Shirley Lou Swanson Davenport

Shirley Lou Swanson Davenport, the daughter of Einer Carl and Janet Martha Elizabeth (Hodges) Swanson, was born on January 4, 1928 in Omaha, Nebraska. Shirley entered eternal rest on September 14, 2014 at Afton Care Center, Afton, Iowa, at the age of eighty-six years, eight months and ten days.
Shirley attended Ponca School through eighth grade and graduated from Omaha North High School in 1945. She worked at Mutual of Omaha and Omaha City Glass. Shirley then studied to be a deaconess at Valparaiso University in Indiana. After two years, she joined the Foreign Service and moved to Maryland where she met Edward Cresswell Davenport and they were married in 1960.
Shirley and Ed lived in Kuwait for two years and travelled in Europe and to Egypt with their family. They also lived in Wisconsin; Texas, Pennsylvania; retired to Nebraska; and then moved to Iowa to be near family.
Shirley enjoyed spoiling her grandchildren and collecting books. She was always active in her church and loved to read.
Left to cherish Shirley’s memory are her children: Susan Elizabeth (Clark) Finehout, Creston; and Jonathan Edward (Pam) Davenport, Fort Collins, CO; her sister: Loree (Ken) Morrison, Omaha, NE; her grandchildren: Russel Edward Finehout, Creston; Sarah Kathryn (Patrick) Brown, Columbus, Ohio; Hannah Jean (Josh) Kendrick, Creston; and Isaac Zebulon Lee Finehout, Creston; and other family and many friends.
Preceding Shirley in death were her parents; her husband in 2009; her sister, Donna Lee Lyles; and her brother, Leland Carl Swanson.