“The world needs dreamers and the world needs doers. But above all, the world needs dreamers who do.” By Sarah Ban Breathnach
Our Banner…!
Many Posts have been issued since I last displayed our official “Friends of Copey” banner. Many new “Friends” have never seen the banner and I consider this a major oversight on my part.
The “Friends of Copey” banner has been and continues to be the official symbol of our purpose and commitment to the Copey Learning Center. The banner is part of our history and continues today to proclaim our true identity. This identity includes the message of building effective and successful “partnerships” with groups, institutions, and individuals in support of the Copey Learning Center. Also, the banner’s motto continues to be relevant, meaningful, and essential. Notably, the “Dream Teams” were formed in response to the educational impacts experienced by the Copey Learning Center. “When many will do just a little…a lot will get done for kids”
Final Dream Team Profile…!
James Belford…!
Being the last of the profiles, James is a tremendous addition to the team of teachers supporting the Copey Learning Center. He certainly fits in with the other standout volunteers.
James was born in St. Catharines, a province of Ontario, Canada. This location is also connected to our own American Revolution as many of the original inhabitants were Loyalists who moved to Canada following our country’s war for independence. Plus, it is the largest city in Canada’s Niagara Falls region.
James received his degree from Brock University in 2017 in Philosophy with a minor in German. He also received his English as a Second Language (ESL) Certificate at the same time. He has used the ESL training as a Language Assistant in Lelpzig, Germany during 2018 thru 2019.
Currently he volunteers with “Conversations with Cambodia”, an on-line international volunteer program teaching conversational English to Cambodians. Similarly, he volunteers with Viet-Skype which is a project exchanging Vietnamese culture and English between Vietnamese students and English speakers.
James has traveled to eastern United States, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Germany, Portugal, Austria, and Greece. Somehow, he finds time to enjoy reading, jogging, and hanging out with friends.
James tells us how he feels about this project:
“I am honored to have the opportunity to work with Dream Team II. So far, my experience has been great and the students are enthusiastic and willing to learn. I hope that through this work I can help improve the lives of the people of Copey and improve my own teaching ability.”
Final Word…!
Posting these profiles has been very fascinating. As I have learned about each member of “Dream Team II” in more depth, I observed similar traits and attributes shared among them. First, these volunteers are just good people unselfishly wanting to “make a difference”. And, these volunteers all demonstrate their interest in people, students, teaching/learning, and serving others. This earns each of them that familiar “hearts of a servant” title I value so much. What a real joy it is to share this “Dream Team” experience with them.
Remember…soon we will need more volunteers to help us. We know that about an hour a week can “make a difference” in a student’s life. Return to the other profiles and read the testimony each team member has shared.
“It is not what we give but what we share…for the gift without the giver is bare.” by James Russell Lowell