A native of Iowa, Gary Swenson, KA2HAN, served in the US Army for 30 years before retiring as a colonel in 2005. Before entering the military, he had earned his master's and doctoral degrees in economics from Iowa State University.

His lifelong love of learning and reading carried through into his amateur radio career -- and now prominently into his legacy. Gary became a Silent Key this past June unexpectedly when he had a heart attack at the age of 75. His estate is funding the establishment of a Dean of Library Services on the university campus. The library is a cornerstone of the university, with more than 2.3 million physical items in its collections and another 2 million e-books as well as access to online publications in various disciplines. According to the university website, more than 1.5 million downloads of the campus' scholarship and research projects are completed each year from its digital repository

The library services' inaugural dean, Hilary Seo, said the gift would [quote] "benefit future generations of students well into our next century of service." [endquote] That educational mission is consistent with much of what Gary did after retiring from the military: he tutored at a community action center near his home in the state of Virginia and was active with the Mount Vernon Amateur Radio Club.