Ryan O’Neil may be the newest member of the Fairfax Town Council (he was elected in November), but since he first moved to Fairfax roughly nine years ago the Marin native has been involved in the Tree Committee, the Planning Commission and the Open Space Committee (which he helped found).
Walking the dogs
O’Neil’s weekend begins with him rushing the family’s two Ridgebacks, a 7-year-old and a 8-month-old, out of the house after they wake up around 5:45 a.m. “I wake up fast to take the dogs out so the rest of the family can sleep.” He hikes with the dogs on a vertical assent to Pam’s Blue Ridge. “It’s awesome because there’s no one else out there - no one but me and a few animals and we can just be in the middle of nature for the sunrise.”
A second hike of the day
O’Neil will return and usually find his wife, Christine, and their two daughters, the 3-year-old Caelan and 6-year-old Charlie, awake and ready to eat. The family usually goes out for an early breakfast on Sundays and then goes for a hike. Recently, Caelan did her first complete hike without being carried. “She has joined her sister in the ‘O’Neil Championship Hikers Group’,” O'Neil said with a smile. The family frequents the Alpine Lake loop. “The girls like to look for animal tracks in the mud.”
Hardball and wrestling
O’Neil plays hardball on Sundays. “We play most of our games here in Marin, at Marin Catholic or Albert Park.” After his game and after dinner (which may have been made on the BBQ), O’Neil and the girls have wrestle time. “They have some good wrestle moves, the ‘Jersey Jawbreaker’ and ‘Philadelphia Traffic Stop’ are some of the moves the girls know.” The night usually ends with Christine bathing the girls and reading them bedtime stories. “My wife is such a rock star. I could never do any of these things for the town without her support. The burden that my volunteer work puts on her needs to be noted,” O'Neil said.
