Richard “Dick” Lee Swenson
Richard “Dick” Lee Swenson, age 70, of Concordia, Kansas, died Sunday, July 26, 2020, at Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital in Omaha, Nebraska. Dick was born on October 14, 1949, in Concordia, Kansas, to Emil and Helen Margaret (Benson) Swenson. Dick was baptized on Feb. 21, 1960, and grew up in the Concordia Baptist Church. He attended Sibley School (one-room school) through the eighth grade and graduated from Concordia High School in 1967. Dick then graduated from Cloud County Community College in 1969, and in 1971, he received a bachelor’s degree in Animal Science and Industry from Kansas State University. Following graduation, he began a 40-year career working for Moorman Feed/ADM in several communities and became a district manager in Iowa before moving to Marysville, Kansas, to be closer to the family farm. While in Marysville, he met the love of his life, Denise.
In April of 1977, Dick moved to Concordia, Kansas, to begin farming. He was confirmed in the Lutheran faith at Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church and married Denise Duensing on July 30, 1977, in Marysville, Kansas. They were blessed with three sons: Ryan (1980), Kevin (1984), and Benjamin (1988). As a father, he instilled in his children a strong faith in God and the love of God’s creation. Dick farmed for 43 years and continued developing the Swenson family’s Registered Horned Hereford cattle – receiving the Breeder of the Year award from the Kansas Hereford Association in 2012.
In 2015, Dick, Denise, and Ryan purchased Duis Meat Processing in Concordia and Smoky River Meats in Salina. In 2019, Dick and Denise were nominated and were received into the annual Master Farmer/Master Farm Homemaker class at Kansas State University. Dick loved his family deeply. As a father, he never missed school events, games, or 4-H activities. Nothing stood between Dick and a K-State game – he made sure to pass his love for K-State sports on to everyone in his family. He was also the world’s best grandpa to three grandsons.
Dick was preceded in death by his parents and father-in-law, Melvin Duensing. Survivors include his wife, Denise; children, Ryan (Melissa) of Concordia; Kevin and his son Nolan of Concordia; Benjamin (Jennifer) and their sons Walter and Gabriel of Phillipsburg; brother Edward (Judy) of Emory, Texas; mother-in-law, Arlene Duensing of Marysville, and many nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.
Funeral services will be 10:00 a.m. Friday, July 31, 2020, at the Cloud County Fairgrounds Commercial Building with Rev. Jason Toombs officiating. Burial will follow at Pleasant Hill Cemetery, Concordia. Visitation will be from 1-8 p.m., with family greeting friends from 6-8 p.m., Thursday, July 30, 2020, at Chaput-Buoy Funeral Home, Concordia. Memorials may be made to the family, they will designate it at a later date, and may be sent in care of the funeral home. For online condolences, please visit www.chaputbuoy.com.