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Emory Recommends Retirement
Once Upon a Time
by Emory King
A T-Shirt in Belize proclaims on it front : "Where in the Hell is
Belize?" On the back is written: "If you are good and say your
prayers when you die you will go to Belize."
Why wait until you die? Come to Belize now to retire--you may live longer.
Forty-five years ago in Belize City I met a man from Florida whose
doctor had told him he was dying of a liver disease. He would be gone
in a year.
He could hardly walk when he came to Belize to die. He took a shack
on the beach on Ambergris Caye. He quit drinking alcohol. He lived
on coconut water and lobsters, fish and conch.
A year later was not only walking, but running his own speedboat standing up.
Twenty years later when he was 83 I saw him walking down the street in
Chetumal, Mexico with a young girl on each arm. He had been drinking.
"It's going to kill me," he said,"but so what? I've had 20 years of a
better life than I had for the first 63 years."
His name was John Cate and I have a gold ring he gave me.
You want more reasons to retire in Belize? Here are a few:
English Language, English Law, Proximity to the United States (two
hours by air from Miami or Houston, a little more from Atlanta,
Charlotte, or Dallas or Los Angeles.
Health, Belize is the healthiest country in Central American or the Caribbean.
Health Care, over 100 doctors, a hospital in every town and three big
hospitals in Belize City.
You can fly Wings of Hope to Mexico in case of serious problems. A
medivac plane from Miami can be here in two hours.
Small population--big country. We have less than 300,000 people in a
country the size of Massachusetts or Wales. There is plenty of elbow
room.
Education--excellent based on British and American Standards with
English speaking--Caribbean emphasis. We have university as well as
high schools and junior colleges.
Good people. The nicest, friendliest people in World. Here in Belize
live six races of people who among them speak eight languages. Yet we
have no racial discrimination, no religious intolerance and no
political violence. Show me another country like that.
We have satellite hookups for phones and the internet.
Climate: mild sub-tropical year round. It rains from June to
December, but there is no monsoon-type rains. We have hurricanes, now
and then. We had six in the 20th Century.
To make this marvelous more attractive for retirees, we have a law.
If you are 45 years old and able to put $2,000 US a month in a Belize
Bank, (and spend it in Belize, we hope). You may not work under the
law, but you may own a business and watch us work.
Under the law you may import a car, and airplane and a boat duty-free.
There will be no income taxes on you pension or other sources of
income. You may bring in all your used household goods and personal
effects duty free.
Belize is not for everyone, however. If yu are just getting by on a
modest income don't come to Belize. You will find the country very
expensive.
If you can afford to live in Belize come on down.
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