Tek Time Fi Read: Bringing Books Back to Life in Belmopan
If you think that today’s youth are lost to endless scrolling, a passionate group of young Belizeans is ready to change that.
Today on Open Your Eyes, Paul Lopez and Isani Cayetano welcomed the team behind the Tek Time Fi Read book fair: founding member Johnny Briceño, alongside planning team members Joevahn Waight, Mikayla Ferrufino, and Naiyah Shal.
“People like seh young people no like read, all weh young people like do da de pan them phone and TikTok,” said Paul as he started off the conversation. But the guests proved that love for books is alive and all it takes is the right spark.
Joevahn said, “In second form in high school, they had put us to read Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief. Man, that book completely changed my love for reading. It, I just love the mythological aspect of it.”
Mikayla’s passion was born out of a desire for deeper storytelling saying, “Personally, I think that movies weren’t enough for me. I think they are so, like, predictable. I just think that books is different each time you read a different book.”
“Our main mission is to make reading fun,” said Naiyah. “ Especially for, like, primary school students, we don’t want it to stay only in the classroom. I think a lot of, uh, especially, like, school-aged children, they see it as a chore.”
To keep kids engaged, the festival features hands-on activities like face painting, arts and crafts, and custom bookmark creation. Attendees are also invited to show up dressed as their favourite characters.
What families can look forward to most is the book giveaway covering ages zero to 18. Johnny stated that kids get complete freedom of choice: “The best part of it is the kid can actually choose their book. We will never give them the book… They choose their own book, it matches whatever they like, what their interests are.”
Teachers attending will also receive 25 free books for their classrooms, plus the chance to take home any remaining books at the end of the fair.
The 5th Annual Tek Time Fi Read Book Fair takes place on August 8th at the Belmopan Civic Center. The event runs from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM, followed by the Teachers’ Sweep at 3:30 PM