Ryan, James Clifton 85 years, of Anthem, Colorado, passed into eternity on Wednesday, June 15th, surrounded by the love of his family. Jim was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on April 21, 1931. He attended Nekoosa Elementary School and Washington High School, and went on to attend Ripon College, where studies in psychology prepared him for service in the U.S. Army in Washington, DC during the Korean War. He played football for Ripon, but his great passion was theater. Jim was active in Ripon College Theater as a member of Theta Alpha Phi, the school's drama honor society, and pursued this interest in his adult life, appearing in several community theater productions. He married his "leading lady" Linda (Rowe) in Milwaukee on June 25, 1966. They would have celebrated 50 years of marriage this year, a milestone for which he felt great pride and profound gratitude. They welcomed two children, son Steve Ryan (Anne) and daughter Jennifer Gero (Brian) as well as 10 grandchildren: Amelia, Lauren, Kaela, Isabel, Emma, Logan, Olivia, Peter, Mateo and Joseph. Jim was charming and personable, with a talent for spinning tales traits that surely contributed to his long and successful career in sales with Reynolds Aluminum. His position demanded travel but also permitted long summer vacations (which almost always seemed to involve car trouble and ensuing hijinks). Many happy memories of these trips with friends and family are carried forward, and every niece, nephew and grandkid can tell the story of the time an I-beam was welded to the family station wagon in place of the rear bumper. He was a sly cribbage master and a card shark who won card games with a wide smile and a mischievous twinkle in his eye. He had a soft spot for poetry (a love he shared with daughter Jen), and was bursting with pride for his children, who are "the best teacher and best lawyer in the world". Even as age and illness advanced, he could be counted on to lead the family in singing the "tow-wow-wow-wel" song with great merriment, and so we commend him to our Heavenly Father who is surely glad to add his voice to the heavenly chorus. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to Freedom Service Dogs of America, in honor of Jim's great affection for Surrey, a service dog "wash-out", who was a much loved friend and companion for Jim and Linda in later life. Donations can be made online at www.freedomservicedogs.org. A delayed memorial service at Broomfield Methodist Church, 545 W 10th Ave, Broomfield, Colorado, will be held at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, July 23rd to coincide with a previously planned family reunion.

Published in Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on July 13, 2016

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