Junior " To-To" Pellegrin
November 10, 2006
Quilts auction to benefit local groups
November 15, 2006
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
City Councilman Norman Swanner has died after a massive heart attack, family members said.
Swanner, who had just been re-elected to the council’s District A seat, died Wednesday afternoon, according to his wife, Debbie. He was 56.
Debbie Swanner said her husband had the attack at work about 2:40 p.m., and “was probably gone in a minute.” He was taken from Base Logistics, on the west bank of the Mississippi River in New Orleans, by ambulance to West Jefferson Medical Center in Marrero, where he was declared dead, Swanner said.
“He never, never met a bad person,” she said of her husband. “He had a good word for everybody. He touched the hearts of everyone he came in contact with.”
Mayor Charles Caillouet, a close friend, said Swanner’s death was a huge loss for the city.
“He was an unbelievably generous individual,” Caillouet said. “He was always upbeat and positive. He had a very good mind to deal with issues. He would always listen to both sides. I always admired that in him.”
Swanner was first elected to fill the unexpired term of Councilman Adley Landry, who also died in office, in April 2003. He would have begun his first full term on Dec. 11.
Swanner was a huge fan of Nicholls State football and would often be found cooking before games. He also helped start the A+ Scholar program at the school, which raises money for scholarships.
“He was always a big supporter of anything going on in Thibodaux,” Council President Chad Mire said. “He was always the first one in line to help out.”
State law requires the council to declare Swanner’s seat vacant within 10 days, Council Administrator Tommy Eschete said. Within 30 days after that, the council must appoint someone to replace him until a special election can be held, probably in the spring, he said.
In addition to his wife, Swanner is survived by two children.
Funeral arrangements were incomplete.
