Mennonites in Belize

The view from our new location The sacrifices we parents undertake for our children often astound me. In my previous article I wrote about our children attending school at New Hope, a Kleine Gemeinde Mennonite mission school on the western edge of Spanish Lookout. Now that our children had been accepted the next big question was transportation. We debated between driving a total of 35 miles daily or sending them to school via bus. Not being a wealthy family, in the end we realized the most economical choice was to move closer to the school. Which we did and are now grateful for the proximity which enables us to be more readily available in case of an emergency and allows our children to be home at a much earlier hour, not to mention that my workplace is now also much closer.   Honestly we did not want to move. We have property in our home community, family and friends; yet after a long and hard look we both arrived at the same conclusion. Although 35 miles might not seem like much,

New Hope Mission School, a conservative Mennonite-owned facility in Spanish Lookout They held hands as they walked towards the school building, their faces glowing with anticipation while the cool morning breeze ruffled their crisp new shirts. That big day, much talked about, discussed and imagined, was finally here. I felt a bit emotional as I waved goodby half an hour later.   We parents had endeavored to homeschool them for one term due to the Holdeman Mennonite school abruptly closing down in mid 2023 after being in operation since 1995. To say we felt stranded wasn’t accurate. Instead we began to be increasingly desperate as door after door appeared to be closing on us. One school was too modern; another was too rigid; yet another had no specific religious affiliation; government schools were not an option. Thus we settled on homeschooling until another little one arrived in the family, creating a challenge in our schedule. Early this year we commenced our search again until at

Smoke and dust over Lagoon Valley, western Spanish Lookout. A friend of ours recently encountered a brief snowfall as she travelled across western Canada, and posted it on her story. Typical of us humans, we watched, wished and jokingly wondered among ourselves that perhaps snow could be packaged and shipped in containers overseas since it appears that somewhere along the line, the weather forgot that the Mennonite crop farmers in Spanish Lookout confidently expect rain by the 21st of May. We are now on the eve of the 26th and still no sign of the usual thunderstorms. Instead, a yellowish haze caused by the smoke from uncontrolled burnings coupled with a layer of Saharan dust (yes, dust all the way from Africa) hangs above our heads night and day. Daytime temperatures remain over 95° for most of the day, rising as high as 108° sometimes. Rolling Hills, Spanish Lookout Behind Duck Run 2   My nieces developed a respiratory infection due to the smoke and dust. I’m sure they’re not th

A church building in Upper Barton Creek     Smoke covered the hills and white dust floated around and over us as I assisted some church friends in Upper Barton Creek in  moving from a rented house to their very own home. I chatted with Mr. Harms, who hails from Canada and is one of several conservative families moving into the area, about the warm weather. His comments shook me.   He and his family wanted to live in a warm country. I repeated the statement, thinking to myself, And here I am, wishing I lived in the Yukon or in the Alps. It was a new thought, sort of, to realize that there are individuals to whom 42°C is a blessing. (For the record, I have experienced -30°C while working in Canada, and nearly lost my toes in the process but even then I would take snow over sweltering hot weather anytime.) An antiquated farm implement   I greeted Mr Harder, the elderly gentleman who runs the fruit nursery and who is one of the few remaining members of the traditional "horse-and-b

Mountain View Church on the eastern edge of Spanish Lookout, close to San Marcos village.      Never ask a Mennonite from any of the modern churches about the Kleine Gemeinde church. Suddenly their expressions change, or they shrug their shoulders, or appear uninterested, or will begin to deride them, seemingly ignoring the fact that it was the Kleine Gemeinde Mennonites who founded Spanish Lookout and lost lives and limbs as they transformed a trackless jungle into a peaceful, prosperous, disciplined community for their descendants. Those descendants, while appreciating their forefathers’ toil and tears, now regard the “old” religion in contempt, the same religion which laid the cornerstone for the orderly community they now enjoy.   Such was the case when I unthinkingly asked several individuals in Spanish Lookout regarding the new Kleine Gemeinde church building on Bee Avenue. I should have known better. Their replies were a mixture of scorn and derision. According to them, the Sc

   Fourteen years ago I arrived here as a visitor and now, for only the second time in my life, I stood beside the river in Roaring Creek, Belize. A fine gray film of caliche dust coated our clothes and hair as we attended to customers at Belize’s annual National Agriculture and Trade Show in Belmopan. Semi-trucks thundered past on the bridge which overlooks the grounds, busses blared their horns, the neighing of horses and lowing of cattle mingled with the loudspeaker’s squawking at the rodeo stands which was accompanied by loud country music as well as some other classics which were not country. BJ Thomas was mournfully reminding us of raindrops falling on our heads despite the fact that the sky was sunny and mostly cloudless. I do not like country music or any slow music, for that matter. The "new" bridge, which nearly stayed underwater during the flood of 2020   Needless to say, the beer company possibly carried the honor of being the most important trade on the showgro

  Work has begun on the site of the future roundabout. "They had a vote, and the roundabout won,” muttered a disgruntled resident of Spanish Lookout. He and a certain minority believe that a roundabout is unnecessary. But the majority voted in favor, so he'd better resign himself and accept the fact that for the first time ever, the community will construct a roundabout, located at the site where Route 40 intersects with Center Avenue, right next to the town hall. “Next thing you know we’ll have speed bumps,” remarked another resident .    Speed bumps of any type completely disappeared from Spanish Lookout many years ago, the general consensus being that bumps, whether plastic or concrete, are a nuisance. Instead the main street is vividly marked with reflective paint, signs everywhere, and reflectors along the margins.   Personally I don’t believe speed bumps or pedestrian ramps will reappear anytime soon, but then again, who would ever have thought that a roundabout would