Celebrating the life of Liam Ryan

Friday, December 4, 2015 - 17:00 to 20:00
Renehan Hall, South Campus, Maynooth University

Liam Ryan, Professor Emeritus of Sociology at Maynooth University, Limerick man, hurler, story teller, priest, writer and local historian passed away earlier this year.   Liam's lengthy career at Maynooth coincided with the development of the university as a secular institution and the flourishing of the social sciences.  We in the Department of Sociology are celebrating the life of  Liam Ryan.

A reception will begin at 5pm, with the formal part of the evening commencing at 6pm.  We hope colleagues, students, family and friends can join us to mark Liam's contribution to Sociology, to the life of the university and to the lives of the many people he touched in the course of his professional and pastoral career.   We are encouraging as many people as possible to come along and share their memories of Liam at the event.  

We are also planning a short memorial publication based on people's recollections of Liam which will be available on the night. To that end we are seeking contributions for inclusion in the publication.  Contributions may include any (or any combination of) the following:  a particular memory of Liam,  a favored anecdote of Liam's, a story about Liam that is revealing of his character and personality,  what it was like to sit in one of Liam's lectures,  what Liam was like as a colleague or supervisor,  a kindness or act of thoughtfulness on the part of Liam that has remained with you, Liam's professional contribution as a sociologist and social policy expert.

Pieces can be anywhere in the range of 250 words to 1250 words, and will have to be submitted by Friday, October 30, 2015 to Sociology.Department@mu.ie. We hope to be able to publish a wide selection of the material we receive but for reasons of space and to avoid repetition, we may have to edit down or omit some contributions.

We will be mounting an archival display marking Liam's life and career.  We welcome any memorabilia such as photographs, posters, letters, etc. that you may have which you think may be of interest to others.  Such materials will of course be returned after the event.

Please do join us for this celebration of a unique life.  RSVP to Sociology.Department@mu.ie or Telephone: 01 7083659.