Richard "Dick" Swan

Richard Thomas Swan, a consummate entrepreneur, engineer, pilot, sailor, golfer, tennis player, HAM operator, beloved family man and friend, was born in Madison, Wisconsin on August 16, 1922. He met his Lord on February 28th, 2009, in Huntsville, AL, surrounded by family. He is survived by his wife Mickey Edwards Swan, and their three children Judy Linn, Bruce (and Pam) Swan, and Nancy (and Michael) Swan-Cendejas; their 7 grandchildren: Stacey Linn, George (and Kami) Linn, and Patrick (and Nikki) Swan, Matthew, Nathan, Jessica, and Jake Swan; and their 3 great grandchildren: Jack and Cooper Splitt-Linn, and Shawn Linn. He is also survived by his brother Robert Swan, his niece, three nephews and their families. Dick Swan lived a thousand lives. From the time he was removed from his grade school classroom for unsolicited humor and non-conforming behavior, and redirected to write the first school newspaper in an attempt to channel his intelligence and high energy, to the last days of his life when he continued to live fully and touch many lives, he was the most engaging and captivating man you could ever meet. A gifted story teller, Dick enthusiastically shared his rich life experiences. Inspired to follow his dreams, Dick travelled many paths. Whether he travelled by air in his plane, or by water in his sailboat, his heart was always with his family and friends. If ever you needed a friend, Dick was your man. He was a loyal friend and gifted mentor. He had a keen sense of humor that he openly shared Dick met his beloved wife, Mickey Edwards in 1941 in Chicago, Illinois on a blind date. They were married a year later in Madison, Wisconsin. Shortly thereafter Dick was drafted into the Navy. Because of his unique skills as a radio operator, he was immediately transferred to the Merchant Marines to serve as a communications officer for two years. When he returned, he and Mickey started their family in Bensenville, Illinois. After serving as a communications officer in the Merchant Marines in WWII, Dick majored in communications while studying Electrical Engineering at the University of Wisconsin. After leaving school, he went to work for WGN-TV in Chicago for ten years, where he filmed the White Sox and Cubs games in the early days of television. He worked for several radio stations and travelled to southern California to start his own radio station. He then joined Sarkes Tarzian where he worked as a sales engineer. In 1958, he co-founded General Communications, Inc. While there, he co-invented the vertical integral switching system, which became and remains, the predominant method of switching TV signals in the television broadcasting industry. He had the privilege to work with Nobel Prize winning physicist, William Shockley who sent him one of his “Shockley Diodes� to use in his design. When the company was sold in 1961 he returned to work for Sarkes Tarzian and then moved on to become an industry consultant, setting up TV broadcast equipment manufacturers with switching equipment. Dick and his family moved to Huntsville, Alabama in 1970 to go into partnership with a colleague at American Data Corporation. Though the association was short-lived, it began a long and fulfilling life in Huntsville. In 1973, with his life savings, he started Communications Technology, Inc., with partner and friend, Frank Zimmerman. They manufactured switching equipment for the television industry. After successfully building the company, they sold it to 3M in 1977. Dick remained on as a manager for the transition before entering into retirement for a brief period. Twice, he was called out of retirement to consult with distressed companies in which he had invested. Dick inevitably returned to entrepreneurship in 1984 when he founded his last company, Panelogic, Inc. Panelogic manufactured factory automation control equipment. In his early retirement, he began sharing his many years of experience with young entrepreneurs. He became adjunct faculty at the University of Alabama, Huntsville, where he was honored as a Price-Babson College Fellow for excellence in entrepreneurship education. He enjoyed the rest of his life travelling with his wife and friends, sailing, golfing, and playing tennis. He continued his long-time love of HAM radio which began as a boy of 12 looking in on his mentor, Chuck Heyden, enthralled by the flashing blue lights of his old HAM radio. He was well-known throughout the international HAM community and was known for many years as the fastest code sender at 85 words per minute. He was a true old-timer who enjoyed communicating in Morse Code more than he did talking, regaling his HAM buddies all over the world with his stories via Morse Code. He is forever K4FAZ-SK. Dick Swan continues to be a guiding light to his proud family. He left a legacy of curiosity, inventiveness, perseverance, charm, and love.