Rita Marley Foundation To Fund Scholarships
Young women to receive help with tuition to further their education.
In honour of the 75th birthday, Mrs. Rita Marley, cultural icon and founder of the Rita Marley Foundation has announced it is funding the inaugural annual Rita Marley Scholarship.
According to the Foundation, the Rita Marley Scholarship is geared towards the empowerment of women from the lower socio-economic stratum of Jamaica’s society and will be awarded to three women. The scholarship will target two women pursuing careers in nursing and a single mother who experienced teenage pregnancy. This single mother will be selected from applicants who are currently enrolled at the Women’s Centre of Jamaica (or similar institutions) who desire to pursue further education.
Mrs. Marley, beloved globally as an entertainer and humanitarian, was herself a nurse. Upon meeting (and later marrying) Bob Marley, their joint passions for music, spiritual self-actualization, and the upliftment of disenfranchised people became the basis for a vision that fueled the careers of Bob Marley & the Wailers, I-Threes, and Ziggy Marley & the Melody Makers. This vision also inspired the various enterprises that comprise the Marley Group of companies, including the Rita Marley Foundation.
A call for applications will be conducted using an online portal on the Rita Marley Foundation website. This portal will be used to guide the selection process by utilizing a means test. Participating applicants, parents or guardians will submit applications for the program via the online portal only. Interviews of the shortlisted applicants will also be conducted to assist with the evaluation of the beneficiaries. Upon completion of the selection process, the Foundation will make the disbursements directly to the institutions where the awardees are enrolled.
The Rita Marley Scholarship is one of several activities to celebrate the reggae icon. The grand finale is a livestream that airs Sunday, July 25th (Mrs. Marley’s 75th birthday) at 5 pm eastern /4pm Jamaican time on Tuff Gong Television’s official YouTube channel, Tuff Gong Television.
Beginning at 5pm Est viewers can tune in to enjoy a behind the scenes peek at the Bob Marley Museum’s new Rita Marley Exhibition (curated by Berette McCauley), a mini documentary, new music videos, an exclusive airing of the Rita Marley: Mystic of a Queen Concert, and the premiere of the digitally remastered Africa Unite Concert; all interspersed with greetings and well wishes from friends and family.
Performers and participants featured during the week of festivities include Marcia Griffiths, Judy Mowatt, Queen Ifrica, Tessanne Chin, Tanya Stephens, Nadine Sutherland, Ernie Smith, DJ Sunshine, Mitzie Williams, Odessa Chambers, Carolyn Cooper, Tova Hamilton, Coleen Douglas, and the Jamaica Youth Chorale.
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