Jacqueline Lee Hooker Swartz, 82, of South Burlington, Vt., passed away on June 18, 2026, surrounded by her loving family and a beautiful thunderstorm, two of her favorite things. A mom to three, stepmom to four, Mimi to 10, and nurse to countless patients and families, Jackie led with her heart, living a life of compassion, giving and pride in all those whose lives she touched.
Jackie was born in Barre, Vt., to John and Jeanette Hooker, graduating from Spaulding High School and the Mary Fletcher School of Nursing. She began her nursing career on the pediatrics floor at the Medical Center Hospital of Vermont, now the University of Vermont Medical Center, and then spent decades at Pediatric Medicine in South Burlington. When the Vermont Pediatric Pulmonary Center opened, she partnered with Dr. Donald Swartz to build a compassionate, research-oriented cystic fibrosis practice where patients and families found both treatment … and hope.
In 1996, Don and Jackie were wed in a tiny church on the rocky shores of Maine, and for 30 years they crafted a love story neither of them had dared imagine — one based in trust, faith and endless trips to the ocean. Their door was always open, and chocolate milk and Girl Scout cookies were always stocked.
Jackie leaves behind her devoted husband, Donald Swartz; children, Laurel (Belanger) Warren and husband Timothy, Mark Belanger and wife Amy, and Christopher Belanger; stepchildren, Kathryn Roosa, Bill Swartz and partner Carol, Cynthia Swartz, and Lynn (Swartz) Murphy and husband Patrick; grandchildren Ainsley, Audrey and Sophie Warren, Kaeleigh and Conri Belanger, Jillian and Alice Belanger, and Eamon, Kate (Winston) and Daelan Roosa; brother, John Hooker, and wife Cynthia; and several nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her parents; her sister, Judy; and her grandchildren Joshua and Adriana Warren.
This article appears in June 24 • 2026.