Nancy Swilley

Roper Funeral Home and Crematory
206 Holly St
Jasper, GA 30143
(706) 253-7500
(706) 253-0040
www.roperfuneralhome.com
Nancy Hembree Swilley, age 82, departed this life on Sunday, March 9, 2026, at her home in Woodstock, Georgia, surrounded by family and holding her husband's hand. The only child of Howard and Rubye Hembree, "Nan" was known for her keen intelligence, lively (and sometimes bawdy) sense of humor, endlessly kind heart and generous spirit, which she shared in abundance with her loving husband of 63 years, Monroe, her children, her grandchildren, her many friends, and her clients, students, and colleagues. She graduated from South Georgia College as Valedictorian. Anyone who knew her quickly realized that her sharp mind and quick wit were a force to be reckoned with. In her years as a caseworker and trainer for Georgia's Department of Family and Children's Services, she touched so many lives through her love of teaching and her sense of fun. Never one to show up empty-handed, she became known as "The Cookie Lady" statewide as she traveled all over Georgia training new caseworkers.
Nancy was an avid reader with a special taste for romance novels, from Jane Austen to Kathleen E. Woodiwiss. A gifted actress, she performed a variety of roles in both South Georgia College and Douglas, Georgia Community Theater productions, including Bye, Bye Birdie, The Music Man, The Diary of Anne Frank, and Show Boat. An alto in church and community choirs, she loved music, her wide-ranging tastes encompassing everything from Ella Fitzgerald to Neil Sedaka, Neil Diamond, and Simon and Garfunkel, to countless recordings of Broadway musicals, Rodgers & Hammerstein to Sondheim and everything in between. But of all the roles she played and the songs she cherished, the role of "Nana" to her grandchildren and the music of their voices became her greatest joy in later years. Sharing her love of all things Disney with her grandchildren was one of her favorite things. Nana and Papa showed their children, grandchildren, and everyone around them what deep, true love looks like - a gift that lives on in all of us.
Nan meant so much to so many. She was kind. She was strong. She was forgiving. She was supportive. She always knew how to make people feel comfortable, loved, and accepted. She wanted to adopt the world, making her children's friends and her grandchildren's friends feel like a part of the family. And she did it instinctively, without question or pause.
She has left the memory of her zest for life and her love of humanity with everyone lucky enough to come her way. She will be missed.
Nancy is survived by her husband, Monroe Swilley of Woodstock; daughters and sons-in-law, Lee Swilley and Dan Leatham of Woodstock and Kelley Swilley and Matt Ceccato of Woodstock; grandchildren, Bryce Monroe and Alison Waters of Marietta and Ava Elizabeth Waters of Troutman, North Carolina. Other family members also survive.
Services will be held at 2:00 p.m., Saturday, March 14, 2026 in the Chapel of Roper Funeral Home with Lee Taylor officiating.
The family will be receiving friends at Roper Funeral Home, Saturday, March 14, 2026 from 1:00 p.m. until 2:00 p.m.
The family requests in lieu of flowers, donations be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital at stjude.org.
Arrangements are entrusted to the Staff of Roper Funeral Home and Crematory.