In a hopeful social media update dated August 14, 2026, Father Jeremy Zipple, a priest who has served Belize’s St. John’s College for eight years, confirmed that his scheduled brain surgery to remove a large tumor has been completed successfully. The priest shared that he is currently recovering in a neurointensive care unit, where he expects to stay through at least Sunday.
Zipple’s golf ball-sized tumor was located near the base of his brain, and was first detected when he was visiting family in the United States, after he began experiencing unexplained, persistent headaches that prompted him to seek medical evaluation. In his candid post, Zipple described the immediate aftermath of the procedure, writing, “I feel like I got run over by a freight train,” noting that communicating via messages remains a challenge as his brain heals.
Despite the discomfort of his recovery, Zipple made his post first to express profound gratitude to the community that surrounded him through his diagnosis and surgery. “Friends, dey tek it out! Surgery was a success and tumor is out,” he wrote, adding, “Please know how filled up and truly overwhelmed with gratitude I am for the prayers, the encouragement, the messages, THE LOVE. There’s just no way I would have gotten through this without YOU.”
Beyond sharing his own good news, Zipple used his platform to ask his community to extend the same support they gave him to two other Belizeans currently fighting major health battles. First, he called for special prayers for Billy Maheia, who is currently undergoing treatment for cancer. Second, he highlighted the ongoing struggle of Milagro Garel, a well-known longtime children’s advocate in Belize who suffered a ruptured cerebral aneurysm on July 28.
Garel remains in critical condition after her medical emergency, and had to be transferred to Guatemala to receive specialized neurosurgical care that is not available in Belize’s domestic healthcare system. Her family launched a GoFundMe crowdfunding campaign to cover the steep costs of emergency medical transport, surgery, ongoing intensive care, and other related medical expenses, with an overall fundraising goal of $85,000. As of the latest updates to the campaign, it has reached 59% of its target, and the fundraiser remains active to collect additional donations to cover Garel’s care.