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In memory of

Janet Ryan

Yarmouth, MA, USA

January 13, 1937 - September 7, 2018

Jan 13, 1937 - Sep 7, 2018

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Janet Ryan, born in New York City on January 13, 1937, raised in Manhattan, Brooklyn and the Connecticut sea coast, died on September 7, 2018 at the age of 81 after a long battle.

Janet was raised by her father, Edward Ryan and her maternal grandmother and her maternal great aunt, having suffered the loss of her young mother, Catherine Hickey Ryan, at an early age. Her affection for the two women who raised her never waned and her happy memories from childhood were inextricably intertwined with them. Janet treasured her time with her grandmother and great-aunt in the Brooklyn brownstone that was the seat of her happiest childhood moments.

The great joy of Janet’s life, her only child, Kevin, was tragically killed in an attempt to help a distressed motorist in 2009. The guiding light of the steps of AA and the love and support of friends helped carry her through the horrors of the loss. Janet was proud of her hard-won sobriety and was never ashamed to speak freely of her experiences before and after finding AA. She considered the date of her first meeting her true birthday and was always so pleased when others remembered the date.

After many years in Westchester County, New York, she decided to make Cape Cod her home in 1995. She loved living in Yarmouth Port and cherished her neighbors who embraced her with care, love and friendship through good times and bad. She loved to sit at Sea Street beach in her car, smoke cigarettes, drink her coffee and read the newspaper. An excellent amateur folk artist, she was pleasantly surprised by people’s response to her work and was thrilled to sell her paintings. More than anything else, she loved to talk.

Janet is survived by her cousin, Helen Crowe of Syosset, New York, Kevin’s best friend and Janet’s second “son”, Matthew Raver of Plainview, New York, her many friends and neighbors, the dedicated and loving caregivers from the VNA, Yarmouth Council on Aging, the wonderful staff at Wingate at Harwich, the angels of Fidelis Hospice and her dear friend, Stephen Briscoe of North Truro, MA. At Janet’s request, there will be no services. Her ashes will join Kevin’s and her spirit will finally fly free.

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