Dubai: They didn’t know Ibolya Ryan personally but they knew it was but fitting to bid good-bye and light a candle in memory of the American teacher who was randomly killed inside an Abu Dhabi mall.
A German family, an American couple, and another American expatriate came together on Sunday night at Jumeriah Kite Beach with just the memory of Ryan as their common link.
Together, on a windy evening, they lit candles and silently offered a word of prayer for Ryan and her family despite the absence of the organisers, who first announced the event via Instagram.
“We didn’t come for here 500 people. We came to remember her, to light a candle for her. We were not perfectly prepared but we brought something so I think it’s good to just do it, to do what we came here for,” Khalid, a German sales manager with two kids, told Gulf News.
Ryan, 47, was killed in a frenzied attack by a knife-wielding suspect on December 1 inside the restroom of upscale Boutik Mall on Reem Island.
A 38-year-old Emirati woman, who allegedly stabbed Ryan to death and immediately fled the scene, has been arrested in connection to the crime. She is also being detained for allegedly placing a homemade bomb on the doorstep of an Egyptian-American doctor’s house, 90 minutes after the supposed attack on Ryan.
Ryan leaves behind 11-year-old twin boys and a daughter who is 13.
“I felt as a mother that it is important to support her [Ryan] and her family here and as an American mother, I wanted to come to show my support and give my condolences,” said Nancy, who comes from Colorado where Ryan lived for a while.
Another American, Joy, said the tragedy is so close to home because of the fact that it could have happened to anyone.
“All of the expatriate community, as long as there is this issue, all of us are her [Ryan]. I feel that it could have happened to me, to any of us,” the fashion designer said.
With all that has happened, and with the judicial process taking its course, Nancy said there’s one thing that people should remember Ryan for.
“She should be remembered as a school teacher and for what she did for children, and as a mother. She came to Abu Dhabi to educate children. I don’t think there’s any profession more noble than that”.
A teacher for 17 years, Ibolya was born in Romania. She held Hungarian and US citizenship, and was a certified teacher in Colorado.
According to Footprints Recruiting, which recruited her to work in Abu Dhabi, Ibolya had a Masters degree in Speech Therapy and also a Masters in Special Education.
