Malcolm-Jamal Warner’s Widow Launches Foundation In His Spirit To Celebrate Anniversary

Tenisha Warner gave an emotional tribute to her late husband, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, on what would have been their wedding anniversary by unveiling two initiatives aimed at uplifting children and nurturing creativity.

On Thursday, Warner introduced The Warner Family Foundation and River & Ember, both of which were created in tribute to the Emmy-nominated actor, who died on July 20 while learning to surf in Costa Rica. He was 54.

“Today, in his honor, my daughter and I are launching River & Ember and officially opening The Warner Family Foundation,” Tenisha wrote on Instagram. “This is love, still moving. Still making. Still carrying us forward.”

The announcement came with a 2017 wedding photo and a heartfelt message: “Thank you for holding us in so much love during this tender time,” she wrote. “Tomorrow marks our anniversary, and my heart is wide open.”

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Warner, best known for playing Theo Huxtable on The Cosby Show, drowned at Playa Cocles, a beach on Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast. His unexpected death stunned many in the entertainment world and left his family reeling.

Now, Tenisha and their daughter are channeling their grief into action with a mission to help children and young artists find strength through storytelling and creativity.

“My husband believed in nurturing the inner light—not just in children, but in all of us,” she shared. “Through story and ritual, I hope to offer families what he gave us: a sense of being held, and a reason to keep tending to our light.”

The Warner Family Foundation will focus on supporting young creatives, though no specific programs have been detailed yet. River & Ember, named symbolically, will also serve as a platform for families to engage in artistic expression and healing.

Warner’s legacy stretches far beyond his sitcom fame. After The Cosby Show ended in 1992, he directed episodes of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and Sesame Street, and released four albums blending spoken word and R&B.

Tenisha’s tribute closed with a poetic nod to the man she married seven years ago: “To the river that carried us. To the Ember that never goes out.”

Warner died July 20 in Costa Rica.