by Charles Gladden
BELIZE CITY, Fri. July 18, 2025
A graduation ceremony was held by the Kolbe Foundation on its compound to recognize the recent completion by 75 Belize Central Prison inmates of several different rehabilitation programs offered by the foundation.
Some of the programs completed by the graduates focused on addiction recovery, while others were geared at trauma healing and gang intervention.
“We had the graduation of the ARC, RRC, and the trauma, of course, graduation of 2025,” Bernard King, Director of the ARC Program, stated.
“ARC consists of continuing thinking, changing your mind, rehabilitating yourself, and making a change for society. RRC is the same component as ARC. We try to get these guys to change their mentality for when they hit society,” he further explained.
During the graduation ceremony, two graduates commented on their experiences during the program.
“I gathered the parts of my life throughout this course, and steps five through eight taught me how to do that. I became responsible for things in and out of my control, and accepted powerlessness so that I could work on my inner me. By the time I reached step nine, justice, I felt my breakthrough. At night, I prayed to God, my higher power, to help me. The road was filled with hard punishments, but I kept my heart absorbed in Christ while trusting in justice and hoping for deliverance. At steps 11 and 12, I began accepting culpability for where I am and who I am. Where I am is not where I want to be,” said Keyren Tzib, a graduate.
“I was so lost in drugs and alcohol addiction that I was unrecognizable to my family, friends, and society. Even after many years in prison, I was still living in denial. Entering ARC, I received vast knowledge that a person can get to start a new life. There, I recognized that addiction was not the core problem of my life, but that anger and resentment were. And that is what has me at this situation with a 32-year sentence in prison. The ARC program has given me the right tools to a positive and healthier life,” said Hilberto Hernandez, another graduate.
Minister of Home Affairs, Kareem Musa, delivered encouraging remarks to the inmates.
“Now, let’s be honest, for just a second. Life does not wait for anyone to be ready; it throws you into situations that test you. But what brings you here today is not what you’ve been through; it is the choice you made to face it. Some of you, when you were outside, were once referred to as promising. People saw potential in you, but maybe you did not understand what it takes to act on that promise. The truth is, a promise without a plan is just a story we tell ourselves,” he said.