James Maciver. He passed away on January 7,2019 at the age of 77 years in Monument, CO.
Aristotle is quoted as saying, "All men by nature desire to know." Don truly exemplified this in his pursuit
of understanding life's important questions. His was a life full of reading and great conversations with
family and friends.
Don graduated from Highland Park High School in Dallas and enrolled in the University of Texas at Austin
for a semester before enlisting in the US Navy. While serving in Photographic Intelligence, he was
appointed to the United States Naval Academy where he studied for two years before opting to finish his
service commitment in different capacities, including service in the Vietnam War.
After completing his military service, Don returned to the University of Texas at Austin where he earned a
Bachelors degree, as well as a Jurist Doctorate. He began a career in corporate law where he worked for
EI Paso Natural Gas Company for 24 years, rising to the position of Senior Counsel. During this tenure
he argued and won three cases in the US Supreme Court.
Following his career in law, Don moved into the field of education. He served on and as President of the
Board of Governors for St. John's College, a Great Books college with two campuses in Annapolis, MD
and Santa Fe, NM. He also served as interim President of the Annapolis campus before moving to Santa
Fe to pursue a Master of Liberal Arts degree from the St. John's Graduate Institute. It was there that he
met his spouse, Patricia Erdle.
Upon completion of his degree, Don followed Patti to Colorado Springs where he joined the Academy
Research and Development Institute (ARDI), a non-profit foundation dedicated to establishing and
managing endowed academic chairs for the US Air Force Academy. Don served as ARDI's Executive
Director for 18 years before retiring in 2012.
During his retirement, Don volunteered his services on the Board of Directors of Tri-Lakes Cares, a local
charitable foundation in the Monument, CO area. He also found more time to read, play tennis, travel,
cheer on his favorite teams (Colorado Rockies,Texas Longhorns, AF Falcons, & Navy Midshipmen), and
enjoy time with nine grandchildren.
Don is survived by a large and loving family, including his wife Patricia Erdle Maciver, daughters Kelli
White and Kyle (Todd) Ruggirello, step-sons Mark (Jessica) and Eric (Leslie) Quinnell, grandchildren
Xenna, Nylund, Jade, Jordan, Logan, Emily, Lucy, Taryn, and Bryce, and sister Winnie (Les) Gage.
He was a wonderful husband, father, grandfather, and brother who faithfully loved God, his family, and
his country. His wit and wisdom will be greatly missed.
"And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in
Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7
"Well done, good and faithful servant." Matthew,25:23
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, January 12, 2019 at 11 AM at The Ascent Church, 1750
Deer Creek Rd., Monument, CO 80132. A second service will be held on Saturday, January 19th, 2019,
at 11 AM at the Austin Memorial Park Cemetery, 2800 Hancock Dr., Austin, TX 78731.
For those desiring to express their personal condolences, please forward to his wife at: Mrs. Patti
Maciver, 28 N. Sherwood Glen, Monument, CO 80132. In lieu of flowers or a memorial fund, the family
requests donations be made to st. John's College, 1160 Camino Cruz Blanca, Santa Fe, NM 87505.
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