Thomas Edwin Swithenbank

Thomas Swithenbank passed away peacefully on April 20, 2023 in Fairfax VA, surrounded by family after a hard fought battle against cancer.

The family wanted to thank all of the friends and family who traveled to Virginia (and to those who FaceTimed, Zoomed, wrote and called) while Tom in his final months was there; these touchpoints were an immeasurable source of comfort and strength for him during his long battle.

Tom had many roles in his life:

He was a husband to his beloved wife Dorothy for 54 years. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in Hawaii with the whole family around them.

He was a dad to Aurora, Susan, Nora and Jessica. Tom was an active dad, teaching Jessica to golf and taking her to Scotland to play all the best courses, going camping in Yellowstone with Aurora and Susan (even if Susan almost froze to death), teaching Nora to ski like a daredevil to name just a few. He remained active with his daughters until the very end, going rock climbing with Aurora in Zion National Park just a few years ago, skiing with Jessica in Lake Tahoe in recent years, and planning a 2023 hike down to Havasupai (in the Grand Canyon) with Aurora and Susan.

He was a grandfather to Lillian, Andrew, Luna, Ryan, Ella and Harrison. He loved playing Legos on the floor with them before anyone else in the house woke up and introducing them to Disney World near his Celebration, FL home.

He was a brother to Brenda, his beloved only sibling. Brenda introduced him to skiing, a love he passed on to his children.

He was a scholar. After his dad passed away when he was only 13, Tom received a scholarship to Brooks School in North Andover Mass. He made the most of that opportunity as a scholar and as an athlete, being co-captain of the football team and basketball team. He went on to Harvard and Harvard Business School.

He was a businessperson, being the CEO of several companies and carving out a niche as a turnaround specialist for companies needing to pivot on strategy or revitalize revenues.

Tom was active in his community. He was an active member of the Rotary Club and was committed to their mission of community and world service. He tried to make the world a better place. In 2016, he felt so strongly about the election and the direction of the country that he went door to door as a volunteer for the Hillary campaign and helped carpool voters without transportation to the polls.

Tom lived in Boston, Maryland and Florida in recent years. A celebration of Tom's life will take place at 3 pm on June 3, 2023 at the Church of Our Redeemer in Lexington, MA. All are welcome. The family also hopes to organize a celebration of his life in Florida later this summer.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Rotary International at rotary.org/en/donate. Navigate to "Areas of Focus" and select "Peacebuilding and Conflict Prevention."

Alternatively, donations may be made via Tom's church which hosts a program that supplies aid to Syrian refugees. Make checks payable to All Hallows Parish and note that it is for Syrian refugee relief:

All Hallows Parish

3600 Solomons Island Road

Edgewater, MD 21037