Thomas A. Ryan MD's Obituary
Thomas A. Ryan, MD, age 82, of Appleton and Waupaca, WI passed away unexpectedly on Tuesday, October 10, 2017. Tom was born in Washington, DC on September 4, 1935, the son of the late James and Marie (Rhomberg) Ryan. On December 19, 1959, Tom married the love of his life, Joan Blackstone, whom he met on a blind date. On the day of his medical school graduation, he welcomed his first of four children, Elizabeth. He later welcomed three more children: Martha, Tom and Chuck. Following his medical training, Tom served in the medical corps of the U.S. Army and then spent most of his remaining professional years in Appleton, Wisconsin. As a pillar of Appleton's medical community, he is recognized as its first Medical Oncologist and first to administer chemotherapy to cancer patients there. He co-founded and served as the first Medical Director of Appleton Community Hospice, and later served as the final President of the Unified Medical-Dental Staff of St. Elizabeth Hospital and Appleton Medical Center. The final years of his professional life (which he called his most rewarding) were spent delivering primary internal medicine to the rural community of Wautoma, WI. In addition to his dedication to medicine, Tom was deeply devoted to social, spiritual, and intellectual matters. Tom passionately studied American history, fulfilled a dream by building a log cabin by hand, and immersed himself in the art of Wisconsin lake life. Throughout his life, he always instilled in his children and grandchildren a great appreciation of education, intellectual curiosity, bad puns, and a tireless concern for improving the lives of others.
Tom is survived by his wife: Joan Ryan, Appleton; his children: Elizabeth (Mike) Panzer, Appleton; Martha (Kevin) Toye, Oak Park, IL; Thomas B. (Maren) Ryan, Minneapolis, MN; and Charles (Jessica) Ryan, MD, Mill Valley, CA; his grandchildren: Ryan (Annie) Panzer; Mari (Nathaniel) Card; Sam Panzer; Connor, Brendan & Eamon Toye; Cate, Elise & Patrick Ryan; and Lucas Combs; his brothers: Jim (Bob Gilroy) Ryan, Hampton, CT and Charles (Margreet) Ryan, Dubuque, IA. He was preceded in death by his parents. The funeral mass will be held on Saturday, October 14 at 10:30 AM at St. Mark's Episcopal Church, Waupaca with Reverend Nigel Bousfield officiating. Burial will follow at Barton Cemetery, Town of Farmington, Wisconsin. Visitation will be held on Friday evening from 4 PM to 7 PM at the Holly Funeral Home in Waupaca and on Saturday morning from 9:30 AM until the funeral. In lieu of flowers, a memorial scholarship fund has been established in Tom's name through the Community Foundation - Fox Valley.
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