Janet Marie Swanson

Janet M. Swanson age 63 of Alexandria died on Saturday, December 26, 2015 at the St. Cloud Hospital. A Funeral Service will be held at 10:30 AM on Wednesday, December 30, 2015 at the Alexandria Covenant Church in Alexandria. Visitation will be held from 5-8 PM on Tuesday, December 29, 2015 at the Anderson Funeral Home and for one hour prior to the service at the church on Wednesday. OBITUARY I am thankful for every weed I’m able to pull from my garden. She wrote this in her Christmas letter two years ago, and is perhaps both the best metaphor for her life, and lasting tribute. For a weed is an unwanted plant competing against the cultivated plants, and her illness (that took up nearly one-third of her life) was a series of unwanted ailments, competing for her life. Yet, she fought battle after battle, all the while giving thanks to God for the life she got to live. She embodied gratitude, and is an inspiration to all. Janet Marie (Rosengren) Swanson was born in the town of Alexandria, Minnesota on November 27, 1952. She was the third child born to Victor and Beatrice (Johnson) Rosengren. She graduated from Jefferson High School in 1971, and went on to obtain an Associate degree at Alexandria Technical College to be a Lab Technician. She began her lab tech career working at Douglas County Hospital, and later went to work for District 206 (primarily at Voyager Elementary School), as a health aide and retired early for health reasons. Jan married Gary Ralph Swanson on July 24, 1982 at Alexandria Covenant Church, and their son, Seth Tyler Swanson, was born on November 26, 1988 -- a day-early birthday present! Jan was a fiercely competitive, and extremely skilled and accomplished athlete. She played volleyball and bowled, but her great love was fast-pitch softball. She had the meanest throwing arm that Alex has ever seen, and went on to a nationals tournament. When she was no longer able to play, she enjoyed watching her son play basketball (particularly for the Alexandria Aces) and baseball, and cheered for the Twins and the Vikings. Her other hobbies included woodworking and painting (she hand-painted unique designs on many of her wood creations), flower gardening (those weeds she pulled!), cooking (her hotdishes will be missed), singing (she belonged to the Sweet Adelines and church choir), dining regularly with the Lunch Bunch Ladies (a group of four women), and reading the Bible (she read through the entire Bible for 33 years straight!). In her mid-forties, she was diagnosed with lupus and scleroderma. While you might have known she was ill from her physical appearance (she had lost so much weight), you would have never guessed otherwise. For such debilitating diseases, Jan always kept a positive outlook on life, fought fiercely to live, and maintained her sense of humor -- her quick wit always at the ready. She had a brief respite from her illness in 2013 and regained her strength and was able to enjoy some of the activities she loved. And yet, throughout it all, she was forever thinking of people before herself. Just days before she died (knowing her death was imminent) she was still praying for friends and family. She was a selfless woman, and has inspired many without her knowing it. Jan passed away in the afternoon on Saturday, December 26, 2015 at St. Cloud Hospital. She was 63 years old. Jan is survived by her husband Gary Swanson, her son Seth Swanson, her sisters Mona Billmark and Karen (Ron) Kraft, and her brother Roger (Caryn) Rosengren. She is preceded in death by her parents, Victor and Beatrice Rosengren. The funeral will be held at Alexandria Covenant Church on Wednesday, December 30th at 10:30am, and one of Jan’s last wishes was for her funeral to be a celebration of life. So don your colorful apparel, and leave the black at home if you wish. Visitation will be from 5-8pm on Tuesday, December 29th at Anderson Funeral Home, and also one hour prior to the funeral, from 9:30-10:30am at the church. Interment will follow the funeral at Evergreen Cemetery. Casket bearers include her nieces: Katrina Mouser, Hannah Rooney, Ruth Rosengren, Sofia Pettigrew, Kayla Billmark, and Kesha Leets. And finally, a special thanks to all of her caregivers over the years, but especially Gary and Seth, and the nurses by her side during the final weeks of her life. Jan, you will be missed.

Janet Marie Swanson

November 27, 1952 - December 26, 2015