Paving the Way

Wow, after arriving back in San Pedro what a delight to find smooth roads. (For those of you who volunteered in San Pedro with LTA this past summer, you will have a greater appreciation.)  Since our departure in September, the concrete road through town now extends almost to the bridge.  What does that mean? An amazing smooth ride in and out of town plus less traffic on the beach (making it smoother as well).  Also the road north of the bridge that is not paved was grated almost a mile, making the trip to the property easier as well.  Without the rain the roads are better and most importantly no mosquitoes!  This is the San Pedro we know and love!  See you soon!

Children at Play

This is the day the LORD has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

(Our verse of the day while in Belize)

Still rainy season, the picture above was recently taken.  What a joy to see a rainbow on the property and to understand the promise behind that rainbow.   The updates will not be as frequent for the next few weeks, however work slowly continues on the property. 

Cisterns on the island are overflowing with an abundance of water these days that a few months ago were dry.  We look forward to the day that our cistern is built and utilized by students, staff and volunteers.

The rest of the pictures are a great inspiration to see children at play on the campus (even in the mud right now).  Keep the vision of an amazingly beautiful campus with the students having the same smile and enjoyment for learning on their faces as you see here.

Thank you for your continued prayers and support to see this a living reality.

St. George Caye Day

Last Saturday was St. George Caye Day.  (The Battle of St. George's Caye was a short military engagement that lasted from 3 to 10 September 1798, off the coast of what is now Belize. However, the name is typically reserved for the final battle that occurred on 10 September.)

The town had festivities over the weekend.  A couple of events included students from the local schools in a parade, as well as the traditional "greasy pole".   The object of the "greasy pole" was to climb up to the top of a greased up telephone pole where a flag was waiting to be successfully retrieved.  Many Belizeans tried as one person stood on top of the other.  Several fell like dominoes in their attempt.  At last, in the evening, a group of about 10 were successful. We knew one of the guys near the bottom who had worked on the property with us in the past.

Next Wednesday, September 21, Belize celebrates it's 30 year anniversary of independence!

Students marching

Getting ready for the parade

High School students ready to march

Ready to go!

The "greasy pole"

Cheering on the "greasy pole" contest

Cistern Plans and Pics

Plans for the cistern have been completed.  Our draftsman updated seven pages to our building plans for the cistern.  Meanwhile it has been raining continually for the past several days.  If the cistern was complete already, we would probably have a full cistern!   

Water is very costly on the island during dry season therefore building a cistern is cost effective in the long run.  On a side note, San Pedro had little to no rain for several months during dry season.

Two building sites have been very helpful for our understanding of cisterns and construction in general.  Below are some of the pictures from those sites to help you see what we will be experiencing in the near future when the building begins.   Notice the amount of plywood, rebar and concrete that goes into the work.

Site One with rain water during construction

Site One with lots of rebar

Site Two - rain water has been drained

Site Two

Site Two - building materials (gravel and sand)

 

Barge and Trucks

We met with a barge company yesterday to learn more about materials being purchased for building.  Wanting to be good stewards of the funds being allocated for building, we have been diligent to understand the cost of materials, how things are built in Belize and how contractors work on the island.

The barge company informed us that effective September 1st, large trucks such as dump trucks, are no longer allowed to pass over the bridge to the north side of the island.  We have not had any materials delivered on site for a while therefore we were unaware of this change.  Because of this change, all materials delivered north of the bridge currently have to be barged.  The barge company suggested that we purchase materials from Belize City for quality and cost purposes when we are ready to start the process.  The meeting was very informative and helpful.

 

Pizza Challenge - Next Section Complete

Workers were promised a pizza when the next section of the property was filled with mud. (The mud hardens so that we can walk and drive across the property.)   

Working diligently for a few weeks on this section, this week was an exceptional week of accomplishment for the property.  We anticipated this section would be finished by the end of the week but everyone pitched in to see it completed today. The property's horizon continues to broaden. 

Last week - section being filled on the left

Beginning of week - spreading the mud

Half way finished

One corner left in the section to fill

Section filled on the right - pizza on the way!

Building Site Preparation Continues and Plans for a Water Cistern

The mud operation continues as we fill the property in preparation for the building site.  A new wheel barrel was also purchased to gain more ground.  Another section of the first acre should be completed by the end of week.

Meanwhile we have been observing other building sites and learning about pilings, casting concrete, water cisterns, etc.  Being on the lagoon side and a significant distance from the main road, water will be an issue as we begin building.  This thought provoking concern brought our attention to the need for more water once the first building is complete.  Originally we planned to have two water tanks on site for the first building and adding a water cistern to the next buildings.  However with the need for water and cost of transport as a couple of reasons, we have decided to add a cistern to the first building.  Our Belizean draftsman is working out two new additional sheets to our original building plan to add this feature.  Updated plans should be ready within a week.

Waving from afar

Gaining new ground

Using the new wheel barrel