Margaret R. Ryder, 88, of Sycamore, IL., passed away Wednesday, May 24, 2023 at Northwestern Kishwaukee Hospital in DeKalb, IL.
Her greatest joy in life was spending time with her family. She was a loving wife, mother, grandmother and great grandmother.
She is preceded in death by her parents, Ernest and Bridget (Musson) Barton, and her husband, John C. Ryder.
She is survived by her brother John (JoAnn) Barton, her 5 children; Bill (Sue) Ryder, Betsy (Dan Hirschtick) Lindner, Patt (Alan Bernstein) Ryder, Jack Ryder, and Rick (Lisa) Ryder; her grandchildren, Jeff (Jessica)Ryder, Jason (Rachel) Ryder, Julie (Aaron) Juarez, Scott (Lexie) Lindner, Amber (Mike) Frykman, Sonya (Shayne) Mooar, Kate Ryder, Colin Ryder and Grace Ryder; and 10 great-grandchildren, Kiley, Kaitlyn, Kelsie, Lola, Joaquin, Ryder, Will, Matthew, Ellie, and Lia.
Born March 30, 1935 in New York City and raised in Madison, N.J., she married and had her own family; first in New Jersey (East Hanover & Wanamassa) and then in 1966 the family moved to Wheaton, IL. She made many lifelong friends through her many years as a medical assistant in internal medicine and ophthalmology, as well as the numerous crafting groups to which she belonged over the years. She was widely known for her kind, generous, and welcoming nature. She was an amazing cook. When it came to Sunday and holiday dinners, friends always knew they were welcome and she typically cooked enough food for a small army. She prepared authentic olde English dinners complete with roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, but was probably best known for her incomparable macaroni and cheese. No family gathering was complete without the “mac n cheese”. A tradition that continues on, as she taught several of her children and grandchildren how to create this signature dish.
When it came to holidays, you could always count on her being decked out from head to toe in festive holiday specific regalia including; earrings, necklaces, bracelets, sweaters, socks and usually topping it all off with a fabulous scarf. She also decorated her home extensively for all holidays. There were always holiday wreaths, flags, lights, and usually a stone goose and a teddy bear or two adorned with holiday-specific outfits. When you visited her there was always a full basket of candy for sharing sitting on the coffee table. In fact, she was affectionately called the “Candy Lady” by her friends. If she knew in advance that you were coming there is a very good chance that the candy in the basket when you arrived would be your favorite kind. Just an example of how she was always thinking of others and finding ways to make them feel special. Her favorite activities included crafting, most recently creating beautiful needlepoints, but she also enjoyed playing cards, dominoes, bingo and Wii bowling with her friends. She loved animals. Over the years she had many dogs; Penny, Barney, Schnaps, Bridget, Buddy, and finally her beloved Corky and a cat named Sneakers.
She loved to travel. Over the years she visited England and Ireland with the family. These trips resulted in lots of great memories, some hilarious stories and was the origin of her nickname “Irish Half-pint”. She loved the beach. Many summer vacations were spent at the Jersey shore, and later on Nantucket. So many precious memories of times spent with family & friends.
In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to the Michael J. Fox Foundation https://give.michaeljfox.org/give/421686/#!/donation/checkout in memory of Margaret R. Ryder, or mailed to Anderson Funeral Home, P.O. Box 605, 2011 South Fourth Street, DeKalb, IL. 60115
For information, visitwww.AndersonFuneralHomeLtd.com or call 815-756-1022.
To send flowers
to the family or plant a tree
in memory of MARGARET R. RYDER, please visit our floral store.