Last year on this exact date two boys, Laddie Gillett and Thomas Palacio were fishing off a Placencia pier.
They would later head to a friend's house where they'd hang out on a beach and eat some cake.
The trouble would come later on when, on their walk home, they were ambushed in front of the Placencia Beach Club by two policemen, one of whom shot Laddie in the back.
That story still sends chills through the heart of every Belizean who's heard the tragic tale of Laddie Gillet's unfortunate end but somehow one year later there is some resilience in the family that Laddie left behind.
This evening they returned to that stretch of Placencia beach where they'd planted a garden.
They were there to hold a memorial for their son and grandson and to finish the run that he never did. Here's that story.
It's been exactly one year since 14-year-old Laddie Gillett had his last stand here on the Placencia beach. His life was tragically taken when police officer Kareem Martinez shot him in the back with a bullet that when straight to his heart.
That heartwrenching realization is somehow, a source of consolation for the family that still grieves his loss.
Lucy Fleming, Laddie's Grandmother
"The coroner said that when he was shot straight through the heart that he died instantly so you know that gives me some kind of solace to know my child didn't suffer, alone."
And despite the tragedy that was the end of Laddie's life the Bradley-Fleming's and the foundation they've named in his honour have managed to find some hope in a garden they've planet on the Placencia beach.
Lucy Fleming, Laddie's Grandmother
"What we are trying to do is really shift the energy you know when the family and I would walk past that place we would always be in place, we felt tremendous sorrow, loss and now. we decided you know what let's take this and change. the energy of this space into a positive space not just for kids and big kids of course but for everybody."
"We'll have a nice place to sit, we'll gather by the sea and have a pretty garden around them and just think about life and perhaps think about loss. and Laddie's plaque will be there it will direct people to the foundation and we would like people to jump onto our website so that they know you know what we're doing and for them to give us more ideas that they may have of what we should be doing and of course aside from our projects we will continue fighting for justice for Laddie that's definitely gonna happen."
And today the family witnessed a symbol of that justice in what they call the run for Laddie a three-minute dash from the place where Laddie fell to the safety that he tried to get to, a moment of transcendent healing for the run that Laddie never got to finish.
Lucy Flemming says that today's celebration, while launched by the Justice for Laddie foundation owes a lot to the bravery exhibited by hundreds of young people who bravely stood with the family in the days and weeks following Ladie's death.
Lucy Fleming, Laddie's Grandmother
"You know this. is what really has pulled us through our grief because we know that he was our Laddie but Laddie belonged to all of us and so when we saw everybody nationwide and all the children with their candlelight vigils and their songs, thier poems, which is heartwarming and it really helped us get through our darkest moments because we felt the love and we continue to feel the love. And there is nothing like it. There is nothing more healing than love. I mean time is to get through the rawness of it but then love is going to carry you through anything so yeah I don't think that we would have found this kind of activity nationwide anywhere else in the world. I mean we have stood up for the rights with Laddie and like I said we will be fighting not just for our Laddie but for every Laddie one of our matra's is someone's Laddie, we are Laddie we are all Laddie and he is a part of all of us and so we will move forward with him in our minds and in our hearts and making things happen."
"And so you know I don't know what Kareem Martinez is going through I can't imagine but he himself must feel some sort of loss. I guess but certainly, for us, we're getting through it it's a year later."
"We couldn't talk about it for about a year but now we're moving into action we are getting things done and yeah he was loved by a great many people and adored by a great many people."
"He was funny, he wa gleeful, he was a great dancer, he could sing, liked to play drums, I mean anything, anything, anything he would do he was excited about life and he was really really on the top of his life. And so whatever we want to think he did leave this life on a very very good note."
The Justice for Laddie Foundation has recently completed two projects, the first is the garden on the Placencia beach and the second is a playground near Guava Limb Cafe in San Ignacio.
They've also been working on the implementation of what they call the "Laws for Laddie." a 4 pronged statement for consideration that they hope can change the culture of the police academy in the way it trains officers to interact with young boys.
