Honoring a Father and Coach

The DeSelm family were opening their presents around the Christmas tree last year when former UNC Swimming and Diving Coach Rich DeSelm was told by his wife, Tracy, and his two children, Grant and Claire, that they had one more surprise gift for him. But it wasn’t your typical Christmas gift of socks or the latest iPhone.

Instead, Tracy, Grant and Claire would be endowing a Swimming & Diving scholarship at Carolina in the former head coach’s name.

“We were trying to figure out some way to honor Rich’s dedication and commitment to the University and the Swimming & Diving program,” Tracy DeSelm said. “I thought about a scholarship because he was so grateful when he received his scholarship and he’s always had such a good relationship with his swimmers. It felt like such a lasting gift; one that he could participate in now because of the scholarship dinners and watching the athletes participate in meets. I thought he would really enjoy that part of it, more than a plaque or some other tangible thing.”

Read the complete Carolina Story…

Related Stories

Helping a swimmer reach the Olympics