ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) – A Florida businessman is raising scholarship money for gay students to honor the 49 patrons killed last June in Orlando’s gay nightclub shooting massacre.
Barry Miller said March 13 that The 49 Fund is to award 10 scholarships annually, each worth $4,900. Students would have to self-identify as “out,” have a GPA of 3.0 and attend an institution of higher learning full time.
Survivors of the Pulse nightclub attack or deceased victims’ relatives would receive special consideration, said Miller, who is working on the project with the GLBT Community Center of Central Florida and the Central Florida Foundation.
Gunman Omar Mateen pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in the attack last June 12. The deadliest mass shooting in recent U.S. history also left dozens wounded in addition to the 49 killed.
