The spirit of philanthropy runs strong in one family that has recognized Livermore educators through the Pedrozzi Foundation's scholarship program for the past eight years.

Jay and Mary Davis have been funding scholarships since 2015, allowing their children Kathy and Rob to choose teachers from their Livermore school experiences to name scholarship awards after, according to a statement from the Pedrozzi Foundation.

The Davis family continued to grow their portfolio of named scholarships over the years and recently brought their grandchildren, Melinda and Jack, into the tradition by asking them to select two additional teachers to honor.

The Davis grandchildren are graduates of Granada High School where they were both four-year varsity swimmers and Jack Davis also played varsity water polo. Melinda Davis chose to honor Amanda Cleveland, her chemistry teacher, and her brother chose to honor one of his math teachers, Matthew Clifton.

These teachers left an impact on the two young adults, helping inspire and prepare them for their next steps. Melinda Davis, now a senior at Azusa Pacific University, is majoring in medical sciences and is a member of the school's swim team. Jack Davis is a freshman at Occidental College in the physics-engineering program that will culminate at California Institute of Technology. He will also play water polo for the college.

With three generations participating in naming and growing the scholarships, Jay and Mary Davis decided to begin endowing them, beginning with the scholarships in honor of the educators selected by their grandchildren.

Next spring, the Pedrozzi Foundation plans to award the endowed scholarships recognizing Cleveland and Clifton to two members of the Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District class of 2024.

The next cycle of Pedrozzi Scholarship applications opens in January. More information can be found at Pedrozzi.org.