Name: Kraeer Funeral Home and Cremation Center
Address: Boca Raton, FL

Anne, we are thinking of you and your family.  I'm so glad I got to meet your mom on several occasions and I was so impressed with her joie de vivre, her bridge-playing and her determination.  I know you will miss her so much but know that she is with God and is peaceful and pain-free.  Love and blessings, Judy and Reid

Anne, we too were privileged to have shared moments with both your dad and Libby. Those memories were and are blessings made richer by our bond with you. "Come Holy Spirit and fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in us the fire of your love...."  Ed & Meg

 Mother and I decided many months ago that, in lieu of flowers, we would suggest that people send a donation to:

St Gregory's Church
100 Mizner Blvd, Boca Raton, FL 33429

                  or

The Florence Fuller Child Development     Center
200 NE 14th St
Boca Raton, FL 33432

Evensong and cocktails.... I will remember Libby every time I say Evening prayer for the rest of my life.  What an honor and blessing to have known Libby!

Anne I love you - and your Mom too - I'm so glad I knew her even if just a little bit - Barbara (and Guy) Snow

Anne, I loved your parents - and Libby was one of God's chosen and best as were her children.  May the Lord's peace be with you.  Steve Parker

 She was a great great-grandmother and I loved her so much.

                              Alphabet trip down memory lane with Mother

 
                                                                       Preface


When I was growing up, one night at dinner some English house guest taught us the Cockney Alphabet, 
a dialect take-off that we all got a huge kick out of.  Having recently visited my 95 year old mother and 
spending a lot of time reminiscing, the idea of writing an alphabet of memories for her came to me.  At
first I was daunted by the difficulty of some letters more than others, but all it took was a quick perusal 
of the dictionary to jar my brain and heart into remembering at that point in the lineup of the 26. 

                        

A  is for Ann(e), the name you and I share with your great granddaughter 
for the appliqued curtains you made for me out of some fabric you brought
                                                                                         back from overseas 
for Ankorwat, where you went on vacation once while you were living abroad
for AES, your beloved husband of 63 years. 

B is for Billy, your son who brought us all much laughter during the 54 years
                                         he was with us and his look-alike, act-alike Brad
for Bridge, the game you became a Master at
for Brownell Hall, where you went to boarding school
for the blue evening gown Daddy gave you one Christmas.

C is Carleton, where you went to college….Solo up to Minnesota on the train 
for Third Thursday Communion, a gathering you always look forward to
for China, where you were a missionary teacher in your twenties
for Clara and Carlos, Bill's precious grandchildren.

D is for the diet you helped me with when I “rolled home” from St Mary's 
for the Deer Dancer in the Balet Folorico de Mejico who delighted us all
for dessert, always first in your meal planning when we were growing up
for the Florence Fuller Day Care Center you helped found and support
For David, Bill's son, your grandson, of whom you are so proud as he prepares to go to medical      school

E is for the exercise video you do daily now with Helen
for the dozens of Easter Eggs you have blown out and decoupaged
for the many ECW bazaars and rummage sales you have worked on
for your Saturday elocution lessons when you lived in Wood River.

F is for Flowers (Veronica) and for Florine, who helped you in your Manila kitchen
for the fanny pack you switched to whenever you traveled
for all the times you counted for children to float
for the Oklahoma and Nebraska families you and Daddy gave me for a real sense
                                                                                                            of rootedness.

G is for Gussie Gander, my grandmother, and the Girl Scouts you led in Puerto Rico
for Grand Island, where we both were born
for the grannie pin you treasure and gardenias we both love
for the gloves and veiled hats we use to wear to church.

H is for our many long hugs of good-bye
for the glorious hibiscus in Puerto Rico and Florida
for the Hilton in Charlotte Amelie where we vacationed one year
for Hanover, where Bill went to college and for Honduras, where you and Daddy
                                                                                       went to do a study for TEC.

I is for Ivanhoe, a title in the game of Authors we used to play when I was little
It also for Ingong, another of our “girls” in the Philippines
and for ice that punctuated your Evensong and Cocktails
for the itchiness of the tropical insects and the poison ivy. 

J is for Jane, your hat-sporting sister-in-law as well as for Jackson, your 
            gregarious great-grandson, and Jennifer, your Paideia teaching granddaughter  
for the daily fresh-squeezed orange juice you made in Puerto Rico
for the trip you made to Jerusalem and the lamp you made to document it
for the jewelry box that houses treasures you have acquired throughout the years. 

K is for your yummy Karo pie (never mind the pecans!)
for the kale you tried to get us to eat when we were growing up
for the black watch kilt you bought in Philadelphia and which I still wear today
for the many kids you took care of in the St Gregory's nursery.

L is for Lou, your other sister-in-law, who constantly polices the leaves in her yard
for the big licks of batter you would scoop up for me when we were making cakes
                                                                                                                   or cookies
for the white lace tablecloth you used for holiday meals
for your yummy roast of lamb with mint jelly on the side.

M is for your marvelous mothering and math
for the wonderful mangoes we had in the tropics
for Misu, our cat in Puerto Rico
and for the family eight millimeter movies we used to watch.

N is for Nebraska and New York, where you lived for many years
for Feliz Navidad and all the neighbors you have enjoyed
for our hallmark naps and your sewing needles
for the wine nightcaps you and I raise as we review our day.

O is for your offering envelope, always ready to be snatched from the bird's beak
                                                                                                  on Sunday morning
for the Japanese obi you all had hanging in the H building apartment  
for your signature Ossa Buco that Daddy so enjoyed
for the scores of morning, afternoon , evening and Sunday outfits you have
                                                                                            had in your closet.

P is for your purple and pearls and your grandson statistician, Paul 
for passing the Peace and Puerto Rican evenings of piano duets
for peanut butter, cheese and mayonnaise sandwiches
for David's present interest in pre-med.

Q is for quilted bedspreads, the one you made for my canopy bed and the
                                                     memory masterpiece fashioned for OBT
for quitting smoking in the 50's
for La Quinta, where we used to go for family vacations
for Don Quixote, Bill's big focus in college. 

R is for rum, the tropical beverage that became your signature of Episcopal hospitality
for the rituals you and Daddy established in each of the rectories you lived in
for Public Radio that you have come to appreciate so much lately
for the many reefs you have enjoyed snorkeling over.

S is for swimming and sewing and Scrabble – your favorite hobbies 
for the propensity towards getting seasick which you have passed on to me
for salt, a spice featured in almost all of your cooking
for the antique Chinese satin of your wedding dress and Sloan, your piano-playing 
                                                                                                            great grandson.

T is for your teaching, especially of card tricks and typing
for Todo, our dog in Puerto Rico, who once got caught on the tongue by a crab
for the telephone that keeps you connected to family and friends
for Talking Books and audio tapes that have meant so much to you in your latter years

U is for undulant fever, which you had as a child, and ulcers Daddy had in Puerto Rico
for the accident in the upper berth on the train we took from California to Oklahoma
for the unicycle you claimed to have ridden as a child
for the undertow at the beach which you taught me to beware of

V is for Ventor, where we spent several great vacations
for visiting at North and the hundreds of visiting firemen you entertained
for all the vegetables you taught us to eat
for Velveta, the Swift cheese of choice

W is for your walker and the wheelchair that keep you moving
for all the letter writing you have done throughout the years
for wonderful friends like the Wombles and the Wilsons
and the tens of thousands of loads of wash you must have done

X is for all the X's and O's you ended your letters to me with
for extra special thought you have put into many a gift
for oxtail soup that was a regular on your pantry shelf
for the income taxes you think are absurdly high

Y is for the yards and yards of material you have worked on
as well as all the yards you have weeded
for the yeast in your baking
and the years and years of remembering

Z is for the zed in the Cockney alphabet you taught me
for a wonderful day at the zoo in Kansas City
for the zigzag stitch you taught me on the sewing machine so that I could put in zippers
for the zzz sound of you sleeping and dreaming and remembering more of the
 
A to Z blessings in your life and mine!


Anne Nietert         July 2010, revised 2013

Born in Grand Island, NEB, Libby graduated from Brownell Hall High School and Carleton College. Serving as a missionary teacher in China, she met and married A. Ervine Swift, then a deacon in the Episcopal Church. 

Returning to the US during the war, the Swifts had two children and then became missionaries to the Philippines where Libby worked with the Girl Scouts and co-edited a cookbook. Her husband was elected Bishop of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and Libby became the hostess to all of the delegations visiting and supporting their mission and served as President of the Girl Scouts. They moved to Philadelphia and then to Boca Raton, where he was Rector of St. Gregory's Church and Libby founded the Florence Fuller Child Development Center and ran the church nursery as "Granny Swift". 

After further tours in Honduras and Europe, Libby and the Bishop returned to retire in Boca.  Her great loves were Bridge, Scrabble, swimming and sewing.  She spent the last 20 years of her life at St Andrews Estates enjoying the fellowship of many friends. 

Predeceased by her husband of 62 years and their son, William E Swift, also a priest in the church, she is survived by her daughter, Anne Nietert, of Mt Pleasant, SC, a granddaughter, Jennifer Swift, of Atlanta, GA, a grandson, David Swift, of New Orleans, LA, and Anne's two sons, Bradley Swift Nietert and Paul Jackson Nietert of Charleston.   There are also two great-granddaughters - Clara Alicia Buse of Atlanta and Dessie Anne Nietert of Charleston as well as three great grandsons - Sloan Bradley Nietert and Jackson Moultrie Nietert of Charleston and Carlos William Buse of Atlanta.

OBITUARY

Elizabeth Ann Swift

February 4, 1915 – May 8, 2013

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