ST SEBASTIAN’S

ough one major health issue aer another,
Tom Swan selflessly chose his own way, clinging to
life and maintaining connections with his family and
friends till long aer less heroic men would have
given up. A man of tremendous courage, with the
clearest priorities: God, family, friends, Tom has
changed us forever, and so, too, has Carroll, who has
been with her husband every painful step of the way,
and so, too, has Tommy, who never wanted to be
anywhere but at his
father’s side.
His people loved their
gracious, graceful, caring
boss. Long-time
employees, Margaret
Bannerman and Meryl
Monaco, cried freely in
person or on the phone
whenever we discussed
Tom’s deteriorating
condition.
And his caregivers
loved him, too. Here’s an
email message I received
the other day from one of
Tom’s doctors:
Ithoughtlastnight
asIprayedforhimthatofallthepeopleIhave
knownwhohavelethislife,fewifanyhave
beenmoreworthyorbetterpreparedtoenter
God'sheavenlykingdomthanTom.Hiscourage
andenduranceinthefaceofsuffering(whichI
wishIcouldhavedonemoretoalleviate)overthe
pastyearwasremarkableandinspirational…It
wasaprivilegetoknowhim.
On Wednesday morning, I received this text from
Tommy Swan:
WegathertosaygoodbyetomyDad.Butforme
thereisnogoodbye.IwatchedDad’sspiritleave
hiswartownbodydaysagoandIsawthe
rainbowwhichtookhisspirittoheaven.During
theselastdaysIhavespokentoGodandDadon
adailybasis.Whatwereallycelebratetodayis
hisearthlylegacy,anditisamightyone.Whatis
importantisthatheisinpeacewithGodandhis
spiritisstillaliveandiswithallofuswholove
him.
We love Tom so very much. It’s hard to imagine
any person loving another more than Carroll and
WeloveTomsoverymuch.
It’shardtoimagineany
personlovinganothermore
thanCarrollandTommy
andtherestofusloveour
Tom-yetourfaithteaches
thatGodloveshimandeach
oneofusevenmore-far,far
morethanwecouldever
imagine.
Tommy and the rest of us love our Tom – yet our
faith teaches that God loves him and each one of us
even more – far, far more than we could ever imagine.
We must remember that we always and forever
have the two most powerful forces in the universe
open to us: God and one another.
May we ever open our hearts to God in Whom
we live and move and have our being, to His Son, our
Lord and Savior Jesus Christ: the way and the truth
and the life, and to the
power of e Holy Spirit
at work in our weakness.
And may we close our
arms around one another,
living the truth shared so
oen by St. Sebastian’s
Chaplain, Father John
Arens:
Griefsharedisdividedand
joysharedismultiplied.
On Monday morning,
when I entered our
Chapel given in 1999 by
Tom and Carroll Swan
and dedicated to all St.
Sebastian’s parents, I
heard these words of
Psalm 112 and thought of Tom:
ejustmanshallbeineverlasting
remembrance.
I have heard it said, and I believe it to be true that
death ends a life, not a relationship and that death is
not the final period on the sentence; it’s only a
comma. We believe that Tom hasn’t really le us. He’s
just walking on ahead, and we live in hope of joining
him in heaven.
For we are a resurrection people, and Alleluia is
our song. n
Editor’sNote:HeadmasterBillBurkegavethiseulogy
duringtheFuneralMassforTomSwanonSaturday,
March12.
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