CitCo and Rotaract Team Up for Love Park Upgrade
This morning in Belize City, Mayor Bernard Wagner, Freetown Area Representative Francis Fonseca and representatives of the Rotary and Rotaract clubs were present for the handing over of a play set at the Love Park in Belama Phase One. A team of Rotarians and Rotaracters is in Belize from Canada and has been working closely the municipal government to spruce up the recreational space in that constituency. News Five’s Isani Cayetano has the following story.
Bernard Wagner
Bernard Wagner, Belize City Mayor
“This beautiful Love Park is a shining beacon of what we aspire to build, what we aspire to expand, what we aspire to replicate all across our city. Right now, school is on, but by four o’clock this evening and as early as the sun rises tomorrow, this newly installed play set behind me will be loaded with lines of children waiting to live their best life. Parents will join, vendors will pass by and lifelong friendships will be nurtured, and the park’s name will be fulfilled.”
The handing over of a newly installed play set at Love Park, a child-friendly recreational space in Belama Phase One, is the culmination of a joint effort between the Belize City Council, the Rotary Club of Belize, and its international counterparts. The playground is in the Freetown constituency and Area Representative Francis Fonseca was on hand to deliver his remarks.
Francis Fonseca
Francis Fonseca, Area Representative, Freetown
“Community spaces like this one are critically important to the growth and development of our young people, our families, our communities. So it’s always important for us to invest in these spaces and to do everything we can to continue to rehabilitate and upgrade them. So it’s a very, very important initiative. In my view, it’s very much tied to the work we are doing at the Ministry of Education which is about ensuring that our young people have every opportunity to lead successful lives, to develop life skills that will allow them to be productive members of the Belizean society.”
The Rotaract Club of Belize City, led by Kristie Sosa, has been instrumental in getting the project off the ground by reaching out to other members of the organization in Canada.
Kristie Sosa
Kristie Sosa, President, Rotaract Club (Bze City)
“I must say that it has been a wonderful and fulfilling experience to build this playground from scratch with my fellow Rotaracters and Rotarians. For those of you who may not know about Rotary International, it encompasses Rotary, Rotaract and Interact Clubs. These clubs provide services ranging from a local to an international scope and partner together to achieve a positive change in in our communities. The Rotaract Club of Belize City is made up of young professionals, ages eighteen to thirty-five, who network with community leaders, do community projects and, of course, make new friends.”
The Belize City Council, for its part, continues its work in building and maintain these communal spaces.
Bernard Wagner
“Building cohesive and inclusive safe spaces is very, very vital. Those healthy environments allow people to connect, recreate, to play, to exercise , to relax and unwind in this lovely March breeze. And guess what, our parks and playgrounds form the center of these safe spaces.”
Isani Cayetano for News Five.
