| Biography* | | Eugene Joseph Ryan, 1923-2008:
Eugene was the last of four children and the second of two sons. His father Richard was born in Minnesota, his mother Stella in Iowa and his three siblings in North Dakota. His parents operated a farm in the Los Fresnos area of Cameron County, Texas. Eugene was raised there, graduated high school in 1940 and went to work for Pan American Airways at the Municpal Airport in Brownsville. In 1942 Eugene registered for the World War II draft. He listed his residence as 1-mile north of Los Fresnos on North Paredes Line Road. Eugene's mailing address was a Post Office Box. He was 5'-8½" tall, weighed 122-pounds, had brown eyes and hair and a light complexion. Eugene had no identifiable marks or scars. He signed the registration G. Ryan on June 30th. Eugene enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Force on 12 April 1943. When the war ended, he was stationed in England and was discharged there on 09 April 1946 with the rank of Corporal. Eugene stayed in Europe for five-years assisting with recovery efforts in France. He returned to the United States from Bremerhaven, Germany on 12 June 1951 aboard the USNS Gen Wm O Darby2 and arrived at the Port of New York eight-days later. Eugene immediately enrolled in Harvard University, Boston, Massachusetts and graduated in 1954. Following graduation he worked at the Department of Social Services for the State of Massachusetts for 38 years before retiring in 1994. Eugene was a devout Catholic and a supporter of the Democratic Party. For many years he spent the Christmas week at Saint Joseph’s Abbey in Spencer, Massachusetts.
Eugene, 84, died on a Tuesday at the Sherrill House Nursing Center in Boston after a lengthy illness. He was survived by a niece in Florida (not mentioned in the obituary) and a nephew in Texas. Eugene was preceded in death by his parents, a brother Hugh and sisters Edith Odneal and Olive Delaney. A memorial service was be held at Saint Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church on the 1st of March. Mann & Mann Funeral Home was in charge.
On his tombstone is engraved ''A TEXAS BOY & HARVARD MAN'' |
