History of the Foundation

In 2007, Dorothy Branson had recently retired from her 25-year teaching career at Lo-Inyo Elementary and sought to give back to her community by supporting programs that positively impacted the youth of Inyo and Mono counties. As a lifelong educator, she naturally gravitated toward out of the classroom educational programs for students in Inyo County.

That same year, the Donald and Ruby Branson Foundation was established, with its original founding members—Bruce Branson, Dorothy Branson, Ben Branson, Matt Branson, Liz Branson, and Jim Johnson—choosing to name the foundation after their grandparents, who devoted their lives to strengthening the Lone Pine community.

Donald Branson

A self-taught and highly skilled worker, was one of the early pioneers of cable television in the Owens Valley. A seasoned miner, he spent much of his time at his mines and, in 1956, installed the first repeater at his mining site on the top Cerro Gordo peek, enabling Lone Pine residents to receive CBS broadcasts from Los Angeles.