Late gardener leaves bulk of estate to university

Mississippi State is receiving a major gift from a longtime Tupelo gardener's estate to support students majoring in fields related to lawn care.

Over the years, Phillip C. Cunningham accumulated savings, $38,000 of which he bequeathed to the university for establishment of an endowed scholarship that will bear his name.

Cunningham

A member of Spring Hill Missionary Baptist Church, Cunningham died in February 1997.

The L. D. Hancock Foundation of Tupelo is matching the gift to the scholarship fund, which will support freshmen or community college transfer students enrolled in majors such as landscape architecture and horticulture.

"Mr. Cunningham worked hard and lived a modest life, saving what he could," said Tom Stogsdill, the university's executive director of development. "He generously made provisions for his savings to come to Mississippi State to help students who share his green thumb."

Cunningham was the gardener for Bill and Doyce Deas of Tupelo for more than 25 years, as well as caretaker of the Tupelo School District Learning Foundation's One D'Ville apartment complex. Earlier, he was an employee of Milam Manufacturing.

"Mr. Cunningham was more than a gardener, he was a family friend and an inspiration and role model to our children," said Doyce Deas, whose father, the late L.D. Hancock, created the foundation. "Working in the garden with his hands was very important to him, and recognizing the importance of a college education made him committed to helping those students at Mississippi State who also want to beautify the landscape."

The Cunningham Scholarship Fund is an open fund in the nonprofit Mississippi State University Foundation.