Donor Spotlight: The Dickerson Family
Twenty-five years ago, a new job as Publisher of the Modesto Bee brought Lynn Dickerson, her husband, Ron, and their two sons Ross (15) and Ryan (11) to the city of Modesto. Having spent their entire lives in Texas, Lynn and Ron assumed their stay in the Central Valley would be short – only 3 years, to be exact. But the family quickly fell in love with Modesto and decided to call it home.
In 2006, Lynn received a promotion and a request to relocate to Sacramento. Because Ryan was in his last year of high school, the family’s home base remained in Modesto until he graduated. In the summer of 2007, the family packed their bags, sold their house, and officially moved to Sacramento.
What should have been an exciting time for the Dickerson family quickly turned to heartache. Just ten days after Lynn and Ron moved to their new home, their son Ryan drowned while lifeguarding at his childhood summer camp due to an undetected heart condition. In a new city, over an hour away from their closest friends and family, Lynn and Ron felt isolated while grieving the loss of their son. But it wasn’t a feeling that lasted long. The Modesto community rallied around them, providing an abundance of love and support, despite the distance.
Almost immediately, Lynn and Ron knew that they wanted to do something special to memorialize Ryan. They originally thought about opening a fund at the bank, but a call from Patty Stone (former CEO of Stanislaus Community Foundation) inspired a different idea. As a past board member of SCF, Lynn understood the significant impact a scholarship fund at the community foundation could have on local students. And so, in the fall of 2007, the Ryan Dickerson Academic Scholarship was established.
Although Lynn and Ron knew this decision made perfect sense, it was further solidified when they received the paperwork for the fund, and it was numbered 216 – the same day as Ryan’s birthday (2/16). Lynn shared, “When you lose a child, you don’t ever want them to be forgotten, and so this fund is one of the ways to keep his name alive.” Over the last eighteen years, the Ryan Dickerson Academic Scholarship has supported more than forty students on their journey to higher education.
A couple of years later, the Dickersons moved back to Modesto, and Lynn rejoined the SCF board of directors. In an effort to support the foundation and take their giving to the next level, they decided to establish a donor-advised fund (DAF): the Dickerson Family Fund. Lynn said, “I love that a donor-advised fund gives you the ease of having funds parked at the community foundation, and then when something comes up that you feel passionate about, you can quickly grant the money out – it’s really efficient.” As proud Modestans, the family’s philanthropy is mostly centered around supporting local organizations and programs that improve the quality of life for Stanislaus County residents, such as the Modesto Children’s Museum and Jessica’s House (where Ron regularly volunteers).
Another organization near and dear to their hearts is the Modesto Library. Ryan spent countless hours studying there, and they knew it would be the perfect place to create a memorial for him. After contributing half of the project’s cost, Lynn and Ron contacted their family and friends to fund the remaining amount to build Ryan’s Reading Tree. The tree was installed in the Children’s Room, creating a welcoming and magical space for the community’s youngest readers.
Recently, Lynn became the co-chair of the Friends of the Modesto Library A Lifelong Legacy capital campaign, which aims to raise $3 million to expand upon a major remodeling of the library already funded by the state and local government. The Dickersons contributions of both time and treasure to this campaign highlight their ongoing commitment to support causes that enrich the lives of their fellow residents.
While they sometimes still see themselves as transplants, they are anything but. Ron shared, “We want our legacy to be that we chose to stay in Modesto because we loved the community, and we made it a better place.” Their partnership with Stanislaus Community Foundation has allowed them to be part of something bigger and better that they truly believe in and ensures that their philanthropy remains rooted in the place they are proud to call home.