(Dec. 29, 2011 - by Ralph Kurtenbach) As the son of an engineer, Stanley "Stan" Russell Swanson's interest in shortwave radio had already been ignited by the time he reached age 12. In 1940 in Chicago, he first heard Radio Station HCJB, based in Ecuador. That began a relationship between listener and broadcaster that was to last several decades.

Stan Swanson 1928-2011

In the early 1950s, Stan went on to engineering work with Motorola, Inc. and Naval Research Lab in Washington, D.C., Stromberg-Carlson and later General Dynamics, both in Rochester, N.Y. At Radio Station WCMF in Rochester he carried out various engineering responsibilities and also served on the station's board of directors.

Asked about his early missions involvement, Stan recalled that "members of our church paid for a trip to Quito and Panama to repair and install equipment that had been donated to HOXO." Stan and his wife, Shirley, served at HOXO, one of HCJB Global's partner ministries, from 1969 to 1978.

After that, the Swanson family moved to McAllen, Texas, to work with Radio Station KVMV where Stan served from 1978 to 1984 as an engineer. He also filled in as interim manager for a few months. As other stations were added along the U.S.-Mexico border, the World Radio Network (WRN), a cooperating ministry of HCJB Global, was formed.

"Those of us who knew Stan and had the privilege of serving with him, will tell you that he was the model to which all missionary engineers should aspire," said Glenn Lafitte, who was learning Spanish at the nearby Rio Grande Bible Institute in Edinburg when he first met Stan. Lafitte would go on to managerial roles in the network that included a supervisory role over Stan years later.

Stan served on a church board while living in Panama, also singing in choirs in both Panama and McAllen. Later at a Laredo church, he served as a deacon. His varied interests included biblical archaeology and radio, including the hobby of listening to distant stations or "DXing." He enjoyed building new stations. Detail-oriented, he also counted among his interests, proofreading.

Describing Stan as "brilliant, hardworking and dedicated," Lafitte, WRN's chief executive officer, offered that "there are many people who know the Lord, and many others have grown in their faith, because of Stan's ministry."

Throughout the years Stan put several of the WRN stations on the air, including KBNL in Laredo, where the Swansons moved in 1984. It was this station that Lafitte later managed, with Stan handling engineering responsibilities for the network. It was also in Laredo that his wife, Shirley, died in 1989.

Stan's retirement at age 65 in 1993 didn't mean that his ministry years were finished. In 2004 he moved to Yuma, Ariz., to serve at WRN station, KYRM and to be nearer his son, Douglas, daughter-in-law, Raquel, and grandson, Steve. Douglas and Raquel formerly served as missionaries with HCJB Global and WRN at KYRM.

After a lengthy struggle with pancreatic cancer, Stan died on Dec. 26, 2011, in Yuma. It was 43 years after he and Shirley had arrived on Dec. 27, 1968, in San José, Costa Rica, to begin their career with HCJB Global by studying the Spanish language. His 71-year relationship with HCJB Global endured in one way or another from age 12 until his death at the age of 83.

In addition to his wife, he was preceded in death by his son, Kenneth. Survivors include two sons, Douglas Swanson and his wife, Raquel, and David Swanson, as well as one grandson, Steve Swanson.

"I had the privilege of visiting Stan in Douglas' home last month," Lafitte recounted. "Although he was weak, we talked mostly about the technical and ministry needs of the WRN stations which were always uppermost in his mind. He was actively corresponding by email about those issues until less than three weeks ago."

A memorial service for Stan Swanson will be held at 3 p.m. Friday, Dec. 30, at First Christian Church in Yuma. Dwight Lind, director of WRN's western region, and Ted Haney, chairman of the World Radio Network board, will represent both missions with which Stan had served.

Sources: HCJB Global, World Radio Network