CHARLESTON, S.C. May 5, 2021 – The Mother Emanuel Memorial Foundation Board, which manages the fundraising, construction endowment and outreach for the Emanuel Nine Memorial, announced the Ford Foundation has donated $500,000 to the Emanuel Nine Memorial. The funding will help the Mother Emanuel Memorial Foundation build social justice programs and initiatives to help eradicate racism.
The Mother Emanuel Memorial Foundation’s outreach programs will focus on the implementation of anti-racism and racial equity curriculum for adults, school children, colleges and universities; resources to educate and help bridge inequities in our communities; guidance to help advocate for equality and justice; and training to help promote peaceful reconciliation with our neighborhoods.
As a part of its outreach programming, the Mother Emanuel Memorial Foundation announced additional plans to introduce its Luminary program, which designates supporters of the Emanuel Nine Memorial who will spread its mission through the advocacy of racial healing to various spheres of influence.
“The Mother Emanuel Memorial Foundation is extremely grateful for the Ford Foundation and looks forward to growing our partnership by working together to develop social justice programs to help build a more inclusive and equitable society,” said Reverend Eric S.C. Manning, pastor of the Mother Emanuel A.M.E. Church and co-chair of the Mother Emanuel Memorial Foundation.
“This generous grant from the Ford Foundation highlights the organization’s unparalleled support of programs bringing about social justice,” said John Darby, CEO of the Beach Company and co-chair of the Mother Emanuel Memorial Foundation. “We are looking forward to working closely with the foundation to improve communities across the country for all Americans, starting right here in South Carolina.”
The social justice initiatives will launch in 2021 and the Emanuel Nine Memorial, the permanent memorial honoring the five clergy and four church members murdered at the Mother Emanuel A.M.E Church in Charleston, will open in mid- to late 2022.
“We are proud to support the Emanuel Nine Memorial and pay tribute to the Mother Emanuel A.M.E. church members and Charleston community,” said Darren Walker, president of the Ford Foundation. “The Mother Emanuel Memorial Foundation is building an enduring legacy of hope, justice and resilience and we look forward to seeing how their work transforms our society in the years to come.”
The design process, led by Michael Arad who previously designed the National September 11 Memorial, began by reframing the church grounds to create this sacred space. The memorial will have three components: The Memorial Courtyard, The Survivors’ Garden and Contemplation Basin.
With a fundraising goal of $17.5 million to design, build, maintain and protect the Emanuel Nine Memorial, as well as fund educational outreach and social justice initiatives, the Mother Emanuel Memorial Foundation relies on individual and corporate contributions that can be made online by visiting: www.emanuelnine.org/donate.
