Resident leaves behind thousands, may increase scholarships to local students

Manhattan Beach Coordinating Council Students of the Month of May (left to right) Kevin Bandell of Mira Costa High School, Andrew Burdiak of American Martyrs and Carina Chong of Manhattan Beach Middle School. Photo by Lynn Gross

by Andrea Ruse

Friends of the late Joyce Davis knew she was a gifted teacher, photographer, artist and writer. They knew she was passionate about improving her community and was involved in numerous organizations. They knew she cut two notches into the wood of her Strand home porch, marking where the sun sets on the shortest day of winter and the longest day of summer.

But when Davis unexpectedly bequeathed $293,000 to the Manhattan Beach Coordinating Council last August with no instructions on how to spend it, many realized they knew her less well than they had thought.

“None of us knew that she had no heirs, no husband, no family alive,” said Stewart Fournier, president of the council. “She had no family whatsoever and she had a house on The Strand.”

Davis grew up in Pasadena, where her parents owned a great deal of property near what is now the Paseo Colorado Shopping Center, according to longtime resident Charlotte Lesser. In 1980, Davis moved alone to a Strand home in Manhattan after retiring from a career as a teacher and principal for over 25 years with the Pasadena Unified School. In Manhattan, Davis immediately became involved in the community’s newly developed neighborhood watch program and for 15 years wrote the organization’s newsletter.

“She was always thinking of how to make things better and finding ways to improve things,” Lesser said. “She loved to do good things for people. But she always downplayed the fact that she was sharp as a tack.”

In 1984, Davis founded the city’s victim assistance team, which provides support and information to crime victims. For 20 years, Davis was also actively involved in the Manhattan Beach Coordinating Council, a city-affiliated organization that for 75 years has coordinated community service events.

“What I learned at her farewell was that she was also a child prodigy  — a classical pianist and she went to Stanford in her teens,” Lesser said. “Those are things she never talked about.”

Davis also never mentioned her plans to leave the large sum of money to the coordinating council, which until now, has had an annual budget that equaled roughly 10 percent of her donation.

“In the ‘50s, the focus of the council was overwhelming and used to contribute to road maintenance, alcoholism treatment, child delinquency programs and education,” Fournier said. “It had a broad spectrum of programs it was involved in.”

Over time, the council’s scope scaled back to what Fournier called a “soccer mom” organization in the ‘90s. Members reformatted monthly luncheons to include the recognition of students from local schools at monthly meetings. Through private and corporate donations, the council added a scholarship program for Mira Costa seniors.

Scholarships ranged from $300 to $500 the first several years. However, sponsorships from the council’s monthly luncheons, private donations and the hard work of former member Phyllis Cohen-Edwards – who died of cancer two years ago – raised the organization’s operating budget to $30,000 and allowed for the dispersal of five $3,000 scholarships over the last five years.

“Of our annual budget, $15,000 goes to our expenses,” Fournier said. “The rest goes to scholarships.”

Last Thursday, the council awarded scholarships to Mira Costa seniors Roxanne Smith, Colleen Safarik, Tiffany Eide, and Carina Vollucci and during a luncheon at Veranda’s in North Manhattan. Smith received the prestigious Phyllis Cohen-Edwards scholarship, which is provided by the Cohen family to the student it feels has done the most for the community.

“This is a person who is head and shoulders above when it comes to community outreach,” Fournier said of Smith.

Davis’ posthumous donation will likely double scholarships, according to Fournier. He said he felt a little undeserving of the gift.

“I came back from vacation last August knowing we were going to be getting something,” Fournier said. “But I expected $10,000 or $15,000. If she had given us $5,000, we would have been happy. When I saw all the zeroes, I had to check the commas.”

Fournier was initially inclined to return the money, since he felt the amount was so far beyond what is needed to accomplish the organization’s mission.

“We took a look at ourselves and said either we give it back or further our organization, in terms of our mission,” he added. “This is more than a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. This is a once-in-a-few-lives opportunity.”

The council chose to keep the money, which is currently tied up in certificates of deposit until goals and strategies are defined. Fournier said that the council is leaning toward using the money for marketing efforts to become a larger presence in the community.

“Most organizations form a business plan and then go find the money to do it,” he said. “We have the opposite situation. We have the money but no business plan.”

The Coordinating Council is looking for new board members who are “interested in spending money” to help develop and refocus its outreach.

Fournier wants to make sure the money is spent the way Davis – who died in 2008 — would have wanted it.

“She was mysterious in certain ways,” Fournier said. “I think it was humility more than anything. But she had a great history and a great love for children. She hoped that we would be responsible enough to spend her money right. This is one organization that will figure it out.”

For more information, email info@coordinatingcouncil.com. ER

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