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Vietnam War veteran comes out as gay in his obituary, reveals he will be buried next to “the love of my life”
An Army veteran, firefighter and New York radio station founder says he’ll “forever Rest in Peace” after revealing a lifelong “secret.” In a message included in Col. Edward Thomas Ryan’s obituary, he said, “I was Gay all my life.”
The obituary states that Ryan, who lived in Albany, New York, was a retired fireman, the owner and founder of radio station WHRL-FM, and a highly decorated veteran of the U.S. military. Along with receiving the National Defense Service Medal, the obituary says that he received a Defense of Liberty Medal for his assistance in the aftermath of the 9/11 attack, a Conspicuous Service Medal for “keeping with the highest traditions of the Military Service,” and a Commanders Citation for “Service Above and Beyond the Call.”
Ryan, who had a business degree, was also a member of the Vietnam Veterans of America and served on the Vietnam Veterans/Agent Orange Committee for the American Legion.
According to the Albany Times Union, Ryan was 85 when he died on June 1. His family told the Times Union that he served in Vietnam while he was in the Army, but they weren’t sure of his years or ranks.
At the bottom of his service and funeral details, Ryan provided his own message, saying, “I must tell you one more thing.”
“I was Gay all my life: thru grade school, thru High School, thru College, thru Life.”
He also revealed that he had been in a long-term “loving and caring relationship” with another man named Paul Cavagnaro. That relationship ended in a heartbreaking situation – but after death, Ryan said they will be reunited.
“He was the love of my life. We had 25 great years together,” Ryan wrote. “Paul died in 1994 from a medical Procedure gone wrong. I’ll be buried next to Paul.”
After years of keeping his sexual identity hidden, Ryan apologized.
“I’m sorry for not having the courage to come out as Gay. I was afraid of being ostracized: by Family, Friends, and CO-Workers,” he wrote. “Seeing how people like me were created, I just could not do it. Now that my secret is known, I’ll forever Rest in Peace.”
While Ryan didn’t publicly come out before his death, his niece Linda Sargent told the Times Union that many in the family knew, but “it just wasn’t something we talked about.”
“I knew probably 40 years. I knew [Cavagnaro] was his partner,” Cathy Stammel told the Times Union. “They were a loving couple. I admired that,” they said. “But I promised him I wouldn’t say anything, and I kept that promise. It was up to him to talk about it when he was ready.”
Ryan’s obituary has received wide support online, with people commenting on his digitized obituary, saying, “you were loved.”
“As a brother in arms, I salute you. As a brother in spirit, I embrace you. As a brother of the Holy Spirit, I kneel and pray for your eternal solace,” one person commented. “To have found true love is priceless.”
Another commented an apology, saying they are “sorry that we as a country failed to make him feel safe enough to live his life fully and publicly.”
“May he rest in peace and Pride with Paul, and may his memory be a comfort to his family and a lesson to us all,” they said.
There were no injuries after a Southwest flight carrying passengers was struck by gunfire on the tarmac of Dallas Love Field Friday night, authorities said.
Southwest Airlines Flight 2494 was preparing for departure to Indianapolis when “a bullet apparently struck the right side of the aircraft under the flight deck,” a Southwest spokesperson told CBS News in a statement.
The airline said no one was hurt. A spokesperson for Dallas Love Field said in an email that the aircraft returned to its gate after sustaining damage from a “security incident” and the passengers deplaned. The runway was also temporarily closed, but has since reopened.
Dallas police confirmed the incident, saying that officers responded to reports of gunfire at 9:48 p.m. local time, arriving to find that the aircraft had been struck.
No further details were provided on the circumstances of the incident or what was the potential source of the gunfire. It’s unclear how many people were aboard the jet at the time, or how much damage the aircraft sustained.
In its own statement provided to CBS News, the Federal Aviation Administration said that the plane “was reportedly struck by gunfire near the cockpit.”
Dallas police are leading the investigation into the incident.
Earlier this week, gunfire amid ongoing gang violence struck three planes that were either landing or departing Haiti’s capital of Port-au-Prince. The shootings prompted the FAA to issue a 30-day ban on U.S. airlines flying to Haiti.
Social media star Jake Paul defeated boxing legend Mike Tyson in a highly anticipated fight with an age difference of over three decades between the two contenders. The Friday night win for the YouTuber-turned-pro-boxer was streamed on Netflix from the home of the Dallas Cowboys in Texas.
Paul defeated Tyson by an unanimous decision after the two fighters went eight full rounds.
Fight night for the 58-year-old Tyson and 27-year-old Paul came following doubts over whether it would happen at all. The fight was originally scheduled for July, but was postponed after the former heavyweight champion experienced an ulcer flare-up on a plane in May.
A different kind of flare-up happened during the official weigh-in Thursday with Tyson slapping Paul in the face. Tyson later told the New York Post that Paul had stepped on his toe when the two were toe to toe onstage.
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What is Jake Paul’s fight record?
With the win, Paul’s record improved to 11-1.
Was Jake Paul predicted to win?
Oddsmakers had Paul as the slight favorite to win. Former heavyweight champ Anthony Joshua also went with Paul.
How much prize money does Jake Paul win?
Paul was expected to earn about $40 million from the fight, according to DraftKings Network and other online sources.
Promoters didn’t reveal the payouts ahead of the bout. Paul is a co-founder of Most Valuable Promotions, which produced the fight.
Does Mike Tyson still get paid?
Tyson was expected to take home around $20 million for the fight, according to DraftKings and other online reports.
Tyson entered professional boxing in 1985 and became the youngest heavyweight champion in history a year later. After serving time for a rape conviction in the 1990s, Tyson won the World Boxing Council and World Boxing Association titles.
He retired from boxing in 2005 and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2011. He last fought in a 2020 exhibition match against former four-division world champ Roy Jones Jr.
“He like put on another 20 pounds from when I fought him, so he’s more bigger and he’s more dangerous because more size, more power, so it’s going to be a tough one for Jake to climb,” Jones told CBS News ahead of the fight.
Anne Marie Lee and
contributed to this report.
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