James J. "Red" Ryan

Atkinson, NH: James J. "Red" Ryan, 76, a resident of Atkinson, died peacefully on Wednesday, September 17, 2025 at his home, following an extended illness. Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts and raised and educated in East Cambridge, he was a member of the Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School Class of 1967. Red served as a sergeant in the U.S. Air Force from 1968 until his honorable discharge in 1971 and was a recipient of the National Defense Service Medal and the Air Force Medal. He attended Northeastern University and received his associate's degree in criminal justice. Red was employed at Raytheon for forty-three years first as a missile assembler and later as a radar assembler and radar maintenance technician. He was a longtime member and union steward of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. Red was a resident of Malden, MA from 1972 until 2016, where he was active as a Little League baseball coach and was also a well-respected defensive coach for the Pope John XXIII High School of Everett, varsity football team when they won the Divisional Super Bowl title in 1998. He was also a football coach for the Malden Pop Warner football league and served as the league treasurer. A fan of all major Boston sports teams, but especially the Boston Bruins, Red enjoyed traveling to Aruba several times as well as trips to London, Rome, Vatican City, and to several local casinos. He enjoyed a Caribbean cruise and his first visit to Disney World at the age of sixty-nine. Relocating to Atkinson nine years ago, Red was a member of Saint Luke the Evangelist Parish at Holy Angels Church, Plaistow. Red will be sadly missed and lovingly remembered by his devoted wife of fifty-two years, Irene (Como) Ryan, a son James J. Ryan of Hampton, NH, a daughter and son-in-law, Erin E. and David Spera of Atkinson, three grandchildren, Logan Spera, Lillian Spera and Noella Ryan, and several nieces, nephews and extended family. Relatives and friends are invited to a Mass of Christian Burial to be held on Saturday, September 20, 2025, at 10 a.m. in Holy Angels Church of Saint Luke the Evangelist Parish, Depot Road, Plaistow. Burial with Military Honors will follow in Holy Angels Cemetery, Plaistow. NH. The family requests that donations in memory of Red be made to: The Lowe Center for Thoracic Oncology at Dana Farber Cancer Institute, 450 Brookline Avenue, Boston MA. Arrangements are under the direction of Brookside Chapel & Funeral Home, 116 Main Street, Plaistow. To send a message of condolence to the family or to share a cherished memory, please visit brooksidechapelfh.com.