Bob Swanson is a suicide loss survivor. Bob's oldest son Michael died by suicide on March 13, 2009 at the age of 33. In Michael's honor, Bob has been a frequent speaker at various NAMI Minnesota, business and church events regarding mental illness and suicide prevention for the past four years. Bob is also a certified instructor of the following NAMI Minnesota courses: Hope For Recovery and Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR).
Bob retired in 2015 after forty five years in the construction industry. For the last twenty five years of Bob's career, he was President of Swanson & Youngdale, Inc., a national union painting and drywall contractor headquartered in Minneapolis. In addition, Bob was very active in several local and national construction industry associations, most notably he was past president of the Finishing Contractors Association International (FCA).