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Nelly Furtado pitches in
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| Herald News Staff,
Herald News Staff |
October 26, 2002 |
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SWANSEA -- The Portuguese American Scholarship Foundation Inc.
awarded 17 scholarships at is annual fund-raiser and awards banquet
Friday night at the Venus de Milo restaurant.
It's Nelly Furtado's turn to applaud others as she and her mother,
Manuela Furtado, cheer for local Portuguese American Scholarship
Foundation scholarship recipients. |
The
guest of honor was Nelly Furtado, an internationally known artist who
recently won a Grammy Award for her song, "I'm Like a Bird."
Furtado visited the area to help the Portuguese American Scholarship
Foundation raise money for scholarships.
The Portuguese American Scholarship Foundation, the largest
Portuguese-American scholarship organization in New England, has been
awarding 15 four-year scholarships, totaling more than $60,000
annually since 1997.
The purpose of the foundation is to award scholarships to Portuguese
Americans living in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, seeking degrees in
higher education in partnership with the Luso American Development
Foundation of Lisbon, Portugal.
The foundation was founded on the belief that access to a quality
higher education is essential to get the skills and knowledge
necessary to achieve success in an increasingly complex society.
"Every young mind should be afforded the opportunity to pursue their
dreams," Portuguese American Scholarship Foundation President Maria
Igrejas Matos told the audience.
She cited Furtado as an example of one who succeeded through hard
work. On behalf of the foundation, Matos thanked Furtado for her time
to help promote education.
"Nelly Furtado recognizes the importance of education amongst
Portuguese Americans and has taken time from her busy schedule to be
our guest for the evening and to bring awareness to higher education,"
Matos said.
Furtado was accompanied by her parents, Antonio and Maria, who have
supported and encouraged her in attaining her success, Matos said.
Furtado was set to travel to Washington, D.C., today to receive an
award from the Portuguese American Leadership Council of the United
States.
The scholarships were presented by Furtado and committee
co-chairpersons Anthony S. Nunes and Dr. Odete Amarelo.
The 2002 scholarship recipients are: Diane Bergantim, daughter of Jose
and Maria Bergantim of East Taunton; Kaitlin A. Buckley, daughter of
David and Leslie Buckley of North Kingston, R.I.; Bianca F. Caetano,
daughter of Jorge and Ana Bela Garcia of North Dartmouth; Mario
Humberto de Andrade, who lives with his guardians, Jose and Maria
Duarte of Taunton; Eric Domingues, son of Luis and Ermelinda Domingues
of New Bedford.
Jillian Ferreira, daughter of Gary and Karen Ferreira of Warwick,
R.I.; Lisa M. Ferreira, daughter of Jose and Helena Ferreira of Fall
River; Sonia R. Freitas, daughter of Jose and Mary Lou Freitas of
Taunton; Matthew L. Goudreau, son of Laura Goudreau of Smithfield,
R.I.; Alyssa M. Lopes, daughter of Anthony and Nancy Lopes of Taunton.
Maria E. Murray, daughter of Charles and Liliana Murray of Lynn;
Elizabeth S. Pacheco, daughter of Arthur and Filomena Pacheco of East
Providence, R.I.; Melanie Pavao, daughter of Gilbert and Sabine Pavao
of Fall River; Mark Ramos, son of Joseph and Marie Ramos of Bristol,
R.I.; Mark E. Rogers, son of John and Linda Rogers of Ashaway, R.I.,
and Leslie Viveiros, daughter of Jose and Maria Viveiros of Fall
River.
The Warren Teixeira Scholarship for the study of the arts was
presented by Professor Warren Teixeira to Justine Mooney, daughter of
Frank and Valerie Mooney of Hope, R.I.
The Portuguese American Scholarship Foundation is a nonprofit
corporation founded in 1996 to establish and award scholarships to
Portuguese American students, seeking degrees in higher education. It
is a partnership with the Luso-American Development Foundation of
Lisbon.
Nunes, who served as master of ceremonies, called Fall River and Ponta
Delgada in the Azores "sister cities." He added that Fall River is
"considered to be the 10th island of the Azores."
On of the principal objectives of the foundation is to enhance the
knowledge of its scholarship winners of their rich Portuguese heritage
as well as to introduce them to the Portugal of today.
Entertainment was provided by Victor Rui Dores and Sergio Luis Paixao,
musicians, actors, singers, poets and artists from the Azores, who
delighted the audience with their unique musical artistry. |
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