It was ten for ten in June of 2006 when the Protected Areas Conservation Trust donated ten trees to ten primary schools in Belize City. The mission for the students was to use those ten trees to create lush gardens in the middle of the urban jungles that surround their schools. A year later their work should have literally bloomed and this morning we found out what a difference a year can make.
Keith Swift Reporting,
This is St. Ignatius Primary School's "Garden of Wonders." It was created by these standard four students who toiled and tilled the soil after class and on weekends, trucked in gravel in wheelbarrows, painted the benches, and even built this white picket fence.
LaKeisha Humes, St. Ignatius Primary School
"We planted the trees and we planted hibiscus trees."
Devon Grant, St. Ignatius Primary School
"We put stones, put the bamboo, and did a lot of stuff."
But more than work, these St. Ignatius students say it's been a learning experience. Collin Sutherland and Lakeisha Humes hope it will be their legacy.
Colin Sutherland, St. Ignatius Primary School
"When we grow big the garden will still be here and young people in the next generation, your daughter and so could see what you did."
LaKeisha Humes,
"It means joy to us so when we graduate, the children can come in and see what we did."
Keith Swift,
Who wants to tell me something they've learnt.
Renee Gentle, St. Ignatius Primary School
"I learn most of the names of the plants like the orchid, the hibiscus, mahogany tree, and lots more."
And even if they don't win the competition, their teacher Melissa Stephenson says the lessons learnt make it worth it.
Melissa Stephenson, Teacher - St. Ignatius Primary School
"They will have a sense of that they did this, they got together and planted these trees and this is their garden. They put all their hard work and their time in this, so this is theirs. Yes the money could do good for the school but for them it will give them a sense that they accomplished something that they did."
But to win the prize, St. Ignatius's "Garden of Wonders" will have to beat St. John Anglican's - "Garden of Hope." It is a garden built on the hope that this almond tree - or the local name, "hammonds" tree - which was replanted here - will survive. The garden was a personal project for Richard Rowland, Tanisha Young, and Sarita Crawford.
Sarita Crawford, St. John Anglican's School
"It was fun to bring in this. We were singing and dancing when we brought it in."
Richard Rowland, St. John Anglican's School
"This means a lot to me because when I go out of this school I will appreciate it and I will have remembrance about it."
Tanisha Young, St. John Anglican's School
"It means a lot because we put a lot of efforts into this and we are so excited if we win this because we did hard work and we came on holidays and painted these things, these cement blocks, we boarded up the fence."
And while Tanisha, Richard, and Sarita took the lead on the Garden of Hope, across town the entire upper division class at Stella Maris worked on their
garden which they call: 'dis dah fu we space, protect it.' It didn't have all the fancy stones and plants like other gardens but it was good enough for Kendron Conorquie.
Keith Swift,
What kind of work went into your garden?
Kendron Conorquie, Student - Stella Maris
"We put sand, we put the pool, we put lots of tires."
The assistant teacher at Stella Maris is Myrna Elliot.
Myrna Elliot, Teacher- Stella Maris
"They start building using hammers and other tools, they utilized those tools in the building of whatever you see here, the sandbox, the picket fence. They even helped with putting on of the wires so they really put a lot of effort into it. The reason why they are here is because they are not academically full so they need to develop some skills to survive when they go out there, after they leave here. So a lot of them started using the hammer well, to build, assembling things together and things like that. Even the planting, maybe they would get to love planting and they could earn a living by selling plants- something that they really develop a love for while working here."
The winner will be chosen by a team of judges from the Protected Areas Conservation Trust - PACT. Kenrick Williams is the capacity building officer at PACT.
Kenrick William, PACT
"What we're trying to do is create green spaces within urban centers, Belize City specifically. So we've gone in the schools and we've given them the opportunity to create these green spaces within their urban environment so that students can see the natural processes and then get that greater appreciation for the processes of the natural environment."
Due to time constraints we couldn't visit all ten schools but we do note that Wesley Upper and Lower Division School, St. John's Vianney, St. Luke's Methodist, and St. Joseph Primary Schools also participated. The winning school gets $5,000, second place gets $3,000, and the other schools will receive consolation cash prizes. The winner will be announced tomorrow.
