John Eric Swing, a Filipino-American Community Builder, Dies at 48.

This obituary is part of a series about people who have died in the coronavirus pandemic. Read about others here.

When Food & Wine magazine declared last year that “Historic Filipinotown is L.A.’s Next Great Dining Neighborhood,” an unseen player in this rise was neither a chef nor a restaurateur.

John Eric Swing spent the last five years helping restaurants and other small businesses in the community through a nonprofit called Search to Involve Pilipino Americans, or SIPA. In April he became the organization’s executive director.

“John basically got me started,” said Justin Foronda, a registered nurse who in 2017 decided he wanted to start a restaurant. “I didn’t know anything about finance or running a business. But I’m passionate about my neighborhood, and passionate about food. He was a master connector. Any question you asked, the answer was always ‘Yes.’”