Coach Ray Swetalla

After a 15 year battle with cancer, Coach Raymond Charles Swetalla, 74, of Davenport, Iowa, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, December 23, 2025, in Chicago, Illinois.

Coach Ray was born on July 5, 1951, in Waupaca, Wisconsin, the son of William “Bill” Anton Swetalla and Doris (Jensen) Swetalla. He spent his childhood & adolescence on the family farm, helping with the animals and land. Coach Ray graduated in 1969 from Amherst High School, Amherst, Wisconsin, where he excelled at baseball, football and of course, basketball. He went on to University of Wisconsin-River Falls, in River Falls, Wisconsin, graduating in 1973 with a Bachelor’s degree in Speech Pathology. Coach Ray played basketball for all four years and baseball for one year.

Coach Ray graduated from the University of Indiana, Bloomington, Indiana, in 1979, with a Master’s Degree in Teaching and Physical Education. He was the basketball graduate assistant for Coach Bobby Knight, who became one of the most influential mentors in his life.

He met Emily (Graves) Rubley in Bloomington, Indiana, in 1979 and they married August 26, 1983. They had three wonderful children, Brittain (Swetalla) Harts, Nate Swetalla, and Dain Swetalla. After a few years in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the family settled in Davenport, Iowa, in 1988.

You can’t mention Coach Ray without mentioning basketball. His coaching career spanned nearly 50 years with positions at Cornell University, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, Teikyo Marycrest, Davenport Central High School, Lamar High School, Augustana College, Assumption High School, Rockridge High School and coaching his three kids at John F. Kennedy grade school. Among those stops he got the chance to coach his sons Nate and Dain at Davenport Central and Augustana College.

Coach Ray was the head coach at Teikyo Marycrest from 1988 through 1996. He moved to Davenport Central High School in 1997, where he coached his two sons, Nate and Dain. Coach Ray went back to coaching college basketball as the assistant coach at Augustana College from 2004-07, where he got the chance to coach Nate and Dain again.

Even when he wasn’t coaching, Coach Ray was on a basketball court. In his spare time, he trained kids on the fundamentals of the game, and if there was a practice within driving distance, Coach Ray was there. Often giving the head coach an earful on how to improve their defensive system.

Coach Ray co-founded the Iowa-Illinois Senior All-Star Games, a major event for high school athletes and known as the “last hurrah" for top seniors in the Quad Cities.

While at Davenport Central High School Coach Ray was also a physical education teacher from 1997-2014. He taught thousands of students over the years and is best known for developing the Bigger, Faster, Stronger program which taught students the importance of physical training.

In his later years, Coach Ray spent much of his time in Chicago being a grandpa to Caleb, Cade and Avi. He was known as “Ray Ray”, and could be found almost every weekend at their activities, cheering them on. He coached his final basketball team in 2021 as an assistant coach to his daughter Brittain.

Remaining to cherish Coach Ray’s memory are his children, Brittain (Jon) Harts, Chicago, Illinois; Nate Swetalla (Athena Welbourne Swetalla), Valparaiso, Indiana; Dain Swetalla, Melbourne, Australia. Brothers, John (Laurie) Swetalla, Stevens Point, Wisconsin, Paul (Jane Andrews) Swetalla, Verona, Wisconsin. Grandchildren, Caleb Harts, Cade Harts, and Avi Swetalla.

Preceding Coach Ray in death are his father, William Anton Swetalla (1993), mother, Doris (Jensen) Swetalla (2001); infant brother George Swetalla (1949).

Coach Ray lived a life in pursuit of passion for the game of basketball but often used the game as a medium to teach, mentor and strengthen communities. For all who love and were loved by him, there is no way to express the impact he made on their lives or the legacy of love he is leaving behind.

Funeral services and Mass of Christian Burial for Coach Ray will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. Friday, January 2, 2026, at Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church, Davenport. Burial will take place at a later date at St. Patrick’s Catholic Cemetery, Lanark, Wisconsin. Visitation will be held from 3 until 5 p.m., with moments of reflection until 6 p.m., on Thursday, January 1, 2026, at the Halligan-McCabe-DeVries Funeral Home. An additional visitation will take place on Friday from 9:30 a.m. until the time of the Mass at Our Lady of Victory. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Our Lady of Victory Parish, Davenport, Iowa, or St. Josaphat School Athletic Association, Chicago, Illinois.