Jane Swinerton Obituary

Jane Swinerton
June 26, 1948 - June 1, 2023
Jane Prager Swinerton died June 1, 2023, of cancer. She was born June 26, 1948, in Jersey City, New Jersey. Jane graduated from Nanuet High School, SUNY Staten Island, and the California Institute of Integrative Studies. She served on the boards of The Hamlin School, Cathedral School for Boys, and Lick-Wilmerding High School. Jane is survived by her children William Swinerton and Kathryn Rinderknect, her sisters Karen D'Anna and Irene Godden, four grandsons, and a small horde of beloved nieces, nephews, and cousins.
Jane migrated west to San Francisco in the summer of 1971, and resided in San Francisco ever since with brief sojourns to Healdsburg and inexplicably, at least to her, Des Moines, Iowa.
Jane was a student and an aficionado of life's comedic moments, calling it "the theater of the absurd." Towards that end, she was a regular reader of the Chronicle Obit section and sends her regards to her fellow obit obsessives. She also took great pride in having Leah Garchik publish five "Public Eavesdropping" lines in her column in the Chronicle that Jane had sent in including "A tourist couple in Chinatown 'Woman: These fortunes, are they real fortunes? Man: We'll see.'"
Jane was a terrifically cool person; the super at her apartment called her "a magnificent woman" and he wasn't an outlier in how the people who knew her felt about her. As such, she earned terrific nicknames. While she was called "Janie" in high school, she was known to her children as "Citizen Jane" given her propensity to move around the City and appear in unexpected places, with her finger on the pulse of the au courant, but also weird and good places that maybe weren't the trendiest. She thought we were making fun of her, and we sort of were, but mostly weren't. And she encouraged us and all of you to be Citizens as well.
Once she started having grandchildren, Jane chose "Gram" as her sobriquet, but it got muddled coming out of her first grandson's mouth, so that's how she became "BAM" which stuck because it fit.
Known for a Mojave-level dry wit, Jane was a master in the art of conversation and would apply it wherever she went. She rarely got out of a taxi without having learned the life story of the cabbie as well as that of his ancestors AND all his favorite places to eat. She'd get recipes from people who were on Muni, inquiring what they were going to cook with the groceries they were toting home.
Jane was an artist. For many years, her primary medium was printing making, and she also created pop-up books about her travels. The last project she was working on was a movie that featured clips of folks describing a perfect moment in their life. She loved culture and the arts and believed that culture creates society and that by participating in the cultural life of San Francisco as both an artist and an audience member she was helping to create a society that she wanted to live in.
Jane was a wonderful cook, enthusiastic traveler, and committed eater. She will be sorely missed by her travel companions, dinner guests, and food safari aficionados.
A party celebrating her life, BAM Bash aka the Citizen Celebration, will be held on September 16th. If you want to attend, track down one of her kids and let them know you want to be there.

To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.

Published by San Francisco Chronicle on Sep. 8, 2023.

Memories and Condolences
for Jane Swinerton

2 Entries

Kate Yuan

Planted Trees

Sue (susie) White

September 14, 2023

I just returned from Oaxaca where Jane R. told me that Jane Swinerton had died. I hadn't seen Jane since 2018, at lunch in SF and then a Memorial for Hodge, and I'm so sorry to learn this. I want to send Jane's kids and family my condolences, as well as a story. Jane had a fun and quirky sense of humor, and she was also very, very kind and supportive.
Years ago, I flew to the Casa at Oaxaca and I had a hard time, because I was so afraid of flying. Jane was visiting too and she worked with me diligently to reduce my fear about flying home. It may have been hypnotic suggestions but likely it was a lot of laughter, too. And my flight home was great; Jane had really helped to reduce my anxiety. That night I slept soundly. The next morning I opened my curtains and there were police all over the place. Someone had been murdered that night, on my corner. Little did I know how much safer that flight was that night, than my own corner. I later told Jane that story, too.

I remember many "Tienditas" and dinners with Jane and Jimmy at their home in SF, over the years. Their kids Willie and Katie may not remember, but my older sons babysat them when we adults went out to dinner at Jane R's "Low Rent Tour" in Guaymas, sometime in the 1980s. We had all caravanned in cars down to Guaymas from Tucson. I shared many fun times with Jane over the years.

I'd like to honor Jane and go to the Celebration of Jane's Life on 9/16. My email is attached privately.
Sending her kids and family all my love and comfort...

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