Longtime North Penn High School athletic director Donald ‘Doc’ Ryan speaks during his induction into the high school’s ‘Knights of Honor’ in 2022. (Photo courtesy of North Penn School District)
District officials shared condolences this weekend over the passing of longtime North Penn High School athletic director.
North Penn School District officials are mourning the loss of a local icon.
District officials shared condolences this weekend over the passing of longtime North Penn High School athletic director Donald ‘Doc’ Ryan.
“Doc was a wonderful person and leaves behind a legacy of kindness and love for the North Penn School District, our students, staff, and the entire North Penn Community. Although he retired several years ago, he remained a constant at our sporting events, cheering on both players and coaches,” said Superintendent Todd Bauer.
“I never had the honor of working with Doc, but he was a friend and someone who would regularly stop in to ask how I was doing and how he could help. He wanted all of us to be successful. That is the Doc Ryan who served this community with dignity at all times,” he said.
A North Penn graduate in the class of 1958, Ryan retired in 2015 after 33 years as athletic director at North Penn, and at the time district officials and parents recalled the dozens of league championships and hundreds of student-athletes he helped steer through the school. At that time, Ryan himself thought back to a career that started in 1969 as an athletic trainer and equipment manager following two years in the U.S. Army.
“Coaches at that time did all the taping,” Ryan recalled upon his retirement, according to MediaNews Group archives, “and there was nobody to follow up on injuries. The job evolved from that.”
Over the years, his role grew into assisting his two predecessors as athletic director, then taking on that job in 1981, where he’d pass on life lessons to generations of North Penn student-athletes until his retirement in early 2015.
“I always remember what Coach Crawford Sr. told me,” he said. “We were at a basketball game, and I was yelling at the official, and he said, ‘Now Donald, not all officials have a good night every night.’ That always stuck with me. I may have my own opinion and say it under my breath but never yell at officials.”
In 2022 Ryan was inducted into the high school’s “Knights of Honor” hall of fame, and at that time Ryan shared how his nickname started.
“One day, during a baseball game, a player got hurt, and the coach went on the field and looked around. I don’t remember where I was, but he yelled out ‘Doc, get Doc!’ They came and got me, and ever since then, it stuck,” said Ryan at the time, and the district added that the nickname was representative of the respect he gets every time he walks in a room or into the stadium.
Former high school principal Burton Hynes introduced Ryan that night, and said the honoree was “one of the pillars of North Penn’s past.”
“He advocated for equality in women’s sports, long before most had an understanding of Title IX. He’s been recognized as a key figure in building a model athletic program,” Hynes said. “And he always credited the student-athletes for their competitiveness and their athleticism, as well as the skill of the coaches in showcasing the talents of all of the players.”
Ryan would constantly call for upgrades to district athletic facilities, particularly “our unforgettable swamp that used to exist in Crawford Stadium,” and said Ryan’s dedication “knew no time constraints.”
“When school was closed, for holidays or inclement weather, you-know-who ensured that the building was open for team practices — and it wasn’t because he delegated that responsibility to anyone else. This gentleman prioritized our athletes’ training over time with his family, over vacation time.”
That night, Ryan himself recalled serving seven principals, seven superintendents, and several interim administrators, thanking those officials, his various assistants and coaches, and his family for their support over the years.
“North Penn High School was a great school. It’s been a great school. And it’s only going to continue to get better,” Ryan said.
In a Facebook post by the district on Saturday evening, Bauer recalled their interactions: “If you met Doc once, he remembered your name. If he did not know you, that did not matter. He treated you as a friend and was sincerely interested in your well-being. Don ‘Doc’ Ryan will be greatly missed. He is eternally a North Penn Knight. Please keep his wife Nancy and their family in your thoughts,” Bauer said.
Dozens of residents and other district officials also shared their own thoughts and memories: longtime athletic assistant Linda Law, who retired in May 2024 after her own 53-year career at the school, said Ryan “was the best of the best.” State Rep. Steve Malagari, D-53rd, said he recalled Ryan from his time as a student at the high school, and said “our community was blessed to have him for so many decades working with our student athletes. He will be missed. May his memory be eternal.”
Former school board President Tina Stoll added that “It always amazed me how he knew every kid by name even years after they graduated. Doc will be missed,” and Patricia McNulty Halberstadt added: “not only the kids’ names, he knew their parents names as well. A gentleman in every sense of the word. May he rest in peace.”
District spokeswoman Christine Liberaski said Ryan “was so kind to me since the first day I met him 25-plus years ago. Always a smile on his face and encouraging words. He will be missed.” And current high school baseball coach Kevin Manero called him “a truly great human being and what public education and community are all about. Best seat in the house now. Rest easy Doc.”
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