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Who is Lorraine Grohs? Daughter of Lombardi trophy's master silversmith wants an apology from Tom Brady

Grohs said she didn't 'sleep for the last two nights', was upset that her father's trophy was disgraced and disrespected

Tom Brady’s Lombardi Trophy boat throw, where the 43-year-old quarterback casually tossed the trophy from his yacht to someone on another boat during the Buccaneer's boat parade, went viral on Wednesday. But the bold pass didn't sit well with a woman, who said the toss was an insult to her family’s legacy. The trophy just about made it, and Brady's toss to Cameron Brate on the other boat wasn't safe, since there was a decent gap between the two vessels and the area of the Hillsborough River where the Buccaneers were celebrating is 80-feet deep.

“It just upset me that this trophy was disgraced and disrespected by being thrown as if it was a real football,” Lorraine Grohs told Fox4. “I didn’t sleep for the last two nights because of this. I was that upset," she said in an interview tweeted by the sports anchor from ABC Action News, which says Grohs would like an apology.

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Who is Lorraine Grohs?

Lorraine is the daughter of Greg Grohs, the master silversmith at Tiffany and Company from 1967 to 1994, and the one who crafted the first Vince Lombardi Trophy. 

“A lot of hard work, a lot of hours go into it,” she said to Fox4. “It just really upset me that this trophy was disgraced and disrespected by being thrown as if it was a real football. I didn’t sleep for the past two nights because of this. I was that upset, because I know the passion that goes into this trophy, and how my dad and all of his fellow silversmiths are so proud to make this. I’d personally like an apology, not just to me and my family and the other silversmiths, but to the fans.”

The Fort Myers woman is Secretary at the Florida International Association of Special Investigation Units (IASIU) Collective. Her LinkedIn profile says that she has worked earlier as a paralegal litigator at Burkert and Hart, a paralegal at Chris Limberopolous Esq. 

She joined the insurance company Progressive Insurance as a PIP Medical Adjuster in 1998. She started her post as SIU Major Case Specialist in 2014 and works there to date. In January 2005, while at the Progressive Insurance Company, she provided catastrophic relief to the claims department for hurricane, tornado and hail claims and was presented with the 'first-ever' coveted 'Gold Catastrophic Hurricane' pin from Progressive Insurance for outstanding duties by Scott Snapp. In 2012, she worked as an arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association, providing legal remedies for alternative dispute resolution in resolving disputed liability decisions between insurance carriers.

While many are calling her out on Twitter, it is probably a fair reaction on part of Grohs since so much of her father’s legacy is wrapped up in that one trophy. Tom Brady, who usually avoids risky throws, would probably admit his stunt was a dumb idea too. Brate certainly seemed to realize just how close things came to the team losing the trophy, telling the Tampa Bay Times that it was "the best catch of his life.”

Watch the video here:

The Vince Lombardi Trophy

The Vince Lombardi Trophy was made in 1967 and is awarded to the National Football League (NFL) champion each year. It is nearly two feet tall, made entirely of sterling silver, and features a regulation-sized football in kickoff position. A replica is created from scratch each year by Tiffany & Co, and a four-month and 72-hour process of hand soldering, spinning, chasing and polishing sterling silver is required to create the Vince Lombardi Trophy, which is presented annually to the champions. The trophy costs $50,000 to produce.