Flip Hasset
Explorer, Photographer, Community Advocate, Coach, Executive Director, Retired
Merced has been home to Flip for the past 60 years. He married his college sweetheart, Kathy. They were together for 46 years before cancer took her life. They are blessed with two children, Heather, and Frank, and seven grandchildren.
Dedicated to growing and shaping our local community, Flip consistently instilled values, ethics, and community engagement in all of his endeavors - including his coaching in swimming and waterpolo. Flip began coaching over 55 years ago - resulting with many of those teams winning USA National Championship titles. In 1979, he was named the USA National Coach for the USA Women’s National Waterpolo Team - that team won the inaugural World Cup Championships for Women’s Waterpolo. His accomplishments eventually led him to be nominated and accepted into the USA Waterpolo Hall of Fame.
Flip served two terms as a Merced City Council Member. He was a Director of various local boards, and a member of numerous community steering committees, and he culminated his professional career as the CEO for The United Way of Merced County, where he continuously worked on strengthening and growing nonprofit organizations and volunteer efforts throughout Merced County.
Now retired, Flip shares the beauty and the history of Merced and Merced County through his photographs and articles in the local paper. His understanding and appreciation with the land and its people originate from his long-standing commitment and involvement in our community.
Flip holds a Master’s Degree in Organizational Psychology from The California School of Professional Psychology, now Alliance University. His undergraduate degree is in Physical Education from California State University, Fresno.
Flip loves traveling both locally and internationally, sharing the beauty and diversity of the world through his photography. His last voyage was to Antarctica and he is currently planning several more adventures in the near future.
Flip’s involvement and contributions within all areas of our community underlines his belief that “it’s all about relationships!”
Flip is a proud ALF Great Valley Chapter Class I Senior Fellow.