At the beginning of this year two Michigan volunteers, Bonnie and Marlin Adams, traveled to Belize. This husband and wife team worked in two different program areas. Bonnie, a seamstress, worked with a couple of women’s home economics-sewing cooperatives, strengthening basic sewing skills and getting the women started on projects designed to make them some income. She coordinated with a seamstress from Ghana, currently living in Belize with her missionary husband. Mrs. Mercy Love, who once owned her own boutique in Ghana which employed seven seamstresses, has volunteered her services to teach pattern design and production sewing.
Mrs. Adams also visited the local women’s prison several times to encourage inmates to engage in productive endeavors that might help them become employed when released from prison (see prison ministry reference below Michigan Partners). In addition, she worked side by side with her husband, Marlin, at the Liberty House Children’s Home and had a wonderful and unexpected experience when one young lady preparing for her Quinceañera (15th birthday “coming out” party) did not have a formal dress for the occasion. Bonnie pulled together a beautiful gown and enjoyed the blessing of this personal interaction with one young girl facing a milestone in her life.
Marlin Adams spent a great deal of his volunteer time at Liberty House, the facility requiring much needed repairs. He spent quite a bit of his own personal funds to purchase supplies necessary for the repair of screens, doors, cement access ramps for the handicapped; a generous donation that really made a difference to youngsters who were being bitten constantly by mosquitoes and needed the safety of locked doors. Mr. Adams, a member of the Gideon Bible Society, also gave lectures and attended prayer services at several churches and organizations in Belize. See the trip report on the Michigan Partners website.
My two months in Belize were quite productive in that I was able to follow up on the projects our volunteers have been involved in and add my own personal input. Along with assisting the Ladyville Lov’n Touch Home Economics Group and the Double Head Cabbage Cooperatives to set goals and develop business plans, I taught a workshop in marketing, then took co-op members to the tourist areas to let them practice those skills. Together, we designed promotional materials and scheduled further training to add to their current skills.
The Lov’n Touch Co-op is focusing on bathing-suit wraps with coordinated jewelry, school uniforms, large women’s clothing (basic shorts, tops, shifts), and catering small groups (portion control, food safety, special diets). This co-op is fairly new and is still getting its organizational footing and the members are each finding their personal and cooperative niche. The women have held a number of fund raisers to get the co-op going. A matching donation through Michigan Partners of the Americas allowed me to purchase some sewing machines and, when I left Belize, the co-op had three basic machines and a serger with which to work.
The Double Head Cabbage Co-op is already producing jams and jellies, stewed fruits, and other food items; also embroidery, household items like pillow cases, aprons, potholders, etc. They are also making school uniforms and have scheduled craft classes for the coming annual program year. This co-op has been established for several years and is willing to mentor the Lov’n Touch group through the basic struggles involved in getting a co-op of this sort off the ground.
As usual, I always enjoy working with teachers in Belize because a day of sharing with them affects hundreds of students over time. Some of our Michigan Partners members, retired teachers, have been sharing one-on-one with educators in Belize and it’s been great to watch the personal relationships evolve.
