Wishing to be close to his mother, Lois (Ostrom) Swain, John Parker Swain was born at 21 Perkins Street on September 6, 1935 in Coldwater, Michigan. His father, Kenneth Swain, also was present at the birthing at their home on Perkins Street. John was the second child of Kenny and Lois’ three children. John had an older brother, Alan (Jean Schubel) Swain, and a younger sister, Alice (Eddie) Davenport. John schooled at the old Lincoln building in Coldwater and graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1953. After spending 2 years, 9 months, 11 days, and 6 hours in the United States Army, John was discharged early to attend Michigan State University.
John Parker Swain passed away Saturday, June 29, 2024 at his home in Coldwater surrounded by his loving family.
John was introduced to classical music by his older brother, Alan, at an early age and was consumed by classical music and later jazz. He was often asked whose music he liked to listen to best and his answer was always, “Brahms, Beethoven, and Brubeck”! John played a mean ukulele too!
John was a hunter! Ducks, pheasants, and rabbits with shotgun early on, and later, deer with bow, muzzle loader, shotgun, and pistol. He also hunted with his fly rod. He tied his own flies for all the fish he hunted. He hunted bluegills with fly rod along the south shore of Cemetery Lake, among other places, and carp on the Coldwater River. He also hunted steelhead and salmon with fly rod on the Pere Marquette River with his brother Alan. When he lived in Florida, he spent hours hunting tarpon, red fish, bluefish, mackerel, sea trout, ladyfish, and sharks during the day, and snook that cruised the Gulf shore in the daytime and around lighted docks at night.
John’s biggest and best catch though was his beautiful high school sweetheart, Beverly Joyce Wilcox, whom he married on October 6, 1964, in Miami, Florida. They moved to Coldwater and raised their children, Renee Elaine (John) Street of Bakersfield, California, Douglas John (Barbara) Swain of Quincy, Janice Eve (Scott) Carpenter of Coldwater, and Kristi Jill Swain. Their four children blessed them with a passel of grandchildren. Renee and John’s children are Rachel (John) Valentine, Michael (Anna) Street, and Benjamin Street. Doug and his deceased wife’s (Cindy) children are Corey (Kim) Swain and Jessica (Jeff) Fishero and his wife Barbara’s children are Josh Drzewicki and Kristen (Joseph) Hockin. Janice and Scott’s’ children are Julia (Ransom) Brown and Carissa (Bryant) Gorrell. Kristi’s children are Kristopher DeGiorgio and Kaelin Parker Joy (Steven) Swain-Noud. These grandchildren provided John and Beverly with numerous great-grandchildren. Michael and Anna’s children are Jack Declan and Grayson Kelley. Corey and Kim’s children are Lucas, Casey, and Scout. Jessica and Jeff’s children are Sophie and Cooper. Kristen and Joseph’s son is Jaxon. Julia and Ransom’s children are Rilynn and Mabel. Carissa and Bryant’s son is Ames and daughter Emme. Kristopher’s daughter is Bianca and Kaelin and Steven’s children are Aurora, Kirk, Kaizen and Arwyn. John never did get to see enough of his grandchildren or great-grandchildren.
John graduated from Olivet College in 1969 with a teaching certificate. He taught in Coldwater at the new Lincoln Elementary School, Jefferson Elementary School, and then at Legg Middle School. In 1981, John, Beverly, and Kristi moved to Sarasota, Florida. After a year of substitute teaching, John got a job at Venice Area Middle School in Venice, Florida teaching math and algebra. John received his Master’s Degree in Education from the University of South Florida in 1993. Teaching for John was the best of all possible worlds. If you love your work, time goes by way too fast and for John, it did. Besides, he had his summers off to hunt fish.
Beverly and John retired from their Florida jobs in 1997 and moved back to Coldwater to live on Behnke Road in their new home where John spent hours caring for his trees, flowers, and lawn. But he still found some time to tie a few flies, catch a few bluegills, and to hunt a deer or rabbit or two. Life was good to John!
He was preceded in death by his parents and his daughter Kristi Jill Swain.
A mass of Christian Burial will be held Wednesday, July 3, 2024 at 11:30 AM at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Coldwater with Rev. Fr. Dan Hyman officiating. The family will receive guests for visitation Tuesday, July 2, 2024 from 10:00 AM until 12:00 PM noon at Dutcher Funeral Home in Coldwater.
Following the funeral mass, John will be interred in Oak Grove Cemetery overlooking the south end of Cemetery Lake near his great-grandparents Silas Parker Swain and Molly, grandfather John William Swain, step-grandfather Curly Baker and grandmother Anna Baker, and watching anyone who is fly fishing the bluegill beds along the south shore there in the Spring!
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations are suggested to the Branch Area Food Pantry or to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
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