Quavo and his Rocket Foundation launched a program in memory of the late Takeoff on Wednesday (March 20). The Sparks Grants program will award $10,000 each to 10 organizations working to prevent and reduce gun violence in Metro Atlanta.
“I am honored to launch this grant program to honor Take and the countless families that have been affected by gun violence,” Quavo said. “The Rocket Foundation will be giving out $100K in SPARK grants to local orgs dedicated to reducing community violence in Atlanta. There is a lot of important work going on in ATL right now, and part of our mission is to uplift these organizations and support them to help save more lives.”
Organizations must be registered nonprofits or fiscally sponsored by one to be eligible for the micro-grants. The Rocket Foundation also required organizations to submit an existing or planned initiative focused on the Atlanta Metropolitan Area.
Grant applications are open now on the Rocket Foundation website. The deadline for submissions is April 21.
Quavo’s nonprofit will select nine winners with the 10th organization chosen by the public. The final award will be decided through a vote on the Rocket Foundation website. The recipients will be announced on Takeoff’s birthday (June 18).
Takeoff was shot and killed outside a Houston bowling alley in November 2022. He was 28.
Police arrested Patrick Xavier Clark for Takeoff’s murder in December 2022. Clark was released on a $1 million bond in January 2023. A grand jury indicted him for murder in May 2023.
Clark maintains his innocence. His attorney Letitia Quinones-Hollins didn’t believe prosecutors could prove her client killed the Migos rapper.
“We do believe that he has a valid self-defense claim,” Clark’s lawyer told Rolling Stone. “I don’t think they can say with any degree of certainty that it was Patrick who actually fired the shot that took TakeOff’s life.”
She added, “There was someone else who started the shooting, it was not Patrick Clark. He was in the same position that Takeoff was in, he was trying to get out of there alive as well.”
Clark awaits trial. His attorney anticipated his trial starting in the second half of 2024, at the earliest.