Helen Donegan in 2004

Lasting Legacy

by Kirsten Holguin

Helen M. Donegan (B.A., physical education, ’49) died March 11 in Laguna Beach, Calif., from fatal injuries suffered in an auto accident. She was 77.

In 2004, she created the Helen Donegan Fund for International Study at USC College. The $500,000 gift created an annuity to provide scholarships for foreign students to study at USC and for USC students to study abroad.

The motivation to establish a fund came 18 years ago when Helen (who preferred to be called by her first name) was shopping in Shanghai. A student approached her to practice his English. Her late husband, Jim, fond of Chinese cutlery, asked the boy to lead them to a reputable shop. The boy offered to pay for the knives in Chinese yuan if the Donegans gave him the equivalent in dollars.

They agreed after the boy explained that to study abroad he needed to pay for some of his qualifying exams in dollars. Eventually, the student — Dennis — came to the United States and earned a master’s at Brigham Young University and a second master’s in finance and economics at Columbia University.

“Dennis is the inspiration for the gift,” Helen said in a 2004 interview with USC College Magazine.

Seeing how hard Dennis worked to get through school, she said, was the impetus behind her decision to help other students attend college. Her dedication to global travel and her alma mater were also major factors.

Helen was born in Walnut, Calif., where her family had a citrus ranch. Inspired by a high school teacher who was a USC alumnus, she came to USC.

After teaching for a few years in Whittier and Riverside, Helen took her first cruise in 1957. “I thought I’d died and gone to heaven,” she said. She loved it so much her friends asked her, “Why don’t you just go and get yourself a job on the ship?”

So she did. For five years, she sailed from Los Angeles to Australia and back, on a route that included stops in New Zealand, Tahiti, Roratonga and Pango Pango. She traveled that route over 25 times.

But her passion for travel was unabated — her love for the sea eventually took her and Jim on 10 world cruises, among many other trips. The trip to China fostered the relationship with Dennis that continued until her death. An African mohair tapestry that graced the head of her bed was a souvenir from a trip to Mombasa. But her favorite place, she said, was Antarctica, which was evident from the proliferation of penguin paraphernalia around her house. “It’s nature at its all-time best,” she said.

Helen was active in the desert chapter of the Trojan League, and kept in close touch with fellow alumni. In 2004, she discussed her lasting relationship with six of her classmates and how they had maintained a Round Robin letter among the small group for more than 50 years. Three of them were Helen of Troy, an official hostess that represented USC at social events, and one was a Mortar Board president. They were members of four different sororities; Helen was an Alpha Phi.

Donations in her memory should be sent to the USC/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center.