DONALD CECIL

1927 - 2020

CECIL--Donald, died April 11, 2020 from a stroke. He is survived by his loving children Leslie (Creighton Michael) and Alec (Diane Zultowsky) and his grandchildren Jake, Eli and Loren Cecil and Balin Michael. He was predeceased by his wife and partner of 62 years, Jane, and by his sister, Joanne. Born January 3, 1927 in New York City, the son of Leo Cecil and Viola Osterweil, Don attended Horace Mann School and was a graduate and active alumnus of Yale University, which he attended as part of the Navy V-12 program. He spent a decade working with his father and uncle in the family's restaurant supply business, Cecilware, and then moved to Wall Street as a research analyst, working at several firms. He was Director of Institutional Research at Shearson Hammill before co-founding Cumberland Associates, an early hedge fund, with his colleague Walter Mintz in 1970. While continuing as an investor and advisor, he stepped back from Cumberland in 1982, largely devoting himself to philanthropy, particularly in education and the arts. A friend and mentor to many in the financial industry and in the non-profit world, Don served as Chairman of the Westchester County Board of Transportation, Chairman of the Board of the Friends of the Neuberger Museum of Art, Vice Chairman of the Purchase College Foundation Board, Treasurer of the Center for Educational Innovation, and a member of the Board of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. He and Jane sponsored an I Have a Dream program in Mt. Vernon, NY in 1986 and later created the Jandon Scholars program in 1999 to assist Westchester County students from low-income families attend college. Don loved his family, his friends, the arts, tennis, and traveling the world with Jane and family. He supported and inspired many people from all walks of life to reach high and to assist others in doing the same. A memorial service will be planned at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that contributions in Don's memory be made to Feeding Westchester, 200 Clearbrook Road, Elmsford, NY 10523 or White Plains Hospital COVID-19 Relief Fund, 41 East Post Road, White Plains, NY 10601.