Thursday, March 21, 2013

More scenes of St. Hilda's

Hi folks! We have had some requests for more photos from our mission trip, so here are some more from our time at St. Hilda's. Stay tuned for more...

Arriving at the St. Hilda's chapel on Sunday, our first day in Belize.

 
Beverly and Mrs. Ida Bennett, the principal of St. Hilda's school.
The Infant 1 (kindergarten) class saying prayers.

Beautiful faces!

 The picnic tables built by the 2010 Cathedral mission team are used every day by the students!

A Infant 2 (grade 1) girl getting a drink of water in her classroom.

Mr. Armando Cowo, the Standard 6 (grade 8) teacher.

Kurt playing a math game with one of the students (he taught a lot of people that game - they loved it!).

Roan giving a piggyback ride!

Stanley, our mission team member from Ontario! Stanley is a retired Anglican priest who used to work in a parish in Punta Gorda, Belize. Stanley spent some time updating the weather-worn outdoor map at St. Hilda's.

Anne teaching the Infant 1 (kindergarten) class.

Natalie and Anne with Stephan, one of the Standard 6 (grade 8) students. He is hoping to be one of the Cathedral's sponsored high school students next year.

The kids all "looked up" to Robbie! ;)

Jane with two handsome companions!

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Photo recap: Friday at St. Hilda's

Well, we have been home for two days, and we are adjusting to life back in Fredericton! You will all hear more about our trip in the coming weeks, and we will post information on the bulletin board at the Cathedral this weekend. But in the meantime, here are a few pictures of our last day at St. Hilda's school.

We will be posting more pictures over the next few days, so please check the blog again soon!

On our last day at St. Hilda's, the staff and students held a wonderful thank you/goodbye party for us, which many parents and community members attended. While the kids were still in their classes, we decorated the wall of the school with flags, balloons, and a sign that said "Our church is praying for you!". Underneath, we taped up the prayer hearts that many Cathedral members created. We told the crowd that at the end of the presentations they could take the hearts home.


During the show, each class did a presentation for us; either a song, a dance, a skit, or a recitation. Here is the Standard 6 (grade 8) class dancing. Those kids can move!

As for us, Kurt spoke to the crowd to tell them about all of the love and prayers and preparation from the Home Team and the Away Team in Fredericton. We sang "O Canada", and we presented pewter Cathedral crosses to each of the teacher's at St. Hilda's. Then Robbie, Lionel, Natalie and Roan put on a puppet show (which they wrote)! There were so many kids that it was quite noisy, but as you can see from the pictures below, the kids loved it!

After the show was over, we enjoyed a picnic lunch with the community, and we saw many people (kids and parents) wearing the heart prayers. Several of the children asked us to read the prayers to them.
 

It was a wonderful send-off and way to say goodbye to the friends that we'd made last week. We feel very blessed to have had the experience of serving at St. Hilda's, and we look forward to continuing our relationships with the people we met in Belize.

Stay tuned: more pictures to come about our time at St. Hilda's, In His Will Ministries, and our other activities in Belize!

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Safe and sound...

So report three out of four vehicles over email, arriving home between 3-4pm this afternoon. We'll happily fill in more details of our journey over the coming days, but for now will relax, recharge, and reconnect with our families and friends in person.

God Bless,

Anne/Miss Annie/Mama

[all have reported in now, safe and sound!]

Home Again Home Again...

... Jiggity Jig!
I suppose we're not quite "home" but definitely looks and feels a lot more like home. We arrived in Portland around 11 pm (12 pm New Brunswick Time) and have just all collapsed into our hotel rooms. We hope to get away at a decent hour tomorrow morning to be on our merry way home to Fredericton.

We would like to thank you all for your thoughts and prayers as well as all those in Belize, from Carmen, Faye, Troy and Barb (our hosts) to the teachers at St. Hilda's School. Every one of us had a wonderful, blessed experience that we will not forget in a hurry.

"Before the ending of the day
creator of the world we pray
that with thy wonted favour thou
wouldst be our guard and keeper now.

From all ill dreams defend our eyes
from nightly foes and fantasies
tread underfoot our ghostly foe
that no pollution we may now.

O, Father that we ask be done,
through Jesus Christ thy only Son
Who, with the Holy Ghost and Thee
Doth live and reign eternally. Amen

(From "An Order for Compline" from the BCP)

Saturday, March 9, 2013

A Great Last Day at Saint Hilda's!

Hello Cathedral Home Team,

What a great last day at St. Hilda's! Together we celebrated God, our cultures and the friendships we made over our time together. Each class performed some sort of presentation.  There was much dancing and singing. We sang the Canadian national anthem and they sang Belize's. We received flags of Belize and certificates of appreciation. We presented the teachers with New Brunswick pins along with Canadian pins for all the students. We also gave the classes temporary  tattoos and stickers of Canadian symbols. Big shout-out to Kurt on an excellent goodbye speech and a thank you to my fellow performers Natalie, Lionel and Roan as we whipped together a puppet show for the kids. It was a joyful goodbye. We will truly miss the students and teachers at this wonderful school for they have surely touched our hearts as much we hope to have touched theirs.

We finished off the day with shopping and a swim and a meal at the beautiful San Ignacio Hotel.  We are all very tired and will definitely sleep well tonight.

Please pray for us as we journey home. See you all very soon!

With Love,
Robbie

Friday, March 8, 2013

Thursday Adventures

Greetings All:

Pleased to report on another full day here in Belize!  Our Thursday began with "fry-jack" for breakfast, a local specialty prepared by the McBrides for us.  Then we were off to St. Hilda's for another sunny and active morning.

It is truly remarkable to note the diversity of activity that we have found ourselves a part of at the school this week.  Today many of us continued to assist with literacy efforts in the classrooms and/or with smaller groups of students, others did odd jobs around "campus," some helped to set up the school computer network, and a few even rebuilt the puppet theatre from three years ago in order to help rekindle the St. Hilda's puppeteering program! 

An outstanding highlight of our day was a wonderful and blessed mid-morning period of prayer with and for the teachers of St. Hilda's.  It was a special time of fellowship for all of us.  We on the Away Team were able to communicate formally and distinctly--and on your behalf--our respect, admiration, and support to the devoted group of teachers who provide daily care for the students of the school.  And for their part, the teachers voiced expressions of heartfelt and moving gratitude for all of our preparatory efforts and for our positive presence at the school this week. 

We departed St. Hilda's at lunchtime today in order to head out for a half-day-trip to points east--in the Caves Branch area of Belize.  We enjoyed a short jungle hike and then a somewhat darker walk down into St. Herman's Cave, an underground limestone universe whose human use dates back at least to the Classic period of the Maya.  Check out the photo below for a view of all of the Away Team members following our successful emergence from the cave!


Next we enjoyed a refreshing swim at Blue Hole (the onshore version), a magnificent sapphire pool in the heart of jungle.  (It is apparently considered a cenote, for the geology buffs among you.)

Following our return and another lovely supper at "headquarters," we closed our Thursday with a beautiful Celtic Liturgy.  This time of communion was specially graced by the presence of our hosts, the McBrides.

It is of course with some bittersweetness that we move into the final full day of our mission here in Belize.  Thank you, as always, for your prayers--they have been a blessing to us throughout the week, and they will help us to complete the mission with humility, reverence, and gratitude. 

Until tomorrow . . .


Thursday, March 7, 2013

Wednesday Report

Late Wednesday evening (Belize time)

Hello from Belize!

Welcome to another day's chronicle of our mission to strengthen the bonds of faith and community alongside the students, staff, and families of St. Hilda's Anglican School. Today marked the midway point in our all-too-brief visit with the children and teachers here, just as we have settled into a routine of morning preparation & reflection, a communal breakfast in the dining hall of the mission centre, and then a van ride over to St. Hilda's.
A

Morning classes run from 9am to 12noon, with a recess for outdoor play and snack between 10:15-10:30am. Lunch is an hour long, and then the classes go from 1-2:30pm (for Infant I & II), or until 3:30pm for the older children. Today classes ended at 3pm so that two of our missioners (Sue, a nurse, and Jane, a physiotherapist) could offer some first aid training to the staff. While there is a local clinic, and a trained nurse, facilities are sorely lacking. Part of this afternoon's session included brainstorming for alternative immediate treatments.

All through this week, we have been putting the literacy materials and training we got back in Canada to good use, inside and out of the classroom. Often times we take small groups out to the picnic tables crafted by the last Cathedral mission (centrally located, but nicely shaded as you can see above), so that we can play alphabet, word, and other educational games with the children, or read together. That has been very well received by both students and teachers, since it gives the opportunity for more intensive interaction and learning, all in a fun and stimulating way.
This afternoon the youngest schoolchildren, in Infant I & II (the age of our kindergarteners and grade one-ers back home) got a chance to play with the parachute we brought down. As you can see, it was as big a hit with them as it was with the older children! Miss Roan, Miss Kirsten, Miss Natalie, and I had lots of fun showing them how to play with the parachute and each other, but it tuckered us all out pretty quickly keeping up with their energy level and enthusiasm. Especially in the hot, hot sun - the earlier, unseasonably cool weather for Belize that was here earlier in the week is gone for good it seems.
Here you see the children of Infant I, who Miss Kirsten & I (Miss "Annie") have gotten to know so well in such a short time. They have been opening our eyes to the joys and challenges of growing up in Belize, and their faith and prayers have been an inspiration. We hope to watch them grow over the years, in body, and mind, and soul, enriched by the tools and training we've been able to bring to Belize through our mission. One day, one or more of them may move beyond the public school system, and aspire to higher education in high school or even university.

Miss Beverly and Mr. Doug (of the Cathedral Mission), and Mrs. Bennett and Mr. Armando (of St. Hilda's)  have spent the last few days  meeting with the students we sponsor at the high school level through the Cathedral, along with family members, to see how they are progressing, and how we might best encourage them in their endeavours. Please continue to keep these students in your prayers, as well as Mrs. Bennett as she volunteers as our liaison with the schools on our behalf and the students'.


Last, but certainly not least, the reason we all are here. In one way or another, God has called us to Belize, to build up each other in faith and prayer. The natural beauty of Belize surrounds us like another Eden, but the mark of human endeavour is found at every turn. We hope that our work here brings only good things to the people of Belize, that they may be lifted up in spirit, as we are in our work, by God's grace.



P.S. A very, very Happy Birthday to my beloved Gabriel, born seven years ago this morning!  Much love to all our family and friends in Canada and beyond, as you think of us and pray for our success and safety here in beautiful Belize. <3 Anne Thornton (aka Mama, or aka Miss Annie)


Tuesday, March 5, 2013

A Great Second Day!

Hello home team,


Roan here, what a great second day! Our bonds with the students are growing even stronger.  The kids are so energetic, and filled with joy and personality. We had a great time working with individual groups and after working with them yesterday we saw some small improvements in their reading and speaking skills.  We are all getting used to their heavy creole accents.  After  lunch we we played parachutes with a few classes and that was an enormous  success.


 It was a very hot day and we are glad that we have a lot of water.  Our prays are always with the children of St. Hilda's and our wonderful guest who provide 3 meals a day and we always thank them. 

Monday at St. Hilda's!

Today we spent our first day at St. Hilda's School! We greeted the day with excitement and nervousness, not knowing exactly what we would be doing at the school. Mrs. Ida Bennett, the principal of the school, introduced us to the staff, who were quite happy for us to help the children with literacy. We were so thankful to have had a literacy training session in Fredericton from Julie Maston and Joanne LeBlanc-Haley - thank you! We felt quite prepared and comfortable with our books and games; it all came flooding back once we began!

In addition to our literacy work, God is helping to put us where our strengths are. Peter will be teaching science classes on circuits, Kurt is teaching mathematics, Susan will be teaching first aid to the teachers, and Anne T (who has studied in Mexico) is in a classroom with a girl who speaks only Spanish. We are all enjoying meeting the children (who are exceptionally friendly), and the kids are enjoying having new playmates. There has been a lot of soccer and catch, climbing "the giant" (Lionel), and the kids want us to take lots of pictures! The children are quite amazed by Natalie's long blonde hair (as is Beverly, apparently), and they are keen to show us what they can do.
We look forward to returning tomorrow! The school has several new teachers, and teachers that have been shuffled to take over new classes; please pray for them in their new transitions. Also, we would be thankful if you would pray for us as we visit the school each day this week, that God will lead us to ways to assist the teachers and supplement the great work that they are already doing in their classes. Please also continue to pray for Father Juan, as he rebuilds his strength in the hospital in the USA. 

After we returned to the mission centre, we had a relaxing afternoon of downtime before another wonderful supper provided by our hosts (Belizean chicken, rice and beans, coleslaw, fried plantains and watermelon - Mmmmmm!). Some of us had some reading time, chatting, basketball, and there was a rousing game of [Belizian] train dominoes before supper. After supper we debriefed on our first day at St. Hilda's, and had a meaningful devotional about strengthening positive Christian traits within ourselves, and asking the Holy Spirit to grow the fruits of the spirit with us.

We will write more tomorrow. Good night, and God bless!

Sunday, March 3, 2013

Sunny Sunday, March 3

Sunday, what a wonderful first full day in Belize! This is coming to you live from "In His Will" Mission Center in Unionville, Belize!

After a chilly sleep (yes, it was STILL warmer than Canada, but it was quite different from the warm night we were expecting) and a wonderful breakfast from our wonderful hosts Carmen, Faye, Troy and Barb, most of the group made the early journey to the 8 o'clock service at St. Ann's Anglican Church in Belmopan. We were able to worship with the great congregation at St. Ann's with Barb McBride as celebrant and even got to take part in a "Healing Service". You would be hard pressed to find a more welcoming church and the sermon was truly moving. We were encouraged to take a good look at what fruit we were producing and who we were truly producing it for. A wonderful message for our team as we seek to glorify God this week at St. Hilda's Anglican school. And of course, we learned all about the "good manure in the bible" that's there for all of us fruit trees out there!

Unfortunately, we were rushed out of the service in order to make it to... another worship service (you'd think we're on a Christian Mission trip or something). This second worship service was at St. Hilda's and it was wonderful to meet some of the students we will be going to help tomorrow. I know there were a few of us who were a little nervous about being able to connect with the children but many of those worries vapourized like dew in the glorious Belizean sun as we got to talk to a few of them in church. Their smiles and laughter brought joy to all of our hearts. It was at this service that we were able to present the congregation with the beautiful altar linens embroidered and decorated by Lucy's Sewing Group at home in Fredericton. The congregation was thrilled at their beauty and Dean Joyce blessed them into service, they tell us they will be using them immediately starting next Sunday.

We had to make some changes to the schedule and, instead of heading to the blue lagoon for a hike and swimming (which we will be moving to Friday), we headed off to Xunantunich (Translated to "Stone Lady" and is pronounced similar to "Tuna Sandwich" as we affectionately call it when we can't pronounce it ourselves) which is a beautiful Mayan ruin, the second tallest in Belize with the highest point standing at 135 feet high! Most of our brave group made it all those 135 feet to the top with a few of us daredevils decided to sit on the edge. The view of the surrounding countryside is inexplicable so I will not attempt to explain but I'm sure pictures will be floating around once we all get back. You can see a picture of some of us below. If you'll believe it, the picture only includes the top half of the pyramid! You better Belize it! It was truly an amazing experience we'll never forget.
After leaving the ruin we stopped in at a small local market before heading out to take a dip at a hotel in San Ignacio. We had a blessed day started with beautiful, spiritual reflection and ended with full bellies and happy, revamped hearts ready for our week to come at St. Hilda's.

As we now head to bed, we ask you to keep us and the children and teachers of St. Hilda's Anglican school in your prayers. As well, please continue to keep Father Juan in your prayers as he has been officially diagnosed with Guillan-Barre Syndrome and we are all praying for his speedy recovery and return to Georgeville, Belize. We also hope you'll join us in our prayers for Ashley Jones as she searches to find a job after graduating from high school. Ashley was the first student to be sponsored by Christ Church Cathedral and is now hoping to become a customs officer, so keep her in our prayers! Please thank God for our safety in our travels here as well as our wonderful hosts as they continue to drive us hither and thither across the country and feed us wonderful food, and all with a smile! True Belizean/Canadian Hospitality!

We thank you for your prayers and we'll check in with you tomorrow

Saturday, March 2, 2013

We've Arrived!

Hello from beautiful Belize!  We have arrived safely and all according to plan.  It was a cooler than normal day here but felt great to us after our snowy drive to and early morning in Portland.  The Missions Center we are staying at is lovely - beautiful grounds, comfortable dorms with first class washrooms, welcoming hosts and a great dinner.  We are all off to bed early tonight - given that we were up before dawn this morning.

Tomorrow we are off to two church services, one with our mission center hosts and then to St. Hilda's.  In the afternoon we are off on an excursion to a national park.

Good night all!  Blessings from us.

On Their Way!


The away team gathered at the Cathedral Hall yesterday and were sent off with prayers and well wishes by many from their Cathedral family. They arrived in Portland as scheduled and most likely had an early bedtime since they had a very early departure this AM. They should be in the air now and will be in sunny Belize by early afternoon. Stay tuned.....