On Tuesday, Dec. 11, Sedona-Oak Creek School District Superintendent Dennis Dearden accepted a large donation on behalf of the newly-founded Sedona Education Foundation — $20,000 from one retired couple. 

William and Cheryl Geffon, New York transplants to Sedona, presented the inaugural seed of their philanthropic vision for education — the John McCain Memorial Scholarship.

Every May, two graduating seniors from SOCSD will be awarded $5,000 each, based on whether they fit criteria inspired by the late U.S. Sen. John McCain, Arizona’s longtime statesman who died earlier this year. As of now, those standards include financial need, leadership skills, character, scholarship and service to others.

“In light of today’s politics, we felt that he was someone to admire. A real statesman, one of the last

real statesman,” Cheryl Geffon said. “His morals, his character — whether we agreed with him on political issues was inconsequential. He was a man of character.”

The Geffons said that Sedona, near McCain’s ranch in Cornville, was the perfect spot to honor his legacy.

At one time, the Geffons were McCain’s neighbors. However, in New York City at the Four Seasons restaurant was the only time Geffon had met McCain. William informed the senator that he had purchased property next to his in Sedona; it sparked a warm conversation. “See ya later, neighbor,” McCain said to him as they left the conference.

The Geffons explained that, with William having turned 70, they were forced to withdraw from their IRA what is known as a required minimum distribution. They could take out as much as $100,000, all of it non-taxed if donated to charity.

Every year, the Geffons will provide the $10,000 scholarship total, and to ensure that their vision continues in perpetuity, they said they plan to fund the scholarship through a $250,000 endowment whenever they both pass on.

“Eventually, it’ll be adjusted for inflation, because $10,000 20 years from now may buy you a pair of shoes,” William Geffon said.

Geffon, who made his living in money management on Wall Street, and Cheryl Geffon, who was an educator, said that they hope their actions inspire other seniors in a similar situation with the RMD on their IRAs to consider spreading around the money to institutions and causes they truly care about.

“Even though we’re funding this, we want the community to participate, too,” William Geffon said. “Instead of taking that money [RMD] for your personal use, if you didn’t have a need for it, we’re just going to donate it.”

“We encourage other people in our age group who don’t need their RMD but have to take it to donate it to the community,” Cheryl Geffon said. The Geffons first began toying with the idea of a tribute scholarship after being moved by McCain’s death in August. Shortly after, they met Dearden, who was in the middle of planning the Sedona Education Foundation.

“They’ve had educational foundations here, but they’ve gone nowhere,” Dearden said. “So, the one thing I’m always cognizant about in terms of starting anything is that I want to make a difference with it. You can say its a foundation but nothing ever happens with it, well you got to work at it.”  

Now, with the John McCain Memorial Scholarship in place, Dearden is hoping other collaborations will be sparked within the community. The Geffons have contacted a representative of the McCain family and are hoping that someone from the McCain family will come present the scholarships at a ceremony in the spring.