mobbed by another

Father Juan stopped by to visit us with people from Savannah Georgia

They were in Belize training on a retreat with some local pastors

Another Project

Since the tables are going so well we decided to repaint the senior classroom

It was in really bad shape and completely unacceptable

(exposed light sockets / no lightbulbs / bat dust causing respiratory and digestive issues, filthy walls etc..)

Sheila and Cindy going into the room to start removing the bat dust and filth

Off to dinner at Mio Amore

Ann Deveau and Doug Milander

The ladies

Brad treated Susan, Cindy and three local boys to icecream

St. Hilda's Bathroom - Inquiring minds want to know

2010-02-25T05:36:00.000-08:00

This blog entry is for those of you who were at St.Hilda's in 2007 and tirelessly worked on laying the foundation for their bathroom. You'll be interested to know that the boys still use the little blue "hut". The bathroom you worked on was finished in 2009 and is for the young girls only. Ironically, St. Hilda's school has only about 50 girls to the 120+ boys. The bathroom has three nice pedastal sinks and four bathroom stalls.

Some photo's for your enjoyment and curiosity

February 23rd - Second Day at St. Hilda's

2010-02-25T05:09:00.001-08:00

We continued to work on building trusses for the morning, until we had enough to build nine tables. Eager to see at least one table to completion, we started working on the other parts of the table. By the end of the day we had two tables at about 95% complete.

Curiosity peaked by faithful observers

They keep trying to guess what we're making ...

despite Ann trying to convince them we're building an Arc

Sisterly Love

Hard at Work

Our good natured foreman, "Uncle Bill"

Smiles speak volumes

Susan and Beverly with the two principles

Mrs. Ida Bennett of St. Hilda's and Mrs. Joyce Shaw of St. Barnabas

School is out ...and the children linger still

Boys Only
Brad holding on to his little "crapo" (sp?) that a little girl insisted he enjoy
It was a fruity berry with a small pit - very juicy

After another successful day, we went to Flayva's Restaurant, and on the way home we met up, once again, with Mr. Anthony Pitts. He's the security guard across the street from our hotel. He serenade's us nightly with his "flute"

February 24th - Prayer Request

2010-02-25T05:07:00.000-08:00

Thank for your on-going support and your words of encouragement. Today we ask that you pray for ...

1) That our enthusiasm stays strong and our energy doesn't lack. Our muscles are a bit tired and the weather is chilly and overcast this morning (although I'm sure it will warm up by mid-morning)

2) For the children and staff of St. Hilda's - that they have good health, nourishment and self-worth

3) That we remain patient with ourselves and that our projects progress as God has planned

February 23rd - Prayer Request

2010-02-23T17:56:00.000-08:00

We would ask those of you who are keeping us in your prayers, please include the following:

1) A prayer for Jamal's health. He is the young man who drives us back and forth to the school each day and he has just had open heart surgery and has blood clots.

2) A prayer for the children of St. Hilda's - that they each grow up proud of themselves, with confidence, knowledge, good health and a happy heart.

3) Ms Carol's grade 6/7 students who are going to a regional spelling bee tomorrow - they are nervous

4) Teachers of St. Hilda's who are doing a very good job under difficult circumstances and little resources

Thank you.

February 22 - First day at St. Hilda's School

2010-02-23T17:34:00.000-08:00

St. Hilda's School

We arrived at St. Hilda's school in time for their Monday morning assembly. This is where they line up with their class, all facing the school, and recite their pledge and sang their anthem. It was quite impressive and touching to listen to.

Cindy, Beverly, Ann and the principal, Mrs. Ida Bennett

None of the supplies were purchased upon arrival so Doug and Brad joined our local contractor, Bill, to the local lumber yard and hardware store. Meanwhile, the rest of us joined different classrooms and participated in their academic activities, which varied depending on the age. It was an eye-opener to see dozens of children sharing small rulers and hardly any erasers could be found. They're using pencils that are snapped in half and cutting each peice of paper into four to make sure that it gets used to it's fullest. There are eight classes (seven teachers) at the school, and 173 students. Each student is a gift from God, full of potential and joy. We can feel their excitement in their touch and see the joy in their sparkling eyes.

Photo's taken during the morning break

The men arrived just in time for some lunch and then construction got underway. For the entire afternoon we cut peices and put together, by the end of the day, eleven trusses. The heat was really bad. Fortunately we worked inside with one small fan and outside under a little shelter.

Photo's of our construction production line and our final products

Lumber arriving just before noon

Designing the table template

Cutting the first board

Toothbrushing just after lunch

Putting together the first of the trusses

Eleven trusses completed by the end of the day

A little humour goes a long way!

Miss Carol's children joined us for a bus ride home

At 4:30pm our bus driver, Jamal, arrived to take us back to the Casa Blanca. Most of us cleaned up and headed to this internet cafe to get in touch with loved ones or work on this blog. We then enjoyed dinner at a Sri Lankan restaurant and finished the night off with a nice devotional led by fellow missioner, Stanley Isherwood. We had a great conversation based on the book of Luke - Parable of the Lost Sheep.

It was a day that I am sure will change many of us for the rest of our lives. These are beautiful people embracing us with their love, gratitude and smiles.

February 23 - Prayer Request

2010-02-23T05:39:00.001-08:00

Today's heat will be upward of 34+ so our prayer request is simple. Please pray for our tolerance to the heat.

February 23rd - The homes of San Ignacio

2010-02-23T05:23:00.001-08:00

Sheila and I were awake early so we decided to take a little hike up the hill. The following photo's were taken about a five minute walk behind our hotel, up a very steep hill.

The Homes of San Ignacio

(If I ever write a song ..this will be the title)

February 21st - and some went to the ruins

2010-02-23T05:05:00.000-08:00

While the five of us were off on our nature adventure...Stanley, Doug and Ann all took a step back in time. The ancient Maya ruins of Cahal Pech near San Ignacio are serene, shaded and uncrowded. We tried to imagine that it was once a bustling city of 10, 000 with many palaces cut from limestone blocks; markets trading in jade, salt and feathers; artists carving figurines and whistles. Settled around 1200 B.C., the site was abandoned in the 9th century. The Maya themselves are resilient, and thousands still live in Belize today.

February 21st - Some went canoeing ....

2010-02-22T17:29:00.001-08:00

After church, Ashley joined us for breakfast at Pop's Restaurant, Beverly bought her a nice necklace to go with her cross necklace made by the cathedral pewtersmiths, and then Doug took her back to her home.

Photo of us purchasing necklaces, made by two local school girls, outside of Pop's Restaurant

The group split up for our free afternoon of activities.

Beverly, Brad, Susan, Cindy and Sheila ...heading out on a canoeing adventure

Our tour guide, Feliz, was very knowledgeable about the area since he has lived here his entire life. The sounds and sights were awe inspiring and it was a true delight to see the more picturesque sights of this beautiful country. The natural setting of the Macal river was in sharp contrast with the dismal downtown that was only a two minute walk away from where we put our canoe's in.

The crew getting ready to head out

Brad soaking up the sun while the ladies paddle

After the hour+ canoe ride, we hiked for 30+ minutes to a little waterfall where we able to cool off before the trek back.

Heading into the woods towards the waterfalls

"When we go out in the woods today, we're sure of a big surprise"

A community of small homes (all relatives to one another)

Parting ways with our tour guide Feliz

A quick stop at a fruit stand before going back to the hotel

We ended the night off with the rest of Canada by watching the

Canada vs. USA men's hockey game

February 21st - Service at St. Andrews Church

2010-02-22T15:06:00.000-08:00

St.Andrew's church

We started the day off enjoying an absolutely uplifting service at St. Andrews church, ministered by Father Juan of Colombia. He is here on a three year mission after the church went about six months without a Priest. He is making a profound difference in the lives of so many people. A true treasure to them.

Cindy and Brad joined by Father Juan

The highlight for everyone at this service was that our sponsored student, Ashley Jones, met us and prayed with us. She's an absolutely delightful young lady with many interests. Her favourite subjects are religion and computers. She loves to bake and hopes to possibly become a police officer some day, if she could somehow get the training.

Beverly meeting Ashley Jones for the first time

During the service, Beverly, Susan and Bradley administered the voting process for new church committee members to be selected for the 2010 year. They went through their AGM during the service, seemlessly going back and forth between AGM business and readings, sermon, offering etc.. It was nice to see that they had so many eager members to take part, yet only three new members could be selected. We all thought it was fitting that our Cathedral was also having it's AGM on the same day. Hopefully that too went smoothly. The service also included beautiful music, singing Happy Birthday to March congregation members (+ Sheila from our mission) and thoughtful prayers for us and for our time with the people of Belize.

After the service we were privileged to meet and chat with so many of members of the congregation. In particular, we met an absolute angel of a man - Mister Norman. He is the elder of the church at the young age of 92yrs. He was a very wise and loving man who sang a beautiful song of prayer to us at the end of the service. It was very touching and greatly appreciated. He asked that we send his love and prayers along to his "good friend Harry Palmer".

Doug and Mister Norman

(Just after we gave him a pewter cross from our Cathedral pewtersmiths and an NB pin)

After the service - Week One Away Team with Ashley Jones

February 21st - Prayer request

2010-02-22T05:31:00.000-08:00

We ask that prayers are said for the following:

1) That we can withstand todays heat

2) That there are no injuries

3) That everything falls into place as far as the arrival of supplies for our picnic tables

Thank you,

The Away Team

Arrived safely ...

2010-02-20T16:13:00.000-08:00

Left Portland at 6am and arrived in Newark, NJ for a quick snack.

Early morning sunrise on our way to Newark, NJ

Sights of New York, including the Hudson Bay, Empire State Building, Statue of Liberty etc...

Flight to Belize City was smooth and uneventful.

The weather was noticeably warmer than Fredericton.

Greeted by our fellow missioner, Stanley Isherwood. Wonderful to finally connect with him.

Michelle from the Anglican diocese was also at the airport to meet us. Our driver Andrew, was fantastic. He gave us a tour of the area and offered us a lot of useful information. He will be coming back to get us next Friday. Mrs. Bennett, principal at St. Hilda's school, greeted us upon arrival in San Ignacio.

Nice accomodations and very hospitable manager, Miss Betty, is taking good care of us.

Our hotel, the Casa Blanca, is in the heart of the town.

We've just enjoyed a lovely meal directly across the street from our hotel.

Brad and Sheila in from of Hannah's

Early night tonight after a long, yet successful, day of travel.

Tomorrow we'll be heading to service at St. Andrews church in San Ignacio. We're all looking forward to meeting Ashley Jones, our sponsored student. Afterwards ... only God knows.

On our way

2010-02-20T01:13:00.000-08:00

A clear cold morning. Flight is on time. We're on our way shortly. Wish us Godspeed.

Thanks for your support, everyone.

Commissioning Service

2010-02-19T05:22:00.000-08:00

2010 Belize Missioners

On Sunday, February 14th, the Dean led us in a beautiful commissioning service.

It was very moving and apparent to each of us that we were not going on this mission alone. The entire Cathedral congregation will be with us each step of the way.

Missing from photo: Elizabeth and Heather Hamilton and Stanley Isherwood

Urgent Prayer Request

2010-02-16T14:55:00.000-08:00

As we have found out this past weekend, life can take a tragic turn at a momen't notice. Two of our Belize missioners, Heather Hamilton and her mother Elizabeth, lost a member of their family on Sunday. Katherine, 18, was in a traffic accident and died at the Saint John Regional hospital. Heather has lost her older sister and Elizabeth and Ian have lost a treasured daughter. The family is dealing with this tragedy and they need our prayers for them and our support in this very difficult time.

The Hamilton family has to know that they are not alone in their grief. We ask as many people as possible to join those of us on the Away and Home teams in our prayers. We know that our prayers for the Hamiltons will not go unheard by God; please pray for them that God will walk with them and comfort them in their sorrow.

To view Katherine's obituary and/or send personal condolences, please go to: http://www.mcadamsfh.com/Obituaries/51321/

Helpful Links ... compliments of Ann

2010-02-16T09:55:00.000-08:00

If you're interested in learning more about the areas we will be visiting, please take a look at the following links:

Local weather in San Ignacio: http://www.foreca.com/Belize/San_Ignacio

Belize Tourism Board: http://www.travelbelize.org/

San Ignacio: http://www.toucantrail.com/Belize-on-a-Budget/San-Ignacio-Santa-Elena.html

Caye Caulker: http://www.gocayecaulker.com/

Happy surfing!

2010-02-13T11:38:00.000-08:00

PIZZA DELIGHT NIGHT

Last night we had a family and friend send-off get together at our local Pizza Delight. The intention was for those of us on the away team to "work" the event and serve our loved one's as they enjoy speghetti and time together. In the end there was only a little bit of work required and we too were able to enjoy the good food and time together.

Special thanks to Wayne Phillips and Beverly Morell for taking care of all the planning. A wonderful time was had by all.

Doug finally getting to enjoy the labour of his work. YUM.

Friends and Family

Susan

Harry, Sandra, Joanne and Gary

The Dean's table

June's family & friends

Beverly, Sam and Ann

Ann and Doug having a lovely Valentine's moment

Nighty Night Rachel, Alex and Claire

2010 BELIZE MISSION STEERING COMMITTEE

2010-01-28T06:07:00.000-08:00

Beverly Morell

Chairperson

Birthday: October 16

Hometown: I was born and grew up in Halifax, Nova Scotia

Occupation: Retired teacher (a great occupation!)

Hobbies & Interests: Skiing, swimming, hiking, biking, reading, puppetry, quilting and sewing

Fun Factoid: Sport and physical activity are important to me. My competitive sport was synchronized swimming and I competed in that sport in the first Canada Games held in Quebec City

Previous Missions: Belize 2005 and Belize 2007

Names of prayer partners: Jim Morell, Isabelle Hockin; Gregg Finley and Leith Box

Why am I going on this mission to Belize?: I believe that, as Christians, we are called to share our faith with others. The joy of sharing that with brothers and sisters in Christ living in another culture is a giant step for me in my faith journey

What am I most looking forward to in Belize?: Making new friends at St. Hilda's School and within our own teams

Why did I join the steering committee?: To offer my knowledge from the previous two missions so that more people could participate in the life changing experience of serving God in another country

Doug Milander

Treasurer

Birthday: May 11, 1947

Hometown: Norfolk, Nebraska USA

Occupation and Employer: Retired Journalist

Hobbies and/or Interests: Baseball and Football fan; Outreach (volunteer) work for Christ Church Cathedral; Reading about history and politics

Fun Factoid: Mowed an orchard where comedian Johnny Carson had played as a child

Number of missions you've been on and location: Belize, 2007

Name of prayer partner(s): Jamie Yeamans of Fredericton, NB and Mary Hepburn of North Platte, Nebraska (friends)

Why are you going on this mission to Belize?: Try to make a difference in the world - one day at a time

What are you most looking forward to on this mission?: The contact with people with of Belize

Why did I join the mission steering committee?: I simply wanted to do all I could to ensure the mission trip went as smoothly as possible.

Mike Pope

Travel Coordinator

Birthday: February 10, 1973

Hometown: Mount Pearl, Newfoundland

Occupation and Employer: Project Manager at FacilicorpNB

Hobbies and/or Interests: Hockey, golf, and most importantly, spending time with my family

Factoid: I am a GREAT cook!! :)

Reason for joining the steering committee: To answer God's calling

2010 BELIZE MISSION AWAY TEAM - WEEK TWO

2010-01-27T04:08:00.000-08:00

George Porter

Birthday: August 30

Hometown: Sigel, WI

Occupation: Clergy

Hobbies and/or Interests: Snowboarding, reading, writing, motorcycles, camping, fishing

Fun Factoid: My ancestors are mixed blood: Scottish/Wild Potato Clan Cherokee & Irish/Lakota

Number of missions: Many. Dominican Republic (2X), Belize (3X), Honduras, Cuba and Quebec

Name of prayer partner(s): Nancy Porter, Michael & Nancy Morizio

Why are you going on this mission to Belize?: Provide support for the puppeteer group

What are you most looking forward to on this mission?: Being together as a group

Lionel Hayter

Birthday: August 2, 1991

Hometown: Fredericton, NB

School: University of New Brunswick

Factoid: I love watching plants grow (including grass)

Why are you going on this mission to Belize?: I am going on this mission because I believe it is important to show other people God's love. Also, I believe it will not on be an encouragement to the people we meet, but to the mission group as well.

What are you most looking forward to on this mission?: I'm looking forward to meeting people in Belize and getting to know my fellow group members even more and working with them.

Cody McKay

Birthday: September 3, 1991

Hometown: Fredericton

School: Saint Thomas University - 1st Year

Hobbies and/or Interests: Photography; Skiing; Music and Theatre

Fun Factoid: Left handed

Number of missions: This is my first mission!

Name of prayer partner: Sam Mayo

Why are you going on this mission to Belize?: I guess this doesn't sound in depth but after a lot of thought this is all I can say; It just feels right and I get the feeling already that this isn't my last mission trip.

What are you most looking forward to on this mission?: I don't think it's possible to have a favourite thing on this mission; I'm looking forward to just about every aspect of it!

Lini Fetter

Birthday: October 6, 1991

Hometown: Fredericton

School: University of New Brunswick - 1st year

Hobbies and/or Interests: Painting; Drawing; Babysitting and Reading

Fun Factoid: I love barn swallows

Number of missions: Nil

Name of prayer partner: Elijah Fetter

Why are you going on this mission to Belize?: I'm going on this mission because I think it will be fun and humbling. I am going because I love children and love to learn about children in other cultures. I think that friendship and compassion that spans borders is very important and healing when it goes both ways.

What are you most looking forward to about this mission?: Meeting the kids! :)

Alyssa Hayter

Birthday: September 21, 1988
Hometown:
School: University of New Brunswick - 4th year (Elementary Education)
Hobbies and/or Interests: I love music. I love singing and acting and I also love to sew.
Fun Factoid: By the time I was 15yrs old, I lived in 12 different houses
Prayer Partner: Verne Sinclair
Why are you going on this trip to Belize?: Many of my friends have gone on a mission to Belize in the past with the Cathedral
What are you most looking forward to from this mission?: I have only heard good things. I can't wait to meet the kids down there and get to know them and help out in any way I can. I also don't get that many opportunities to travel, so I'm excited for this one!

Jun Hyo Kwon

Birthday: April 27th

Hometown: Seoul, South Korea

School: Fredericton High School, Grade 12

Hobbies and/or Interests: Music; Photography; Art; History; Drawing and Travelling

Fun Factoid: I dance for three minutes before I study

Number of missions: None

Prayer Partner: Donna Crowe

Why are you going on this mission to Belize?: I want to feel how my ability is valuable to others and how thankful a person I am.

What are you most looking forward to from this mission?: Kids who are excited to see puppet shows and their laughter during our shows.

Heather Hamilton

Birthday: May 11, 1993

Hometown: Fredericton

School: Fredericton High School, Grade 11

Hobbies and/or Interests: Reading; Skiing/Snowboarding; Swimming and Singing

Fun Factoid:

Number of missions: None

Name of prayer partner: Caryn Gunter

Why are you going on this mission to Belize?: I've always wanted to help people who are less fortunate

What are you most looking forward to on this mission?:

2010 BELIZE MISSION AWAY TEAM - WEEK ONE

2010-01-26T05:48:00.000-08:00

WEEK ONE TEAM

Here we are sitting on one of the two tables we built during our table building lesson day

Missing from photo: Stanley Isherwood

Brad McKnight

Winter Fun in Canada

Birthday: December 3, 1978

Hometown: Charlottetown, PEI

Occupation: Pharmacist

Hobbies and/or Interests: Skiing; tennis; squash; biking; cooking and hanging out with my wife and daughter

Fun Factoid: I have a large collection of "B Movies"

Number of missions: First time

Name of prayer partner(s): Isabel Cutler and Harry Palmer

Why are you going on this mission to Belize?: God called me to build picnic tables. No Joke! Too long of a story for this bio but ask me to explain it to you the next time you see me!

What are you most looking forward to on this mission?: Opening myself up to following God's will and developing new friendships.

Cindy Pope

"With my shining star, Alexandria and my little wonder, Taylor Jane"

Birthday: July 21, 1972

Hometown: Kennebecasis, NB

Hobbies and/or Interests: Travelling; Dancing; Theatre; Golf; Softball; Skating ..and trying new things (especially if they're outdoors)

Fun Factoid: Without my glasses I am legally blind

Number of missions: This will be my first

Name of prayer partner(s): Kurt Schmidt

Why are you going on this mission to Belize?: I have always wanted to go on a mission to help others and learn more about myself in the process.

What are you most looking forward to on this mission?: Seeing God's love in action.

Susan MacIntosh

"With my two angels, Cameron and Andrew"

Birthday: November 25, 1957

Hometown: Fredericton, New Brunswick

Occupation and/or Employer: Nursing Unit Clerk at the Chalmers Hospital

Hobbies and/or Interests: Trying to play the fiddle; gardening; reading; walking/running; Bible Study and Outreach

Fun Factoid: My favourite pie in mincemeat

Number of missions: This is my first

Name of prayer partner: Kathy Hay

Why are you going on this mission to Belize?: The first time I heard Beverly speak about it in church, I was drawn to it. I just started my walk with God in the last couple of years so this is part of my spiritual journey.

What are you most looking forward to from our mission?: Meeting the children.

Elizabeth Hamilton

in New York

Birthday: April 1

Hometown: Fredericton, New Brunswick

Occupation and Employer: NB Power / IT Specialist

Hobbies and/or Interests: Reading; Skiing; Gardening; Dogs and Learning

Fun Factoid: I love watching snow storms from our dining room window

Number of missions: None

Name of prayer partner(s): Shelley Petley and Diane Stevenson

Why are you going on this mission to Belize?: I can remember being interested in mission work when I was a teenager; this is my first opportunity to do it. Always having been interested in different cultures, I am looking forward to seeing what Belize is like, to be with the people and see where it leads.

What are you most looking forward to from our mission?: Having this experience with "our team".

Sheila Goucher

... on Sam's birthday

Birthday: March 8

Hometown: I now call Fredericton home

Occupation and Employer: Environmental Planner

Hobbies and/or Interests: Exercise; Reading and My kids

Fun Factoid: I used to play in a woman's hockey league

How many missions have you been on?: First mission

Name of prayer partner: Marion Edwards

Why are you going on this mission to Belize?: To teach, learn, and share as much as possible

What you are most looking forward to from our mission?: To see the world from a different viewpoint and build new relatoinships.

Ann Deveau & Doug Milander

* Doug's profile can be found under the "Steering Committee" section on this blog

Birthday: June 5, 1954

Hometown: Yarmouth, NS

Occupation and Employer: Director of Policy and Planning - NB Dept. of Finance (Bachelor of Journalism - Carleton University

Hobbies and/or Interests: Travel, reading, camping, hiking and gardening

Fun Factoid: Served as Chief Judge for the National Newspaper Awards

Number of Missions and Locations: Belize, 2007

Name of Prayer Partners: Betty Deveau of Yarmouth, NS (Mother) and Julaine Palmer of Fredericton, NB (friend)

Why are you going on this mission to Belize?: We belong to the 20% of the world's population that leads privileged lives. I feel compelled and blessed to give something back to help others who are less fortunate than ourselves.

What you are most looking forward to on this mission?: Renewing friendships and learning from the people in Belize.

Stanley TJ Isherwood

(But I was born before the days when TJ became a name)

Birthday: June 14

Hometown: Born in Toronto (either in Maple Leaf Gardens or Women's College Hospital)

Occupation and Employer: Happily Retired (though I could get theological about this one)

Hobbies and/or Interests: Baseball; Photography; Travel; Church; Classical Music ++

Fun Factoid: I'm really a very private person

Number of missions and locations: Just one, to Belize

Name of prayer partner: There is a team here in Cobourg/Port Hope

Why are you going on this mission to Belize?: Even after 16 months in Belize ending in January 2007, I hear little from there. In addition, to being again apart of God's presence in Belize, this is an opportunity to revisit, renew connections, and it won't be all about me. I expect to be with the team for 6 to 7 days and on my own for 3 or 4.

What are you most looking forward to from our mission?: I look forward to meeting the other team members, and experiencing what it is like to be in a familiar place but an unfamiliar situation.

Where are we going?

2010-01-25T18:13:00.000-08:00

CHILDREN AT ST.HILDA'S SCHOOL

A main focus and motivation for going

SMILES ON CHILDREN'S FACES

CHAPEL AND SCHOOL AT ST.HILDA'S

Where we will be visiting and working

CATHEDRAL WHERE WE WILL WORSHIP IN BELIZE CITY

ST.ANDREW'S CHURCH SERVICE

Our place of worship while in San Ignacio

A TYPICAL HOME IN BELIZE

A TYPICAL STREET IN BELIZE

A special thank you to Ann Deveau for supplying these wonderful photo's

Who are we?

2010-01-24T09:00:00.000-08:00

The majority of us are congregation members of

CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL

The Anglican Diocese of Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada

http:www.christchurchcathedral.com

A Letter from Beverly

2010-01-01T09:13:00.000-08:00

Cathedral Mission Trip to San Ignacio, Belize

We, at Christ Church Cathedral in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada are blessed to have a relationship with our Anglican brothers and sisters who live in Belize - in particular, those in San Ignacio, and even more so, those at St. Hilda's Elementary School.

This is the Cathedral's third mission trip to this wonderful country. The first time, in 2005, ten members of the Cathedral Puppeteers went to Belize City with their puppet ministry. The puppeteers shared their message of God's love with the children and teachers in the Anglican schools, conducted a puppet workshop for leaders and your people in church youth groups, and performed at St. John's Cathedral, making new friends everywhere they went.

The second trip was with a much larger group - 26 people from our Cathedral, from 16 to 79 years of age, went to San Ignacio and to St. Hilda's, St. Barnabas, and St. Andrew's schools. While there we met and got to know a delightful group of students and teachers. Together with our Belizean friends we worked, prayed, laughed, toiled, ate and spent our days together. Our missioners presented daily puppet shows, assisted teachers in their classrooms, tiled two classroom floors at St. Barnabas School, painted a classroom at St. Andrew's School, built a foundation for a bathroom at St. Hilda'sSchool, conducted a health ministry for students and teachers, and organized a first aid workshop for teachers at St. Andrew's School. Needless to say, we slept soundly every night!

Now it is time to go again. Although there will be 17 people actually travelling there, our entire congregation will be there in spirit and in prayer. We look forward to new adventures, to meeting old friends and making new ones, to building picnic tables for the children at St. Hilda's, to putting on daily puppet shows, to sharing our faith with each other and with our Belizean brothers and sisters, to exploring their beautiful country, and to growing in our love for God and for each other.

It takes many people volunteering countless hours behind the scenes to make something like this happen. The missioners are most grateful (a) to the Cathedral Missions Committee, which is the body that oversees missions work at the Cathedral - Kurt Schmidt, Gregg Finley, Sam Mayo, Carol Gregory, Justin Ancheta, Ann Deveau, Michael Pope, and Vicki Garrett; (b) to the Belize Steering Committee, which is the "Control Centre" for this project, and manages all the details - Doug Milander, Michael Pope, Wayne Phillips, Janet Garland, and George Porter; and (c) to George Porter and Keith Joyce, for leadership in the spiritual preparation for the Away Team - along with Leith Box, Gregg Finley, Kurt Schmidt, and Caryn Gunter. The missioners are also thankful to the "Home Team" which is our church family, for prayers, financial support, words of encouragement, and participation in the various fund raising events to raise money for St. Hilda's School.