OUR BOARD
PRESIDENT Trice Hirr
- My mother claimed I learned to swim by osmosis, watching my two older brothers during their swim lessons. A camp counselor once described me as a shy little girl—until it came to swim time! I began competing with our local YMCA team at 13, by 15, I was getting paid to teach and at 18, was the first female lifeguard ever hired by the Detroit Area Metro Parks to work at one of their beaches where I met and married a fellow lifeguard 55 years ago!
- My love for swimming became my career. I graduated from Central Michigan University with a degree in Recreation Administration, after competing on the university’s swim team. Over the years, I worked for city recreation departments, YMCAs, school systems, and private aquatic facilities—all while raising three very athletically involved children. I often joked that I lived in a blue van. The first day my youngest child began preschool, I hit the pool to return to competitive swimming, joining USMS at the age of 34.
- As time passed, Michigan winters grew increasingly long and cold, our children left the area, and we began planning for retirement. While I had often declared, “I will never live in Florida,” our first visit to The Villages completely changed my mind. We purchased our first home in November 2002 and moved full-time in April 2006. Wherever we live, my top priority remains finding a USMS team to join, and for the past 20 years, VAST has been that incredible community for me.
PRESIDENT-Elect Kathy Tittle
TREASURER BILL RUSS
SECRETARY GAIL GROSSMAN
- I grew up in St Louis County, MO. I swam in high school and received a partial scholarship to St Louis University, where I swam for three years, mainly in freestyle sprints and relays.
- I was employed at McDonnell Douglas Corporation in the Corporate Accounting Division- Financial Reporting Section and retired in 1992. I moved to The Villages in 1999 and was one of the eight original members, along with current Associate Members JoAnn Fowler and Betty Senter.
- Additionally, I have served as the VAST Treasurer for 8 different VAST Presidents over a span of 17 years.
SECRETARY GAIL GROSSMAN
MEMBER AT LARGE MICHELLE BEKOFF
SECRETARY GAIL GROSSMAN
- I began my swimming career in middle school swimming for a Club Team in Maryland. When my family moved to Miami, I swam for my high school swim team and got my varsity letter(s) in swimming. I also swam on an AAU swim team, and I played water polo.
- I attended college at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri but the University did not have a women’s swim team, so I swam on the men’s team for two years. I founded the women’s swim team and was Captain of the women’s swim team, high point swimmer, and voted most valuable swimmer. I lettered in swimming all four years in college.
- While attending law school at Georgetown University I swam on the D.C. Master’s Swim team during my third year of law school. After graduating from law school, I returned to Miami and swam on a Master’s Swim Team.
- When I moved to The Villages in 2011, I joined the VAST team and have swum with VAST ever since.
- Professionally, after graduating from Georgetown University Law School, I moved back to Miami where I clerked for a Circuit Court Judge and was a Law Clerk/Bailiff for one year. I then served as an Assistant State Attorney, in Miami, prosecuting all types of felony cases. I left the State Attorney’s Office and founded my own law firm and was in private practice for 26 years in Miami, specializing in criminal defense law. During this time period I also sat as Traffic Magistrate for three years hearing thousands of traffic infraction cases.
- When I moved to The Villages, I served, for 6 years, as an Assistant Public Defender in both Ocala and Bushnell before going back into private practice and reopening my law firm. I am still practicing law today specializing in criminal defense.
- I am honored to serve as VAST Secretary.
MEMBER AT LARGE MICHELLE BEKOFF
MEMBER AT LARGE MICHELLE BEKOFF
MEMBER AT LARGE MICHELLE BEKOFF
