Musicians play at Lyness Fest in Ryan, Iowa, recently.
By Dan Russo
Editor
It was a shock to me to learn that the world’s largest umpire is in a town called Ryan, Iowa. I found this out recently because I had to drop off someone at a wedding reception in St. Patrick Church Hall, which is situated by the baseball field in City Park in this small town which is home to roughly 350 people.
The umpire statue sits in the outfield. It’s 18 feet tall and made of fiberglass. I couldn’t go to the reception, but had to be back to pick up my passenger a few hours later, so I decided to explore the town. I know what you’re thinking, “why should southeastern Iowa readers of a Catholic newspaper care about what’s going on in Ryan, a small village in northeastern Iowa?” Well, take a few minutes to read on and you may find a reason.
Ryan is named after Father Patrick Ryan, an Irish priest who served the area in the 1800s. Unfortunately, the Catholic Church in town recently lost its Sunday Mass, but you can find one on a weekday there, residents say.
A retired gentleman riding around in a golf cart told me that the umpire was actually originally a chef sculpted as a mascot for the Happy Chef Restaurant in Cedar Rapids. In 1981, the town of Ryan bought the statue. Residents removed the chef hat. A spoon was turned into a raised finger and a baseball cap and mask were added. The guy on the golf cart knew first-hand because he had been in the area long enough to help move the giant thing.
Eventually, after my friend in the cart helped me get cash at Ryan’s only ATM machine, he took me to Lyness Fest. On a small residential street backed by a cornfield, residents had put up a stage that night for live music. It’s something the town has done for a few years now to raise money for charity. This year, the cause was American Legion Post 692.
I got there in time to see two bands, but missed the closer, “Not Quite Brothers.” The crowd was expected to swell the population of the town to more than 800.
A young boy wearing a T-shirt featuring Big Foot riding a unicorn was helping to park cars as the golf cart guy whizzed by shuttling concert goers. The boy would get cash tips for his efforts guiding and he told me at the end of the night that he had raised $76 which he was going to give to the vets. It was hard not to notice all the veterans who had come into town that night. Many wore hats, T-shirts or tattoos that said something about their service. There were banners with the pictures of local people who had served in the military on almost every light pole downtown.
The Ryan Veterans Living Memorial contains stones engraved with the names of every single person from the town who served in every era up to the present day. It has walking paths lined with pretty flowers and shrubs. There is also a mural. Perhaps the most unusual thing, which especially stands out in a small town, is the well preserved Cobra helicopter from the Vietnam-era. There is also a replica of a Battlefield Cross — boots, helmet, dog tags and rifle, arranged like they would be on a battlefield or in a base camp after someone is killed in action. All of this sits not far form the American Legion Post.
It was fun seeing people dancing on the end of a tiny street backed by corn, but soon I had to go. The boy helped me back out and I waved goodbye. He said, “Will you come next year?” “Yeah, now that I know about this, I will.” “Good ‘cause I’ll be here,” he replied smiling. “Just look for me on this lawn near Lyness Street.”
One final thing — I’d like to thank all the people who attended the Archbishop Fulton Sheen Pilgrimage last month (July 24) and all those who made the event possible. This includes Rhonda Bachman of the Archbishop Fulton Sheen Foundation and the other staff of the Peoria Diocese, Illinois, Tri-State Travel, the clergy and religious and The Catholic Messenger staff.
After paying all expenses, The Catholic Messenger donated $200 to the Archbishop Sheen Foundation, which was split between the museum and the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception. Remaining funds will be used to assist in funding the production of the newspaper. We appreciate your support.
