Ty started his involvement with the sport of swimming at the age of 13 at the Cuyahoga Falls YMCA. He swam competitively in high school and at RiderUniversity, a small Division 1 school in New Jersey. Swimming changed a lot of things in Ty's life as an athlete and the sport probably gave him some direction and a place to belong at a time when he could have easily slid down a path much less appealing. Ty decided 20 years ago to get involved with coaching, at first it was simply a good summer job but soon found that he really enjoyed coaching. He was surprised to learn that seeing a young swimmer filled with joy as they accomplished a personal goal (winning a race, getting a best time or whatever goal they had) was extremely rewarding. 6 Years ago Ty decided to take the leap and become the head coach for the Green Family YMCA. It has been a tremendous experience and he hopes to continue to share his love and knowledge of the sport again this year and for many years to come.
Assistant Coach: Mike Griggs
Mike is in his 40th year of coaching swimming having been a swim coach since 1971. He currently has a duel meet won/lost record of 254-244. He graduated in 1972 from Kent State, where he was a Varsity swimmer for two years, with a BS in Secondary Education, and from the University of Akron in 1990 with a MS in Secondary Educational Administration.He has coached the Cuyahoga Falls, Tallmadge, North Canton and Canton South YMCA Swim Teams, the Shaker Heights Junior Varsity team, has been the GlenOak Associate coach, the Hudson (where he was the first coach for the High School and age group teams), Jackson, Timken, Lake (another school where he was the first coach) and McKinley Head Coach and has coached various summer teams. In addition to his Varsity coaching, Mike has worked with the Canton City Schools (CCS) and the Perry Aquatics Club (PAC) Age Group Swim Teams.Mike has coached several swimming All-Americans, All-Ohioans, All-Northeast District team members, numerous All-Federal League and All-Stark team members in addition to Sectional, District and State High School Champions. A swimmer himself for the O*H*I*O Masters, he was 1990 Ohio Sports Festival Champion in the 50 meter butterfly and 1991 State of Ohio Masters Champion for his age group in the 100 and 200 yard Breaststroke events and the 400 yard Individual Medley. Mike was the Northeast-South District Girls Swimming Coach of the Year in 1979 and was awarded the OHSAA Sportsmanship, Ethics and Integrity Award for Boys Swimming in 2005. Mike was voted the 2010 Stark County Boys Swim Coach of the Year by his peers, the Stark County Coaches’ Association.He currently is a member of the Ohio High School Swimming Coaches Association Executive Committee and is the immediate Past-President for that organization. Mike's day job is a retired teacher from Canton McKinley Senior High. As he likes to say, "I was the aquatics department, teaching recreational water sports, Lifeguarding and scuba as well as physical education, health, biology, or general science, as needed."Mike is also a Scuba Educators International Instructor Trainer, a Scuba Schools International Century Instructor and a World Underwater Federation Three Star Scuba Instructor as well as adjunct faculty for Malone University’s Health and Human Performance Department as their scuba instructor.Mike also teaches the Lifeguarding class for the Green Family Y.At Christmas, he has been known to play Santa for local children’s and senior groups.
Mike's wife, Debbie (aka DJ) is a Head Swim Instructor for the Green Family YMCA.Mike has a son, 29, and a daughter, 22, from a previous marriage.