“For too long, the image we have had of brotherhood among the brethren of the South side has been that of a grieving  brother, cradling the head of his fallen friend.

Project Back- to -School Haircut gave us a new image of brotherhood: big guys, cradling the heads of the little guys as they carefully and artistically do the clean lines of a “mark” to complete a cool new haircut.

On a street of blood, true brotherhood prevails. Brother to brother.”

Anonymous

August 31^st, 2010 -

Since the launch of Restore Belize, many people have been trying to figure out, what the heck is Restore Belize and how will Restore Belize address the current crime situation?  I think that 24 year old Brian Dina, along with his friends Maurice Usher, Charlie, Keon Samuels and George Robinson definitely exemplify not what is, but how we can restore Belize to what Belize used to be.  They made a valuable contribution to the community by providing haircuts to young students getting ready for back to school, who otherwise, would have found it difficult considering the economic situation and many sacrifices their parents continue to have to make.  These gentlemen made a haircut far more than just a trim.

I can recall growing up, when we used to hang out on the bases as brethren and comrades we would use the opportunity to trim each other, that was a sort of bonding for us as we kept our friendship. Clippers and barber shears; no guns, no beef. Brethren, even the I-dren who wore their dreadlocks would trim.   Brian told me that his older brother, Albert Dina used to trim the younger members of the family and neighbors in preparation for back to school.  Since Albert’s job does not allow him the time to do it, Brian took up the initiative along with his friends.  Their commitment was to try and provide this service for 100 young boys.  The cooperation and effort was so resounding that they ended up with over 128 boys.  The first five young men were from the Dorothy Menzies Child Care Center.  They were able to accommodate young men from Kelly St., Antelope Street in Collet, George St. and from the Jane Usher Blvd. area.  Brian Also told me that his friend used his van to pick up and drop off these boys after they were finish.

While they were providing the haircut for these youngsters, they were giving them positive advice such as, encouraging them to stay in school and to stay away from crime and drugs.  Brian Dina and his friends have made a personal commitment to visit these students at their schools and kind of create a mentor program for them.  The boys did not only receive a trim but  participated in a process of being groomed through this haircut project.  Clearly, this haircut is not just a trim.  The effort of these young men certainly has to be applauded because in these times, only negative things are reported about young people.  Not only is this a noble initiative by these youths but they use their own resources.  Brian Dina the organizer of this project is a 2005 graduate of Gwen Liz.  At that graduation ceremony, he received “The Most Humble Person Award.”  Dina is a Master Control Operator at Channel 5.  Despite his professional obligation, this outstanding Belizean youth have found the time to make such a valuable contribution to this community.  At an average cost of $8 per person for a haircut, these young men have made a sizable contribution; one so large  that no cash price can be placed on the value of what these young men have done.

I asked Dina why he did this; he said he wanted to help out some of the families who would not be able to afford it.  I asked Dina if anybody from Restore Belize have contacted him, his reply was that he heard about it but he don’t even know what that is.  Brian Dina, this humble young man from Fabers Road., says it is his intention to have this become an on going project.  I congratulate these young men and I want to pledge my total support for Dina and his initiative.  Respect!

Elwyn Pitts has always been an adventurous entrepreneur, and in his youth he trained as a Belizean cabinet maker, a skill he later took to the US with him, where he also experimented as a restaurant owner.  Mr Pitts’ most successful enterprise, however, was as a tee-shirt printer, a trade that he has perfected over more than twenty years of experience, enabling him to become the proud owner of Belize Tee Shirts (Corozal).
The company was first situated in Belize City for a period of three years before moving to its current location on 2nd Street North in Corozal four years ago.  Since then, the company has continued to grow.
The principal focus of the company is the sale of uniquely printed t-shirts, although Belize Tee Shirts also offers custom designed screen-printing services to customers, predominantly on cloth materials (principally tee shirts) but also on other commodities such as coffee mugs and identity buttons.  Alongside these main sales, the shop also has sidelines including caps, jewellery, keyrings, badges and authentic-styled carvings.
All company made attire is produced on the premises with the assistance of a local printer and a local artist.  Belize Tee Shirts has also secured a couple of national contracts including the printing of t-shirts for the Belize Audubon Society and the more recent contract to provide Belize sports jerseys to various teams, including football, basketball, volleyball and baseball.
The company’s Corozal premises are open from 9am until 5pm Monday to Friday, and on a Saturday from 8am till 12 noon.  The company welcomes any specific requests for the printing of photos or designs on various surfaces, from tee shirts to tea cups, and even if you don’t have a particular design in mind, their ready-made versions are guaranteed to inspire your imagination and encourage you to buy!

With Christmas almost upon us, it is time for present buying once again, and Orangewalkeños can rest assured that “Trendy Corner Boutique” has a variety of presents in stock.

Trendy Corner Boutique is a fashion shop targeting ladies’ clothing and cosmetic needs, particularly those of teenagers and young adults.  The centrally located store, on the corner of Queen Victoria Street and George Street, is stocked with fashionable clothes, shoes, make-up, cosmetics and toiletries in anticipation of the festive season.  Products include covergirl make-up, Victoria Secrets cosmetics, and some divinely-scented bath foams and lotion sets, imported from all around the world (such as a Créme Brulée body lotion from Europe).

Aside from these and clothes, there are other sidelines too available for customers to choose from, including sunglasses, underwear, body jewels and stickers, children’s jewellery and professional pedicure sets.  The store also occasionally acquires some exquisite men’s cologne and a few clothes lines for men too.
So for all your Christmas needs, be it a present for a loved one, or a treat for yourself, pop into Trendy Corner Boutique for some great gift ideas!

Whether it is the latest style of perm, or a new look with highlights, the treat of a pedicure or an eyebrow waxing, Ms Dona Novelo at Dona’s Style in Orange Walk is the lady to help you achieve the image you’re looking for.

Ms Dona began beauty treatments fifteen years ago, when she began as an apprentice to her hairdressing cousin.  Realising her passion for the profession, shortly afterwards she enrolled in a beauty treatment course in Chetumal, commuting to the Mexican side every weekend for over six months in order to improve her qualifications.  A few years later, when her cousin closed her salon, Ms Dona decided to continue offering quality beauty treatments from her own home on Cinderella Street, so without delay she converted the front room of her house into a salon, and ever since she has welcomed customers there.

Dona’s Style opens from 8.30am until mid-day, and re-opens from 1.30pm until 6pm.  She offers bookings for those travelling from afar (of whom there are many that she considers regular customers) or customers can pop in and hope that the queue is not too long.  Yet as Ms Dona becomes better and better reputed as one of the best hairdressers in town, demand for her services continues to grow.

A range of services are offered, including hair cuts, styling, perms, highlights, tints, waxing, manicures and pedicures, and if a specific service is not offered, Ms Dona will do her utmost to accommodate her customer’s wishes.

Her favourite times of the year are during graduation season in the summer, and Christmas, when she rarely has a minute without one or another of her customers requiring her talent.  And with prices from $6 for a cut, $25 for a perm, and $15 for a pedicure, there is little wonder that Dona’s Style is one of the favourite places for hair and beauty treatments in Orange Walk.

In celebration of Belizean Independence Day on 21^st September 2008, an exciting new style of dining opened in Corozal: Vamps Chill and Grill, located on 2^nd Street North.  And despite slight changes to management over recent months, Vamps continues to provide the same ‘celebratory’ feel and standard of service to its clientele.

Ms. Elva, the manager, ensures that all customers are served by well-trained, friendly staff, and the famous Sunday night karaoke is set to return to the agenda over the coming weeks.  In the meantime, the complimentary juke-box selection, via plasma screen TV, keeps customers entertained with their favourite music.  There are also plans to introduce a special event every two weeks featuring local performers and other forms of entertainment.

The menu at Vamps incorporates a bit of everything, catering to every taste, including Belizean favourites such as rice and beans, nachos and tostadas, and also international dishes such as steak, pork chops and fish fillet.  Cold beers are sold, alongside a good selection of soft drinks and fresh juices.

Vamps prides itself on being family-friendly, and welcomes people with children to dine at lunch time and later on, with opening hours between 10am and 2pm and again between 6pm and 10pm during the week, and from 10am right through until 11pm on weekends.

Vamps Chill and Grill lives up to its title, with a relaxing atmosphere and an enjoyable ambience for all who pass through its doors, making it an excellent choice for diners in Corozal.

Six months ago, an exciting new venture opened up on the Belize Road in Orange Walk town – a fruit and vegetable shop unlike any other in town.

With an impressive range of produce, and an impeccable level of cleanliness, Agri Centro caters to nearly all taste-buds in Orange Walk, selling one of the widest selections of goods in the town.  And its distinction goes beyond the selection and quality – what makes Agri Centro unique is that a vast proportion of its produce is home-grown on its nearby farm.  Best known for its mass production of sweetcorn (which supplies many of the town’s major stores), the farm also produces tomatoes, sweet peppers, cucumbers, cabbage, zucchini, onions, potatoes, beans, plantain, bananas, coconuts, lime, papayas and watermelons, among other things.

The self-production ensures that all the produce on sale is of the finest quality, and of guaranteed freshness.  Yet the family-run enterprise also recognises the importance of stocking other required items too, and they sell imported produce (such as peaches, plums, apples and grapes) alongside other Belizean staples.  Anything not grown on the farm is carefully vetted to ensure that the high standards are maintained throughout their entire range of goods.

The store also proudly boasts a vegetarian shelf to help promote healthy living, with soy meat, various vegetarian sauces, seaweed, rice-noodles and wholewheat pasta, among other things.  And the industrial fridges are full to the brim of salads, milk, cheese, yoghurts and soft drinks (including their home-produced 100% natural coconut water, which is sold at one of the most competitive rates in town).

Agri Centro raises the standard of fruit and vegetable vendors in Orange Walk, and it is hoped that their focus on pleasant service and consistent hygiene will be imitated among other sellers elsewhere.  Even their presentation is attractive, and it is hard to not be tempted by the brightly coloured premises, the artistic displays, the trees and flowers for sale outside, and most of all the friendly greeting inside.

So for all your fruit and vegetable requirements (and a little extra, too), pop into Agri Centro which is sure to satisfy everyone’s requirements for fresh, local produce at affordable prices.

Elda and Egbert Jones, husband and wife, are determined to make their business, E. Jones AC and Refrigeration, work despite the low level of business right now.

The BELIZE TIMES spoke with the wife today, as her husband worked on a refrigerator. Elda said that she was once a teacher, but eventually decided to get into business with her husband who was in the trade for a number of years. The business was actually official since 1995-1996, but they have been at #32 Central American Boulevard for ten months now, having been able to obtain the location in January of this year.

They basically do everything that has to do with refrigerators, as well as repair washing machines and AC units in vehicles. Sometimes they would purchase refrigerators or washing machines that needs repair. After repairing them, they would then resell them at a slightly higher price than the purchase price.

They try to be very reasonable when charging someone for repair. In Elda’s words, “they try to stay in the poor man’s line”. Right now, business is very slow, she said. Sometimes she wonders just where she gets the urge to rise every morning and come out, because if they would get two jobs for the week, presently, they get a lot. They once had three employees and that has now dwindled to only 1 beside herself and her husband.

The price to get an AC unit in a vehicle varies. If it only needs frion, which they provide, it would costs you $10 per bottle. If it needs repair then that would be an additional cost.

Elda assures Belizeans a good job for their hard earned money.

Elda and Egbert can be reached at 600-1570 or 601-5380 or they can be visited during their normal working hours on the Boulevard, just after the newly built Belize Medical Associates Laboratory.

Belize City, Tues. Oct. 6, 2009

Every morning Dotsie Bowen, a hard-working mother and dedicated grandmother, gets up at 3:30pm and starts her kneading to prepare her journey cakes and powder buns for sale.

She would do her ‘thing” while others sleep on just to ensure that Belizeans can get their healthy, properly kneaded and baked journey cakes and powder buns as they rush to work. She is finished by 6:30 and at 6:45 she is normally at her location where she sells from at the corner of Orange and Albert Streets.

Dotsie told us that it is pure self will and determination that gives her the drive to get up that early every morning. She sells not only in the morning, but she would bake another batch that she takes out every evening around 3:00 p.m.

Around 1:00 in the afternoon, she would start to knead and bake for the evening shift.

She started her small business almost two years ago. She sells her powder buns for 2 for a $1 and her journey cakes 3 for a $1. The journey cakes can be bought with ham and cheese, beans and baloney. The powder buns are so delicious that you can eat them as is. You don’t need anything to eat that with. Check with her regular customers and they would tell you.

She also bakes for small functions and if you need her services you can feel free to call her at 664-6891.

In 2003 Cruzita Ortiz and her husband opened E &C Used Auto Parts, located at #41 Amara Avenue. That was 6 years ago, she said, and explained how the business actually came to be.

Her husband was selling vehicles since then and he always loved to deal with used parts for vehicles. As things stocked up, she gave him the idea to open a store being that he loves it so dearly. He agreed and the business was formed. He still sells his vehicle so she is the one who sells in the shop.

She herself has grown to love dealing with vehicle parts and has gotten the knack for it, knowing everything by name.

They sell everything you can think of for any make of vehicle you can think of said Cruzita, smiling. You can get bumpers, radiators both new and used and car doors.

Whatever they don’t have they can always get. Just make your request and they will fulfill.

In stock they have many little things that you use to keep that vehicle looking spanking new. There is ArmorAll for $6 a small bottle, $12 for the tuff stuff, $6 for a tire foam and $18.50 for the turtle wax.

E & C Used Auto Parts is open from 8:30-5:00 p.m. from Monday to Thursday and from 8:30-4:00 p.m. on Fridays. They can be contacted at 227-0870 or 622-7620 for your new parts, used parts, or to purchase that ‘new’ used vehicle.

He can be found at the foot of the Belchina Bridge selling his vehicles that he brings in for sale.

Almost two years ago, Caribbean Nails was located on Daly Street. Today, it sits at its new location on the Central American Boulevard. Manager and owner Edith Juan told us that she was into nails even before she opened the doors of Caribbean Nails.

When she first opened she had several employees, but today Edith said that she works alone and works on an appointment schedule. She accepts walk-ins, but if she is busy, the person is forced to wait.

She specialized in nails for almost three years. About six months ago, she opened her salon area in the rear portion of the building. Today, she also has cold drinks, smoothies, latte cafes and snacks available for you to give you something to do while you wait or get that highly desired hairstyle or nails done.

She charges $22 for a manicure, $30 for a pedicure and $30 for refills whether it is for the acrylics or the gel. To get a gel from scratch you’d pay $50.

She does everything when it comes to hair and charges according to the length of the hair.

When we asked Edith why she resorted to working alone she said that it was basically to cut costs. She had the same cry of many other business owners around today – “it is difficult to break-even. To cut costs sometimes entails that you must cut employees”.

She got into business with the idea of not only being independent, but also to provide jobs for others, but it is extremely difficult. Eventually she hopes to get back some workers with her.

She is open from 10:00 a.m. up until 7:00 p.m. from Mondays thru Thursdays. On Fridays and Saturdays she is open from 9:00 in the morning until 7:00 p.m. For your appointment you can call 222-4148.