US$100,000 Willed To Education In Anguilla

Children born in Anguilla will benefit from US$100,000 to further their education, thanks to the Mouton Anguillian Education Trust. The money has been made available through the Anguilla Community Foundation to be paid out in grants and/or gifts to the children.

The Trust was established in fulfillment of the Will and Testament of Jean Paul Mouton, dated March 7, 1990. A cheque for the above amount, drawn on the National Bank of Anguilla, was presented on Tuesday January 27 by Lawyer John Benjamin of Caribbean Juris Chambers to President of the Anguilla Community Foundation, Rhona Richardson.

Mr. Benjamin said Mr. Mouton, a French Lawyer, loved Anguilla and thought that the best way to show his love was to leave his endowment to the children of the island in particular. Mr. Benjamin hoped that the contribution to the children “would one day bear fruits that would be beneficial to all Anguillians.”

In accepting the cheque, Miss Richardson said she was overjoyed by the generosity of Mr. Benjamin’s client and that the Community Foundation would use the money for education as Mr. Mouton desired. She expressed thanks on behalf of the Board of the Foundation and added that the Minister of Education, Eric Reid, would be delighted to hear about the sizeable donation.

Mr. Mouton was born in Mascara, Algeria, and practiced as a lawyer in France. Upon his retirement he lived in Alpes, Maitimes, Nice, with his wife Colette Francois Jeanne Mazeiraud also deceased.

He first visited Anguilla in the winter of 1984 and fell in love with the island. He then decided to take up residence and purchased property at Swing High, South Hill. In May 2001 he was granted Belonger Status and one month later returned to Nice to finalise business transactions with the intention of returning to Anguilla to live out his retirement. Unfortunately, he took ill and died in December 2001.

To date the Mouton Anguillian Education Trust has made gifts to the Omolulu Education Institute, the Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Anguilla Community Foundation, the Soroptimist Club of Anguilla, the Anguilla Tourist Board and three gifts of endowment to children attending pre-schools and primary schools on the island.