LAKEPORT, Calif. – Joy Swetnam, whose husband for 18 years and five days, Cliff, died last week after a four-year illness, said it helped her through the grieving process to talk about him.
There was much to say about Cliff, who passed at age 66 on Dec. 14 after a full and productive life.
As an Alameda County Sheriff's Department deputy for 28 and a half years, he was on the side of law and order.
As a Lake County Superior Court bailiff employed by the Lake County Sheriff's Office for 10 and a half years, Cliff was on the side of justice.
As a leading member of the Lake County Planning Commission for 12 years and a Lake County resident since the late 1990s, he was on the side of seeing that fair and equitable decisions were made with respect to the county's future.
And whenever he had the time he was on the side of a lake somewhere in the U.S. fishing for bass.
Indeed, few anglers were better at reeling in the big ones than Swetnam, who fished competitively on the Tournament Bass Trails and won several awards.
“He was an incredible person,” said Joy. “It wasn't until I saw it in the newspaper that I realized all of his accomplishments and what he really meant.
“I've had a number of phone calls and messages on Facebook,” she added. “I thought I'd have to rent the Oakland Coliseum to hold them all.”
Perhaps because in life Swetnam was as steady as a rock, few people realized all that he did until he would no longer be here to do it.
But District 4 Lake County Supervisor Anthony Farrington, who appointed Swetnam to the Lake County Planning Commission in 2001, was one of those people who had knowledge of the ways and wisdom of the man.
“I went through a number of candidates. What struck me about Cliff was his ability to analyze and interpret the law,” Farrington recalled. “His background as a law enforcement and police officer gave him a set of tools that most commissioners didn't have in terms of serving as an adjudicator.
“He could make a decision insulated from politics. What I liked about Cliff were his years as a police officer and dedication as a Lake County Sheriff's deputy and as a bailiff. I wanted somebody who was truly a public servant and could make decisions that were consistent with the laws and the intent of the law and was able to separate the politics.
“He could make solid decisions based on his knowledge of what would be best for the community,” Farrington added.
Speaking of Swetnam's decade as a bailiff, retired Lake County Superior Court Judge Arthur Mann asserted: “Cliff was a long-time bailiff of mine and a personal friend as well, and he had a long and distinguished career in law enforcement both in Lake and Alameda counties. He was a professional and dedicated bailiff. I already miss him and I'm going to miss him in the future.”
Frieda Camotta, who was on the Lake County Planning Commission for a time with Swetnam, saw the application of the attributes that made Swetnam a cut above the average commissioner.
A Planning Commissioner of the Year award he received at the state level from the California Planning Commissioners Association spoke to that. Swetnam was a member of that organization.
“He had analytical skills,” Camotta said. “He knew how to separate truth from fiction and asked insightful questions that brought out information in a hearing that was important to all of us, plus the law enforcement background ... and he always did his homework.”
Joy Swetnam could speak to that.
“He loved being a planning commissioner,” was the way she put it. “Every Sunday he would spend all day going over all of the paperwork that was given to him by the commission. He would spend weeks making sure that the decisions he made were the right decisions.”
Swetnam played a pivotal role in several land issues that had a bearing on the county.
“He left his footprint on a high number of projects that have developed our community,” said Farrington. “He was able to bring a healthy perspective into his decisions.”
One of the more notable projects in which Swetnam assumed a leadership role was Rattlesnake Island.
“It was controversial because of the Native American community,” said Camotta. “They wanted us to give them their island back. But that was not in our purview to do. We asked for conditions, which were mostly archeological concerns.”
Ultimately, the owner was able to build a small home and a caretakers cabin there, “but we started without permits,” Camotta said.
No less controversial was the relocation of the an alcohol and drug rehabilitation facility, Camotta recalled, because of “NIMBY” (not-in-my-backyard) issues.
“It was difficult to find a place for it,” she said. “We tried a number of places and we finally found one up above Anderson Springs. We made a public site visit, one of the few that we ever made.”
Said Farrington: “Cliff helped me approve the facility up in the Anderson Springs area. We had a facility in my district in the northern Lakeport area where we had an old dilapidated hotel. He and I worked together with the planning commission and the Board of Supervisors in moving the facility to an area that was very serene and had cabins so (clients) had a better environment for treatment.”
Joy Swetnam recalled her husband's concern for habitual smokers, which he himself was and which may have contributed to his illness.
The lifelong smoker volunteered at Lake Family Resource Center, speaking to smoking cessation classes, his wife said.
“He would bring all his medications and drag his oxygen tank to the front of the room so everyone could see what smoking had done to him. He encouraged people to ask questions, no matter how personal they were and he would answer them honestly,” she said.
“A lot of people called him after his presentations to let him know that he was the reason they were able to quit smoking,” she added.
Farrington said he would remember the times when he and Swetnam would get together over a beer and talk about decisions made at the planning level and decisions Farrington made on the Board of Supervisors.
“There were times when he would try to influence me,” Farrington added. “That was his personality and I always cherished that.”
Said Camotta: “He cared about what Lake County was going to look like in the future. He used to say 'God's not making any more land, so we better take care of what we have.'”
One last comment by Joy.
“. . . And, oh my god, that man had more women admirers. Sometimes I pointed that out to him and said, 'Oh, honey, they're really coming on to you.' He was totally oblivious.”
Cliff Swetnam's obituary can be viewed at http://bit.ly/1l6aSnA .
Email John Lindblom at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .