It was an ordinary day. Just finished reading an email from a former student who was my yearbook photographer for a few years and then the editor in 1998 when I was the advisor to the Manheim Township High School Yearbook. I was expecting the email, but none the less, it was still enjoyable reading about the successes that Ryan has experienced over the last 15 years. My story starts with a note from Melissa to my wife in mid-April. Melissa was the daughter of my wife's former boss who along with her mom, traveled to Italy with Carol and me about 10 years ago. She wrote ....... So Tuesday at a lunch meeting I was chatting with a friend about art and photography and she tells me that she has some interesting pieces at her house that I should see. They were done using a technique that manipulates Polaroid instant pics. Hey, I know someone who does that. Didn't register that they might be the same person right away. But after I said your name we put all the pieces together ..... Melissa's friends name was Kathryn and her son was Ryan. She told Melissa if she ever gets the chance to speak to me she was to tell me she never got the chance to express her gratitude for the huge positive influence I had on her son in high school. Wow, what a nice compliment. I eventually got Kathryn's email address from Melissa and wrote her a letter. The return letter gave me some more details about Ryan who was probably the best editor,shy of my own daughter Brynn, that I ever had in the 30 years I was advisor. He was so efficient and trustworthy that my job was simple. I could tell during his high school years that Ryan was something very special and was going to be a huge success no matter what he chose to do after college. Kathryn wrote to me telling me how Ryan's teen years were such a struggle and I was a role model for him and she was grateful for that. She gave me some current info on Ryan and his email address so I could contact him. She said there were some online videos with Ryan in them were he gives presentations in "geek language." Brought a smile to my face. And .... today that is the letter that I just finished reading. He started off with ..."Has it really been 15 years?!?!? Wow, just my sentiments! He also thanked me for allowing him the chance to escape through photography and yearbook so he could prosper later in life. I knew he went to RIT, but didn't realize he chose computer science over photography. He helped pay for his college education by working 30 hours a week at the Educational Technological Center. Boy did that bring back memories of my college days and struggling to pay the bills, since my parents couldn't afford to pay.
Ryan's wife Kim and dog Digit
He met and married his college sweetheart from RIT and worked for the University for 5 years after graduation. I suspect RIT knew just what they were getting when they hired him. He and his wife Kim then moved to San Francisco to search for a new direction in life. He ended up working for Google on Developer Relations which is a a mix between computer science and business development. He has also written a book titled "Getting Started with OAuth 2.0." I also clicked on a link he added for me to see him in action at a seminar and it was much like his mom had explained it to me ...."geek language." I was thoroughly impressed with his performance. I'm so proud of Ryan and his successes he has experienced in his young life. I'm sure more success is in his future. In my last email to him I told him to stop the next time he is in Lancaster so I can meet his wife and tell her about Ryan as I knew him. Should be fun!! It was another extraordinary day in the life of an oridnary guy.
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