Elliot Livingston Swanson Jr.

Aug. 15, 1931 - Nov. 5, 2021

Saratoga, California

On November 5th, 2021, Elliot Livingston Swanson Jr. (“Yo”), loving husband, father, and Grandpa passed away peacefully in his sleep at age 90, at the Cedar Creek Alzheimer’s and Dementia Care Center in Los Gatos, California.

Yo was born on August 15th, 1931, in Jamestown NY, to Elliot and Mildred (Anderson) Swanson, and as a younger brother to Mary (Grummon), and he remained in Jamestown until he graduated from Jamestown High School. He was married to Alice (Hancock) Swanson, since 1997. Previously, he was married to Mary Jo (Dawson) Swanson, who passed in 1993, and they had raised Beth (Liz Greene) and Bob. He is survived by Alice, Beth and Bob (and wife Rhonda), and his grandchildren Tyler, Zoe, Alana, Teagan, and Ryleigh. He was also loved by Alice’s daughters Jill, Janet, and Joy and was “Grandpa” to their children, Evan, Sean, Dylan, Cheyenneh, Nicolas, Tiago, Adriana, Daniela, Caitlin, Megan, and Patrick, and a great-grandfather to six.

After meeting Mary Jo and graduating from Ohio Wesleyan University with a BA, Yo married Mary Jo in 1954 and graduated from MIT as an electrical engineer in 1955. They lived in many places in the USA between Boston and Washington D.C., then moved to Sydney Australia in 1970. Leaving many dear friends in St Ives, in Australia, he and Mary Jo returned to the US in 1985, settled in San Jose CA in 1989. After Mary Jo’s passing, Yo met Alice and stayed in California, in Saratoga CA. Yo had a wonderful life of travel: beautiful journeys that began with Mary Jo and continued even further with Alice.

Yo had a lifelong love of music: he had played clarinet and loved listening to classical music and attending opera and orchestra performances wherever he lived, including Sydney, New York, San Francisco, and San Jose. He supported developing opera singers and musicians and actively participated in local musical organizations wherever he lived, from a philharmonic orchestra in Hyde Park NY in the 1950s and most recently with the San Jose Chamber Music Society and the San Jose Opera Guild. He had shared his love of music with Mary Jo and friends in USA and Australia, and then with Alice and Janet in California until his passing.

A memorial service will be held at Saint Andrew's Episcopal Church in Saratoga, CA, on December 4th at 2 pm.