Commencement Address at Democracia

Hello parents:
The dining hall was completed in time for the Bullis students to see it this morning on their way to the airport. The are in transit as I write back to the U.S. Also our country coordinator, Matt Miller, delivered this commencement address at the school this morning. Since it involves some of the work that Bullis and other World Leadership School groups have done at the school, I thought I would post it here. Congratulations Bullis students on work very well done! Hopefully pictures of the dining hall will be posted here soon.
Ross

Graduation Commencement Speech for
La Democracia Government School
June 25 2009
Theme: GO LIGHT YOUR WORLD

Good Morning to everyone; Ministry representatives, Principal Garcia, Teachers, parents and especially students and our distinguished GRADUATES!

Today is a gift. I suppose that is why they call it The Present. Today marks a crossroad for all of us. This is the day our primary school graduates take a step a bit further out and into the light. Go Light Your World is the theme of this commencement ceremony and I can see that each and every one of our graduates here is looking ahead, not behind. Ahead is where your future lies.

Today also marks a new chapter in this village. Our school is growing and expanding. New buildings have sprouted and taken root here in the school yard, more educational tools have and are being installed, parents are volunteering to assist teachers in meaningful, supportive ways, and the graduates from this little school are shining brightly this morning as they step out into the world with the joy of accomplishment in their academic achievements.

They now are GRADUATES. And as they step out today, one step closer to becoming responsible teen agers on the path to adulthood, I remind us all to take pause to count our blessings. We live in a peaceful country. We have clean air to breath and fresh sweet water to drink. God’s gifts of nature are plentiful and remind us of our rich natural heritage; we are blessed with natural capital. People from other countries come here just to experience what we take for granted every day. And some of these visitors fall in love with our village, the Sibun River and the diversity of birds that fill the air with songs. One year ago, a group of middle school and high school teachers visited Democracia and were welcomed by several families here who were willing to open their homes and their lives to these curious visitors. The first night was a bit uncomfortable for both guests and hosts. This Experiment in International Living proved to be a big success by the time night 2 rolled around. Strangers had become friends, food and drink shared, addresses and phone numbers were exchanged, and pictures and stories made their way back to hometowns across the States. And this year, students from these hometowns visited our school and participated in many activities with our Belizean students. They exchanged ideas about biological diversity and climate change, they volunteered their labor and they brought gifts in the form of computers, school supplies and cold hard cash to pay for a few improvements to our school. All this is to say that the light definitely is shining on Democracia. Just look at who and what this light is attracting!

So graduates, Go Light Your World. And remember these important points as you complete the change from childhood to adolescence. 1) Be the leader to guide yourself and others to do the right thing. Be responsible and respectful. Mind your parents, and parents do everything in your power to help create opportunities for your children to grow, continue to learn and find their purpose in life. Be consistent and complete what you started. Continue to read and stay current on what is happening in the world around you. Help conserve and protect the environment. Strengthen your courage by doing one thing every day that you are afraid to do. And finally, believe in a Higher Power; remembering who is in control.

Thank you for the invitation to attend today’s graduation ceremony. Know that Monkey Bay will continue to shine a light to attract other parts of the world to Democracia in order to encourage world peace and friendship.

God Bless.

Flight Arrival Information

Hello parents,

I wanted to confirm the flight arrival information Thursday night (actually Friday morning) into Ronald Reagan National Airport.

June 25th
AA 2104 Belize City, Belize -- Miami 2:55PM – 6:55PM
AA 1012 Miami -- DCA 9:55PM – 12:20AM (June 26)

So far the flight times have not changed. Before going to the airport, please check the 1012 flight number at www.aa.com, as flights are often delayed.

Thank you very much and if you have any questions, call me on 303-679-3412.

Ross

On Tobacco Caye

Hello Parents,

Wanted to confirm that I heard from Chris Lindstrom, World Leadership School instructor, who says the group is having a great time on Tobacco Caye. The sun has finally arrived and the students are very happy about that! They had a snorkel orientation yesterday and a talk about global climate change in Belize's reefs. Today they are out exploring the Belize Barrier Reef, spending some time on a gorgeous beach, snorkeling, and visiting the Smithsonian research center on Carrie Bow Caye. Tonight, they will return to Tobacco Caye for closing activities. This has been a fabulous trip and the kids have accomplished so much.

Also we have workers on the ground back in Democracia, where the group did its community service, putting the final touches on the dining hall. This is the building the students worked on despite rain. This building was built 100 percent because of the students' donations and hard work. As a result, over 100 students at Democracia will now have a place to get out of the rain, dust and heat and have a decent meal -- no child can learn without a decent meal, so this is a really important step forward for the school. The Bullis students were not able to do much of the final work on the dining hall themselves as it required standing on a ladder (which we do not allow for students) and also nailing into tropical hard wood (which was very difficult for the students, indeed anyone who is not a local carpenter). Our hope is to finish the building so the students can see it on their return tomorrow from Tobacco Caye to the Belize City airport. We will certainly post pictures when available.

If you have any questions, please call on (303) 679-3412.

Thanks, Ross Wehner

Blog Entry June 22, 2009

Today we stated off with a breakfast of eggs and potatoes, and then we got ready to head to La Democracia for our second day of our service project at the school. While there, we built the braces to support the walls of the dining room, then put up screening and roofing. We also helped make a walkway from the kitchen to the dining room and also helped make cement for the kitchen. The computer room we started painting yesterday got finished today. After the day was over a few of the teachers from La Democracia came to Monkey Bay to eat dinner with us. Tonight Rufina made rice, curry chicken, fried plantains, salad, and mashed potatoes. Best Dinner Ever!! Then we enjoyed a drumming circle from a local band. We danced really crazy around the fire pit. After dancing we settled down to get a good night sleep for our long trip to Tobacco Caye tomorrow.
Written by Clarke Jamison and William Tavel

Blog Entry June 21, 2009

Today we went to the village of La Democracia to build a dining hall for the local primary school. We put up the frame and we painted their future computer lab. Ms. Aretha cooked lunch for us, and then we got watermelon. She also provided the wood to build the frame of the dining hall. We made a lot of progress today. We got all four walls up and the rafters in place. All that is left to do is the roof and the screening against bugs. Some of us played a game of kick ball with some local kids, and I made a little friend named Latrell. (me being Oriana). In the evening we played a game called “Peanut- Butter Booger Fire Snot River,” in which we had to use teamwork and listening skills, as well as problem- solving skills. We also had to use “I statements,” which are a way of problem solving in which you tell the other person what you are feeling, why you are feeling like that, and what they could do to make you help solve the problem. We also did our own laundry. We hope that it doesn’t rain tomorrow so that we can finish the dining hall and play more games with the kids.

Written by Oriana Theo and Ian Giles

Bullis Part I Video

videos

We are having trouble getting videos edited and posted. I will try to post a few unedited clips but it takes a very long time to upload for each short clip. Tonight I was able to put up a short clip from Xunantunich. Enjoy, and I'll try to get some more clips up soon.
Rita Gerharz

Blog entry June 20, 2009

Today we left Pine Ridge Cabin and drove to Xunantunich, aka “Stone Maiden,” which is an old Mayan city. We were able to climb to the top of one of the largest stone structures, something that is believed to be a castle. There were lots of Mayan structures but most were buried under earth, because it turns out that Mayans bury their cities before they abandon them so that no one can find them.

After Xunantunich we drove to as small Belizean town called La Democracia to see the area where we will build a small dining hall for our next community service project. We played football (soccer) and basketball with the children who went to the school and had a lot of fun. Belizean kids are amazing at the sports.

Ms. Arita is a local woman who has given up her job teaching at the school to cook food for the kids who go there. The town has very little money and some of the students often do not bring food to eat at school and are also undernourished at home. Ms. Arita now volunteers to make the students meals to eat at lunchtime.

We are now sharing the Monkey Bay cabins with some British university students, whom we hope we will not annoy at night by talking a lot. We also hope they won’t annoy us. Tomorrow we will start to build the dining hall at the school, which is also called La Democracia. We’re looking forward to completing the dining hall and going to Tobacco Caye for sun (if it ever comes out), snorkeling, and relaxation.

Written by Anya Fasolyak and Nick Barpoulis.

Blog Entry June 19, 2009

Today we started off with a delicious breakfast of sopapilla (fried bread) and eggs. Then we went to start a 40 minute hike to big rock waterfall. On our way we learned about how the pine beetles are eating the Caribbean pine trees. Also we saw an orchid and a hummingbird. The hike down to the falls was very steep! We had a hard time getting down to take some beautiful pictures of the big rock falls. The rocks made us trip a lot and were very slippery! When we returned, we had an appetizing lunch of rice chicken sauce and tortillas. After that, we took a 10 minute drive to 5-sisters lodge, but we were stopped on the way by a huge 8 foot boa constrictor. We watched it slither up a tree and had an amazing photo shoot. When we arrived we had a surprise milkshake break for William Tavel’s (me!) birthday. Then we took a trip of many stairs (oprx. 120) down to 5-sisters falls. There we took a refreshing swim and back massage from the falls. After a long trip back we had a well deserved shower and went to the main lodge for dinner. Our dinner was a delectable mix of mashed potatoes, baked chicken with yummy sauce, and tortilla wraps. Afterwards William was surprised with a birthday cake and song. After chowing on cake we got down to business and started our market place of ideas workshop for the zoo. We broke up into groups and brainstormed many ideas on how to help the zoo raise money. We shared our ideas and commented on each other’s thoughts. We are now hopefully prepared for the second part of the activity. Assassin rages on and we all need to crash. Happy birthday William and everybody have fun!

Written by William Tavel and Lamonte Armstrong

Blog Entry June 18, 2009

Every night we’ve had amazing rain showers like I’ve never seen (or heard) before. On our way to Pine Ridge we stopped in Belmopan to buy postcards and stamps. Most of us also bought cold sodas for a treat. We had a long and bumpy bus ride to Pine Ridge so we played games and sang songs in the bus. The cabin is located on a hillside overlooking the Privassion Creek. The sound of the rushing water below is relaxing and the temperature is quite a bit cooler than down in the savannah. After settling into the cabin, we went to pools of Rio On to swim. The pools are carved into solid reddish colored granite. Water cascades down short waterfalls to the pools below. The setting is quite lovely. Because of all the rain in the last few days the water is pretty high so we had to limit the swimming to only a couple of the pools. We will stay at Pine Ridge for two nights.

Written by Rita Gerharz

Blog Entry June 18, 2009

Today we visited Pine Ridge Forest Reserve. We saw and swam in some of the water falls. We had a lot of fun playing in the current and falling in the water when we tried to step on a rock that wasn’t there. After that we took a bus ride back to the campsite to eat a fabulous dinner of spaghetti. When we finished we saw some really cool beetles. Two eyes on the beetle’s backs would glow just like a fire fly. After seeing the bugs we started playing a fun game called assassin. In this game you had to make a person complete a certain objective to “kill” them. We did improvisation which suited us because I (Josh) was in improvisation troop at school. We had a full day of fun and we went to bed hoping for another great day!

Written by Josh Czerwiec and Brett Barrera

In Mountain Pine Ridge

Hello Parents,
I just received a message from Chris Lindstrom, World Leadership School instructor with the Bullis group. He was happy to report that the group is doing well, despite a lot of rainy weather. They were in the midst of having milkshakes at Five Sisters Lodge, up in the Mountain Pine Ridge area, to celebrate William Tavel's birthday (which is today). They had a great hike today and also had a fun day swimming at Rio on Pools, a shallow series of waterfalls that they visited on the way to Mountain Pine Ridge. Tonight they will stay at Mountain Pine Ridge Cabin, a rustic retreat with a fabulous deck and view of the surrounding area. Tomorrow they will head to the Mayan ruins of Xunantunich before arriving back at Monkey Bay Sanctuary for community service work. We are hopeful the rains will cease and they can get to work on finishing Democracia School's dining hall. If the rains persist, we do have a back-up option that involves painting the computer lab recently installed at the school through World Leadership School donations and student service labor. They should post a good blog update tomorrow night.
Thanks
Ross Wehner

Blog Entry June 17, 2009

Today we moved from Monkey Bay to the Belize zoo for one night. We started of our day with community service like raking leaves off of pathways and painting the Zoo gift shop walls with a new lime green color. After lunch we cleaned up after our labors while others took a rainy tour through the exhibits. Colton was thoroughly soaked after he came back because he forgot to bring his rain jacket. After the day part at the zoo we headed back to our lodge. When we got out it was pretty dark so the frogs and toads were out and Taylor caught some big frogs such as water frogs and tree frogs so that people could take pictures of them. After changing into long pants and shirts we settled in for some intense games in the dining room such as BS and Kemps. Then we ate a delicious meal of beef stew, rice, and cookies. After dinner we got everyone on the bus to head back to the zoo for our night tour. The tour guide was very generous to stay after hours and take us on a tour. We saw cute kinkajous and we got to feed them bananas. Also we saw Harpy Eagles, which are the largest birds of prey. We also saw naughty Howler monkeys who showed us their baggage and screamed their heads off. Clarke and Brittani were freaked out about the giant flying beetles that were attracted to our lights. Our adventure ended with a snake viewing in which people were allowed to hold a Boa Constrictor around their necks or on their hands. This was cut short by a sudden downpour but we moved indoors and continued holding the snake. This day was very exciting and ended with a short bus ride back to the cabins. Most of us had a good night sleep but Lamonte definitely slept the soundest when he slept in till seven o’ clock.

This morning we are heading up to Pine Ridge so it might be a few days until we can enter another blog. Everyone is well!

Written by Colton Harrington and Taylor Hoffman

Bullis Videos Test

Blog Post June 16, 2009

We had a wonderful canoe trip down the Sibun River this morning. The river was beautiful – slow moving water with banks lined with dense green vegetation. We saw many species of birds, insects and fish. We were also able to stop at several swimming holes to cool down and snack on fresh mangos. After lunch everyone participated in a number of activities including discussions on personality styles, an egg drop group challenge and an engaging conversation around climate change led by Ms. Gerharz and Juan. After dinner we relaxed in the mess hall while playing card games.

Tomorrow we will travel down the street to the Belize Zoo where we will begin our first service activity and see many exciting native animal species including Jaguars!

Everyone is well and having a great time!

Written by Mr. Paushter

Blog Entry June 16, 2009

Today we canoed down the Sibun River. The river is considered one of the most pristine rivers in Belize. On the way we saw an orange grove and a couple of large iguanas perched high in the trees. The iguana was black, red and yellow. The iguanas were so “ninja” as Brittani stated. On the river we encountered giant rocks and logs and we also went swimming. For breakfast we had the best pancakes by Rufina and had some tropical punch. Then for lunch we ate Belizean Hot pockets, chips, salsa and mango juice. For dinner Rufina made rice and beans, chicken, potato salad and fried plantains. For dessert we had marble cake.

We all look forward to our zoo campout tomorrow.

Written by Clarke Jamison

Blog Entry June 15, 2009

Today we arrived in Belize from the Miami airport and we met our Monkey Bay guides named Juan and Chris. We stopped for a snack and met some local musicians who were trying to sell us some CD’s about the suffering in Belize. We took about a 45 minute ride from the airport to Monkey Bay where we met the rest of the Monkey Bay staff. They talked to us about where we were sleeping and where we would take showers and use the bathroom. After they introduced us to everything we went to the mess hall and ate tacos for dinner. The taco shells were like giant yummy tortilla chips. We met the cook Rufina and her daughters. After dinner we had a group discussion about the word MOSAIC (“M” for Mutual Respect; “O” for Open Mindedness; “S” for Self Respect; “A” for Attitude; “I” for Individuality; and “C” for Community. Every day at the end of our discussion we review ANCHOR (“A” for Appreciate; “N” for News; “C” for Concerns; “H” for Hope; “O” for Odd Fact; and “R” for Reading. After that we learned about termites that were flying around. They appear after heavy rain and then lose their wings within the hour.

We all look forward to our canoe trip down the Sibun River tomorrow morning! It’s time to turn in… we are all exhausted from our travels!

Written By Henry and Brittani

Hello Everyone! We just had our final Belize Trip meeting before we all meet at the airport on June 15th. During the meeting everyone took a web-based personality test (results will be used/discussed during our trip) and we reviewed our itinerary and packing list. We also distributed water purifying bottles (please assemble and prime before the trip!).

During the trip, we will be updating this blog every few days so stay tuned! We will hopefully be able to load some photos as well.

We have a great group and we are all very excited. Belize, here we come!

~Mr. Paushter