So in August of 1999 he began planning and designing his vision of this ?Marine Parade,? as HE named it. With his pioneering knowledge in development, that of turning swamp or water filled areas into beautiful developed communities where people make their homes, he began to put his ideas to paper. He planned out this entire ?Marine Parade? down to the very last truckload of stone and then gave the blueprints over to my uncle, Raul Berbey Garcia, who then made a scaled model of the boulevard. This, of course, came about at much expense, of which my father absorbed the cost, keeping in mind that he had no guarantee that his idea would be accepted or even entertained by the Government. To many that knew him, this was just the way he was. Whenever he became passionate about anything, he did whatever it took to make it become a reality.

So in mid-2000, my father took his well planned and engineered proposal to the Government of Belize and while there is a process that all engineered proposals must go through before they are approved, during this time my father succumbed to the cancer he was battling and died in May 2001 before being able to see his vision become a reality.

In February 2002, our company, The Bella Vista Group, headed by my brother, Javier Berbey, Jr., Pascual and I, got together with Johnston International, were able to be a part of the development and construction of our father?s dream and are proud to see it become what it is today.

So there you have it. It is because of the vision of Javier Berbey Garcia, ?the Panamanian, the foreigner, the PUP supporter?, as many refer to him, that we Belizeans are able to drive on a scenic boulevard that has undoubtedly started to help with the congestion of our city. The Berbey family in no way asked that this project be named after my father. We were more than satisfied that they give it the name that he proposed ? Marine Parade. All we asked was that he be mentioned or recognized as the man who envisioned, planned and engineered this boulevard.

Dr. Joe Iyo sums it up best in his book when he writes, ?Despite his commitment to the development of not only Belize City, but the whole country; despite his being married to a born Belizean, and blessed with children; despite his long residence, uninterruptedly, in the country; and despite being a naturalized Belizean, yet reference is still being made to him as the Panamanian. This is a telling indictment on a society yet to appreciate those who love it and are willing to die for it. It is therefore, not surprising that Javier Berbey was sometimes angry, sometimes passionate in his revelation that, ?I earned my nationality, I did not buy it.??

(Signed) LySandra Berbey Marin