Jean Ryberg

Jean Ryberg passed away peacefully at home, surrounded by loved ones, on April 23, 2026. She was born on November 4, 1927, in Springfield, Missouri, the eldest child of Andrew Floyd Bradley and Nell Lorena (Eubank) Bradley. Jean’s younger sister Marilyn Sue was born on December 7, 1931.

The family moved to the Kansas City area when Jean was in her teens. There, she attended and graduated from Paseo High School. She earned a scholarship to study music at St. Mary’s Academy and College in St. Mary’s, Kansas, where she completed her Bachelor of Music degree, majoring in clarinet.

Following college, Jean continued her clarinet studies with famed Russian émigré clarinetist Simeon Bellison in New York City. While there, she met Henry Ryberg, the son of German and Swedish immigrants. When Jean returned home to Kansas City, Henry eventually followed her there, and the two were married on May 26, 1950.

Although Jean’s full-time work for many years was raising her family, she also pursued a part-time career in music. She composed her overture, “Sir Lancelot,” which was published by Witmark in 1954, and performed professionally on clarinet with the Kansas City Civic Orchestra, the Kansas City Philharmonic, and the Lyric Opera of Kansas City. She also gave private music lessons in her home, primarily to school-aged children.

Though Jean’s career as a professional musician centered on classical music, later in life she founded and led The Raytown Ramblers, a Dixieland band that regularly entertained senior citizens in retirement and assisted living facilities throughout the greater Kansas City area for many years. Beyond her musical activities, she was also an avid reader, puzzler, and game player, an occasional poet, and a lover of butterflies.

Jean is survived by her children, Rick Ryberg (Connie), Diane Ryberg, Judy Cohee (Ed), and Stephen Ryberg (Delmy), along with twenty-seven grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren. A Celebration of Life for Jean will be held at 1:00 pm on July 11 at the Century Farms Subdivision Clubhouse located at 16801 Century Street in Overland Park, Kansas, and all are welcome.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to either of two charities that reflect the causes closest to Jean’s heart: Band of Angels, which helps provide instruments and music lessons to local children who otherwise could not afford them, and Helen Keller International, co-founded by Helen Keller, whom Jean admired throughout her life.