Hiram Leslie Ryan, age 93, passed away , August 29, 2023.
Hiram was born April 27, 1930 to William Montgomery and Lala (Lambeth) Ryan in Oktaha, OK.
He graduated with the class of 1950 from Dunbar High School
in Shawnee. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Architecture from Langston University with a minor in Industrial Arts.
After high school, he joined the U.S. Army and was the first African American in the 655th Engineering Battalion and served in the Korean Conflict at which time he was wounded in combat and received a Purple Heart. He married Lorene Winrow on September 26, 1953 in Shawnee, Oklahoma. After service to his country, Hiram and Lorene moved to Langston, OK and later moved to OKC before settling in Tecumseh in 1959 where they have been together for 70 years.
Hiram worked at Tinker Air Force Base as a drafter for 28 years until his retirement. After his retirement, he went to work at the Shawnee Police Department as a Community Service Officer and later worked at the Oklahoma Employment Service as Veterans Representative.
Hiram was a founding member of Galilee Baptist Church in Shawnee, where he proudly served as a deacon for over 60 years.
He was preceded in death by his parents, William and Lala Ryan; granddaughter, Alicia Ryan; two sisters, Willa Mae Combs and Ruby King; and three brothers, Rudolph Ryan, Leonard Ryan and Norvis Ryan.
Those left to cherish his memory are his loving wife of nearly 70 years, Lorene Ryan of the home; one daughter, Linda Talton of Oklahoma City, OK; four sons and two daughters-in-law, Harvey and Sonja Ryan of Bethel Acres, OK, Marvin Earnest Ryan of Tecumseh, OK, Nathaniel Eugene Ryan of Tecumseh, OK and Clifford Oliver and Kimberly Ryan of Irvine, CA; grandchildren; great-grandchildren; two sisters-in-law, Doris Ryan of Alexandria, VA and Lucy Ryan of Oklahoma City, OK; and other extended family and friends.
Service will be 11:00 a.m., Thursday, September 7, 2023 at Sharon Baptist Church in Shawnee with Reverend Anthony Rhone, Galiliee Baptist Church of Shawnee, OK officiating. Burial will follow at Earlsboro Cemetery under the direction of Cooper Funeral Home of Tecumseh.
