Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
(WBZ) -- A Fitchburg High School graduate is heading to Harvard University, but before she starts her college career, she’s helping others do the same. Verda Tetteh is getting a full ride to Harvard. At graduation, she was awarded an additional US$40,000 scholarship for books, computers and living expenses but she turned it down.
“No one had the chance to say ‘Don’t give away $40,000,” Verda said. She chuckles about it now, but the 17-year-old dropped jaws at Friday’s graduation ceremony.
“Yes I would do it again,” she said.
What the straight A student did was win the school’s coveted scholarship for general excellence, $10,000 for each of the next four years, only to unexpectedly return to the podium within minutes to turn it down.
"It is such a great honour, but I also know that I am not the most in need of it,” Verda said at the graduation.
Verda — who is Harvard-bound with a bunch of other scholarships — suggested the money go to a struggling fellow student or students, for whom it might open a door to community college.
“I’m excited to see who it helps and how that changes their life, so I am so happy that God gave me the strength to do that,” Verda said.
A standing ovation followed some moments of reflection for Verda, during which she heard the assistant principal urge grads to be “bold and selfless” and that made her think of her mom, an immigrant who often works 80-hour weeks to provide for her family.
Verda’s mom brought her to the U.S. as a child from their native Ghana, always stressing the importance of education. In fact, her mom Rosemary earned her bachelor’s degree from a local community college, at the age of 47, which is why she is so proud of her daughter’s spontaneous decision.
“Now I’m 100-per cent sure she is ready to go into the world on her own,” Rosemary said.
“I feel like you know God has gotten me this far and he will take me the rest of the way,” Verda said.
The details of who now gets her scholarship haven’t been worked out, but as Verda tackles her pre-med regimen at Harvard this fall, even if she comes up a few bucks short here and there, she’ll know she did the right thing.
“Whatever happens, someone else needed it more,” Verda said.
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
"It's a bit of a complicated pattern; we've got a lot going on," said Jennifer Smith of the Meteorological Service of Canada in an interview with CTVNews.ca on Wednesday. "[As is] typical with weather, all of these things are related."
Boeing said Wednesday that it lost US$355 million on falling revenue in the first quarter, another sign of the crisis gripping the aircraft manufacturer as it faces increasing scrutiny over the safety of its planes and accusations of shoddy work from a growing number of whistleblowers.
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.