by Wellington C. Ramos

Sacred Heart Primary School in Dangriga, an institution that has molded great minds, is in a dilapidated state and in need of refurbishing now!

November 24, 2023

On Thursday, November 9, while making preparations for a Garifuna Nation-planned symposium at Sacred Heart Parish Hall, I made a visit to my alma mater, Sacred Heart Primary School, as I normally do when I am in Dangriga Town. I had a scheduled appointment with the principal, Mrs. Laura Van Stuivenberg, but she was not in her office on that day. I met the assistant principal, Mrs. Martinez, and I told her what was the purpose of my visit to the school.

She said to me that they had a bad experience earlier that morning because the building’s roof is infested with raccoons, and one of them ventured into one of the classrooms, scared the students and was pursued by them. After the situation with the raccoon was resolved, the students had to clean the classroom because of debris from the damaged roof due to the raccoon infestation. The decaying of the roof and the need for urgent repairs were creating problems in most of the classrooms, which is currently an ongoing problem for the school.

Upon closer examination, when looking inside other classrooms, I was angry to see the dilapidated state of the entire building. Sacred Heart Primary School is the oldest primary school in Dangriga Town, and this institution is responsible for educating many great minds in Dangriga since it opened its doors in 1877.

This was done through the efforts made by Father Antonio Parisi, who established the school. Below is an excerpt from Wikipedia about when the Catholic Church first established their presence in Dangriga Town and Stann Creek District:

The first evidence that a Catholic priest had been in Stann Creek comes from 1830.^[4] Thomas Jeffries, a Methodist Minister, said that the Garifuna wore “makeshift beads and crosses to ward off evil and danger, a practice they explained as an inheritance from earlier instruction by Spanish priests.”^[3] Mullins River with its colony of immigrant Mestizos from Honduras remained the more important Catholic mission until 1867.

In 1862 Jesuit Fr. Genon was covering Stann Creek from Punta Gorda.^[5] Then in 1867 Jesuit Fr. Brindisi built the first Catholic rectory and church in Stann Creek. In 1871 he built a better church “with pillars and naves and a goodly size”,^[6] and had the assistance of a Diocesan Missionary Priest Leon Maclluchet from 1874 to 1879.

In 1877 Fr. Alfonso Parisi replaced Fr. Brindisi. He built a school in Stann Creek and a new chapel at Mullins River.^[7]

Since the establishment of the Sacred Heart Primary School’s current main building, it has survived several hurricanes, during which it was designated as one of the hurricane shelters in Dangriga Town. Due to the deteriorating state of the building over the years, it no longer meets the requirements for a hurricane shelter.

However, if a proper and complete refurbishing is done, and a second floor is attached to the main structure, many good things can happen to serve the Sacred Heart School students and our Dangriga community. During the planning of the refurbishing of the school, a gymnasium, auditorium, cafeteria, computer laboratory, library, a field, and other updated offices should be added as part of a visionary Schools for the Future program.

The future of our nation lies in the hands of our children, and we must provide them with all the resources that they need so that we can produce leaders with vision, substance and a caring and loving heart, for all of our people and nation, Belize. In fact, if our schools are not in good condition, it reflects on our leaders.

Years ago, when the Jesuit priests and the Holy Family nuns were totally responsible for the management of the Catholic schools, they were better managed. As time went by, we had a mixture of religious and government management. Most people believe that the Catholic Church is rich and has enough money to maintain their school buildings.

However, after major lawsuits were brought against the Catholic Church between 2002-2003, for sexual crimes committed by some priests and bishops in the United States, judgments were rendered against the Catholic Church to compensate the victims of their crimes. Today, more victims are filing claims, and these claims are costing the church millions of dollars. In the United States, they have closed many schools and some churches.

Under Pope Francis, the Vatican has changed the way their administrative church funds and school funds are being distributed worldwide. He has also made it clear that any priest, bishop, or church official who was, or is engaging in any sexual activity with any child or minor, and is being charged for the crime, is to be arrested and prosecuted for their crimes to face the consequences for their actions. Since his new policy came into effect, some former priests have been arrested, convicted and sentenced to prison.

In New York City the Mayor has signed an agreement with the Church to finance the schools instead of closing them, due to the pressure from the parents in the communities where these schools are located. This is because most Americans believe that the Catholic schools have provided the best education for their children. The challenge for the Catholic Church is how to maintain their schools, while facing these ongoing huge monetary lawsuits and judgements that they must pay.

Not only the schools and churches in the United States are affected by these lawsuits, but the schools and churches in other countries as well. Many schools and churches in the United States are conducting fundraising events to replace their subsidies that have been lost from the church. Building repairs and maintenance are expensive, and the schools cannot afford the cost, so they desperately need the community and government’s assistance.

I now call on the Catholic Church, the Government of Belize, the community of Dangriga and the alumni of Sacred Heart Primary School, to come to the rescue of the Sacred Heart Primary School in Dangriga Town.