Don Mau Obituary

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Donald Lee Mau
April 23, 1939
September 28, 2024

Donald Lee Mau was born April 23, 1939, to Martha Skattum and Raymond Milbrandt Mau in Janesville, Wisconsin. He passed quietly at home in Colorado Springs on September 28, 2024, surrounded by family, after a brief battle with cancer.

Don looked back fondly on his “Happy Days” childhood in Wisconsin; he went from Roosevelt grade school through Janesville HS with a group of almost 60 classmates who graduated together in 1957. In 1958, Don qualified for Aviation Cadet Training at Harlingen AFB in Texas and graduated as a Second Lieutenant/Navigator in the United States Air Force. He completed Radar Intercept Officer school in 1960 in Waco, TX, where he met a young Baylor co-ed named Judy Brown on a blind date after choosing her picture out of a yearbook. For him it was love at first sight, and five years later she agreed to be his wife and partner, a union that lasted for the rest of his life.

In 1963, when the F-4 Phantom Fighter was introduced to the USAF arsenal, Don became one of the first instructors in the systems training program for back-seat pilots. He spent six years at Davis Monthan AFB in Tucson, where his two children, Wesley and Melissa, were born. In 1970 Major Mau joined the 43rd Tactical Fighter Squadron at Elmendorf AFB, AK, followed by a combat tour in Thailand and an assignment with the AF Flight Test Office at McDonnell Aircraft in St Louis, MO. After a four-year tour at Headquarters USAF Europe in Ramstein, Germany, Don retired as a Lieutenant Colonel from the Air Force in 1980.

After retirement, Don earned his law degree from the University of Texas School of Law. Don parlayed his tactical and organizational expertise into a second career in philanthropy and fundraising: he created innovative and successful giving campaigns during executive stints at the University of Texas Law School Foundation in Austin, TX, Care & Share in Colorado Springs, CO, and finally the North Lincoln Hospital Foundation in Lincoln City, OR.
Following the birth of their first grandchild in Colorado Springs in 1998, Don and Judy returned to Colorado to enjoy their growing family and full-time retirement.

Whether it was golf, photography, skiing, or anything involving high tech, Don went all in. As an active member and Tournament Director of the Eisenhower Men’s Golf Association, he was given the first ever EMGA Distinguished Service Award for organizing weekly tournaments and prize payouts. He logged eight holes-in-one throughout his golf career and relished passing on the golf bug to his future son-in-law and grandsons, spending many happy days with them on the course.

Don is survived by his wife Judy, the best thing that ever happened to him, and their children Wesley (Shannon Fitzgerald) and grandchildren Lily, Josie, and Woody Mau of Dripping Springs, TX; and Melissa (Luke Travins) and grandsons Luke Owen and Tucker Travins of Colorado Springs, CO. His younger brother Richard Mau resides in Youngstown, OH.
Donald Lee Mau lived a life defined by service, love, and dedication, leaving behind a legacy that will be cherished by all who knew him. Memorial donations may be made to Care & Share of Colorado Springs or the Janesville High School Class of ’57 Scholarship in Janesville, Wisconsin.

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