In Memory of Marilyn Sue (Lynne) Swanson

Marilyn Sue (Lynne) Swanson was a former Fanshawe staff member, a longtime disability advocate and Free Press columnist. Her life changed forever on a Sunday morning in 1984 when she felt a slight pain behind her eye. Left blind in that eye for three months, Swanson was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disease of the central nervous system. After living with the disease for 10 years, she started writing a monthly column for The Free Press chronicling the experiences of individuals living with disabilities in Southwestern Ontario.

“I think you’ll find some special and interesting people in this column – folks who live life with zest and enthusiasm, while coping with the challenges presented by disabilities,” she wrote in her first PosAbilities column published Jan. 17, 1994. Rather than just focusing on problems, Swanson’s writings highlighted individuals with disabilities making a difference in their communities and brought attention to the agencies dedicated to assisting them.

Swanson enjoyed a successful career, working for Fanshawe College as the affirmative action co-ordinator and later in human resources at the Child and Parent Resource Institute, before MS began to rob her of her mobility. Lynne Swanson passed away on June 7, 2017.