Praise and pantry, that is what the Belize City Council together with S&B Ministries from West Palm Beach, Florida are bringing to children of South Side Belize City. S&B Ministries has been running this back to school praise and worship pantry program for the past 5 years but this year is the first time that they have partnered with the city council to do a more targeted campaign and reach out to deserving children in three city constituencies. We learnt more from City Councillor Dr. Candice Pitts and Founder of S&B Ministries Brenda August.
Dr. Candice Pitts- Councillor, Responsible for Women and Children foreign Affairs
"Today the Belize City council is partnering with S&B Ministries, which is a Christian based organization out of Florida, to provide the praise and worship pantry program. Today is the first of the three day program. We are starting in the Lake Independence constituency and then we will go to Port Loyola and then to the Collect constituency. We want to target as many residents as possible in each of these constituencies. And of course we are targeting those who are most in 
need of these items, you know, that we'll provide some kind of relief to these parents. We have school bags and other back to school supplies and you know, in times like these, these come in very helpful to these families."
Brenda August- S&B Ministries
"I was born here in Belize. I grew up in a very...my family was very very poor and I remember going to school without shoes and many days going to school without food and I've been in the US for about forty something years and I decided, through the holy spirit, that this is something that I need to do to come back and impact the young people here. I used to remember the missionaries used to come in when we were kids and they would do the same thing that we were doing and that's what really empowered me to want to do this because of the examples that they set for me as a child."
Reporter
"What is the general reaction that you are getting from the kids?"
Brenda August- S&B Ministries
"From the kids, oh my god, it is so awesome. I see their eyes when they light up and you know, by the clothes and the shoes. I remember there was one year we went into the Cayo area and the kids were actually taking off their old shoes and putting them aside and putting the new shoes on that we had brought and they were so excited. There were many who came without shoes."
Over three hundred tickets were distributed for the event. The Praise and Pantry program continues Wednesday and Thursday at the Port Loyola area and Collet Canal.
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