08/24/2026
❤️ Happy Birthday, Dave McCoy ❤️
August 24, 1915 – February 8, 2020
Today, we celebrate what would have been the 111th birthday of our beloved founder, Dave McCoy, a man whose vision, generosity, and love for this community continue to shape Mammoth and the Eastern Sierra.
Dave is remembered for building Mammoth Mountain, but perhaps his greatest legacy is the community that grew alongside it. He believed in making Mammoth a place where families could build lives and future generations could thrive.
That belief was at the heart of Dave and Roma’s commitment to bringing higher education to the Eastern Sierra. Dave once reflected:
“Once we realized how good a college in Mammoth would be—good for the kids, good for the parents, good for the community—we planted some seeds and started classes in the shopping center. Then we fertilized and watered and we grew into Edison Hall, the Dave and Roma McCoy Learning Center, and this summer we will break ground on student housing. Maybe someday our seeds will blossom into a special place for music and the arts... Whatever direction the college goes will depend on who comes along to fertilize and water.”– Dave McCoy
Those words capture so much of Dave’s spirit. He understood that building a community was never the work of one person or one generation. You plant the seeds, care for them, and trust that others will help them grow.
And grow they have.💗🌱
Today, students can pursue a college education right here at home. Student housing stands where Dave once imagined it. His dream of creating a place for arts and culture continues to take shape with the new Dave & Roma McCoy Arts & Cultural Center. And through our Dave’s Scholars, new generations of local students are pursuing their own dreams.
Happy Heavenly Birthday, Dave. ❤️ Your community is still growing, dreaming, and building upon the foundation you gave us. We’ll keep watering the seeds.
🎓 Honor Dave & Roma this Founder’s Month by supporting the next generation of Eastern Sierra students by making a donation online here: http://weblink.donorperfect.com/mlf
