John William Swank of Pace, FL went to be with his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, on January 9, 2019. Born in Danville, IL, to Charles and Marguarite Swank, John served in the U.S. Navy before moving to the Panhandle and working for Xerox for 30 years. As a young boy, he learned that Jesus loved him and as a teenager, he accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior. While in the Navy, John learned how important it is to be in God’s word and lean on Him for guidance. Throughout his life, he was a faithful servant of Christ devoting himself to serious Bible study, writing, teaching Sunday School, and leading Bible studies. In IL, John served his local Methodist church as a lay speaker, and after moving to FL, John was ordained as a Baptist deacon and served as a Sunday school teacher and Interfaith Director of a local association. In the past decade, John returned to the Methodist church serving at the First United Methodist Church of Pace, FL. During his retirement, John pursued his passion of writing and published Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing, All Things New!, Angels: God’s Heavenly Helpers, and the fiction novels, The Perfect Journey series and The Trumpet’s Call. In addition to writing, John loved to work with his hands, finding joy in gardening, woodworking or tinkering with his car. He was a devoted husband of 55 years to Donna Swank of Pace, FL, and a loving father to his daughters, Judy (Mark) Hayes, of Villa Rica, GA, and Beth (Markus) McGraw of Pensacola, FL. His only grandson, Nathan Hayes brought him great joy. He is survived by his wife, daughters, grandson, special family members Renee and her children, Kim and Mark; two brothers: Gary (Carol) Swank and Phil (Kathy) Swank of Danville, IL, and many nieces, nephews and cousins.
Funeral services will be held Sunday, January 13, 2019, at 3:00 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church of Pace, FL. The family will hold a private burial service with military honors at Barrancas National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the First United Methodist Church of Pace, FL.