Theodore "Ted" Harold Swayne

Goodland resident Theodore "Ted" Harold Swayne, 86, passed away after a long illness at Goodland Regional Medical Center on March 31, 2023.

Ted was born on December 1, 1936, northeast of Kanorado to Henry Franklin Swayne Sr. and Wilma Ethel (Doggett) Swayne. He was one of seven children. He attended school in Kanorado and graduated from Kanorado High School in 1955.

Ted married Gertrude Leona Schritter on January 25, 1955, in Clayton, New Mexico. Following their marriage, they lived in Cozad, Neb., Monticello, Utah, Cortez, Aztec, and Farmington, N.M., before returning to Kansas in 1961. After moving to Goodland, Ted was self-employed, building aluminum awnings and carports in the area before moving to Kanorado to manage the Kanorado Co-op Lumber Yard for several years before working with the Kanorado School District as custodian and school bus driver. His dream was to be a farmer. In 1974 he had the opportunity to start farming. He retired from farming when he turned 80.   

Ted was highly involved in coaching little league baseball when his sons were growing up. Some years he coached three teams, each with one to two weekly games. He bowled in a mixed bowling league with his wife, Gert, for years. He enjoyed an occasional trip to Blackhawk Colorado (which he referred to as going up the mountain) for leisure entertainment. He enjoyed watching and following the Denver Broncos and the Colorado Rockies teams. Ted was a member of the BPOE Elks in Goodland, Kansas, for over 50 years. Ted loved his family. He enjoyed county fairs, music shows, pitching horseshoes, and parades (several years ago, he and Gert were the Grand Marshals in the Kanorado Day Parade).

Surviving family includes his wife, Gertrude Swayne of Goodland, Kansas; two sons Marlyn Swayne (Brenda) of Hays, Marvin Swayne (Cindy) of Wichita, and one daughter Marlene (Brad) Vickrey of McPherson; three grandchildren, Michelle (Spencer) Goff, Shannon (Dusty) Swayne, Ryan (Elizabeth) Swayne; four great-grandchildren, Mason and Aeris Goff, Jackson and Emry Swayne, and one brother Dee (Bonnie) Swayne.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Henry Franklin Swayne Sr. and Wilma Ethel (Doggett) Swayne, his In-Laws Rudolf and Christina Schritter, and a son Mark Dale Swayne; one brother Henry Franklin Swayne Jr., and four sisters, Jean Fick, Peggy King, Clara Stone, and Doyce Pratt.

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