John Ryan dies at 59

People who knew longtime Venice Area Chamber of Commerce executive John Ryan talk about his quick wit and humor.

Ryan was the guy who patted people taller than him on the back, then added “you big galoot,” with a smile. He was the kind of guy ready and willing to don a white jumpsuit and be sprayed with paintballs for charity. And Ryan, say several colleagues and friends, had a knack for always making people around him feel better about themselves.

The president and CEO of the Venice chamber since 1999, Ryan died suddenly Aug. 12. He was 59.

David Pierce, business development director and interim head of the Venice chamber, says Ryan combined dry humor with a can-do positive spirit that inspired colleagues. Pierce says Ryan was also an unusually good problem solver.

“If I ever had a question for John, he would sit back and think about it for a second or two, then answer,” Pierce says. “He had the best analytical mind of anyone I've ever worked with.”

While Ryan was born in Fort Pierce, he moved to Venice with his family when he was an infant, when his father took a management job at Florida Power & Light. A graduate of Venice High School, and later USF Sarasota-Manatee, Ryan followed his dad to FPL, working first as a meter reader and later as a customer service manager, according to his obituary. He worked with FPL for 15 years, then got a job at the chamber, partially to not have to move to another town for the power company.

At the chamber, Ryan became Venice's No. 1 cheerleader, both within the town and in the county in general, serving on numerous boards and committees. C.J. Fishman, president of Venice commercial kitchen design firm Fishman & Associates, says Ryan's attention to detail and spot-on judge of character in others made him a top executive — and person. “It's a tough loss,” says Fishman, “not only for Venice but for all of Sarasota County.”

Ryan is survived by his wife, Anne, daughter Michelle Ryan, grandson Jensen McCoy, sister Sandy Sanzone and a large extended family of nieces and nephews. A standing-room only memorial service for Ryan, with about 500 people, was held in Venice Aug. 19. (In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Venice Nokomis Rotary Club.)

Fishman says the service for Ryan was the kind of party Ryan would have loved to attended: fun, lots of laughs and lots of talk about Venice. Many mourners lamented that Ryan was gone too soon. “In dying, he reiterated that life is short,” Fishman says, “and you have to make every day count.”