Belize Bank gives hearts and gifts to Stella Maris School
Four lucky winners went home with appliances and cash prizes on Tuesday courtesy of the Belize Bank. Today, the bank made an even bigger impact at the annual Stella Maris Christmas party, which it fully sponsored this year. In the spirit of giving, the employees all pitched in to ensure that there was a smile on every face and a gift for every child, delivered by Santa Clause himself. News Five’s Delahnie Bain visited the school for today’s Christmas bram.
Delahnie Bain, Reporting
Before his sleigh ride on Christmas Eve, Santa Clause made an early trip to Stella Maris School today courtesy of the Belize Bank. It’s the school’s annual Christmas party, but for the first time, this year the bank employees took on the full responsibility of providing everything from party favors to live entertainment, which the kids all enjoyed.
[Students dancing… ]
Misty Michael, Marketing Manager, Belize Bank
“We provided all of the food, the drinks, gift bags for the kids and all of our staff members donated a gift for each child.”
Delahnie Bain
“And you have Santa here to deliver them.”
Misty Michael
“Yes we do and it’s actually one of our fellow co-workers that volunteered to be Santa Clause today.”
Joy Westby, Principal, Stella Maris
“It kinda helped us because we did not have to do all that but what is most recognized about all this is the joy that we see on the children’s faces because I know they say good gifts come in small packages but some of these packages are extremely big and the children have not received such big gifts and I so know that they have been really blessed this year.”
The gifts were special not only because of the size of the packages, but because for some of the students, it will be the only gift they receive this Christmas.
Joy Westby
“I know for sure that a lot of our students come from lower class backgrounds and sometimes this is the only gift they receive and I can attest to that. And so seeing that they have received these beautiful gifts I know it means a lot to them and to their parents who might have had difficulty providing a nice decent gift for them.”
The principal of Stella Maris School, Joy Westby, was overwhelmed by the generosity of the bank employees, who willingly put their time and finances into the event.
Joy Westby
“Every year we have our Christmas party and we always ask for contributions and Belize Bank has always donated towards the Christmas party. I wrote from early October and so they called me and say they did not just want to give a little contribution like they normally do, they want to sponsor the whole party and I was elated.”
Misty Michael
“This is the first time that the bank, as far as I know, has sponsored a Christmas party. But I think that it’s something that we will definitely continue to do and I think the staff really enjoyed being able to really contribute to something like this and I think particularly at this time of year we look forward to giving back to the community.”
Both the school’s principal Westby and Misty Michael acknowledged the Bank’s generosity.
Misty Michael
“On behalf of the management and staff of the Belize Bank, we want to wish all Belizeans a merry Christmas and prosperous new year and I myself would like to thank all of our staff members who gave so generously to this particular cause.”
Aside from the joy of giving, the bank employees were enriched by the experiences and challenges of children with disabilities. Delahnie Bain for News Five.
Stella Maris School has approximately one hundred and thirty-two students.
