William H. Ryan

MADISON - William Henry Ryan, age 94, passed away peacefully on Thursday, April 16, 2020 at Home Again Living in Cambridge, where he resided the last few years. The following is Bill’s story in his own words from an interview he did in October of 2015 with Kate Mace, and with the help of Seth P. Jovaag. It took me three full years to pass elementary Algebra, so you know math was not my field. I just didn't understand it. My brain doesn't work that way. When I finally passed my teacher politely said, "l don't want to see you again. You passed. Not very marvelously, but you passed." And I politely thanked her. You know, when you're in high school you feel like you have to be good at something and I found out I was good at languages. First, of course, I took French and that was a piece of cake, and then I flew into German, and I loved it! It's a wonderful language. It's the language of Goethe and Schiller you know. I could read and write fluently. I just had high school German, but I became fluent. I also learned passable Russian. I had 1 ½ years of college before I went into the Army. I'm from New York, and when I went to Camp Croft in South Carolina, it was my first time in the Deep South. It was interesting. The climate was lousy; it was hot and sticky, but the people were very friendly. They would tell you what they think. They could be very direct. I didn't have to go through that miserable basic training, because I had something the Army wanted. Most Americans are not good at speaking and understanding different languages, but I had something the Army wanted. I could speak some French and Russian, but most importantly, I was fluent in German! My father was from New York, but my mother was a true Brit. She would talk about those bloody Germans. She had a fit when I married a German girl, but she grew to love her. The Army trained me in interpreting. How do you interpret? Well, you listen to what the person has to say, and you have to be quick, and absorb it, and then you pass the information regarding the subject you discussed to the other person. It's a give and take thing. I learned how to listen and quickly interpret. I was in Europe near the end of World War II. I started in northern France, and then was part of the occupation in Germany. I had a cushy job. I lived in a castle near Dusseldorf in the Rhine River Valley. Just think, the interpreters lived in a castle and the officers lived in tents. I was a tech sergeant, and part of the military government for 2 ½ years. The Army was marvelous. Things were very organized, and the people were well trained. When we moved into a new enemy area, the first thing the soldiers set up was the kitchen. The kitchen always came first. We had Army cooks in the castle. The building was beautiful. It was 18th century-no turrets, and no central heating, but we had portable stoves for heat. The castle had marble floors and was very elegant and grand! We treated it with great respect. We loved it. The people of Dusseldorf were quite sophisticated. Even during the War, they had marvelous music and art. I love all music. I especially love opera. (When I lived in New York after the War, I always had season tickets to the Met.) One of my jobs in the Army was to interrogate prisoners of war. We wanted military information from them. My services were in demand. I would hear someone holler, "where's Ryan, where's Ryan, someone find him, God damn it!" I heard that 1000 times! When I was interpreting the Army officers would say, "What's he saying? What's he saying?' And I would say, very calmly, "Sir, if you would just shut up, I'll tell you!" I always started each sentence with "Sir!" Then they would be quiet"  I was wounded at the tail end of the Battle of the Bulge. My helmet did not fit properly, so I was continually adjusting it. I had my right arm up to adjust it when a sniper got me in the arm. I am so lucky that I had my arm up. The bullet got me there, and not in the head! I got a purple heart for that, but more importantly, I got out of any more battle-field duty. At the time the Army had a rule that once you were wounded on the field of battle, you would be put into a support capacity, and would not have to go back into battle. My wound was not very bad, and it kept me out of battle for the rest of the War. I did some interpreting for General Patton. He always used two or three interpreters at once---he wanted to be sure he got things right. A few times, I was one of the interpreters he used. Honestly, he was a pain in the neck. He was a bit feminine in his approach to discipline. When correcting someone, he would say "You are a naughty boy"? or a "bad boy." Even after the War was over, we were not allowed to fraternize with the Germans. However, some Germans were allowed to work for the Americans. At first very few, but gradually the numbers increased. By the end of the first year of peace, I was running a "German work organization" for the Army. The German's did all our housework and yard work. When we were occupying Germany, it was good for the GIs. We were exposed to wonderful music and art, and we supported it. It went on all through the war, and during the occupation. Our sergeant used to say, "Do it. Go to the opera and the symphony! They used to pay a lot of money for this, and now you are getting it free!" The Army encouraged us to take advantage of the arts while we were in Dusseldorf. After the war, I finished college using the GI Bill, which was the most marvelous idea. It created a whole generation of men who were well read and understood the world. It was what the country needed. My ability at languages was a door-opener for me. After college I got a job with TWA airlines. I used my German, and I was able to travel all over the world! William H. Ryan will be cremated, and his ashes interred at the Southern Wisconsin Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Union Grove, Wis. Many thanks to the wonderful people who helped care for Bill at Home Again in Cambridge, Agrace HospiceCare, the VA Home-based Care Team, Care Wisconsin and especially NewBridge (formerly South Madison Coalition for the Elderly). All Faiths Funeral & Cremation Services of Madison is assisting with Mr. Ryan’s arrangements. Online condolences can be made at www.866allfaiths.com All Faiths Funeral & Cremation Services www.866allfaiths.com