Full Name:  Jack Robert Swike
     Born:  April 15, 1932, Gary, Ind.
     Died:  January 12, 2009, Merrillville, Ind.
   School:  Lew Wallace High School in Gary, Indiana

Year  Pos     Hgt  Wgt  Cl  Ltr  Hometown
52-53 T       6-1  195  So       Gary, IN                        

Published by The Times, Munster, Ind. on Jan 14, 2009, page 36.

Jack R. Swike, age 75, of Merrillville, passed away peacefully in the presence of his family on Monday, January 12, 2009. He is survived by his beloved wife of 47 years, Dorothy (Warshal) Swike; and four loving children: Jeffrey, Jacqueline, Matthew and Timothy (Erin) Swike. Preceded in death by his parents, Anna and Walter Swike and mother and father-in-law, Blanche and Edward Warshal.

Jack was a graduate of Lew Wallace High School (1950). He graduated from Florida State University and earned a Masters Degree from Roosevelt University in Chicago. He also attended Michigan State University, Indiana University, Johns Hopkins, John Marshall Law School, and the University of Chicago, and obtained degrees in Public Administration/Public Finance.

Besides being a devoted husband and father, one of Jack's proudest accomplishments was that of U.S. Marine. Lieutenant Jack Swike was a graduate of the Marine Corps Officers Candidate School. During the Cold War era, he served as a Marine Intelligence Officer stationed in Atsugi, Japan with Marine Air Group 11 (MAG-11), the same unit Lee Harvey Oswald was assigned to, though at different times. Jack spent 27 years researching Oswald's activities overseas, and in 2008, completed his book, "The Missing Chapter: Lee Harvey Oswald in the Far East," which is available on Amazon.com.

Upon leaving the Marines, Jack began his professional career as a Federal Agent in Chicago. He then became the Director of Governmental Affairs and a tax lobbyist for the East Chicago Chamber of Commerce. Always seeking new adventures, Jack was hired as the first Executive Director of the Plumbing & Piping Contractors Association of Northern Indiana, a position he's held for the past 42 years.

Along the way, Jack also served as Director of the Lake County Medical Society, Director of the Portage Chamber of Commerce, coordinator of the Lake County Local Emergency Planning Committee, consultant to the Lake County Board of Commissioners and marketing instructor at IVY-Tech campus in Valparaiso.

As Director of the Lake County Library Board, Jack oversaw the expansion of the library on Rt. 30. He also served on the Merrillville Plan Commission and Board of Zoning Appeals, the Little Calumet River Redevelopment Commission, and numerous other boards and commissions.

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