Kingston, Jamaica – Thursday, July 21: The Rita Marley Foundation celebrates the 76thbirthday of founder and reggae icon, the Honorable Dr. Alferita Marley O.J, O.D, LITT, by opening the 2022 Rita Marley Scholarship fund. Following the success of the initial launch last year, the foundation is investing 4 million dollars to help women overcome obstacles to pursuing higher education and achieving their dreams.
The long-term development of a nation depends on how enabled all its citizens are to pursue the best quality of life possible. Educational advancement is one of the fundamental ways to achieve this life and Dr. Rita Marley and her Foundation are thankful to have the ability to help make higher education more accessible to women living on the lower socio-economic end of the spectrum. The Foundation is charged with this mandate.
“Through the Rita Marley Scholarships, we can continue to motivate and uplift the financially challenged youth — especially women,” states Cedella Marley, daughter of Rita and Bob Marley and an accomplished singer, author, fashion designer and entrepreneur in her own right. “With schools re-opening for face-to-face classes, there is still a general energy of uncertainty surrounding education at this time, and mom is so pleased to be able to help our women reach their full potential.”
Aimed at empowering women, the scholarships will be awarded to ten women currently enrolled in University for the 2022 – 2023 period. Of the 10 awardees, one will be a woman pursuing a career in nursing and another a single mother who experienced teenage pregnancy. This single mother will be selected from applicants currently enrolled at the Women’s Centre of Jamaica (or similar institutions that enroll pregnant women).
Beloved globally as an entertainer and humanitarian, Mrs. Marley, was herself originally training to be a nurse before 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-Three, 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 through the Rita Marley Foundation’s website. Participating applicants, parents or guardians should submit applications for the programme via the online portal only. This online portal will guide the selection process by utilizing a means test. Interviews of the shortlisted applicants will also be conducted to evaluate potential beneficiaries. Upon completion of the selection process, the Foundation will make the disbursements directly to the institutions where the awardees are enrolled.
The deadline for submissions is Sunday, July 31, 2022. Full details and applications are online. Application forms: https://forms.gle/qfq7dok31xjof1Kx8
Full details: https://www.ritamarleyfoundation.org/
Contact: Alicia@ritamarleyfoundation.org
Rita Marley
Internationally, the name Marley is synonymous with reggae music and the culture of Jamaica. It is no coincidence that the talented young Rita Anderson was destined to become an integral part of the musical Marley family. Bob Marley is the King of Reggae, and his wife, Dr. Rita Marley, provided him with vocal support as a member of the I-Threes. Rita Marley also forged an extraordinary career as a solo artist with a catalog of hits including One Draw, Harambe, Lion & the Lamb, Good Girls Culture, and Just One More Morning.
As the Matriarch of the Marley Family, Mrs. Rita Marley wears many hats and has been instrumental in the initiation and completion of great works internationally, regionally, and locally. In 1986, she had the vision and wisdom to transform Bob Marley’s house at 56 Hope Road in Kingston, Jamaica into the Bob Marley Museum. Mrs. Marley’s purchase of the former Federal Records at 220 Marcus Garvey Drive and subsequent relocation of Tuff Gong International to this new address set the stage for Tuff Gong to become a leader in the recording, manufacturing, and distribution of music in Jamaica, the Caribbean, and the world. It is in her capacity as Founder and Chairperson of the Robert Marley Foundation; the Bob Marley Museum; the Bob Marley Trust; Tuff Gong International, and the Rita Marley Foundation Mrs. Marley continues to honor her commitment to the works of her husband, her children [including the GRAMMY Award winning Ziggy Marley & the Melody Makers], and her people – by fulfilling her mission to enlighten, educate and entertain through her philanthropy and music.
