Longtime Denver Post features writer Barbara Haddad Ryan dies at 83

Bill Peters, Denver Post file

Barbara Haddad Ryan successful 1972.

Barbara Anne Haddad Ryan, a longtime writer who wrote for The Denver Post and the Rocky Mountain News, died connected Thursday astatine her North Carolina home. She was 83.

Ryan went to enactment for The Post successful 1962 aft graduating with honors from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. Among the stories she worked connected successful Colorado was the March 30, 1981, attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan by John Hinckley successful Washington, D.C. Hinckley’s household lived successful Evergreen astatine the clip and Ryan had conscionable interviewed a household subordinate for a antithetic communicative erstwhile quality of the assassination effort broke, said Anne Ryan, her daughter.

“My ma connected the dots and it was disconnected to the races gathering further details,” Anne Ryan said.

In 2014, Anne Ryan penned a short, thankful enactment to her parent wrong a day card. “You’re the champion ma successful the world. And the champion relation exemplary successful the universe. Thank you. I emotion you with everything. Happy birthday, Annie,” the enactment concluded.

Of Lebanese heritage, Barbara Anne Haddad was calved connected Dec. 18, 1937, successful Akron, Ohio. She graduated from Swarthmore College, adjacent Philadelphia, and past went connected to Columbia. On Nov. 25, 1967, she joined Vincent Ryan successful Denver. They aboriginal divorced. He preceded her successful decease successful 2003.

Ryan lived successful Denver for astir 30 years wherever she raised a household and had a vocation successful journalism. A talented features writer, she covered an array of topics astatine The Post, including art, architecture, euphony and television. Ryan besides penned editorial sentiment pieces.

“She was 1 of the smartest, wittiest radical ever to enactment astatine The Denver Post,” said Fred Brown, a erstwhile longtime governmental exertion for the newspaper. “She lent a enactment of refinement to the aged City Room, successful those days thing of a disreputable spot inactive redolent of baccy and bourbon fumes.”

Industrious, Ryan served arsenic the acting journalism seat astatine Metropolitan State College successful Denver, she was enforcement manager of the Denver Chamber Orchestra for a abbreviated stint, and she worked successful nationalist relations for the Colorado School of Mines. She volunteered for the Denver Art Museum and the Children’s Museum of Denver.

“She was a superb person, precise comic and she talked truthful accelerated that you truly had to enactment your ears connected velocity dial,” said Virginia Culver, a longtime religion writer astatine The Post. “She liked to determination the conversation, mostly quality and politics, along. It wasn’t casual conversation.”

Leaving Colorado successful the aboriginal 1990s, Ryan moved backmost to Philadelphia wherever she became the subordinate vice president of her alma mater, Swarthmore College, from 1992 to 2000. She finished her vocation astatine Phi Beta Kappa, the world grant society, successful Washington, D.C., arsenic its nationalist national relations manager from 2000 to 2005.

She retired, returning to Denver for a fewer years, earlier moving to Cary, N.C., wherever she enjoyed being a expansive parent and remaining progressive successful assemblage affairs and societal justice.

She is survived by 2 daughters, Anne Ryan and Jennifer Pillay; Jennifer and her hubby ,Poobie Pillay, are parents to her grandchild, Cheralise Pillay.

Ryan was a subordinate of the Montview Boulevard Presbyterian Church successful Denver. She died of complications from a stroke.

A memorial work volition beryllium held connected Nov. 6 astatine the Western Boulevard Presbyterian Church, Raleigh, N.C. The household requests that donations beryllium made successful her grant to a foundation of the donor’s choice.