John Swee

MADISON--John Elson Swee, age 71, died peacefully on April 4th, 2019, in Madison, WI. John was born on Oct 13th, 1947, in Missoula, Montana, to John Robert and Helen Francesca Swee (Wiener).

He grew up in a military family with two brothers and visited many places in the U.S. and Europe. John could claim that he had visited 45 states and 16 countries during his many travels. He graduated from Frankfurt American High School in Frankfurt, Germany. John attended the University of Montana in Missoula, University of Texas in El Paso, and San Francisco State University, where he graduated with a B.A. in Drama.

John served in the U.S. Army for 17 ½ years, which included two tours of duty in Vietnam. John received several military awards and decorations to include the Army Commendation Award, the California Joint Service Army Commendation Award, the Vietnam Civil Action Honorable Medal, the Vietnam Cross of Gallantry, and the Army Humanitarian Medal. His Vietnam Service Medal showed he participated in eight campaigns. He served his country as did his father and grandfather.

During an assignment in 1974, he was stationed at Letterman Army Medical Center (LAMC) in San Francisco, CA. There he met his wife, Cathleen Elizabeth (Harris), who was working in the Medical Library at LAMC. They were married on May 5th, 1974 in the Fort Scott Chapel in the Presidio of San Francisco. During the early years of their marriage, John returned to school to study drama, and after graduation performed in various acting roles, comedy shows, and commercials. In 1990, the family, including his four children, moved from Modesto, CA to Madison, WI, where John worked for the City of Madison as an Administrative Clerk in the Transportation Department, Traffic Engineering Division. He retired from this position in January 2011. John brought integrity and a spirit of service to his work and loved to decorate the office for holidays.

John was a true "people person" and had a great sense of humor. He could turn a stranger into a friend within a short time and enjoyed sharing puns and jokes with anyone who could keep up. He could usually talk about anything and everything with anyone within earshot who also had a gift for "gab." John especially loved Irish jokes and Irish music and St. Patrick's Day was always a special holiday for him. He was a prolific reader with a special affinity for science fiction and fantasy. He often would read eight to ten books per week.

During retirement, he enthusiastically delved into the family's genealogy. He found it fascinating (sometimes frustrating) and doggedly pursued accuracy in building and researching the family tree for both sides of the family. One of the highlights of the last year was the discovery of his adopted father's birth family. He built a strong friendship with his newly found cousin and both were amazed that there was a strong family resemblance. He loved playing games, like cribbage, trivia, and poker. He enjoyed collecting things and wanted to carefully preserve anything that was from bygone eras for its historical value and beauty. He admired the artwork of Maxwell Parrish and R. Atkinson Fox. Although an avid collector of stamps and coins, he also had fun collecting children's watches (which fascinated the grandchildren). John was devoted to his family and strove to pass on many values to his children: good manners, courtesy, respect, the importance of family, integrity, and service to the community and our country.

He is survived by his wife of 45 years, four married children, seven grandchildren, one surviving brother, his mother-in-law and many other extended family members located around the country. He was preceded in death by his parents, father-in-law, and older brother.

The family would like to extend appreciation to the staff of the William S. Middleton Veterans Hospital, Agrace Hospice, and BrightStar Care for providing excellent, respectful, and thorough care.

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in memory of John to The Salvation Army or The River Food Pantry. Please share your memory of John.

John - husband, father, brother, soldier - will be missed.


Cress Center
6021 University Ave.
Madison, WI 53705
(608) 238-8406