Lois Mary Swoboda, 88, passed away peacefully Wednesday, June 27, 2018 at Royal Park Care Center. She was surrounded by her 8 children who sang around her the evening before. Fr. Jo Hien came the next day and prayed for and anointed her. He then said, “Lois, it’s okay to go. Hank is waiting for you.” She immediately closed her eyes and never took another breath. The week before, she had said she was ready to go and hold Jesus and be with Hank again. Mom and Dad would have celebrated their 66th anniversary June 28th.
Lois was born in Spokane on August 10, 1929. She graduated from Marycliff High School and majored in Psychology at Holy Names College. Lois had a passion for music and drama. She loved sharing her role as Jo in Little Women during high school. She took a bite of an apple and it sprayed the front row of the audience! She had many fun memories and lived a very full and entertaining life. She loved God and people. As a little girl, she took piano lessons, ballet, tap and accordion. She formed a band during her high school years that performed at the Sons of Norway. It was through this that she met and married Dad. One of Lois’s special memories was teaching ballroom dancing for Arthur Murray studios. She decided to teach the patients at Eastern State Hospital how to dance and then had her band come and play!
Mom and Dad were married on June 28, 1952. They both shared their love for God and attended St. Charles Catholic Church from its beginning, sending all 8 of their children there. As they were both only children, the Lord blessed them with many children and they loved their family. All 10 would pray daily and have meals together. They always said, “a family that prays together stays together”! They also passed on their love for music. They played for many events in the Spokane area and one of the highlights was performing at Expo ’74 as the “Swoboda Family Band”. Lois also taught private piano in her home studio, having many recitals. She continued playing piano up until a week before she passed. She had a feisty personality and loved kidding people wherever she was, including her final days at Royal Park. The family wishes to thank the staff there for all their loving care for her. They commented to us that they felt loved by her and that they were her family too. She will be greatly missed.
Lois was preceded in death by her husband Henry and daughter Debbie Sue. She is survived by her 8 children, Mary Kay (Jim) Rogers of Spokane, Susie (Joe) Lindsey of Loon Lake, Linda Shaw of Spokane, John (Christy) Swoboda of Mt Juliet, TN, Georgia (Wes) Morris of Redmond, WA, Jim (Debbie) Swoboda of Spokane, Frank (Johanna) Swoboda of Spokane and Cathy (Kirk) Niblock of Spokane, 28 grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren.
A visitation will be held on Thursday July 5, from 2-6pm, at Hennessey Funeral Home, 2203 N. Division, Spokane, WA; a rosary will be prayed at 6:00 pm, with fellowship following.
A Mass of Christian burial will be held on Friday, July 6 at 10:00 am at St. Charles Catholic Church, 4515 N. Alberta, Spokane, WA, with burial to follow at Holy Cross Cemetery
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