During Park Fete week festivities later this month in Escalon, longtime local residents Dave and Sally Mantooth will be honored as the 2026 Senior Mr. and Mrs. Escalon. They will be celebrated at a luncheon on Tuesday, July 21 at the Escalon Community Center at noon.
Luncheon tickets are $25, by reservation only. None will be available at the door. Deadline for purchase is Tuesday, July 14. To reserve your ticket, call Gracie Marx at 209-988-5673.
The following is information provided by the couple about their lives and the journey that led them to Escalon.
Sally was born in Los Angeles and went to schools in Torrance, graduating from South Torrance High. She attended the University of California Santa Barbara and graduated with a degree in Sociology and a teaching credential. Dave was born at the Presidio in San Francisco, and because of his dad’s service in the U.S. Army, attended 11 different schools before graduating from Alameda High School. He attended Stanford University and graduated with a degree in Political Science. After service in the U.S. Air Force, he returned to Stanford to work and earned a Master’s in Education and a teaching credential.
In August, 1975, Sally and Dave met each other at the new teachers’ orientation in Mariposa. Sally had been hired as a sixth-grade teacher at Mariposa Elementary and Dave as a high school teacher and coach at Mariposa County High School. They were married two years later on July 16, 1977 on property they had purchased, and they will celebrate their 50th anniversary in 2027. They built a beautiful home with a view of the Sierras and lived in Mariposa for 12 years. Their two children, Jessica and Duncan, were both born in Mariposa. Both are graduates of Escalon High School. Jessica currently lives in Seattle with her husband and their grandson Carter; Duncan lives in New Orleans.
Following three years in Rohnert Park as assistant principal at Rancho Cotati High School, Dave was appointed principal at Escalon High School in 1990 and the Escalon area has been their home for the past 36 years. Dave considers being high school principal his favorite job and feels that changing the culture of Escalon High and supporting all of its curricular areas and student activities his greatest accomplishments. During his time as principal, he established the Academic Decathlon Team and coached it for 14 years as well as establishing the Visual and Performing Arts Club to provide the opportunity for students to attend a variety of cultural and musical events. One of his favorite activities was participation with students in the Principals’ Lip-Sync Contest to provide scholarships for Hispanic students. During this time, Sally was involved with a variety of school activities as their children made their way through Escalon Unified schools — Van Allen Elementary, El Portal Middle School and EHS. When Sally returned to teaching one year to help with the EHS Work Experience program, she started the Interact Club, a student service club connected with Rotary and worked with students in a variety of local service activities, including annual trips to Mexicali, Mexico to install playgrounds.
After being principal, Dave served as Assistant Superintendent for 10 years under Bob Wallace, and when Bob retired in 2006, Dave was appointed Superintendent of Schools for Escalon Unified. During his time at the District Office, Dave continued his active support of curricular and student activities. He is most proud of major building projects undertaken at EHS and Van Allen, as well as maintaining a strong financial basis for the district that allowed it to weather the major changes that took place during 2008-2010. Dave retired in 2010 after 20 years in Escalon Unified. In 2024, Dave was chosen to be a member of the Escalon Unified Hall of Fame.
In his non-professional life, Dave was a charter member of the Escalon Sunrise Rotary Club and has been a member for the past 35 years. He has served in a number of club roles, including Club President. He is most proud of the strong programs the club has conducted with schools and students, as well as international projects in the Philippines and Mexico. Although not a Rotarian, Sally has been very active in supporting club activities such as Christmas Baskets and the annual Super Bowl Breakfast. Dave has also served Rotary on the district level in a variety of positions, including serving as District Governor in 2011-12 and as District Grants Chair for most of the past 14 years, coordinating local community projects and international humanitarian projects for over 50 district clubs. Sally and Dave have traveled to 15 countries over the past 20 years doing humanitarian projects, including over 30 wheelchair distributions as part of Hope Haven West. Both Sally and Dave have been recognized by Rotary International and the Rotary Foundation with international awards—Sally receiving the Rotarian Spouse Award for Service and Dave receiving the Service Above Self Award and the Rotary Foundation Distinguished Service Award.
Over the past 15 years, both Sally and Dave have been volunteers at Farmington Elementary – Sally providing reading instruction and Dave science lessons – and they have supported various student programs and activities, including attendance at student performances at the Gallo Center in Modesto. Sally is a member of the Escalon-Farmington Community Garden Club. Since retirement, Dave has also been active in serving as a certified track and field official, doing high school, college, youth and Masters meets, mostly in Northern California, but also traveling to Alabama, Kansas, and Oregon for national meets. He has also become very involved in training new officials.
Along with the recognition luncheon, Dave and Sally Mantooth are scheduled to ride in the Escalon Park Fete parade, set for Saturday morning, July 25 in the downtown area.
