Submitted by Brenda L. Bennett
Congratulations to Mason Rose, swimmer athlete representing Erie Community College (ECC) Men’s Swimming & Diving, Northeast District, who recently competed in the 2021 National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Swimming and Diving National Championships held at Indian River State College (IRSC) in Fort Pierce, Florida. On May 1, 2021, Mason Rose was not only the recipient of the National Title representing ECC, but was also recognized and received the MVP Award at the National Championship. During the preceding week, Mason received 4 Gold Medals for Men’s Swimming & Diving: 1st Place – 50 Yard Backstroke; 1st Place – 100 Yard Backstroke; 1st Place – 50 Yard Freestyle; 1st Place – 100 Yard Freestyle; and 1 Silver Medal: 2nd Place – 200 Yard Backstroke.
Mason had entered competitive swimming while attending high school in West Seneca often placing and winning various district events which has contributed to and led up to his recent achievement. He is currently a Freshman attending ECC and works part time. His interests include sound design and he has built his own PC while also starting to produce his own music.
He is the son of proud parents Ashley Lay and David Rose and is a member of the Hawk Clan. What makes his story even more endearing and remarkable is that Mason was born with Hemophilia (a bleeding disorder). His mother shared that Mason had experienced some discouragement at the beginning of the swim season due to a thigh bleed that required medical treatment. During this recovery time he was medically advised to only perform upper body workouts which prevented him from training in the water. In the words of his mother, “Watching him go through that was a roller coaster of emotions, he was discouraged but he sprung right back and pushed as hard as he could to beat a previous record he had set for himself…..he sure didn’t let it [recent injury] slow him down!”
