Connecting the University and Eastern North Carolina

February 2, 2023

The Monk family’s gift will support students serving in internships in eastern North Carolina and students from that region participating in internships elsewhere. Multiple generations of the family are represented in this photo. (photo courtesy of the Monk family)

The Monk family’s gift supports students serving in internships in eastern North Carolina and students from that region participating in internships elsewhere. Multiple generations of the family are represented in this photo. (photo courtesy of the Monk family)

The Monk family’s love of home and university has led them — Molly Mears ’84, Arts and Sciences Foundation board member, her brother William Monk Jr. ’86 and his wife, Aurelia Stafford Monk ’85 — to give back to Carolina and their home region of eastern North Carolina. Their gift during the campaign supports the Shuford Program in Entrepreneurship’s Monk Family Internship Fund.

From left to right: Imani Edwards '22, Dayci Brookshire, Sharon Lawrence, Taylor Riga and MaryGrace Stephenson '2
Actor Sharon Lawrence and UNC Hollywood program director and professional voice actress Dayci Brookshire (both UNC alumnae) with student interns. From left to right: Imani Edwards ’22, Dayci Brookshire ’04, Sharon Lawrence ’83, Taylor Riga ’22 and MaryGrace Stephenson ’22 at the 2022 Micheaux Film Festival in Los Angeles.

The Monk family’s gift funds students interning in eastern North Carolina and students from that region participating in internships elsewhere.

Taylor Riga ’22, from Sunset Beach, North Carolina, was awarded the Monk Family Internship Scholarship in 2022. Riga went to Los Angeles to intern at Madison Wells, a film company, and assist casting director Nancy Nayor.

Riga shared, “There’s no way I could have done it without the funding from the Monk family. Having that experience has given me invaluable skills that I look forward to using on my own film projects in the future.”

Currently, Riga is living in eastern North Carolina and working remotely with Madison Wells. She hopes to find more work with a film company in the Wilmington area.

 

  

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