Ryan James Littrell

Ryan James Littrell, 35 years, of Kansas City , passed away on Sunday January 30, 2022 at St. Lukes Hospital Of Kansas City.

He was born on Thursday July 24, 1986 in Independence Missouri. He Is the son of Dennis Littrell and Twyla Denise Taylor.

Ryan spent his early years in Lawson. He loved playing on his little league baseball leagues. By 6 years of age he expressed that he didn't want to grow up stating "adults don't get to play with toys & don't have any fun," and he wanted to stay little & have fun forever.

During middle school, Ryan relocated to the Waldo area where he met Dave, & they became fast friends. During high school he met Bob, a second very close friend. They were typical young teenagers & enjoyed skateboarding and video games. He worked at Planet Sub where he met Big Al, Cam, and Marty. During the summer he enjoyed disc golf and at about that time, he was gifted the nickname "Lefty." In 2008, his older brother Scott passed away. Ryan chose to step-up and carry on the tradition of deep frying the Thanksgiving turkey. This tradition expanded outward to include his secondary parents Rick and Shelly.

Later Lefty moved to Colorado with Alicia. He lived there for three winters and enjoyed snowboarding and the mountain air. When Lefty returned home to the Waldo area, it was nothing to pick right back up with his friends. The group began playing the card game magic. Big Al would fix dinner before the card game. Players seemed to come and go as their schedules allowed. When Big Al moved to New Orleans, Christina took over meal prep for the gamers. Lefty loved it. He would keep a backpack full of cards and would put together his own deck of cards to irritate everyone.

Ryan was an apprentice for the Carpenter's Union and worked for Mike's. When COVID hit, he became more of fixture at Mike's where he met new friends. What Lefty enjoyed the most was socializing. It could be with 2 close friends, or with a large group. He loved life and never met a stranger. He had an amazing gift to make anyone he spoke to feel accepted and comfortable. He could relate to anyone and had a contagious attitude and smile.

Ryan is survived by his mother, Denise Taylor (Kansas City, MO), father, Dennis Littrell (Lawson, MO), siblings Tracy (Kit) Nolker (Lexington, MO), Josh Littrell (Lawson),

Several nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, and many close friends.

He is preceded in death by his maternal grandparents, Jeannie Bridger Woods (Excelsior Springs) and Pete Schwarzel (Lawson), paternal grandparents: Wilma and Bennie Littrell (Wheeling, MO) and brother, Scott Nolker

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Wayside Waifs in honor of Ryan