Barbara Swan
BARBARA SWAN
900 Bay Drive, #727
Miami Beach, Florida 33141
305-867-0293
Director of Development for ARC, South Florida
After graduating from Gables, I went on to the University of Miami where I was something of an anti-establishment, rock n' roll poet and rebel. I managed to remain a sophomore for about four years until I finally dropped out to move to New York and hand out flowers in Central Park with a guitar slung across my back. After the "Summer of Love" I joined the Israeli Peace Corps. I came home a year later, had two children, and went back to complete my BA, in earnest this time. I became a Dade County high school art teacher for the PAVAC magnet program....an extraordinary opportunity and a wonderful experience. After a few years, I married and devoted my time to my family and children. We lived in the South Gables, which is about as close as heaven for raising kids as you can get in South Florida. My husband Aaron Morris (also a Gables grad)and I were founding members of both the Coconut Grove Playhouse and the Miami Film Festival. Very exciting. We divorced fifteen years ago and I moved to the Beach and went back to work. I've worked in public relations, marketing and special events. It's been amazing watching the Beach's transformation from a haven for crack addicts and the elderly into one of the hottest international spots in the world. I live surrounded by water and light, unforgettable sunrises and sunsets. I cannot imagine a more beautiful paradise in which to spend my life. My children Lon and Lisa are both in terrific relationships with good careers. Lon lives in the Grove and manages his dad's store, Rex Art Supplies, and Lisa lives in Atlanta. I've been Director of Development for the Association for Retarded Citizens, South Florida for almost seven years now. It's a wonderful fufilling job that I enjoy so much that sometimes I feel guilty for taking home a paycheck. Oh oh, you didn't read that, Mike! Oh, by the way our Executive Director and my boss is Michael Messer, one of our classmates. I have many interests, many friends and a life that I consider blessed.