Dale Herbert Swanson
January 4,1937 – April 19, 2018
Peacefully surrounded by his family, Dale Herbert Swanson passed away April 19, 2018 at the age of 81 years, at the Athabasca Healthcare Centre. Dale will be loving remembered by his wife of 59 years Yvonne (L’Hirondelle) Swanson; his children: Cindy (Daryl) Jones, Annette Swanson (Robert), Stacy Swanson (Velvet), Jody Swanson (Marc) & 6 grandchildren: Matthew, Daniel, Brett, Zoey, Mia & Maxim. Dale will forever be in the hearts of his sisters Linda (Tom) Jachymeck, Janet (Lorne) Stretch, & Heather Swanson (Peter), along with numerous nieces & nephews. He was predeceased by his parents Bernadette (Foisy), Karl Hjelmer (John), and his brother Donald Swanson (Laurie).
Dale was born on January 4, 1937 in Calgary, Alberta. His father’s job on the railroad took them to Eatonia, Saskatchewan, where Dale graduated as Valedictorian of his class. Dale worked for Alberta Government Telephones in Calgary where he met a young telephone operator Yvonne L’Hirondelle. They became the 1st on-line couple! They were married on February 21, 1959. After Cindy, Annette, Stacy were born, the family moved to Wetaskiwin, and finally settled in Athabasca in 1966. Jody came along in 1971.
Dale was always a natural leader, wise, and giving his time to others. He was a municipal town councilor for multiple terms, and also deputy mayor for the Town of Athabasca. He was active with the Kinsmen Club (Yvonne with Kinettes) and enlisted their help in building his family cabin at Baptiste Lake in 1975 – all from cedar telephone poles and paneled phone booths. Dale was PADI Scuba certified in the 1980’s and enjoyed many west coast dive trips. Dale enjoyed hunting, fishing, snowmobiling, and quading. He retired from AGT in 1995 to relax at the lake – and began ‘Dale’s Handyman’ as he loved tinkering with any fix-it jobs and electronics. Dale was very active in the Royal Canadian Legion Athabasca #103 and was awarded his lifetime membership.
It was Dale’s wish to be cremated and have a celebration of life with family & friends – which will be held Friday, June 1, 2018 in the Legion basement as a drop-in event noon to 4pm. Music provided by Harper Valley PTA, Food provided by the Legion. A private family graveside will take place at the Athabasca Community Cemetery. Memorial donations can be made to the Long Term Care ward at the Athabasca Healthcare Centre. Many thanks to Dr. Michael Burger, doctors, nurses, and staff that cared for Dale at the hospital.