Lawrence "Bud" William Ryder

FITCHBURG--Lawrence (Bud) William Ryder, age 84, died of cancer at home on Oct. 30, 2013. He was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, to Leon and Myrtle (Luedtke) Ryder on April 21, 1929. On March 24, 1951, he married Beverly Brehmer at Grand Avenue Congregational Church in Milwaukee. He attended schools in Indianapolis, Ripon, and Delafield. At St. John's Military Academy, he was on an award winning rifle team. He was an Eagle Scout from Troop 33 in Ripon, and was named Outstanding Scout of the Year in 1946. On 3/19/44, he was featured in The Milwaukee Journal with his wood carvings of World War II weapons. While on a scout cherry picking trip to Door County, he gained notoriety as the boy who climbed into Eagle Cave, and had to be rescued by the Ephraim fire department. He met his wife Bev at the first dance of his first year at UW--Stout, Menomonie, where he earned a Bachelor's Degree in Industrial Arts. As an undergraduate, he was selected to teach college-level sheet metal. He was a perfectionist, adept in every medium, even water colors. He taught industrial arts, driver ed., and history, and served as Assistant Principal at Glen Flora, Wisconsin. He next became a sales representative for New York Life. In 1957 Bud was employed by Wisconsin Physician's Service, then known as Blue Shield. He worked for WPS and its affiliate, the State Medical Society, for 34 years. In Eau Claire, he was the WPS district manager and traveling sales rep. In Menasha, he did SMS liason work, covering the southern half of Wisconsin. In Madison, he served WPS in Subscriber Services, Health Maintenance Plan, and Space Planning. He was general contractor and builder of the family's Fitchburg home. A dedicated deer hunter, he designed a portable shack to house his close-knit gang of 57 years, now including sons and grandsons. (Bud's camp name was Wyatt Earp.) He taught Hunter Safety at the Stoughton Gun Club. While living in Ladysmith in 1953, he was introduced to steelhead trout fishing on the Brule River, a place like no other. He would be casting today if he could. Musky fishing, Packer games, Indy Races, crafts and projects, and his family were all very important to him.

Survivors include Bud's wife of 62 years, Beverly; four children: Peggy (Gregory) Miller, Douglas Ryder, Sally Norman, Beth (Scott) VanDewerker; 8 grandchildren: Marc (Linda) Miller and Nina (Jose' Gonzalez) Miller; Shaun Norman, Bobby Norman-Sipple, and Shayna (Chad) Weisnicht; Brian, Nicole, and Cody VanDewerker; and 2 great-grandsons: Tristan Slaunwhite and Ryan Miller; and Robert Sipple. He is also survived by three half-siblings: Noel, Gregory, and Susan Ryder, as well as nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Bud was preceded in death by baby daughter Kim Diane Ryder, baby grandson Michael Anthony Miller, his parents, his brother Jack, his sister Joyce (age 4), his stepmother Beth Ryder and a son-in-law, Steven J. Norman.

Instead of flowers, memorials may be made to Friends of the Brule River and Forest, P.O. Box 146, Brule WI 54820 or Friends of the Fitchburg Public Library, 5530 Lacy Rd., Fitchburg WI 53711.

A Celebration of Bud's Life will take place on Monday, Nov. 4, 2013, at 2:00 PM at Informed Choice Funeral and Cremation Services, 3325 E. Washington Avenue in Madison. A visitation will follow until 4:00 PM for family and friends to visit.