Rev. Edward J. Ryan Jr., 92

A funeral Mass was offered June 16 at Sacred Heart Church, Troy, for Rev. Edward J. Ryan Jr., who died July 12. He was 92 and had been a priest of the Albany Diocese for 66 years.

A native of Troy, he served as chaplain at St. Mary's Hospital there; as associate pastor at St. Mary's parish in Troy; and as pastor of St. Peter's parish in Delhi, where he remained from 1964 until 1996, when he retired for the first time. In 2001, he was appointed administrator for St. John the Baptist parish in Walton and Holy Family in Downsville, a position he held until his second retirement in 2002. He was also involved with CYO, campus ministry, vocation recruitment and serving as chaplain to the Troy Police Department.

On the occasion of his 60th anniversary of priesthood in 2007, Father Ryan told The Evangelist, "The easiest way to talk about the priesthood is to talk about a fellow priest who worked in Walton: Rev. Eugene Willis. He was the personification of the Beatitudes. I also give credit to the marvelous Daughters of Charity at St. Mary's School in Troy who had such an influence on my life."

It seems very like the priest who quietly lived out decades of ministry at just a few parishes and even came out of retirement to serve two more churches to defer attention and praise to others. Father Ryan was called an "angel on earth" by those who knew him best.

Interment was in St. Peter's Cemetery, Troy.[[In-content Ad]]