MEET GRACE
New Leadership for a Growing Community
Growing up on a dairy farm, Grace Van Dyken Hirte was one of seven children who learned Midwestern values of family, faith and being a good neighbor. School, shopping and church all took place in Delavan. The Van Dyken yearly vacation was at the Walworth County Fair. The first in her family to attend Kindergarten, Grace started at Wileman School, followed by Delavan Christian School, and graduation from Delavan-Darien High School in 1977. Grace moved to Grand Rapids, MI to attend Calvin College, then married her high school sweetheart, Richard Hirte, in 1979. The Hirtes moved to Fond du Lac, WI; Sheboygan, WI and Galesburg, IL, returning to Delavan in 1986 to raise their family. Grace later received her degree in Liberal Studies from UW-Whitewater.
While parenting and homemaking were priorities while the children were home, Grace was also successfully employed in business, education and administration:
Reach Out Books, Fond du Lac, WI – Manager
Wisconsin State School for the Deaf – Childcare Counselor, Teacher’s Aide
Delavan Christian School – Music Teacher, Choir Director
Faith Christian School – Choir Director
Lakeland Builders Association – Executive Officer
Ben Franklin, Delavan – Assistant Manager
Delavan Christian School – Principal/Administrator
Teachers-on-Call – Substitute Teacher in Delavan-Darien School District
Richard and Grace Hirte are the parents of four children and grandparents of five grandchildren. They also have a two-year-old Golden Retriever.
FAMILY
