Ryan attended Alvin Lutheran Church with his parents. He was baptized at Faith Lutheran Church, Dickinson, on April 17, 1983, and was confirmed there on May 31, 1998. He remained true to his faith all of his life and regularly read his Bible, which was awarded to him in 2005 by the Faith Lutheran Sunday School for 300 Sundays of attendance.

His favorite passage was Psalm 23, which he had bookmarked.

Overcoming genetic learning disabilities, he persevered and graduated from Alvin High School in 2001. He repainted his truck when he studied auto body repair at AHS.

After high school, he studied auto body repair at San Jacinto College and welding at Alvin Community College, as well as general academics for two years.

He loved astronomy and spent many happy stargazing hours peering through his high-quality 180 mm Maksutov-Cassegrain telescope. He loved reading, studying and talking about astronomy. He scored the highest grade in his astronomy class at ACC. He was an avid weather watcher and often gave his parents better weather forecasts than the local news stations.

Ryan was a kind, gentle and caring person who would do anything to help someone in need and was always ready to assist with storm cleanup after a hurricane. He loved animals, especially dogs. He had a pet dog most of his life until his beloved Dalmatian mix, Lacy, died a few months ago. He was looking forward to getting a new puppy when the weather got cooler.

Ryan was a deep thinker who rarely engaged in lengthy conversation, but his actions often spoke louder than words. He never failed to select the most appropriate and insightful greeting cards for every birthday or other celebration (except for the occasional, extremely humorous cards that he sometimes picked). There was no doubt he spent considerable time looking through many cards to select just the right one for the person and occasion.

He enjoyed traveling and visited many interesting places in the United States as well as Canada and much of Europe. In Jamaica, he proudly escorted his sister, Karen, down the aisle at her destination wedding in 2018. He especially enjoyed visiting some of the villages where his ancestors came from in Germany and getting to buy a beer at the age of 16. However, his favorite place to visit was the family farm in Columbus, where his mother was raised.

He enjoyed the peace and quiet, and the room to practice target and skeet shooting.

His favorite band was the Moody Blues, and he got to attend several of their concerts with his dad. He even sang “Nights in White Satin” during a third-grade talent show. He had a great sense of humor and loved the comedy songs broadcast by Dr. Demento. His favorite was “Tai Kwan Leap” and jokes about Ed Gruberman became a family staple. He enjoyed watching University of Houston football and basketball games and attended many games with his parents, especially during the years his sister was a cheerleader.

Ryan worked at several occupations over the past 20 years. He was the janitor/custodian at Faith Lutheran Church for about 10 years; he was a circuit board assembler for Gauging Systems Inc. in Sugar Land for several years; and he was a sales associate for Home Depot in Alvin.

Most recently he was a porter/handyman for Burger King, a job he particularly enjoyed because of the low-stress environment. He was a man of simple means and had no debt of any kind when he died. He took extremely good care of his 2012 Dodge Ram pickup, regularly washing it and keeping up with its oil changes and other maintenance.

Survivors include his parents; sister and brother-in-law, Karen and Kris Stewart; niece, Kayden Wiebelhaus; godfather and uncle, Leon Dohmann; and cousins, Rusty Naumann, Ilene Arias, Kirk Naumann and Floyd Ellington.

He was preceded in death by his Poppy and Granny, Edgar and Florine Dohmann; aunt, Mary Jo Dohmann; uncles, Russell, Wayne and Chester Naumann; and cousins, Lynda Naumann and Abigail Arias.

The family gratefully acknowledges the overwhelming outpouring of love and support from their many family members and friends during our time of grief.

Visitation is 10-11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 9, at Henneke Funeral Home, 1515 Montezuma St. in Columbus, followed by a funeral service at the home.

A Service of Committal will be at Odd Fellows Rest Cemetery with the Rev. Timothy Landers of Alvin Lutheran Church officiating.

A buffet lunch follows at Schobel’s restaurant in Columbus, courtesy of the family. A Celebration of Life Memorial Service will be at Alvin Lutheran Church at a later date.

Pallbearers are Kris Stewart, Rusty Naumann, Kirk Naumann, Ruben Arias, Floyd Ellington and Cody Wiebelhaus. Honorary pallbearers are Leon Dohmann, Karen Stewart, Ilene Arias and Kayden Wiebelhaus.

Memorials may be given to the ASPCA, P.O. Box 96929, Washington, D.C. 20090; Alvin Lutheran Church, 1800 FM 1462, Alvin, TX 77511; or any charity supporting veterans.

Online condolences may be given at www.hennekefuneralhome. com.