On Monday, November 21st, 38 islanders received their certification after completing tour guide training. A short ceremony acknowledging the recipients was held at the Angel Nuñez Auditorium, where they received their certificates from Belize Tourism Board‘s (BTB) representative Abil Castañeda and Miss San Pedro 2022-2023 Faith Edgar. The course was made possible through the San Pedro Junior College’s collaboration with instructors Philip ‘Billy’ Leslie and Josue Sosa.
The event started at 7PM, with Leslie welcoming everyone to the special occasion. Following an invocation by Pastor Clive Welsh, Leslie and Sosa addressed the new tour guides, commending them for their dedication and for completing the course. They emphasized that a guide’s job is to showcase the beauty of Belize’s underworld and that they are ambassadors of the island and the country.
Area Representative Honorable Andre Perez attended the graduation of San Pedro tour guides. He congratulated the recipients for their achievements. “You can now share with our visitors what our country has to offer, the island and our aquatic space,” said Perez. “How much knowledge we know and can share is key for the success of a tourism product.” Perez also took the opportunity to share how his Ministry of the Blue Economy and Civil Aviation goes in tandem with tourism. He said the Blue Economy entails every single aquatic blue space, and those depending on its resources could extract as much as possible but always sustainably. Perez added that Civil Aviation is very important as it is another way of connecting tourists with Belize as this is the primary mode of transportation for many foreign visitors.
The evening also saw Deputy Mayor Jose Castellanos congratulating the new tour guides and encouraging them to do their work with pride. He also encouraged them to continually seek ways to improve their skills and make each of their guests’ experiences memorable while on the job. BTB’s Castañeda also took the opportunity to commend everyone and thanked everyone who helped in the process, notably the Honourable Andre Perez.
Afterward, each recipient was called to receive their certificates from Castañeda and Miss San Pedro 2022-2023 Faith Edgar.
The new tour guides are:
Adain Caliz, Alessandro Rodriguez, Alexandria Deshield, Alfonso Quijano, Alfredo Gonzalez, Artemio Torres, Daniel Caliz, Danny Maza, Eleazer Castillo, Elway Ramos, Emerson Duran, Everildo Reyes, Flavio Montejo, Francisco Castellanos, Gavino Choco, Gian Guerrero, Henry Gonzalez, Illan Gonzalez, Jamaal Tillett, Jemar Vasquez, Jerby Bijil, Jerdon Anderson, Jermaine Young, Joeto Cardinez, Jorge Escalante, Jorge Rodriguez, Jose Lopez, Justin Ramirez, Luis Hernandez, Mario Leal, Michael Bradley, Nathaniel Pinelo, Odalys Garcia, Omar Tzul, Pedro Choc, Rashawn Gonzalez, Robert Bradley, Ryan Gonzalez, Ryan Saldivar, Steven Mendez, Soleny Ancona, Stephen Cruz and Uris Perez.
