Kathleen O’Guin
Swanson, loving wife and partner to Kenneth Swanson, died on October 9,
2014, in their home in Tallahassee, Florida, following an extended illness.
Kath was born March
8, 1954, in Gary, Indiana. The family moved to Portage, Indiana, where she
graduated from high school in the class of 1972. She was a 1979 Purdue
University graduate and received a B.S. degree in entomology.
Kath began her
professional career in Orlando, Florida in 1980, where she met her husband
Ken. They were married in 1986 and moved to Tallahassee in 1988 where she
had distinguished careers, first with the Florida Department of
Environmental Protection, and then with the Florida Wildlife Commission.
Left to cherish her
memory are her husband Ken and dog Tate, a sister Patti (Dane) Potrzebowski
and a brother Michael (Lynn) O’Guin, five nieces, seven nephews and five
great-nieces. She was preceded in death by her parents, Howard M. and
Katherine Barnard O’Guin.
Kath was a
committed environmentalist and avid outdoors person who enjoyed kayaking,
swimming, hiking, biking, and camping. Other interests included cooking and
entertaining for family and friends, drawing, painting and floral arranging.
There will not be a
memorial gathering at this time. A memorial celebration will be held at a
later date at Dorothy Oven Park in Tallahassee, Florida for family and
friends. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Big Bend Hospice of
Tallahassee or Habitat for Humanity.
Being true to who
we are means carrying our spirit like a candle in the center of our
darkness.” - Mark Nepo