Holly Swan Wright

December 11, 1944 – September 27, 2025
Holly Swan Wright died September 27 in Potomac, MD, of complications from Alzheimer's Disease at age 80.
Holly was born in Boston, MA to parents Robert Swan II and Isabel Stuart Swan. Originally from Pittsburgh, PA, the family had moved to Boston during the war while Robert served as an officer on the Navy destroyer USS Satterlee, escorting convoys across the North Atlantic and ultimately playing a critical role in the Normandy invasion, a fact of which Holly was always tremendously proud.
After the war, the family returned to Pittsburgh where Holly's father worked in a family-owned steel company and the family grew with the births of Rebecca, Robert III and David. Holly attended The Ellis School and became a champion swimmer for the Fox Chapel Country Club. During summers she enjoyed visits to her grandparents on Cape Cod.
Following high school, Holly attended Endicott College, worked in New York City, NY and on Cape Cod, then returned to college, earning a degree in history from Penn State University in 1967.
Holly's aunt, Dorothy Brown (Dottie) was a parental figure and after Dottie moved to Hong Kong, Holly spent several long visits there with her and her family in the early 1970s. Throughout her life, Holly remained very close to Dottie's family.
In the mid 1970s, Holly moved briefly to San Francisco where she worked in a cookware store and actually met Julia Childs! She completed a paralegal degree and moved to Washington DC where she found work with the political action group Common Cause. From there she took her paralegal training to the law firm now known as Jones Day where she worked following tax legislation. While working there she attended George Washington University and acquired an MBA in finance in 1985. Holly went on to work for the US Treasury in what was known as the Savings and Loan Bailout.
In 1980, Holly met Chris Wright who became the love of her life, and they were married in 1983. Shortly after, they moved from Capitol Hill to their current home in Chevy Chase.
In 1992, a relative offered Holly a puppy and she decided to leave her government job and focus her time on training the puppy. Training and showing her dogs became Holly's true vocation and she devoted many years to working with her beloved Australian Shepherds, Pelota (Pelo), Sky and later Jenny. She became a breed expert and her dogs were prize-winning obedience and show dogs. Pelo was her soulmate, and Sky won many show prizes. Jenny came later and is a loving companion.
Holly's other interests included knitting and sports. She was a talented knitter who could design an elaborate sweater from scratch, and she was an avid sports fan, especially following tennis and baseball (she was a lifelong Pittsburgh Pirates fan.) She was also an accomplished tennis player and skier, particularly enjoying the challenging slopes of Colorado.
Holly and Chris loved to travel together. Holly was wonderful at planning a trip and picking hotels, though she confessed to missing the dogs as soon as she got on an airplane. Favorite places to visit were Italy, the Tetons in Wyoming, and Cape Cod.
Holly is survived by her husband Christopher Wright, and cousins Malcolm Brown (Zola), Peter Brown (Elizabeth), Claire Kenney, Sarah Carley (Oliver), Kate Swope (Carl) and their children. Her dog Jenny will miss her. A celebration of her life will be held at a future time, and her ashes will be interred in a family plot on Cape Cod.
The family would like to acknowledge the extraordinary care Holly received from Jonathan Edenbaum and the wonderful staff at Eden Homes of Potomac and Dr. Nicholas Schor and colleagues at Olney Geriatric Psychiatry. They are pioneers in the compassionate care of Alzheimer's patients. Service private.