The Olive Brown Bursary this year goes to Jersey’s Hamish Brodie, a 16 year old student from Hautlieu who has been accepted into The BRIT School in London to study music.
Hamish achieved his Grade 8 in Piano and Music Theory in only four weeks. He has performed professional, paid shows in Jersey and won the Child of The Year Award at the Pride of Jersey Awards. The bursary provides up to £1,000 per year, for up to three years, to assist the study of one performing arts student from Jersey training at higher-education level every year.
Olive Brown, originally from Salford in Lancashire, lived in the Island from 1959 until her death in 1990, when she left assets in a private will trust to be applied for charitable purposes. Olive and her husband John were known to be devout members of the Salvation Army throughout their lives and also to be very kindly disposed to young
people, especially supportive of their creative aspirations.
The Executors of the trust decided to forward a sum of money to ArtHouse Jersey in the knowledge that its resources and expertise are ideally suited to the fulfilment of her wishes, ensuring her generosity lives on.
On receiving confirmation that he was being awarded funding, Hamish said: “It really does mean a lot to me and my family that there are charities and trusts who support young people who are passionate about a career in music or the arts.
“I was over the moon when I heard that I had been awarded the Olive Brown Bursary, which I was interviewed as a candidate for by ArtHouse Jersey. This will help me so much going forward in my music career for purchasing equipment and 1-1 music lessons at The BRIT School which will help me to develop my abilities further.”
ArtHouse Jersey Director, Tom Dingle, said: “We’re delighted to be able to offer this year’s Olive Brown Bursary to Hamish. Over the past 14 years we have invested over £40,000 through this bursary, which has supported 15 students in their pursuit of a career in performing arts. For far too many, cost is a barrier to pursuing their dreams and it has been a privilege to be the custodian of these funds and see the difference it has made in highly deserving young people’s lives. We are actively seeking new sources of funding to keep these opportunities open and would welcome hearing from any individuals or sponsors who might be in the position to help.”
