Kevin S. Swihart, 48, finished his earthly race on Saturday, July 6, 2024. He was born on August 31, 1975, to Charles and Sandy (Nugent) Swihart in Owensboro, Kentucky. He was a lifelong Hancock County resident who grew up farming, exploring, and raising (just enough) hell in the countryside of the Blackford bottoms with his many cousins and friends. Kevin attended Hancock County High School graduating in 1993, after four years of making his friends laugh, excelling at the saxophone and tolerating the rest. He was a member of Blackford Baptist Church, having given his life to Jesus as a young teen.
To know Kevin was to love him and even if you didn’t love him, his quick wit and infectious laugh made it impossible not to like him. Never meeting a stranger, Kevin had an uncanny ability to reach people in a deep and positive way, often leaving those he met better in some way than he found them. He lived simply, and loved spending time with family and friends, watching University of Kentucky basketball (even during the rough years), was an expert on Bigfoot, UFO’s, treasure hunting and conspiracy theories and with the help of YouTube and pure stubborn determination, could fix or build just about anything. He was a loyal friend, a great listener and always meant it when he told someone “If you need something, let me know”. He could find humor in just about any situation and if he couldn’t find it, he would make it. A pro at re-writing lyrics to songs to get a laugh, Kevin loved music and could always be counted on to find the perfect song for any occasion. If you knew him, you and he probably have “a song” even if he never told you what it was.
Kevin leaves behind his beloved children, Savannah Swihart and Kaleb Swihart, who were the lights of his life, his best friends, and his greatest accomplishment. As a father, he taught his children the value and importance of honesty, integrity, good work ethic, compassion, and kindness by being a daily role model for those attributes while also teaching them that they could make mistakes, could fail and did not have to be perfect to be loved. He believed that his children were the embodiment of everything good he ever did, and he loved them without end. Along with his parents and children, Kevin is survived by his older brothers Jeff (Sondra) Swihart and Chad (Angie) Swihart, whom he looked up to (and mildly annoyed) his entire life, his sister, Kim (Keith) Hall, who he said got all the looks in the family, the mother of his children, Kasey Swihart, who he loved, supported and aggravated to no end for over two decades, and his partner, Mandy Huff, with whom he embarked on new adventures, both close to home and far away. Kevin will be remembered fondly, and with plenty of happy and hilarious stories, by his many aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews, and friends.
A service to honor Kevin’s life will take place at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, July 12, 2024 at Blackford Baptist Church in Hawesville, Kentucky with the burial immediately following in the church cemetery. Family will greet friends and loved ones on Thursday, July 11 from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at Blackford Baptist Church and again on Friday from 9:00 a.m. until the time of the service.