Hall of Fame
David White ’77 is the 2025 Robert M. Murphy Award winner. White was a three-year letter winner for the W&J men’s soccer program in the mid-1970’s. He played in 30 career games, including all 27 matches from 1974-76.
Through a United States Olympic grant in 1999, the sports of men’s and women’s water polo were introduced at W&J. White has become a tremendous advocate and supporter of the sport and has been instrumental in the growth of W&J water polo which has culminated in the Presidents making their first appearance in the USA Water Polo Division III National Championship Tournament last spring.
White has formed a multi-decade long relationship and home-and-home series between the W&J and Yale University water polo teams.
White, who has been an entrepreneur throughout his life, started his career printing T- shirts from the Beta Fraternity House on campus and has had many companies and ventures since. Resortworks was a chain of 22 retail stores all over the US and Caribbean which he co- founded with his fraternity brother. Resortworks had many stores in affluent resorts such as St Maarten, Newport Rhode Island, Martha’s Vineyard, St Thomas, and Aspen Colorado. White learned about the cruising industry while visiting his two locations in St Thomas.
Through both his company and W&J athletics, White has also done extensive work to improve the poor economy and poor living conditions in the Gambia. Alongside friend and W&J political science professor Buba Misawa, Ph.D., White spearheaded multiple efforts for W&J athletic team uniforms to be donated and delivered to youths in the African nation. White and Misawa are co-founders and managing partners of CSCGambia, a company committed to helping Gambians and other West Africans find employment on cruise ships around the world. CSCGambia trains its workforce through a comprehensive hospitality program for excellence and efficiency in all parts of the industry: cooking, restaurant staff, housekeeping and front office.
White is also the Founder and CEO of Universal Hotel Liquidators, the largest liquidator of quality hotel furniture in the United States. Founded in 1999, the company works with major hotel chains such as Marriott, Sheraton, Ritz-Carlton, and Hyatt. UHL has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and the New York Post.
