Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — This past Saturday, the Manū Mai Lagi Foundation awarded scholarships to four ASCC students. The mission of this organization is to provide support or financial assistance to students of Samoan descent that are unable to receive local and federal aid due to their immigration status.

A scholarship committee made up of teachers reviewed 13 submissions and found the top four applicants for the Manū Mai Lagi Scholarship awarded at DDW Cafe. The scholarship recipients each received $300.

Congratulations to the 2021 Manū Mai Lagi Scholarship Recipients: Merenita Setu, Jeannie Togiailau, Nellie Lisala, and Rita Tuua.

 The Manū Mai Lagi Foundation scholarship was founded by Ms. Christian Sa’alea, a teacher at Tafuna High School. Ms. Sa’alea expressed that with her tenure as a teacher, she has always found gifted and bright students with these special immigration statuses limited to pursue higher education due to financial constraints. All awards were funded by herself and some angel donors.

A recipient of the scholarship Ms. Nellie Lisala shared in a thank you post on social media that as an immigrant, she was not as fortunate as most to receive financial aid for their studies. She did not perceive this as a setback, instead a motivation to strive for the better. She said that she just had to work harder than most.

Merenita Setu also provided words of thanks for this opportunity. “This is truly one of the highlights of my college journey. On behalf of our parents and supporters, thank you thank you thank you for believing in us! We will not let you guys down and we will surely remember to always give back to our community just as you guys are doing today.”

The Manū Mai Lagi Foundation expressed its gratitude to the community for sharing the application and also to the applicants for sharing their stories in the applications.

If you are interested in becoming an angel donor, please feel free to contact Manū Mai Lagi Foundation on facebook.

(Source: Manū Mai Lagi Foundation)