Services were scheduled to be held Thursday in Pleasanton for Wachovia executive David Patrick Ryan, who was tragically killed in a house fire outside Boulder, Colo. Feb. 6.
Hundreds gathered at Valley Community Church Thursday night to remember a man who was well known here as a coach, nonprofit booster, financial advisor and friend.
Ryan, 49, had flown from California to Colorado Feb. 5 to begin the process of selling his father’s estate in Louisville, a small town of 25,000 outside of Boulder. His father, Pat Ryan, a former superintendent for Boulder County schools for 13 years beginning in the 1970s, died Jan. 16. David Ryan was last seen at 9:30 p.m. after reaching Louisville when he picked up a key to his father’s home from a neighbor, Don and Hannah Harper, according to the Boulder Daily Camera newspaper. They visited for half an hour before Ryan headed home to go through mail before heading to bed, Don Harper told the paper.
Around 2 a.m., the Harpers awoke to the sound of police banging on their door and ringing the bell to get them out of the house, Hannah Harper said. Police had noticed flames at the Ryan house while patrolling the neighborhood, and firefighters arrived shortly afterward, discovering Ryan’s body near the front door.
Louisville fire investigators believe the fire began in the kitchen, possibly from a gas range. The cause of the house fire will be ruled accidental. No evidence of arson was found at the scene of the fire, which took firefighters 45 minutes to get under control. It’s not clear when the fire began.
Ryan was born July 17, 1959 in Greeley, Colo. to Barnard D. Pat and Mary Ryan. He grew up in Boulder and graduated from Fairview High School in 1977. In 1984, he graduated from Abilene Christian University in Texas with a bachelor’s degree in business administration.
Soon after completing his education, he married Lynn Schrader on Aug. 11, 1984. For the next three years, he worked for the Church of Christ in Boulder and Oakland, specifically working with campus students. He began his financial career at Shearson Lehman Hutton in 1987 and had most recently worked with Wachovia Securities in Pleasanton.
A spokeswoman for Wachovia said in a statement, “Our thoughts and condolences are with David’s family and friends. He will be very much missed by his colleagues at Wachovia and Wells Fargo.”
Because of his admiration and appreciation for those willing to put themselves in harm’s way to protect the public, he devoted himself to the 100 Club of Alameda and Contra Costa County. He was the proud father of three: Trevor, 20, a student at UC Santa Barbara; Stone, 17, a junior at Amador Valley High School; and Malia, 14, a freshman at Amador. He enjoyed coaching many of their soccer, football and basketball teams. He also loved boating and would take friends and family of all ages on a tour around the bay and under the Golden Gate Bridge. In addition to his wife and three children, he is also survived by his sister, Candy Burgard of Lake Havasu City, Ariz.
Family and friends described him as an exceptionally outgoing and inclusive person, always with a smile, a wave, or a kind word of encouragement. He was known to cherish every one of his relationships, new and old and he had a positive personality, always initiating in supporting and uplifting his friends and family.
Ryan was well known in Pleasanton where he was a member of the Pleasanton Chamber of Commerce and the Martin C. Kauffman 100 Club of Alameda County, where he was a member of the board of directors. He was often remembered for driving his Ford Bronco with a convertible top around town.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the 100 Club of Alameda and Contra Costa Counties at www.100clubalamedacounty.org or by mail: 781 McKean Place, Concord, CA 94518-2835.
Many who knew Ryan have left messages of their condolences and memories on the Pleasanton Weekly’s Town Square forum, available at www.pleasantonweekly.com.
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