Jelmer “Gus” Swoboda, Green Bay and Longboat Key, FL … age 89, passed away peacefully with his family by his side on Friday, March 14, 2025. We will miss him, but we will find solace in a life well lived. His 9-year battle with Parkinson’s disease is finally over. He can now join his wife Penny in heaven.
Upon graduation from college, Gus signed on with Wisconsin Public Service Corporation and worked there for 38+ years. Gus met the love of his life Penny, while they were both working at Wisconsin Public Service in Rhinelander, WI. His career started in Sheboygan as a gas engineer and ended in Green Bay. He retired in 1997 as a senior vice president.
Gus took great pleasure in volunteering his time to improve the communities he lived in. Gus served on the board of directors of the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame, Neighborhood Housing Services, First Northern Savings, Bank Mutual, American Medical Security, University of Wisconsin Green Bay Founders Association, and Pelican Harbour Condo Association. His Catholic faith was a significant part of his life. He was actively involved in his parish in Green Bay, serving as a trustee at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral and as an active men’s club member at St. Mary Star of The Sea in Longboat Key, FL.
Gus enjoyed running, golfing, pickleball, fishing, and hunting. He cherished many years of whitetail deer hunts in Amherst Junction, WI, with his longtime friends the Ellingsons. He loved spending time with his family and friends at his cottage on the bay of Green Bay and at his condo on Longboat Key, FL. Gus received many accolades for his life accomplishments, but the most important reward was his close loving family, especially his grandchildren and great grandchildren. He was proud of all of them and made a strong effort to develop his relationship with each of them.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to The Michael J Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research at michaeljfox.org or Unity Hospice at unityhospice.org