 During the first two weeks of February I made my annual visitation to Belize to see how our mission in Stann Creek District is progressing. I am pleased to say that I found both Fr. Chris Newman cmf and Fr. Dominic McDonagh cmf to be in good spirits, full of enthusiasm for the work and determined to do whatever they can to help the people in their needs.
It was the first time I had visited since the death of Brother Denis Casey cmf. He still fills the house there, it is hard to believe that he will not suddenly appear again. He is missed both by the Claretian community and by the local people. His going has put added pressure on those remaining and reduced their opportunities for reflection and companionship. A Claretian Brother, Daniel Ortiz cmf from Chile, will be going to stay in the mission for a few months to improve his English and help with the work there. We also hope to have a lay woman join the team for a few months. We are very grateful to those who volunteer their time and talents in this way.
Welcome as these short term helpers are, they do not respond fully to the need we have for long term community members. We are hoping to be able to improve the living conditions of the missionaries in Belize and to expand the number of rooms available to us. If we are able to do this, then we would be able to welcome lay people who want to give one or two years of their life to helping in Belize. We can?t take people immediately, but we are thinking about people to do some of the following: short term building work, home-maker, primary school advisor and in service teacher trainer(s), facilitator for the regularisation of documents and citizenship for the many immigrants living in the parish. A facility with language, especially Spanish, would be a help, but is not essential. Anyone who thinks they might like to live by the Caribbean Sea for a year or more and likes hot weather can contact any Claretian to talk about the possibilities. All candidates would have to be assessed and receive some orientation and training.
 The schools continue to be a big part of the work of Fr. Chris Newman especially. When I got there all the teachers were on strike. Fortunately, they went back to work during my second week and I was able to visit a variety of schools. One in particular, Bella Vista, is in a village that hardly existed six years ago and yet the school now has 860 children. Each year more than 100 extra children turn up for school. It is a massive headache, but Fr. Chris has done a fantastic job in putting up new classrooms and finding new teachers.
Fr. Dominic has continued to dedicate himself to the study of some of the local languages. While I was there we had a parish family day with parishioners from all over the parish coming in by the bus load from the villages. There are six significant language groups in the parish and during the final Mass, Fr. Dominic made sure that no one felt left out. He is also trained as an AIDS counsellor and is in much demand unfortunately.
I was able to also visit one of the Claretian parishes in Guatemala, now in the hands of the Central American Claretians. There I met old friends and talked to Fr. Manuel Sam cmf, the parish priest. All over I encountered the hopes people have for the future and the struggles and sometimes tragedies of individual lives. The legacy of our work in Guatemala is something living. The same Claretian values continue and are promoted with new vision and insight. Fr. Manuel is creatively trying to finance secondary education for the Q?eqchi? Indians by setting up commercial agricultural projects in the school grounds, giving technical as well as academic education to the youngsters and having them ?work their way through college?. We do not understand what sacrifices people are willing to make to obtain an education in the developing world.
The visit to Belize and Guatemala was all too short, but it was uplifting to see both current and past work and the real difference it is making both to the spiritual and material lives of so many people. |
