ACROSS Auto AC Repair | Keeping Belize Cool
A Juntos Spotlight Award Story
The team at ACROSS Auto AC Repair in Spanish Lookout.
It's not unusual to hear about a business in Belize that starts small. It's more unusual to hear about one that has not just survived, but built a real presence, for 32 years. That's an accomplishment worth celebrating.
John Banman began repairing vehicle air conditioners in 1994, one day a week under a tin roof beside a cattle barn. Today, ACROSS (Air Conditioning Repair Or Service Specialists) serves customers who travel from across Belize to John's shop in Spanish Lookout. John, his partner Henry Friesen, and their team have built a reputation for integrity and quality that people are willing to drive for.
We recently recognized John with a Juntos Spotlight Award for exemplifying the Juntos spirit. Juntos team member Abner Valladares presented the award on September 3 at the Art Box in Belmopan.
Abner Valladares presenting the 2026 Juntos Spotlight Award to John Banman at his shop in Spanish Lookout.
From Helping Out to Starting Out
John's path began in 1993, helping his manager at a previous job maintain the cooling units on delivery trucks. It didn't take him long to spot the opportunity, and within months he was spending more time on AC units as demand grew.
John got his first business principle in a single sentence, free of charge, from his father, who instilled honesty and integrity as the part-time business grew. That advice carries particular weight in repair work, where customers have to trust a technician's word on what's wrong and what it should cost. Thirty-two years later, that honesty is still central to the reputation John, Henry, and the team have earned.
A Reputation That Travels
ACROSS has no website and doesn't advertise on social media. Its strongest advertisement is a satisfied customer telling family and friends about John's integrity and the quality of the work. Word has traveled well beyond Spanish Lookout, and people now drive from all over Belize to leave their vehicles with John and the team, a meaningful expression of trust the business has earned over years of service.
Five, One, One, and Seven
In 2000, John rededicated his life to Christ. He describes a rule that came to guide his week: five days for the business, one for the farm and family, one for the church, and seven days for the Lord. Faith has a place in the daily decisions of the business and in how people are treated.
One idea from his Juntos training particularly struck John: the opportunity for a Christian business to share the gospel through its work. He puts it memorably: while the team is "making cool air," they're also "making people." His standing prayer is that his family, Henry, the staff, and their customers will be pointed toward Christ by how the work gets done.
John also credits Juntos with a lesson about renewal. The business is where he "creates," but he's learned he also has to find ways to "re-create" himself, a lesson he traces to the late Greg Pogue.
John’s original location beside a barn under a tin roof.
Still Building
After 32 years, John and the team are still looking to improve. They're planning to remodel the shop, and two Juntos team members recently sat down with him and used AI to sketch a new layout. It's considerably easier, and cheaper, to move walls on a screen than on a shop floor.
A Card Worth Keeping
John shares a saying printed on the back of his business card: if you meet him and forget him, you've lost nothing, but if you meet Jesus and forget Him, you've lost everything. It captures something he's carried through his working life: gratitude for what he's been given, and a desire to point others toward the faith that guides him.
Congratulations to John, Henry and the entire team at ACROSS.
Congratulations, Well Done
Thirty-two years of service, a reputation customers share with people they care about, and a willingness to keep learning are achievements worth celebrating.
Bildin Kamyoonity Ahn Bizniz Tugeda.
Stay cool.
