Donald Charles Dippold

He was predeceased by his parents, Oliver & Marguerite and his son Kenny. Survived by his wife Mary, his brother Russ, (Judy) his children, Jim (Maureen), Dan (Donna), Sue (Chris) Squires, Robert (Shannon) 6 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren.

With the exception of his time in the military, Don lived his entire life in St. Louis. From the time he was 8 years old you would find Don and his brother Russ on the courts of O’Fallon Park.

Don was an All-State athlete in track, basketball and tennis at Beaumont High and received an athletic scholarship to the U of Missouri for basketball where he was a 3-year starter. He graduated as a proud member of the Beta Theta Pi house and was one of the last athletes to receive a varsity letter in 3 sports, basketball, tennis & track. After his military service, Don taught business classes and was a very successful basketball coach at Beaumont and McCluer High where he coached his son Jim and his daughter Sue was an honorary cheerleader as a young girl. Along with his teaching career Don served as the head tennis pro at Westwood CC for 28 years.

Although Don and Russ won many local and Section tournaments during his working years, after retirement he became a prolific champion in senior tennis on the regional and national scene. At the age of 65 he entered the National Indoor Championships defeating the top 3 seeded players to win his first of 6 Gold Championship Balls. Don’s last Gold Ball was won in doubles at the age of 85. He also won the National Grass court singles and doubles titles in his first time playing on grass. He played on the USA World Championship Cup teams in 1996 & 97. He played in the ITF World Championships in Austria and Australia and earned a National ranking as high as No. 2 in singles and doubles and a world ranking of No. 4. One of Don’s prouder moments was winning the first St. Louis Father/Son in 1956 with his father Ollie, then later with his son Robert. One of his frequent opponents in senior tennis, Ed Velton, once remarked, “He’s just a cut above everyone else, or two or three cuts”. Don was inducted into the St. Louis Tennis HOF and the Triple A HOF in 2006 and the USTA Missouri Valley HOF in 2004. Don finally had to give up tennis at the age of 87.

Tennis played a large part in his life, but it wasn’t everything. Not that long ago his days started with a workout at Meramec CC, followed by skiing at Hidden Valley after lunch, followed by a tennis game later in the afternoon. His wife Mary introduced him to skiing when he was 56 and they took many ski trips around the U.S and overseas. He was skiing until he was 87.

The family would like to express their heartfelt appreciation to Bonnie and her team, Yvonne, Lulu, Sharon, Diana and Anna from Caring Professionals for the care and support they gave Don and all of us during the last chapter of his life.

It was Don’s wish that any memorial tributes be made in the form of charitable donations to the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. You may donate @ http://fundraising.stjude.org/goto/Dondippold

Don wanted his legacy to be “A guy who played a lot of different athletics and was knowledgeable enough to coach and teach it”. Well done!

Don’s family would like to invite you to stop by to honor and celebrate his notable life on Saturday May 3 between 1:00-4:00 @ Forest Lake Tennis Club 1012 N. Woodsmill Road, Chesterfield, MO 63017.