A celebration of the life of Ryan T. Lair, age 20, of Colorado, and more recently of Mantorville, Minn., will be held 11 a.m. Friday, Dec. 31, at Bayview/Freeborn Funeral Home in Albert Lea. The Rev. Dan Raaen will officiate. A memorial service and interment will be held in Colorado in January. Visitation is 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Bayview/Freeborn Funeral Home and one hour prior to the services on Friday. To sign the guest book, goto www.bayviewfuneral.com

Ryan died Monday, Dec. 27, 2004, at St. Marys Hospital in Rochester.

Ryan Thomas Lair was born July 1, 1984, in Wheatridge, Colo., and became a member of John and Pamela (Sawyer) Lair’s family in July 1985. He was raised in Parachute, Colo., attended Grand Valley High School, and then pursued his passion for cooking at Mesa State College’s UTEC Culinary Arts Program in Grand Junction, Colo.

Ryan was a courageous young man who fought kidney and lung cancer for three years as a child, which left him with lifelong heart damage. He faced all life’s obstacles with tenacity, wit, and his engaging smile. Ryan touched and impacted many lives, many more than he realized. In July, he moved to Minnesota to live with family close to the Mayo Clinic as he needed a heart transplant to survive. Ryan fought a gallant but difficult battle for life the past six weeks but succumbed to cardiac arrest. He received his heavenly heart transplant and we rest assured he is probably pulling pranks on God’s precious angels.

Survivors include his parents; seven uncles and one aunt; paternal grandmother, Pearl Lair; maternal grandmother, Irene Ueber; and many cousins.

Ryan was preceded in death by his brother, Sergeant Christopher Lair, USMC; paternal grandfather, Webster &uot;Bussy&uot; Lair; and maternal grandfather, John D. Ueber.