Mary Jo Swanson

Mary Joan Swanson
June 28, 1945 - December 9, 2025
Mary Jo Swanson was called into the presence of her Savior on December 9, 2025, at Mary Greeley Medical Center in Ames, Iowa, at the age of 80. She is now reunited with her beloved husband of more than 56 years, Dr. Jack T. Swanson. She lived her life with deep gratitude--for her family, her friends, and most especially for her beloved children, grandchildren, and great-granddaughter.
Mary Jo was born on June 28, 1945, in Denver, Colorado, to Eugene Jacob Schaetzel and Margaret Thomson Schaetzel. She grew up in Denver and graduated from East High School in 1963.
She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education from The University of Iowa in 1967. As an undergraduate, Mary Jo was a proud member of the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority, where she formed lifelong friendships and found a community that remained close to her heart throughout her life. It was during her college years that she met the love of her life, Dr. Jack T. Swanson of Des Moines, Iowa.
Mary Jo and Jack were married on August 16, 1968, at Montview Presbyterian Church in Denver, Colorado. Together they shared more than 56 years of marriage, building a life grounded in love, shared faith, unwavering support for one another, and devotion to a family that meant everything to them.
Following their marriage, Mary Jo taught first grade in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where her warmth, patience, and love for children were evident from the start. She stepped away from teaching with the birth of their first child, Jack (Jay), in 1970. The early years of marriage were filled with adventure as Jack completed his medical training, taking the family to Oakland, California, then back to Iowa City, where their second son, Rob, was born. Immediately following Rob's birth, the family moved to Fayetteville, North Carolina, while Jack served as a pediatrician in the U.S. Army at Fort Bragg. Throughout these years, Mary Jo anchored their growing family and created a sense of home wherever they landed.
In August 1975, Mary Jo and Jack settled in Ames, Iowa--a place that would become their true and lasting home. It was in Ames that their family was completed with the births of their daughters, Julie and Amy. Mary Jo lived in Ames for fifty years, where she devoted herself to raising her children, forming lifelong friendships, and becoming deeply rooted in the community.
Teaching remained a calling throughout Mary Jo's life. From 2001 to 2008, she served as a preschool teacher at Tree Top Nursery School in Ames. She found great joy in nurturing young children, helping them feel safe, confident, and curious as they began their educational journeys.
Mary Jo's life was filled with joy and connection. She treasured time with family and friends and enjoyed traveling, playing bridge, gardening, and spending time in the Colorado mountains she loved so dearly. For more than two decades, she generously volunteered her time at the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority house at Iowa State University, serving in many roles such as treasurer and house advisor, and overseeing a house remodel and addition. She was also an active member of the WWC of Ames.
Mary Jo's life was marked by an abiding devotion to those she loved and a generous spirit that extended to all who knew her. She shared her warmth, kindness, and companionship freely, finding deep joy in caring for others. At the heart of all she did was family. She flourished as a mother--one she often described as her greatest blessing--and later as a grandmother and great-grandmother. She took great pride in her children and delighted in the lives, interests, and accomplishments of her grandchildren, whose time with her, whether brief or long, was filled with a lifetime's worth of love and guidance. Much like her garden, Mary Jo's life was beautiful, abundant, and welcoming, during which she generously gave freely to others--whether through baskets of tomatoes and cucumbers or through a legacy that continues to bloom in the hearts of those she loved.
Mary Jo is survived by her four children: Jay (Lori) Swanson of Ames; Rob (Jessica) Swanson of Huxley; Julie (Aaron) Stevens of Urbandale; and Amy (Patrick) Finn of Glen Ellyn, Illinois.
She is also survived by her eleven beloved grandchildren: Jack (Lydia), John (Celeste), Jeffrey Swanson; Madeline (Seth), Reagan, Simone, and Elliott Swanson; Luke Stevens; and Emma, Henry, and Maeve Finn; as well as her treasured great-granddaughter, Eloise Swanson.
She is survived by her sister, Margaret Schaetzel of Jefferson, IA; her brothers, Tom (Elycia) Schaetzel of Dillon, CO; and Bill (Barbara) Schaetzel of Lawrence, KS; and her nieces and nephews Scott, Kari, Bryce, Christina, Michael, Jenny and Katie. She is now reunited with those who preceded her in death, including her husband, Dr. Jack T. Swanson; her parents, Eugene and Margaret Schaetzel; and her brother, Jim Schaetzel.
A visitation will be held Friday, January 2, from 4-6pm at Northminster Presbyterian Church in Ames. A funeral service will take place at the same location on Saturday, January 3, at 10:30am, with a light lunch to follow. For those unable to attend, the service will be livestreamed at amesnpc.org.
In lieu of flowers and other customary remembrances, the family suggests memorials be directed to the Mary Jo Swanson Memorial Fund, established to honor and carry forward her legacy, and sent to their attention, c/o Grandon Funeral and Cremation Care, 414 Lincoln Way, Ames, Iowa 50010.
Those we love don't go away,
they walk beside us every day.
Unseen, unheard but always near,
still loved, still missed
and held so dear.