IN MEMORY OF JACK SWIFT 1939-2016
by Margaret Goodwin
February 15, 2016
NewsWithViews.com
Jack Swift passed away on January 29. This eulogy was given at his memorial service on February 5:
Jack was a unique, complex, and multidimensional person. In addition to being a political activist, he was also a husband, a father, a teacher, a salesman, a businessman, the head of a turnaround team that traveled around the country turning around failing auto dealerships, and an attorney. He was a sportsman, a hunter, a collector of guns, and an avid do-it-yourselfer. Jack could fix anything, as long as it didn’t have to do with computers. And he was a great story teller.
He once told me how he ended up becoming a lawyer. He was in his fifties when he was first called up for jury duty. He thought the defense attorney was incompetent and, when he got home, he told Cathy “I could do a better job than he did.” Cathy said “I’m sure you could.” Jack said “I think I would be a good lawyer.” Cathy said “I’m sure you would.” Jack said “But law school takes four years. By the time I got my law degree, I’d be 55 years old.” Cathy said, “And if you don’t go to law school, in four years you’ll still be 55 years old, only you won’t have a law degree. So Jack took the LSAT and, based on his scores was offered a full scholarship to the Thomas Jefferson law school in San Diego. He and Cathy pulled up their roots, moved to San Diego, and started a new life, just like a couple of college kids. Jack was never afraid to take risks. He was always up for a challenge.
Many of you knew Jack as a political activist. He was also an inspirational leader. He not only worked tirelessly for the causes he believed in, he motivated other people to take action as well.
Jack started the local chapter of Americans for Prosperity, and was the chair for two years. During both of those years, our chapter was acclaimed as Oregon’s chapter of the year.
Jack organized all but one of the Tea Parties in Josephine County. He also spoke at Tea Parties in Jackson County. If there was one person in Southern Oregon most closely associated with the Tea Party movement, that was Jack Swift.
Jack organized the Wilderness town hall, to protest a proposal to declare 25% of all the O&C land in our county as wilderness, permanently withdrawing it from all economic utilization. This was prime timber land, and encompassed two mining districts, with over 40 active mines. And that land didn’t even meet the BLM’s own criteria for wilderness characteristics.
Jack and I went out in this proposed “wilderness” area to take photographs of roads and clear cuts and mining sheds and signs warning of buried fiber optic cable, in this land that was supposed to be “untrammeled by man.” The first time we went out on a photography expedition, Cathy packed us a nice lunch. Two week later, we went out again to get some more pictures. Jack opened the back to the truck to get something out and discovered the lunch that Cathy had packed two weeks earlier. It wasn’t so nice any more. But that was Jack. He would get so involved in what he was doing, he would forget to get hungry.
Jack was also did a lot of stuff that was less visible. Without his persistent insistence, the commissioner never would have appointed the coordination committee that drafted the natural resources plan that laid the groundwork to compel federal agencies to coordinate with our county government on resource management plans in our county.
Jack also worked with Wally Hicks to establish a plan to litigate against the BLM to restore timber harvesting on the O&C lands at the levels mandated by law, to restore economic stability to our county.
He provided a lot of legal services to people whose land had been rezoned under SB 100, who had gotten Measure 37 waivers only to have them overturned by Measure 49. And he did a lot of it for little or no compensation.
Jack wasn’t a miner. He didn’t have a timber company. He wasn’t a land owner. He fought for these causes, not out of any personal investment, but because he believed in doing what’s right.
He believed in private property rights. He believed in the productive use of our natural resources. He believed in local control. And, most of all, he believed in freedom. And he believed that individuals can make a difference.
Jack was an activist. He was a rabble rouser. He was an instigator. He was revolutionary. He made things happen. And he inspired other people to be activists, too.
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He once told me you might not have much influence on politics at the national level but, at the local level, you really can make a big difference. You just have to get involved. And he proved it to me by doing it.
I learned a lot from Jack. I had a lot of fun with Jack. Jack had a big impact on my life, as I know he did on many of yours.
The best way to honor Jack’s memory is for us to become activists for the causes we believe in, and get out and make a difference. Like Jack did. Jack also wrote many insightful articles for NewsWithViews.
Thank you, Jack. We’ll miss you.
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