Vanley J. Batchelor Endowment

Established January 2008 to provide perpetual scholarships for outstanding Mission College Registered Nursing students who have performed significant community service.

Vanley was a lifetime resident of Santa Clara County. She was born on August 30, 1927, in San Jose and lived most of her early years with her mother, Lillian, in a home near downtown San Jose. She attended local elementary schools and San Jose High School. She was an excellent student and developed a lifelong love for reading and the arts. After graduation from high school, Vanley continued with course work in business administration. She later served as a courtroom clerk for much of her career.

Ms. Batchelor and her mother moved to a new home on Normandy Street in Santa Clara during 1953.

Vanley took care of her mother who had a long term illness for many years. She provided the nursing and care her mother needed and worked full time with the addition of part time work to support them both.

Vanley believed in the meaning of volunteerism and demonstrated that belief during her adult and retirement years. She volunteered as a crisis counselor, hospital gift store manager, arts docent and financial secretary for her church. She found time to travel abroad and developed great fondness for art, flowers and music in the great cities of Europe.

Unknown to all but a few friends, Vanley anonymously contributed full scholarship funding to send three local girls to four-year colleges and universities. She provided an educational opportunity for each of them that she never had herself. On the day of her funeral service, these three women paid tribute to Vanley Jane Batchelor, the woman who invested in their educations.

It is a fitting tribute that Ms. Batchelor's bequest has funded a permanent Vanley Jane Batchelor Scholarship Endowment to benefit outstanding students in the registered nursing program at Mission College, Santa Clara. Her perpetual scholarships will benefit good students who have demonstrated financial needs and a strong track record of volunteerism in our community.