Donald J. Scherl

1935 - 2019

Donald J. Scherl

Palm Springs - Dr. Donald J. Scherl was born of his parents Dorothy and Archer Scherl (both deceased) in New York City on October 1, 1935. He died on June 26, 2019.

He was the loving Uncle of Alison Scherl Stearns and Leslie Scherl Fabry and grand uncle of seven.

He received his BA degree from Yale University, Summa Cum Laude, in 1957 and his medical degree from Harvard Medical School in 1961. Thereafter he served as founding Director of the Community Mental Health Service at Massachusetts Mental Health Center and Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School. He next served four years as Undersecretary of Human Services for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (1971-1975) and then as Acting Director of the Harvard-Affiliated Judge Baker Guidance Center (1975-1981) and Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Chair of Psychiatry at the Childrens Hospital Medical Center.

Dr. Scherl was appointed President of the State University of New York Downstate Medical Center in 1981 and served until his retirement in 1993. During this time he brought to the campus a new education building which held: a new library, conference center and student stations for medical, nursing and allied health students.

After his retirement, Don and his deceased partner, David, moved to San Francisco. In 1995 he joined the national board of the AIDS Memorial Quilt. Don was an active supporter of the arts, most particularly the San Francisco Symphony. After more than 20 years in San Francisco, Don moved to Palm Springs in 2017. An interment will take place at the San Francisco Columbarium.