Obituary of Joseph Ryer

Joseph Henry John Ryer (1933-2021) 

Born in Jersey City, NJ on August 3, 1933, Joseph Ryer died in Santa Fe, NM June 7, 2021. Joseph’s early years were influenced by the illness and death of his mother Rita Carey in 1938. He was raised in Westchester County, NY by his aunts and his father, Paul J. Ryer. Having lived five years as a Marist Brother, he graduated from Iona College in 1956 while working as a Manhattan taxi driver, and earned an M.A. in Medieval Studies from the University of Toronto in 1958. Following stints as a steelworker, bus driver, and additional teaching and graduate work, Joseph settled into a job teaching philosophy and religious studies at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, PA from 1963-1978. In June 1965, he married and had two children, Rachel (born in 1966) and Paul (born 1967). Resigning his tenured position and selling his house in 1978, Joseph moved his family onto a small sailboat for the next three years, voyaging throughout the Caribbean and western Atlantic while continuing his lifelong writing and rewriting of a book about Being. In 1981 the family moved to western New England to be close to the Abode of the Message, a Sufi spiritual community where he later lived full-time following his divorce from Marianne. In 1988-1989 Joseph travelled extensively around the globe before landing at the City of the Sun in Columbus, NM. There, he met Katherine Roy, whom he married in 1997. Joseph and Katherine lived in Silver City until his relocation to Santa Fe in 2019. Joseph is survived by his two children, Paul and Rachel, his wife Katherine, and all those touched by his adventurous, inquiring spirit. A family memorial service will be held in coming months. In lieu of flowers, feel free to share a message, story, or--if you feel so moved—a donation in his memory here:  

http://www.teamsierra.org/memorial/JosephRyer