Clifford Eugene “Gene” Swabby, 89, of Clinton, Missouri, passed away peacefully on the night of January 3, 2025, at the Clinton Healthcare and Rehab facility. Gene was proudly from Dunnegan, Missouri, and born on November 14, 1936, to Frank and Marjorie Alma (Butler) Swabby.
He loved to tell the tales of his childhood living in the country and was always excited to meet someone who knew where Dunnegan was. As a young man he moved to Clinton in 1951, where he met his wife Doriene (Keller) Swabby. The couple was married at New Hope Missionary Baptist Church in Clinton on May 20, 1956, and were together for a total of 72 years. Gene, like many Swabbys, never met a stranger. He could tell you stories from every chapter of his life including the time he went to Washington to pick apples, his years on the road working for PCA, going to many bluegrass festivals and working at Walmart. Spending time with Gene came with a bluegrass music soundtrack. He was a cornerstone member of the Golden Valley Bluegrass Association and prided himself on the weekends spent putting on festivals alongside his wife Doriene, sister Betty, brother-in-law Don Kaiser, and other music loving friends. If you ever made a trip to the Lester Foster Music Park east of Clinton, there is a good chance you met Gene.
Gene was a longtime printer and printed countless editions of the Clinton Daily Democrat and Clinton Eye, Warrensburg Star Journal, as well as books and pamphlets. Outside of work he was a deacon at Clear Creek Missionary Baptist Church, could often be found tending to his yard and, for many years, playing his fiddle. The perfect way to end the day in Gene’s opinion was with a bowl of chocolate ice cream. Gene would often tell a story about a time he ran into one of his lifelong friends, Dwight Alexander, in Walmart. One of the two asked the other, “Did you ever think we would get this old?” “I never put any thought into it,” the other replied.
He is preceded in death by his parents Frank and Marjorie Swabby. He spent 513 days apart from his wife Doriene before their heavenly reunion. Gene is also preceded in death by brothers John Wayne and Donnie Lee Swabby, sister Betty Lou Kaiser and two sons, Mike and Dennis Swabby.
Gene is survived by daughters, Sue (Bill) Steward and Janet Swabby, grandchildren Clayton and Jessica Steward (fiance Drew Bailey) as well as several nieces and nephews.
Funeral services will be at 3:00 p.m. Wednesday, January 7, 2026 at the Bradley & Hadley Funeral Home, Clinton. The family will receive friends from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Tuesday at the funeral home. Burial will be in Englewood Cemetery.
Flowers are accepted but the family would prefer you remember Gene by spending some time listening to a bluegrass album, sitting outside with a cup of coffee in hand. Condolences may be left online at www.bradleyhadley.com.
