Pamela Sargent Ryley, 80, of Mystic, CT, passed away peacefully at Yale New Haven Hospital on January 30, 2026. A Celebration of Life service will take place in the spring.
Pam was born on January 21, 1946 in Hartford, CT, and grew up in Broad Brook, CT, the daughter of H. Wesley and Freida Sargent. She grew up loving boats, spending summers on her parents’ Chris Crafts in Old Saybrook on the Connecticut River. Her father bought her a 10’ dinghy named “P.S.,” and so at the age of 10 was born Pam’s love for sailing, a passion she carried with her for the rest of her life and shared with her family. She particularly enjoyed sailing to Block Island, Martha’s Vineyard, and Cuttyhunk – an island she loved to go to and “do absolutely nothing but swim and eat oysters.”
Pam graduated from Northfield boarding school (Northfield, MA), Brown University, (Providence, RI), and received her Master’s Degree in Teaching from Connecticut College (New London, CT). She had a diverse working life, at times working for the Mystic Aquarium as the Membership Coordinator, Field Executive for the Connecticut Trails Girl Scouts, and as the Director of Volunteer Services for United Community Services. Throughout her career, she tried to give back to the community: she established a reading mentoring program for inner city students while an undergrad at Brown, conducted a summer recreation program for minority girls in New London while working for the Girl Scouts, and was a Volunteer Director at Noank Baptist Group Homes, where she mentored and tutored resident girls in reading and writing. Her greatest satisfaction came, however, when she started teaching Language Arts in the Groton Public School system, a job she held for 22 years until retiring in 2016. She poured her love for her students into every day, every lesson, and every moment of her teaching life. Years later, when she would inevitably run into former Cutler students, she would take great delight in hearing about their life successes.
Pam was passionate about music. She and her husband Roger were founding members in 1984 of the Mystic River Chorale, with whom she toured Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, and sang backup to both Paul Anka and Rosemary Clooney. She was heavily involved with creating concert series for the Con Brio Choral Society and the North Stonington Historical Society Parlor Concert Series. On numerous occasions, she provided local housing for artists ranging from opera singers to harpsichordists to cellists. She received great joy from hearing their stories and their music and never backed away from providing help whenever she could.
One of her greatest attributes was as both a storyteller and a story collector. She surrounded herself with interesting people from all walks of life: musicians, sailors from around the world, vagabonds, and others who simply gravitated to her irresistible pull, as well as her amazing dinner parties. She always found something within their stories to hold her interest and to build upon, until complete strangers became fast, lifelong friends.
In addition to her husband of 48 years, Roger Ryley, Pam is survived by her son Lance Ryley and his wife Pam, her son David Coxe and his wife Kimberly, and her stepdaughter Jennifer Welsh, along with numerous grand and step-grandchildren. Pam was predeceased by her brother Hamilton Sargent.
Pam’s family would like to give special thanks to the doctors, nurses, and staff at Lawrence and Memorial, Yale New Haven, and St. Raphael Hospital, who took such excellent care of her during her last weeks of life.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to UNICEF, Save the Children, or the Shriners Hospital for Children.