Marguerite Petry Swanson, 95, passed away peacefully on Sunday, February 16, 2025, at her home in Payson, Utah.
Marguerite was born in Berkeley, California on February 8, 1930, to Verona Gleason and Walter Petry. As her parents divorced while she was at a young age, she developed close relationships with her cousins on both sides of the family that lasted her lifetime. She graduated from Berkeley High School and attended the University of California, Berkeley, where she graduated with a degree in accounting. During her high school years, her stepbrother, Donald, introduced her to David Swanson, whom she would go on to marry. David was drafted for the Korean War, and they were married while he was on a weekend pass for Basic Training on August 18, 1951. When David was assigned to Chicago, Marguerite joined him and found an accounting job. She was the only female accountant in the office, and it was a challenging environment. When David’s service was completed, they returned to Berkeley so he could finish his degree in civil engineering.
David took a job with the state of California, and they moved frequently around Northern California while he supervised highway construction projects. In 1958, a daughter, Ann, was born in Vallejo. Another daughter, Lynn, joined the family in Fortuna in 1961. After several years, the family settled down in Saratoga, California, where David took a job in the private sector. There, a son, Erik, joined the family in 1971. During these years, Marguerite cared for her grandmother and her husband’s stepmother and would go on to care for her aging parents. Compassionate service was one of her hallmarks. She was actively involved in her children’s schools, in cultural education groups, in her local church congregation, and in California Family Women, a conservative political lobbying group. She developed and enjoyed many wonderful friendships that have lasted decades. She loved reading both fiction and nonfiction and most of the rooms in her house had fully stocked bookshelves. She also had an addiction to murder mysteries and built a large collection of paperbacks that she read, read and frequently lent out to others.
David and Marguerite enjoyed traveling locally and abroad. Most summers the family would go camping for two weeks along the West Coast, often with David’s sister Eva’s family. They spent many Christmases in the Sierras with Marguerite’s family. They also took many cruises with Eva, visiting Europe, Asia, Australia, the Pacific, and South America.
In 1995, the Swansons moved to the Villages in San Jose. David enjoyed golfing and Marguerite enjoyed attending religion classes with her Saratoga friends and being involved in book clubs and discussion groups on art and history, often hosted at her house. Marguerite loved to attend local cultural events including the symphony, opera, art exhibits, and drama productions. They had a busy social calendar, but they always had time for family and serving others. They enjoyed visiting and spending time with their grandchildren, frequently taking them out to the movies. Marguerite served in many Relief Society presidencies and was in charge of arranging and providing compassionate service meals for funerals, babies, and other life events.
After her husband, David, passed away in 2015, Marguerite continued living in San Jose until 2023, when she moved to Payson to live with her daughter Ann. She is survived by her three children: Ann (Robert) Duzett, Lynn (Ed) Lamb, Erik (Emily) Swanson, 13 grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren.
Funeral Services will be held at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 952 West 1580 South, Payson, Utah at noon on Saturday, February 22, 2025. Streaming service will be available. A private interment ceremony will be held in El Cerrito, California.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations can be made in Marguerite’s name to the Humanitarian Aid Fund at philanthropies.churchofjesuschrist.org/humanitarian-services/funds/
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