Hermance Speaker Background

From Extension Collaborative Wiki

Gary Hermance Speaker

For those who didn’t know Gary, he was our ACE president in 1992. Gary was a creative, innovative, and determined leader. He was outgoing and friendly to everyone he met, particularly any new member in ACE. He was an inspiration to those who knew him because he found ways to bring out the best in us. He enjoyed humor and was always ready with a joke. But he was also very sensitive to people's feelings.

Gary wanted the 1993 ACE meeting to be held in Florida during his term as president. Miami was his home, so he developed a plan to host the annual meeting there. The board and the ACE members at the University of Florida agreed, and planning got under way. Gary helped with most of the early planning, but sadly enough, his illness prevented him from living to witness the success of this meeting. Incidentally, you might be interested to know that it was the first ever joint ACE/NETC meeting.

The Hermance Speaker endowment was started with the funds remaining after the Miami Meeting. In Gary’s memory, the ACE Board and the Florida Chapter proposed that a Hermance Speaker be supported at each annual meeting. The idea was that this speaker would present a topic in Gary's memory representing some of his unique character and personality. The speaker is chosen to represent creativity, innovation, determination, humor, or inspiration.