Julie Rae Swango, 67, of Normal, passed away peacefully with her family by her side on Saturday, Dec. 14, at OSF Saint Joseph's Medical Center in Bloomington, IL.

Julie was born on Aug. 31, 1952, in Bloomington, to Archie and Regina (Feit) Bauman. She married Gary Swango, her high school sweetheart, on Dec. 29, 1973. He survives.

Also surviving are her children, Alissa Swango, of Washington, D.C., Blake (Sarah) Swango of Alexandria, Va., and Kelsey (John) Billings of Davidsonville, Md.; mother-in-law, Hazel Swango of Colfax; grandchildren, William and Macie Swango and Luke and Jack Billings; sisters, Patricia Norton of Cooksville and Betty (Clinton) Wolfe of Springfield.

She was preceded in death by her parents, one sister, Shirley Miller, and one brother, James Bauman.

Julie graduated from Octavia High School, where she participated in plays, band, the Girls Athletic Association (GAA), cheerleading, and was named homecoming queen her senior year. Throughout high school, she was active in 4-H, where she perfected her sewing, baking and craft skills.

Julie received her undergraduate degree in elementary education from Illinois Wesleyan University in 1973, and her graduate degree in education from Illinois State University in 1994.

As a young mother, she sewed her children's Halloween costumes and matching Christmas outfits, countless decorative pillows, curtains and upholstery projects. Her chocolate chip cookies, Special K bars and yeast rolls were always family favorites, especially around the holidays.

With her creative talents, she started a silk plant business called SilkWorks in the early '90s. Out of her home, she arranged and sold silk trees and plants, outfitting Avantis in Normal at the time, as well as all the Hardee's locations in Central Illinois.

In 2009, she retired from McLean County Unit 5 School District after 35 years of teaching. She adored her young students and fellow teachers at Oakdale Elementary and Grove Elementary Schools, where she taught third grade.

In her years after retirement, Julie took advantage of traveling the world. She visited the Holy Land and waded in the Jordan River with her "Mud Sisters," and cruised and railed around Alaska, where her personal highlights were circling Denali by air and landing on Mendenhall Glacier by helicopter. She drove through 16 national parks across North America, and enjoyed the markets and long lunches in the Provence region of France. On two recent trips to France with her daughters, she visited the apparition sites of the Blessed Virgin Mary at the Chapel of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal in Paris and the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes in Lourdes, both of which she proudly shared her spiritual experiences with friends and small group at church upon her return.

Julie enjoyed spending time "up north" at the family cabin in Hayward, Wis., where she'd end her day on the deck watching the sun set over Callahan Lake. Her love for flowers is reflected in the perennial garden she planted and groomed there. She always looked forward to having her children and their families at the cabin together each summer. Watching her grandchildren play and fish off the dock was among her most simplest of joys.

Julie was known for her kind, compassionate spirit, and she was always fair. She was an avid Cubs fan, a devoted wife, a loyal friend, a caring sister, and a nurturing mother. Known to her grandchildren as "JuJu," she was also a proud and loving grandmother.

Julie was a member of St. Patrick's Catholic Church of Merna and Sigma Kappa sorority at Illinois Wesleyan University, both of which blessed her with lifelong friends.

Her visitation will be held from 4-7 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 19, at St. Patrick's Catholic Church of Merna in Bloomington. Her funeral will be at 9:30 a.m., Friday, Dec. 20, at St. Patrick's Catholic Church of Merna with Fr. Dustin Schultz officiating, followed by her burial at Wiley Cemetery in Colfax.

Memorials may be made to the Illinois CancerCare, Indiana University Simon Cancer Center, or St. Jude's Children's Hospital.

Duffy-Pils Memorial Home in Colfax is handling arrangements. An online registry is available at www.duffypilsmemorialhome.com.