William J. 'Bill' Ryan Jr.: Former Swampscott Football Coach and Longtime Resident

William J. Ryan Jr., 54, died in Swampscott, MA, on Wednesday afternoon, Sept. 30.

The deceased was securing his boat, which had become detached from its mooring in rough waters near King’s Beach, when he accidentally drowned.

Bill was born in Brooklyn, NY, on Feb. 1, 1961, and he grew up in Belle Mead, NJ. He graduated from St. Paul’s Elementary School in Princeton and Notre Dame High School in Lawrence Township, and he earned a BS from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, MA. He began his career at Arthur Andersen Consulting and later started his own business, The Productivity Group, Inc.

Bill made Swampscott his home in 1996.

Bill was an all-star football player in his youth and a respected coach of the sport, at the both high school and collegiate levels, in his adult life. He proudly mentored players in the Pop Warner league, at MIT and Merrimack College, and most recently at Swampscott High School. He was a Gameday Official for the New York Jets, an avid sailor and skier, and a highly regarded member of the community.

Bill is survived by his sons, William, Andrew and Michael, all of Ontario, Canada; his mother and father, Mary and William Sr. of Princeton, NJ; his siblings, Peter of Phoenix, AZ, Patricia of West Palm Beach, FL, Joseph of Princeton, NJ, and John of New York, NY. Visiting hours will be held on Monday, Oct. 12, from 4 - 7 PM, at The Mather-Hodge Funeral Home, 40 Vandeventer Ave., Princeton, NJ 08542. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Tuesday, Oct. 13, 10 a.m. at St. Paul’s Roman Catholic Church, 214 Nassau St., Princeton, NJ 08542. Burial will follow at St. Charles / Resurrection Cemeteries, 2015 Wellwood Ave., Farmingdale, NY 11735.

A memorial mass is expected to be held in Swampscott in late October or November at St. John the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church on Humphrey Street. Details of that service have not yet been finalized.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to St. John the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church, 174 Humphrey St., Swampscott, MA 01907.

Obituary courtesy of Mather-Hodge Funeral Home