Theodore “Ted” Swem was born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa in 1917. He became infatuated with the outdoors and nature after joining the Boy Scouts at the age of 12. His interests diverged into all facets of natural history, and he became an avid birder, botanist, fisherman, geologist, and outdoorsman. He attended schools in Cedar Rapids.

Ted graduated from Iowa State University at Ames, Iowa, with a B.S. degree in Forestry and spent one year at the Biology School at Harvard University. Ted moved to Colorado in 1944 to work for the Colorado State Game and Fish Department.

In 1945, he met Helen Olson, a Kansas farm girl working in Denver, and they married in 1947. He left Game and Fish as Coordinator for the Federal Aid to the Wildlife Restoration program to coordinate wildlife, recreation, and land use planning in a four-state area for the Bureau of Reclamation.

In 1957, Ted transferred to the National Park Service, and Ted and Helen moved their growing family to Omaha, where he became a park planner. In 1961, they were off to Washington, where Ted served in a variety of positions, including Chief of Park and Recreation Area Planning, Superintendent of National Capital Parks, and Assistant Director for Cooperative Activities.

His proudest professional accomplishments include his cooperative work with foreign governments in Japan, India, and Africa as they established park systems, and his work in protecting Alaska’s wildlands.

After developing an extreme interest in Alaska in the 1960s, he became Chairman of the Alaska Planning Groups for the Department of Interior in 1973. In this capacity, he oversaw the program to identify and protect important natural lands in Alaska, which culminated in legislation in 1980 that designated over 100 million acres of Alaska as National Parks and National Wildlife Refuges.

The Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) of 1980 was one of the most ambitious conservation initiatives ever enacted. It established 104.3 million acres of National Parks, National Wildlife Refuges and other protected units in Alaska. It designated wilderness in the Tongass National Forest, Wild and Scenic Rivers, the Steese National Conservation Area and the White Mountains National Recreation Area.

"Never before have we seized the opportunity to preserve so much of America's natural and cultural heritage on so grand a scale," said President Jimmy Carter when he signed the measure into law. But today, over two decades since ANILCA became law, many of the lands the law intended to protect remain under serious threats.

Ted was recipient of the DOI’s Meritorious and Distinguished Service awards and retired from the National Park Service in 1976.

Beyond his professional accomplishments, Ted is also well known for his persistent and effective avocational conservation efforts. He was instrumental in the establishment of Colorado’s State Park System in 1950s and was involved in myriad local land use and conservation efforts after his retirement.

He served on the Governing Council of The Wilderness Society from 1962 to the mid-1980s, and as President of the Governing Council from 1978 to 1980. The Wilderness Society awarded him the Bob Marshall Award on their 50th Anniversary in 1985, and he received awards from numerous other conservation organizations recognizing his tireless work and able leadership.

Ted and Helen were married for 58 years. Their children, Jo, Teddy, Ginny and Rae, now live in Denver, Brazil and Alaska.