Joris De Roy Memorial Grant winners 2022
21/05/2022 - 20:35
After a few years, we were happy we could again award the Joris De Roy Memorial Grant this year to two lucky BELTA Day delegates. Meet the two winners of 2022 and read how one of them fondly remembers Joris De Roy, our BELTA Board colleague who passed away on 22 May 2017. We could not have imagined a more suitable way to commemorate Joris than with her words.
On 30 April, at the end of BELTA Day 2022, two lucky winners were picked from all those who applied for the Joris De Roy Memorial Grant. BELTA grants support teachers financially to become IATEFL members and to attend the IATEFL conference in the UK. In this way BELTA gives the winners of the grant the opportunity to join a worldwide network of English teachers and attend the annual IATEFL conference with thousands of other teachers from all over the world. Find all information about BELTA Grants and the Professional Development Aid fund that was set up to this end on our website.
The Joris De Roy Memorial winners 2022 are Simon Halleux and Ana Lima. They both happen to work for Le Forem. We were really happy with these winners. For Simon, it was his first BELTA Day so winning this grant will open the world of teacher conferences even more for him. Ana has been a loyal BELTA member for many years and attended several BELTA Days. We were really touched by her memories of Joris De Roy, who she met in person at his last BELTA Day, just days before he passed away on 22 May 2017.
Meet the two winners and read what winning the grant means to them.
Simon Halleux
"I’m Simon and I’ve been teaching English since I came out of University in 2011. Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to work with many different age groups in various institutions, from smaller children in a tutoring school to adult job-seekers at Forem. I’m always happy to discover new ideas and to try and implement them, which is why I’m thrilled to have won the grant and looking forward to attending the 2023 IATEFL conference. Thank you BELTA for this new learning opportunity!"
Ana Lima
"My name is Ana LIMA. I come from Montreal, Canada and some twenty odd years ago we moved to the Tournai area to look after my husband's family. I first started teaching English at a private language school (from children to business people) and went on to teaching adult jobseekers registered with the public employment office of the Walloon region, le Forem.
Teaching them is a particular challenge because it involves teaching English corporate culture, work related issues and course content as well as helping to build confidence.
Though this public may not be the target group of BELTA days, I have attended BELTA Day for many years and have always enjoyed the stimulating exchanges and enriching workshops. You always walk away with something you can use. Plus you get to share stories with other teachers and meet interesting editors. It underlines how much we belong to a wider community.
Becoming an IATEFL member and attending the 2023 conference is like multiplying this whole experience by 500!
I am so excited and honored to be awarded this grant. The fact that it bears the name of a special someone is really touching. Of course I would see Joris at those BELTA days, busy everywhere, being super dynamic and friendly. Who could forget that red hair?! But that last year, 2017, a colleague and I chatted with him on a more personal basis. He shared a good joke and I left that day thinking to myself what a lovely person he was. I know it's strange to think of a man as being lovely, but I thought that was the right adjective for him. Like a lovely home means it is welcoming, attractive and makes you feel good so was Joris. The news of his death shortly after really saddened me. I tried remembering the joke, but couldn't. That made me extra sad. So I focus on thinking about how much he liked to share and reach out to everyone. He was an inspiration and will not be forgotten. "
Congratulations, Simon and Ana!
