Lt. Col. James William Ryan

Published 9:12 pm Tuesday, April 29, 2014

LT. COL. JAMES WILLIAM RYAN

Oct. 11, 1924 – April 24, 2014

Lt. Col. James William Ryan, (U.S.A.F. retired) age 89, of Washington, died Thursday, April 24, 2014 at his home surrounded by his family.

Funeral services will be held 3 p.m. on Friday, May 2, 2014 from the Chapel of Paul Funeral Home & Crematory in Washington, conducted by Eddie Bowen.   Graveside military rites will follow at Oakdale Cemetery.

The family will receive friends from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, May 2, 2014 prior to the service at Paul Funeral Home & Crematory in Washington and other times at his home.

Lt. Col. Ryan was born in Chicago, IL on October 11, 1924.  He was the son of the late James Darling Ryan and Adeline Passarella Ryan.   Lt. Col. Ryan served 30 years in Army Air Corps/Air Force.  He was a Command as well as an Instructor Pilot in multiple aircraft from small trainers through B-24’s, his favorite plane. Lt. Col. Ryan flew in multiple commands: MAC, SAC, TAC, ATC as well as most of the military theaters in Southeast Asia, Europe, Central and South America. He served during World War II, Korean War, and Bay of Pigs in Panama as well as the Vietnam War.  Lt. Col. Ryan had various special assignments such as assisting in the design of Ramstein AFB flightlines, Director of the Military Tropic Survivor School in the Panama Canal Zone, Sociology and Aerospace Engineering Instructor at Colorado State University and Assistant Director of the Defense Language Institute for Military, transferring it from Washington, D.C.  to Monterey, California for further expansion.

Upon retiring from the Air Force, Lt. Col. Ryan developed High School Air Force ROTC for Johnston county area of North Carolina.  Once that was on track, he moved to Tyrell County, NC to become the Director of Social Services until 1991 when he retired.

Lt. Col. Ryan was married to Marjorie Jane Padgett, who preceded him in death, December 3, 2012.

He is survived by his children:  James Ryan, Jr.; Bonnie Ryan Lee and husband, Randy; MSgt. Michael Ryan (U.S.A.F. retired) and wife, Katie; Maj. Patricia Ryan (U.S.A.F. retired) and Timothy Ryan; grandchildren: James Ryan III; Shane Vincent; Tracey Vincent Boyles; Jenny Ryan; Jessica Kurtz; David Ryan; Veronica Ryan; Ralph (Trey) Lee III and great grandchildren: Zane Vincent; Landel Vincent; J.D. Vincent; Sarah Boyles; Shannon Boyles; Paden Kurtz and Ryan Kurtz.

In addition to his parents and his wife, Lt. Col. Ryan was preceded in death by his sister, Dorothy Waltz.

Memorials may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project, P.O. Box 758517, Topeka, Kansas 66675 or the Beaufort County Humane Society, P.O. Box 8, Washington, N.C.  27889.

Online condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.paulfuneralhome.com

Paul Funeral Home & Crematory in Washington is honored to serve the Ryan family.