Donation of Relief Supplies to Cuba

A quantity of relief supplies was handed over to the Cuban Ambassador in Belize on Wednesday, September 24, 2008. Almost two thousand pounds of relief items consisting mainly of food supplies was handed over by the Director of the National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO) Mrs. Noreen Fairweather, to Cuba’s Ambassador, His Excellency Manuel Rubido.

The supplies are being donated by the Government and people of Belize to the Government and people of Cuba in the wake of the devastation caused to that island nation by the passage of Hurricane Ike earlier this month.

An aircraft belonging to MINEVEC, (pronounced: mee-neh-vec) the Cuban relief agency is this afternoon flying the supplies to Cuba.

Police Destroy 9.8 million Pseudo-Ephedrine Pills

Police destroyed 9.8 million pseudo-ephedrine pills on Friday at an undisclosed location in western Belize. Three trucks with four armed police escorts left Belize City and arrived at a location in western Belize where the pills were destroyed by fire. The destruction was more complicated than the last time because the heavy aluminum wrapping made disposal by fire more difficult.

The pseudo-ephedrine pills came to Belize in two containers that had been sitting on the Customs Compound unclaimed for 20 days. That made them suspicious and when the Customs opened it, they found the first to contain 4.8 million pseudo-ephedrine tablets, while the second container contained 5 million.

The containers came to Belize from Taiwan and were destined for a Mexican-owned company in the Corozal Free Zone. – 7 News Belize

Rain

The Macal River near San Ignacio and Santa Elena in the Cayo District, reached new heights Saturday, September 27, 08. Below are some photos taken by Elias Avella (courtesy of Eve's Computer Services)

Everybody is Reading Ambergris Today

Brian, Jerome and Javier (Young Soldier) read their
Ambergris Today outside the Ballers’ Barber Shop.

North Ambergris Watch Vigilant for Eight Years

- Press Release, NACNW, Wednesday, September 23, 2008 - After our Belize Independence celebrations, we would like to make note of our own anniversary that just passed this last August. The NACNW has now been actively in existence for eight (8) years with our first meeting in August 2000, held at the Palapa Bar & Grill.

Our first meeting was brought about by concerns of the increase in petty theft, local development and hurricane assistance and awareness, among other issues. The next month, we experienced the first major hurricane that had hit Ambergris Caye in many years, Hurricane Keith. This unfortunate event made our neighborhood watch an important part of our community with the creation and introduction of new items to assist not only the north residents, but all of residents of the island.

One of the first creations by the NACNW was the telephone tree. This has provided us more open communication within the local community in regards to everything from theft prevention and assistance to medical needs. Remember, before the bridge was a permanent fixture connecting the north end of the island to the town, it was difficult at times assisting those in need of services.

Over the years, there have been many residents and citizens who have been integral in the success of the NACNW. These people include those who do heroic acts on behalf of our community. We would like to mention one of these acts that occurred just last week.

Three (3) young people who live in the area saw a fellow coming out of a house with a microwave heading down the beach. One of the young men caught the thief down by the bridge and knocked him down with his bike. An adult in the area had his boat and picked up the thief and took him to the police station. These young people deserve a big THANK YOU and our gratitude for taking such an interest in their community. Without their assistance, this fellow may not have been caught. The NACNW has rewarded their efforts.

Congratulations to the 8th Anniversary of the NACNW and a big thank you to all of you who have contributed to the NACNW, a successful group for the better of Ambergris Caye! Our next meeting is this Saturday, September 27, 2008, at 12:00 pm located at the Palapa Bar & Grill. The public is encouraged and welcome to come.

New Videos of Independence Day Parade

Cleaning up the Beaches

Thanks to the San Pedro Town Council for doing a great job in keeping our beaches clean. We were surprised to see their employees out cleaning up this past weekend during the September Celebrations, but were happy to see that they were thinking of keeping our beaches clean at a time when most residents would be enjoying them. Kudos!

BDF Housing and Feeding Issues

The SPBA is still working hard on the issue of housing and feeding BDF members that are patrolling on the island. This week starting Wednesday (September 24th) or Thursday (September 25th) housing is needed for 10 people. The place is needed with a kitchen so that they can cook for themselves. Anyone that has rooms available needs to contact Rebecca at 610-1697. If we are unable to find accommodation for them they will have to be sent back to the mainland. The Minister of Tourism has taken our request for funds to purchase the houses for barracks to the Minister of National Security and are waiting for his response. Meanwhile we continue to ask the community for support through cash donations or items from the list posted at the following link: http://sanpedrobusiness.com/safetycommittee/

Independence Day Parade

Residents of San Pedro took to the streets to celebrate Belize's Independence with a massive parade that intertwined through the streets of town. Spirits were high as everybody had a great time! A complete photo gallery will be posted at www.ambergristoday.com on Thursday's edition of Ambergris Today.

Best Float

1st Place - E & L/Varela's

2nd Place - Marina's Store

3rd Place - Holy Cross Anglican School

Best Organized Group

1st Place - ABC Pre-School (Supported by The Island Academy)

2nd Place - Reef Radio

3rd Place - Belize Bank

Miss San Pedro's Favorite - Tricycle depicting Flag's Emblem

Midnight Ceremony

Coconut Leo is Karaoke King 2008

Congratulations to Coconut Leo who won the $2,000 first prize at this year's Reef Radio Karaoke Competition. Coming out second with a close one point behind was Natalie Arceo followed by Joel Andino. It was a very entertaining finals with all the contestants putting their all into their two performances of the evening. Congratulations to the top three Karaoke Finalists!! Until next year.

Social Studies Quiz

Isla Bonita Elementary School came on top of the Social Studies Quiz that took place last night at Central Park. Selected students from all primary schools on the island participated in the quiz as part of the September Celebrations line up of events. Congratulations to the top three winners who received gift bags from the San Pedro Town Council.

1st Place - Josue Torres, Isla Bonita Elementary

2nd Place - Kristian Zaldivar, Ambergris Caye Elementary

3rd Place - Javier Williams Jr., New Horizon Academy

Javier Williams, Kristian Zaldivar, Miss San Pedro
Lizette Vasquez and Josue Torrez

Classmates of Josue congratulate
him on his win

Listen to Winning Entry of Patriotic Song Competiton

As announced previously, San Pedro's very own Alex Norales was the winner of Belize's Patriotic Song Competition and placed second place in the Carnival Competition. For the 3rd year in a row, the September Celebrations Committee launched the Patriotic Song Competition as part of the activities leading up to September Celebrations 2008.

Click on the link below to listen to Alex's winning songs, along with the other winning entries.

http://www.septembercelebrations.com/song_competition.php

The patriotic song competition aims to foster the spirit of patriotism and love of country among our Belizean people as well as encourage the writing of original Belizean music. In a similar vein the Committee, this year launched a Carnival Song competition in an effort to encourage the use of original Belizean calypso and soca music by the Carnival Mas Bands across the country.

11 Head to Reef Radio Karaoke Contest

Congratulations to Diane Lawrence who is the 11th contestant that will participate in the Reef Radio Karaoke Competition finals on Thursday 18th September 2008. The 11th contestant was chosen by you the viewers and got the most votes online on the Reef Radio website. Below is a video of all the finalists that will be competing for the title of Karaoke King or Queen. Good luck to all!

Belizean Pride

by Lisette Graniel, Teen Talk Reporter

September is an exceptional month for us Belizeans as two very important events took place in this month that positively affected the future of this nation. On the 10th of September 1798 the Baymen returned heroes as they battled and won over the Spanish at St. George’s Caye and on the 21st of September 1981 Belize got its Independence and truly became the land of the free by the Carib Sea.

So Belizeans have much reason to celebrate and celebrate we do. Citizens of all ages come out under the bright sun, dressed in our national colors red, white and blue, to express our joy and civic pride as we join in the many parades shouting “Long live Belize’’ and ‘’Hip Hip Hurray.’’

This week I asked our teens why is it important for us to participate in our country’s patriotic celebrations. This is why they look forward to our September celebrations.

Eseli – It is important for us to show respect for our country and demonstrate how proud we are for what our forefathers accomplished, as well as who we are and where we live.
Lu- To show our gratitude to those who fought at the battle of St. George’s Caye and also for those who made Belize obtain its Independence.
Sham - We should be proud of our country, our history and culture. By participating in all our country’s events, not only the September celebrations, we are also making history ourselves.
Chi Cheen - Simply because it shows that you are proud of Belize and also proud that you are a Belizean. Everyone should enjoy it!
Krissy – We should celebrate to show off all that Belize has accomplished and how happy we are to see Belize grow as the years pass by. Being part of the Caribbean we love festivals and what better way to bash than with the people who all share one love for their country.
Itsel – It is important to celebrate our hard work and also to show that we are independent and that we have all the rights as any other independent country around the world.

It seems that our teens have a lot of civic pride. It is good to know that we study our history and know where we have come from, which gives us the foundation to build a great future for our nation. So let us all celebrate and continue following this year’s slogan, which says: “Belizeans! Learning our Past, Impacting our Present, Embracing our Future”.

Mel Spain Donates Towards Isla Bonita’s Marching Band

The students of Isla Bonita Elementary School were estatic to have received a set of new marching band drumming instruments with the assistance of Mel Spain who contributed $1,500 towards the cost of the drums. Isla Bonita Elementry put $500 towards the purchase and told Ambergris Today that they still need over $1,600 more to complete the purchase of a few more drums. Any assistance towards the school’s new marching band would be greatly appreciated. To pledge your assistance call the school at 226-3754.