Rihanna Finance
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Rihanna may be dropping concerts from her tour, but she’s picking up the bill for a number of students this year.
The singer has offered financial support through her charity foundation to help people from under-privileged backgrounds to pay for school fees.
The Clara Lionel Foundation has been operating since 2012, offering grants to schools in Rihanna’s home country Barbados, and supporting cancer patients. Rihanna has backed the charity since her grandmother’s death in the same year, which inspired her to support healthcare.
The organisation has created scholarships of up to $50,000 (£34,600), which are available to students residing in Barbados, Brazil, Cuba, Jamaica, Guyana and the US.
Rihanna stated that she didn’t “think it was fair that children have to carry the burden of financial limitations.”
This is definitely understandable, as in the US it can cost up to $3,000 for the first year at college, and in the UK it can cost up to £44,000 for a four-year course at university.
Many celebrities have aligned themselves with noble causes such as this.
Will.i.am, who launched ‘I.am.angel’ in 2009, supports education and, just like Rihanna, funds scholarships for kids who wouldn’t otherwise have a chance to study, specifically in the fields of science, technology, engineering, arts and maths (STEAM).
Elton John is the founder of the Elton John Aids Foundation, which strives to fight for an AIDS-free future, and tries to reduce stigma towards those in the LGBT community around the world.
Perhaps closer to home, our very own Sir Bobby Robson launched his charity in 2008, during his fifth and final battle with cancer. The cancer ward where he was treated was in dire need of a new unit for cancer drug trials in the hospice, so Sir Bobby raised £500,000 for the Northern Centre for Cancer Care in Newcastle.
So in a day and age where celebrities flaunt cash like there’s no tomorrow, it’s good to know that some are doing the right thing.