Miami Foundation Awards Peter Bailey $37,500 Grant To Continue NiteCap Show In USVI Schools

Renowned Miami-based author and journalist Peter Bailey has been awarded a grant of $37,500 from The Miami Foundation’s U.S. Caribbean Relief Fund to continue his critically acclaimed NiteCap Live series throughout high schools in his native U.S. Virgin Islands. The interactive talk show connects students with newsmakers in an entertaining yet educational format. In the wake of hurricanes Irma and Maria, which has devastated the Virgin Islands and other Caribbean nations, this iteration of NiteCap will embody the theme of “Building A Better Virgin Islands”.

“Our kids are very vulnerable right now. They need an outlet that offers inspiration as a means to begin the long and excruciating road to recovery”, Mr. Bailey said. “The storms did more than destroy our homes. They threatened to kill our spirits as well. We can’t let that happen.”

Educators in the territory are elated the program, which has featured the likes of billionaire developer Don Peebles, 50 Cent, Fantasia and Janelle Monae, is coming back to the territory.

“Peter Bailey provides a medium that gives a creditable voice and venue to the young people we serve in the Virgin Islands. ‘NiteCap’ is meaningful and relevant,” said USVI education commissioner Sharon McCullom. “The program brings contemporary issues to the forefront in addition to giving a forum to newsmakers that impact the younger generation we are attempting to bring into the fold to impact positive change concerning today’s pressing issues.”

Public school students in the U.S. territory have been attending split sessions as a result of many schools being severely damaged by the hurricanes.

Mr. Bailey said he’s thankful that Miami’s residents have stepped up to support the U.S. Virgin Islands and the rest of the Caribbean during this tragedy since Miami is America’s gateway to the Caribbean.

“The Miami Foundation US Caribbean Strong Relief Fund is committed to supporting the recovery of impacted Caribbean islands from hurricane season 2017 and helping to build greater resilience in all communities whether through the arts, education, housing, job creation, or other areas of human inspiration,” said Marlon Hill, former Miami Foundation Board Member now head of the US Caribbean Strong Relief Fund Advisory Committee.

Mr. Bailey was spending time with family in his native St. Thomas when hurricanes Irma and Maria ravaged the island, forcing Bailey and his family to flee outside as the storms destroyed his family’s home. He has become a national hero throughout the Caribbean for his journalistic efforts after the storms, according to the release. His New York Times Op-Ed piece and subsequent interviews aired on CBS and other media outlets criticizing the U.S. government’s handling of the islands’ recovery have since gone viral on social media. Mr. Bailey wrote the New York Times’s Op-Ed while building a makeshift roof.

Thus far, NiteCap Live has also been filmed in Miami and Jamaica. The prestigious Knight Foundation has recently awarded Mr. Bailey with a $50,000 grant to take the show to St. Paul this spring focused on sharing stories of entrepreneurs and business leaders, as a way to provide emerging innovators with valuable insights, and spotlight the great work being done in the community.

Before launching NiteCap in 2010, Mr. Bailey wrote for Time, Newsweek and the Miami Herald. The NiteCap series has been featured on MTV, BET, The CW and the Huffington Post to name a few.

For more information on NiteCap, go here.