Day 3 - Pathlight & Armenia School

Today, Monday, we spent the morning visiting the office of Pathlight International, an organization with close tie to Jaguar Creek. We returned for lunch and then headed to Armenia Government School, just about 15 minutes away by van. The heat made us cut our afternoon a little short, but we had enough time to get acquainted with the school projects we'll we working on, as well a lay of the land for classrooms that we will be using over the next few days. A team of students started clearing the area where they will build a new concrete walkway between buildings, while others collected trash pieces all around the school to help prepare for the 75 students we are expecting starting tomorrow. 

More from students...

By Daniel Min

Today started with a beautiful hike along the loop trail. it was a refreshing way to start our day, and a key reminder to where we were staying. Unfortunately, we were unable to see any wildlife. But, being in nature really reminded me of God’s creation and the beauty of his design. 


For our after breakfast schedule, we visited the Pathlight office. There, we were able to hear the testimonies of the staff and the students that were present today. Their testimonies all touched my heart, as they were so hopeful of their future in this program. But most importantly, they constantly stating that it was a blessing that they were included into this program.

Overall, today was one of the more eventful days. And through the testimonies and the visit of the school, I felt so blessed and lucky to be able to live my life in California.  



By Ramyond Ngo


Hello everyone, my name is Raymond Ngo and I am a senior in the Belize service trip. Today was a very fun day and productive despite the 90+ degree weather. In the morning we had a delicious breakfast that included an egg casserole and pancakes. Right after we finished our breakfast we went to Pathlight, which is an organization that sponsor kids to have an education past middle school.  We spoke briefly with some students that have recently graduated from high school and are going to university. One thing that I found very surprising was that we had many similar hobbies and interests. After that we went back and ate lunch which consisted of fried chicken and fries. We then headed out to a local elementary school and helped out a little bit there too. We helped to clean the fields and I helped to clean the classrooms as well. After working in the heat we headed back and immediately jumped in the creek and played volleyball. In conclusion, today was a very productive but also a very fun day where we got to bond with our classmates.





By Adam Keosaksith

Hello everyone, my name is Adam, a senior on The King’s Academy Belize Service Trip for 2024. Despite the 98 degree weather, our group preserved and was very productive. After our breakfast, we headed to PathLights office, the organization we are working with. PathLight helps underfunded students pursue high school and universities, since education after 8th grade is private in Belize. At the office, we listened to some amazing alumni and current students testimonies. What stood out to me, was that PathLight offered a lot of resources for students, like tutors, mentors, textbooks, etc. 

After PathLight, we headed back to Jaguar Creek for lunch, then quickly headed to Armenia Government School. We toured some classrooms and cleaned up some garbage on the field. The size of the school was surprising to me despite being a public school. Compared to American schools, it was much smaller. After hot and long day, we finally headed back to Jaguar Creek and enjoyed some free time. 
Besides the heat, today was a good introduction to our upcoming week. Tomorrow we begin to work in 104 degree weather!




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We ended our day together again, this time outside, where Natalie led us in worship and Mr. Smithson invited the students to share something about their day that was meaningful. To summarize, TKA students came away with greater appreciation for:

  • Educational opportunities and how easy it is for them to take it for granted in the US
  • The selflessness of the local students in their career choices
  • Travel and ministry opportunities 
  • Cultural diversity 
  • God’s creation of animals and nature 

 




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