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Southern Tennis Foundation Establishes David Mauritson Scholarship

May 3, 2021

PEACHTREE CORNERS, GA. – MAY 3, 2021 – The Southern Tennis Foundation (STF), the charitable arm of United States Tennis Association (USTA) Southern Section, announces the establishment of the David R. Mauritson Memorial Scholarship.

His wife of nearly 43 years, Eleanora, of Fairhope, Ala., donated $30,000 to the foundation to support an annual $1,000 scholarship beginning this year.

DaQuarris Poole, of Huntsville, Ala. and Columbia High School, was selected as the first scholarship recipient and plans to attend Alabama A&M.

Mauritson was an accomplished cardiologist practicing from 1981 until his retirement in 2012. After graduating from Westminster College magna cum laude, with a triple major in Mathematics, Chemistry, and Biology, he attended Harvard Medical School and graduated in 1974. His residency was in Internal Medicine at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, and he went on to complete two fellowships: in Emergency Medicine and Critical Care at the University of California, San Francisco, and in Cardiovascular Disease at Parkland in Dallas. Upon moving to Tuscaloosa, he founded Cardiology Associates of West Alabama, P.C., in 1981. He was also honored with the Kern Wildenthal Research Award in 1981. He volunteered as a cardiologist at the Alabama Free Clinic.

He served as Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, for the University of Alabama College of Community Health Sciences, from 1981-2000, and in 1986 received the Patrick McCue Award for the best teacher of clinical medicine. He was a Fellow in the American College of Physicians, American College of Cardiology and the American College of Legal Medicine.

He broadened his skills in 2008 when he graduated as salutatorian of the Birmingham (Ala.) School of Law and passed the Alabama State Bar. He was admitted to the Federal District Court in three Alabama districts.

An avid pilot, David began flying in 1965 with his mother, Jan, as his flight instructor. He logged more than 11,000 hours, was certified as a flight instructor in 1989, was a certified airline transport pilot (ATP) and elected as president of the national Flying Physicians Association, 2011-12. He was a volunteer pilot and instructor with the rank of major for the Civil Air Patrol, along with volunteering for Angel Flight Southeast and SouthWings.

He was awarded the SouthWings 2015 Visionary Award, which has since been renamed in his honor as the Mauritson Award. His years of dedicated service earned him Honorary Emeritus status.

Mauritson was on a flight for Angel Flight Southeast when he tragically died in a plane crash in Mobile, Ala, in 2016.

Mauritson was the Missouri College Athletic Union springboard diving champion, 1967-1970. He played on his high school tennis team, beginning a life-long love of the sport. He served as the Fairhope Tennis Association president and was instrumental in getting six hydro clay courts built at the Mike Ford Tennis Center. He became a USTA certified official and planned to expand his officiating career.

The foundation awards 10 annual scholarships of $1,000 to incoming college freshmen. The STF’s scholarship committee determines which recipient will be awarded the David R. Mauritson Memorial Scholarships.

Each student will receive $1,000 to help offset the expenses of his or her first year of school. The awards will continue for three additional years provided the recipient remains a student in good standing, giving each scholarship a total value of $4,000. To qualify for these scholarships students must demonstrate financial need and must have participated in tennis for at least two of their high school years, either on a school team or through tournaments, National Junior Tennis & Learning, Junior Team Tennis or other USTA programs. The primary consideration in awarding the scholarships will be academic performance and potential, but community service and sportsmanship will also be considered. Here is the link to apply.