Text and photos by Cameron Talbott
With my pack mostly full of Mad Mongoose shirts and various other goods, I headed south to Ladyville, Belize where I would spend the next month living with 30 plus orphans. During my stay I learned a lot about the Belizian ways of life – everything from organic farming to giving massive 300 pound pigs their annual vaccinations – there never seemed to be a dull moment.
When I wasn’t working and contributing to the facility, I was surrounded by kids who always provided great company and good times. Interacting with all of the children on a daily basis and seeing how they go about their day caused me to look at my life back home in Montana from a different perspective. I thought about how accessible everything is for me, and how fortunate I am to have things like a skatepark – or even skates for that matter!
When I was handing out all of the gear Justin had sent down with me, I had to explain to the kids what Aggressive Mall was and its association with skating. Most kids here at the orphanage and even local people I had befriended during my stay all said they would love to learn how to skate. However due to the lack of resources and absence of paved surfaces, it is not a reality for them.
Although after showing them a few online videos and pics, many of them said they would want to make a trip to the states to put themselves in a position to learn how to skate. It made me think that even though our skating community is not the biggest or richest, we are all very lucky to be able to head down to our local skatepark with a few homies, shred for a few hours, and not even think twice about it.
All in all my time spent here at Liberty Children’s Home was amazing, and I am glad I was able to help out in any way I could. I want to thank Justin Hertel for his generous donation – you not only gave the kids some fresh gear but also helped open their eyes to a sport they hardly knew existed!
-Cameron Talbott
