Laurence Collins Swasey, a longtime wireless industry analyst and a reporter for Multichannel News in the late 1980s, died on Oct. 20 in Burlington, N.C., according to friends and a locally published obituary.

Swasey, who went by Larry, was 55 years old and was the recipient of a transplanted heart in 1988. After that, he became a widely quoted advocate for transplant patients and for organ donations. 

Swasey, who also wrote for Electronic News, MIS Week, Wireless Week and other industry publications before becoming an independent analyst, was remembered on Facebook for his kindness and wit, and a passion for music and for the Boston Red Sox. Family and friends plan to remember him at a memorial gathering at Fenway Park in Boston in May 2018.