Veteran educator/journalist Apolinar Tzul passes

By William Ysaguirre (Freelance Writer)

BELIZE CITY, Wed. Aug. 19, 2026

   Life-long educator and newspaper columnist Apolinar Asuncion Tzul, who taught thousands of Belizean students in his 35-year teaching career, departed this life last Saturday, August 15.

   Born into a cañero family in Chan Pine Ridge Village, Orange Walk District, on January 7, 1969, Apolinar grew up among 7 sisters and 4 brothers, as his parents celebrated 50 years of married bliss.

   A graduate of St. John’s College Junior College in 1988, Apolinar was a scant 19 years of age when he joined the teaching profession, even as his home community elected him to be Village Council Chairman in June 1988. He taught at 10 high schools across the country, including Ladyville Technical High School, St. Michael’s College – which was renamed Maud Williams High School, Belmopan Comprehensive School, Belize Rural High School, Anglican Cathedral College, and Georgetown Technical High School. Two of these, Georgetown Tech and Belize Rural High, honored him with a Teacher of the Year award during his tenure there. By his own admission, he sometimes fell afoul of school administrations by his outspoken directness and persistence.

   He started out as a subject teacher, before moving up to homeroom teacher, and with the aid of scholarships provided by Ministers of Education Hon. Elodio Aragon and Hon. Francis Fonseca, he furthered his studies to achieve a B.A. in English and M.A. in Education, which helped advance his career, as he became the head of department, and then a member of the school board, serving as the staff representative for the Belize National Teachers Union, and eventually principal of a Belize City school.

   His penchant for writing led him to begin contributing news features to the Amandala newspaper in the early 1990s, when Glenn Tillett (RIP) was the news editor. As a freelance writer, he also contributed articles to the Belize Times, which occasionally provoked litigation.

   He is survived by his wife Beatrice Brooks Tzu; daughters: Angani Tzul and Janine Perriot Tun; grandchildren: Amiyah and Cayden Tun; as well as his mother, Valeria Tzul; 7 sisters: Eladia, Juanita, Lucía, Cruzita, Dorie, Emilia and Flavia; and 3 brothers: Fulgencio, German and Adriano Tzul.

   A funeral mass will be held at La Inmaculada Roman Catholic Church in Orange Walk Town at 3 o’clock on Friday afternoon, August 21, before his interment in the Chan Pine Ridge Village Cemetery. (AMANDALA Ed. Note: At Amandala we were caught completely by surprise with the news of the passing of Brother Apolinar, who said he had come out of a brief retirement to resume his teaching profession at Excelsior High School in Belize City this past school year. A frequent contributor to Amandala over the years, he had recently promised to spend a part of his summer holiday addressing some of the currently controversial issues in a contributed article to Amandala. Honest, humble, a proud Maya Belizean, Apolinar was at once soft spoken but keenly aware of the provocative power of the pen, and took great pride and care in his literary contributions to our people’s struggle for a better Belize. We have lost a comrade. Our sincere condolences to his relatives and friends! Adios, and Rest in Peace, Esteemed Maestro, Brother Apolinar Tzul!)