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WestConn Music Scholarship Will Honor Newtown Victim

DANBURY, CONN. -- In memory of Ana Grace Márquez-Greene, a 6-year-old victim of the December shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Western Connecticut State University in Danbury will award a four-year scholarship to an incoming freshman this fall and continue to support music students every year thereafter.

Ana Grace Márquez-Greene, 6, died Dec. 14 in the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

Ana Grace Márquez-Greene, 6, died Dec. 14 in the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

Photo Credit: Contributed

Ana was the daughter of Jimmy Greene, a saxophonist and music professor at Western, and Nelba Márquez-Greene, a family therapist. She also is survived by a brother, 9-year-old Isaiah.

“This scholarship will allow us to memorialize Ana each year and also help a music student attend the university and concentrate on his or her studies instead of financial concerns,” said Dan Goble, dean of the School of Visual and Performing Arts in a statement. “It is the right way to honor Ana.”

Just days after the murder of their daughter, the Greenes asked the university to create a scholarship fund as a way to honor Ana’s life. The fund so far has raised more than $75,000.

“We received gifts of a few dollars from individuals to thousands of dollars raised by groups of people, and the fund has quickly grown to the point where we can award a substantial scholarship each year,” University President James Schmotter said in a statement. “This doesn't make the losses of December 14 any easier to bear, but the support from friends and strangers alike is an indication of the love of humanity that exists in this country. That will help us all affirm life in the aftermath of last year’s horrific events.”

The first scholarship will be for $2,500 a year for four years. Subsequent awards will be derived from a portion of the interest income from the endowed amount of the fund.

Contributions can be made by check to The WCSU Foundation, with a notation indicating the Ana Grace Márquez-Greene Endowed Memorial Scholarship. Donations also may be made online.

For more information, call the Office of University Relations at 203-837-8486.

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