Posted: Friday, March 9, 2018. 3:22 pm CST.
The day is celebrated annually on March 9. However because today is March 9, the national public and bank holiday will be given on Monday.
The day was set aside to remember Belize’s greatest financial benefactor, Baron Bliss.
Baron Henry Edward Ernest Victor Bliss was born in Marlow, Bickinghamshire, England on February 16, 1869.
In 1911 at the age of 42, the Baron was stricken with a paralysis, probably polio, that left him paralyzed from waist downward, confining him to a wheelchair. Though paralyzed from the waist down from 1911, Baron Henry maintained his love of sailing and fishing.
Although he never set foot on the mainland, he spent two months in Belize’s territorial waters.
The English sails man generously donated his fortunes to the country.
Here’s a brief timeline of Baron Bliss’ arrival in Belize’s waters:
He was buried in Belize City and then moved to a granite tomb near the sea with a lighthouse nearby as stipulated in his will.
His estate was worth $1.8 million Belize dollars, but $480,000 was claimed by the United Kingdom inheritance taxes.
In his will, the remaining amount was to be used to benefit the citizens of British Honduras.
The Belize government then named March 9, a public and bank holiday in honor of Baron Bliss. The day has since been renamed the National Heroes and Benefactor’s Day.
Over the years, the fund has produced projects such as the Bliss Institute and the Bliss School of Nursing.
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