National ECW Liaison to
Episcopal Relief and
Development
Valerie Hoffman-Hatcher
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2010 ERD Network Meeting: Belize City, Belize
Each year Episcopal Relief and Development has invited all Diocesan ERD Coordinators to attend a network meeting for three full days (Thursday afternoon through Sunday morning breakfast) of information and reports. Belize City, Belize (formerly British Honduras) was the site of the Network Meeting of 2010. This was the first network meeting outside of the United States.
We began our visit and meeting by attending Holy Eucharist at St. John’s Cathedral which was dedicated in 1826, making it the oldest Anglican Church in Central America. After dinner were greeted by the Bishop Philip Wright, Luke Foder, Dr. Rob Radtke and the Rt. Reverend Rob O’Neill.
The following day we were assigned to buses for our visits to the schools. Our first school visit was to Flowers Bank where we visited St. Stephen’s School. The children and teachers welcomed us. (pictures
2 & 3) We observed the classes in session. (picture 4) In each classroom there was a designated area for materials on HIV/AIDS which is a problem in Belize. The Anglican Church requires its teachers to provide instruction to the students in an effort to combat HIV/AIDS (picture 1). During a rainy afternoon we visited a junior high and high school class before returning to the Princess Hotel in Belize City.
The next day we visited the businesses of four recipients of micro loans. Support from Episcopal Relief and Development and Belize Enterprise for Sustainable Technology (BEST) has promoted the Millennium Development Goals while providing loans at a lower rate of interest. The four recipients were Julia Gonzalez – agriculture – farmer of the year award (picture 6), Alan Jones – carver (picture 5), Cherrymae Galaz – grocery shop and fast food and Lorie Wallace – craft and souvenir shop at Altun Ha archaeological site (picture 7).
Marlene Leslie (Superintendent) and Mrs. Michelle Elliot (Program Administrator) compiled a list of school supplies that were need by the Anglican schools. Melanie Stewart from Wisconsin organized coordinators to volunteer for one or two days in the Anglican schools – a cultural exchange for all participants. Some of the women taught in the classroom, others listened to children read and others assisted children with spelling and math and several taught the girls in the upper grades ‘how to knit’. Knitting was very popular. I assisted a few children with reading, spelling and math in a pre-school class at St. Mary’s School.
Later in the day we gathered for dinner and discussed our experiences in an Anglican School in the Central American country of Belize(picture 8).
Valerie Hoffman-Hatcher
ECW Liaison to Episcopal Relief & Development
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