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| Ryan Hennessey died in Police shooting Nov 6th 1996 |
Message from the Parents
Memories of Ryan
One of Ryan's first adventures occurred when he was the mere age of two. His father, Shaun and I could not find him in the back yard but heard this very faint little voice saying, "I'm up here!" It took us a while to spot him. He had climbed up the neighbor's wood pile and lodged himself up on the roof of a shed in order to chase a kitty that was in a tree adjacent to the shed. It was unbelievable to us that he was even capable of that climb. Dad, of course rescued him and all was well.
I would say Ryan was about six when he caught his first fish from the Wood River in Hailey, Idaho. I had set Ryan up along the bank with his pole and worm, and proceeded back to my car through a brush filled trail to get my lounge chair and picnic items. On my way back to the car, I heard Ryan screaming and yelling "I got a fish!" Of course, his line had only been in about five minutes so I was sure he just had a snag. However, he kept yelling and putting up such a hoot, I quickened my pace, dropped the lounge chair and everything else so I could get there faster.
When I arrived back at the bank, he was fighting with a sixteen inch Rainbow Trout. He had brought it in (with no formal training I might add) and it was flopping all over the rocks. He barely had control over it, but did bring it in successfully. Of course our fishing expedition now had a real purpose, adrenaline is flowing so Mom threw her line in too. Not more than ten minutes went by and Ryan had another twelve inch trout on his line. He brought it in just as successfully as the first and had a smile fixed on his face for the rest of the day.
Ryan loved to go to the ocean,he made several trips with his grandparents, great-grandparents and aunts and uncles. I remember one such trip when he was about two and a half. We were all walking along the beach combing the sand for shells and rocks when all of a sudden, Ryan started whimpering a bit and said he could not walk any farther. I assumed he was just fatigued so I proceeded to pick him up. I observed immediately that Ryan was bogged down with about ten pounds of extra weight and found he had all possible pockets in his jeans, shirt, and coat stuffed with pebbles, rocks , and shells. It's no wonder the poor little guy could not take another step. Of course, Mom saved all those rocks and shells and put them in a jar.
When Ryan was eight he graduated from the Bogus Basin Beginners School of Skiing with his good friend Pepper Peterson. He had many fun times on ski trips with our friends, Cindy and Pepper and when he was a teenager, one of his best friends Brad O'brien of Phoenix, Arizona.
Ryan met Brad O'Brien when we lived in Phoenix. He was attending middle school there and found Brad and he had a common interest and love for music. Brad is an excellent master on the drums, and Ryan was a prodigy on the guitar. They formed a small band and practiced almost every day. I feel these times were some of the happiest memories for Ryan.
Ryan was a good student throughout his years in school. He received many certificates of achievements, one in particular which we were all very proud of was the Idaho Statesman Perfect Speller Bee in 1987 in which he received a gold ribbon. He was gifted in math and always maintained an A throughout high-school in all courses of geometry and algebra. When he was in eighth grade he attended Key Peninsula Middle School in Washington State and was named to the honor roll. One of his teachers in Phoenix took the time to write a special letter to Ryan when he attended Shadow Mountain High School. She said quote,"Thank you for not being a sheep, "You have great potential and I think you are destined for great things." Ryan completed his academic education when he graduated from Boise High School in 1994.
Favorite Band- Metallica
Favorite Book- Illusions, by Richard Bach
Favorite Movie- Braveheart
Favorite Seasons- Fall and Winter
Favorite Pastime- Playing his guitar, crossword puzzles, watching television, listening to music, making up unusual words, and having a cup of tea with Mom.
Favorite place to live- In the country
Best Friends- Sister Jenny, her boyfriend Todd, Brad O'Brien, Dan Buchanan, and Slade Dykehouse