Be Kind Belize Essay Winners

by tacogirl 29/12/2010

written by tacogirl 29/12/2010

Kind Kids Write 2010

Essay Writing Contest
Winners Announced

Be Kind Belize, in cooperation with San Pedro Sun and AmbergrisCaye.com is delighted to announce the winners of the Kind Kids Write 2010 Essay writing contest.

The theme of the essay writing contest was ‘Kindness’ and it was open to all students in Standards 4, 5 & 6 at schools in San Pedro Belize.

All essays were judged blind by our three independent judges, Mary Gonzalez, writer, Chris Emmanuel, writer and Katia Marin, pet expert. None of the judges knew the identity of the writers or the school they represented. The judges were unanimous in saying that the essays were very impressive and even brought some of them to tears. It was a hard decision but here are the winners:

1st Prize Girls – Kendice Armstrong, Holy Cross Anglican School
1st Prize Boys – Ruben Francois, Island Academy
1st Prize for most enthusiastic participation from a school – Holy Cross Anglican School

Many thanks to S.P. Hardware for giving us a great discount on the two 1st Prize

Awards. Kendice Armstrong and Ruben Francois will both be receiving a bicycle as their first prize. All of the Runners Up will receive prize packs containing scholastic items and other goodies all donated by generous Be Kind Belize supporters.

The winning essays will be published in the San Pedro Sun and online with AmbergrisCaye.com. Prize winners may arrange to collect their winners certificates and prizes by calling Be Kind Belize on 226 4366 or 624 8251.

Be Kind Belize is a free programme, designed to complement the Belize National Curriculum. It is available to any school that would like to introduce the concept of kindness to their pupils. Volunteers are always welcome. If you would like more information about how you or your school could participate in Be Kind Belize or if you would like to volunteer, please contact Be Kind Belize on 226 4366/624 8251.

Since today’s post is about kids here is an email from Amanda Syme regarding the great work that Kelly and Mukul Kanubar are doing to raise money for Liberty Children’s Home.

Dear Friends and Family —
You have probably heard me discuss the wonderful work being done at Liberty Children’s Home in Belize. [I am a bit delayed in posting this but you can still join in supporting this cause]

Kelly and Mukul Kanubar own restaurants (along with other community based businesses) in San Pedro, and have a dedicated donation program for Liberty. For the past year in they have collected Liberty donations in their businesses and have matched the funds. It’s made a big difference in the lives of some very special kids.

This week Kelly and Mukul are doing something additional to make Christmas special for the children. We need your help to make it work. It costs you nothing to participate. Please read the message below and spend just a minute of your time to help the kids?

Let your friends and family know too – all it takes is a click of the computer.

DO IT TODAY PLEASE ……. !!! Happy Holidays!

Begin forwarded message:

Kelly and I want to do our small part to help make Christmas at Liberty House a bit brighter. So, for every Facebook fan of The Phoenix Resort, Red Ginger, Blue Water Grill, Caliente, and Wine de Vine as of noon on Christmas Day, we will donate $1 to Liberty House. As of today, we have 1970 fans total. We’re hoping to get to 3,000 or more. Please spread the word to friends and family and everyone in your Facebook world.

If you have any questions, please let me know. Here are the links to the respective Facebook pages: Phoenix Resort – Caliente – Blue Water Grill – Red Ginger – Wine de Vine.

And, yes, we’re continuing to match all donations to Liberty that are made at the three restaurants.

Happy Holidays. Kelly and Mukul

tacogirl

Laurie Norton grew up dyslexic and was very challenged by the school. She never dreamed she would move to Belize and become a writer. A year after her move to Ambergris Caye, Laurie became an entrepreneur and professional writer starting tacogirl blog in 2007. Since then she has helped many people plan their vacations or move. She also has been published in Great Destinations Belize Guidebook, Moon Guide to Living in Belize, Insight Guides, Island Magazine several times and USA Today. Currently Laurie resides in downtown San Pedro and enjoys being a "city girl" on a tropical island.

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2 comments

Colette 29/12/2010 - 5:17 pm

Thanks so much for your support Tacogirl!

Colette
Be Kind Belize

tacogirl 30/12/2010 - 6:02 am

Anytime Colette – keep up the good work.

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Found tacogirl while doing some research on an upcoming trip to Belize. This is the place for all the information you... need to plan your vacation. Incredibly helpful and responsive. I sent an email with lots of questions and received a very quick and detailed response that helped us finalize our plans.read more

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We have been following TacoGirl for years now and before booking any trip to San Pedro we check to see what is... currently happening. We love the emails to let us know when a new blog has been posted. Keep up the great work Laurie, we feel like we know you.read more

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I first got my Passport in 2012 and Taco Girl was my first connection back then Great then and Marvelous Now! She's... blossomed and developed into a wonderful contact for any and all information Belize. She goes above & beyond to respond with information that you need whether visiting Belize or relocating! I wasn't able to fund the move then but now that I have much more equity I am doing it.This time she was the 1st person I reached out to! Now I am selling and moving to Belize. She responds immediately! Like I do in my Pet Sitting Business! I was so impressed I followed her all this time. And was not disappointed!Pamela Nixonread more

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Wanted to give a shout-out to tacogirl belize for helping us! She is a plethora of knowledge and was super helpful and... responsive in helping us find longer term stay on the island. Thank you so much for your help!read more

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01:47 20 Aug 21

I've spent the last month exploring Belize. I'm retired & seriously considering moving down to Belize permanently from... the US. I contacted the local San Pedro expert "Taco Girl" to help me get started in finding an apartment to rent. With her help, I've located several places that meet my needs & budget requirements. Thank you Laurie!read more

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18:41 02 Aug 21

I am so grateful for the time and energy Laurie has taken to share about her experiences traveling to and living in... Belize as well as provide thorough recommendations for planning a trip there. I was so thankful (and honestly surprised) that Laurie took the time to respond to several of my questions via email. I highly recommend reading Laurie's blogs and helping to support her business. Thank you Laurie!!read more

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02:12 29 Jun 21

tacogirl was very nice to share her knowledge with us and assisted with planning our trip to Belize; thank you for the... help and info, it was helpful and allowed us to plan utilize our time accordingly while both on the mainland and islands of this great country.read more

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18:46 02 Jun 21

As a Canadian—tired of long winters—I cannot wait to spend some time in Belize. I haven't set foot yet, but I am... yearning for lots of Caribbean adventure. Thanks so much to tacogirl for her endless enthusiasm and generosity of spirit. She is a constant stream of up-to-date information. Her knowledge and love of the area is priceless, and I will need her expertise for future endeavours!read more

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It was my first time visiting Belize and San Pedro so naturally I had a ton of questions when it came time to planning... the travel. Taco Gril's blog was an invaluable source of information for all the travel questions in Ambergris Caye. I was able to learn a lot of basic information, as well as many tips and tricks. In addition when I reached out to Taco Girl for advice on finding a local photographer and a restaurant recommendation, she was very quick to respond and gave me many helpful suggestions. She also provided a lot more information from a local's point of view, which was much for valuable than than a typical guidebook. Thanks to her helpful suggestions we were able to celebrate my daughter's birthday at a nice restaurant, and had a great photo family session with a local photographer. I'm very thankful for all her resources and knowledge.read more

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04:38 25 Feb 20

I take the seniors from our academy to Belize every year for their senior trip. One of the first people I contact when... I start planning the trip is Laurie with TacoGirl Belize. She knows the island of San Pedro better than anyone else out there. Trust me, I have looked. If you are looking for the best restaurants, hang outs and shops then Laurie help plan your vacation.read more

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15:53 24 Feb 20

Love Taco Girl Blog @LaurieNorton!I've been reading this blog since I started visiting Ambergris Caye in Belize almost... 10 years ago. It is filled with helpful up-to-date information and recommendations that I wouldn't necessarily find on my own. Laurie Norton's knowledge and extensive network on the island provides her with the ability to share perks/discounts/coupons with her readers, which come in handy year after year. Things on the island change daily - new businesses pop up constantly and LaurieNortonstays on top of these developments. Whenever I plan my return trip to the island, I always check her blog first - and I recommend you do the same. Trip Advisor ain't got nuttin' on Taco Girl!read more

Heidi

20:01 20 Feb 20

Laurie's blog is my official “go to” source for tourist and local information on San Pedro. Of course, it’s always nice... to see her guides on “what to do” in San Pedro, but I also appreciate her “insider” advice and human interest stories on what it’s like living as a local on the island. There is so much information it's amazing! Thank you Laurie!!!read more

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I’m so pleased to see tacogirl's blog on Google. Laurie's blog is my official “go to” source for tourist and local... information on San Pedro. Of course, it’s always nice to see her guides on “what to do” in San Pedro, but I also appreciate her “insider” advice and human interest stories on what it’s like living as a local on the island. I especially enjoy her guest articles, providing a different perspective of all things San Pedro. Her tipping quide is a classic, and don’t forget her Tropic Air flight code and on-island discounts. You’re not up-to-date with what’s going on in San Pedro if you’re not regularly reading tacogirl's blog.read more

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15:58 23 Nov 19

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13:39 06 May 19

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18:28 03 May 19

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20:22 21 Apr 19

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