Building Creative Access with Brandi Moore
Ryan LaLonde is an artist, school board president, family-history sleuth, and unapologetic keeper of receipts. Beneath the laughs is a conversation about building a family, showing up for your community, and figuring out what brings you joy when life changes.
Summary
Ryan LaLonde joins Siobhan for a birthday toast and a wide-ranging conversation about the stories, people, and creative sparks that shape a life. Ryan talks about being an artist, serving as Alameda school board president, and why mentoring the next generation of leaders matters. He also shares how his investigative streak led him from childhood logs and political “receipts” to genealogy discoveries that reshaped his understanding of family history.
The conversation moves through Ryan’s reflections on Photoshop and AI in art, his plans to experiment with painting over digital illustrations, and the work he hopes to create next. He opens up about building a family with his husband, their adoption journey, and the tenderness and heartbreak of helping their son learn about his birth mother. Along the way, Ryan and Siobhan trade stories about long-distance love, chosen family, and making room for grief and laughter at the same time.
As Ryan navigates a new chapter of life, he shares an unexpected insight: creativity and solitude matter, but community is where he finds joy. It’s a warm, funny, and heartfelt conversation about staying curious, showing up for one another, and making space for what comes next.
Ryan LaLonde
Ryan LaLonde is an Alameda-based artist, illustrator, children’s book author, and dad who studied art at the University of Michigan. At the time of recording, he serves as Alameda’s school board president and shares experiences from his former communications role in the Alameda County district attorney’s office. His creative interests span painting, digital illustration, queer representation, improv, and helping children see different kinds of families reflected in stories.
Resources & Mentions
Ryan’s work
Ryan LaLonde Art — Website Ryan gives at 1:34:22. Site access could not be verified.
Families Come in Many Different Shapes, Sizes, and Colors — Ryan’s children’s book about family diversity, told through shapes and colors. He discusses writing it for his son and mentions finding it on Amazon. The full title is corroborated by a book listing. ebay.com
Fireside Lounge — Ryan discusses displaying and selling his leather-themed illustrations there.
Organizations & community
University of Michigan — Ryan’s art-school background and Chris’s law-school years.
Alameda school board — Public education, community leadership, and mentorship.
Alameda County district attorney’s office / Pamela Price — Ryan’s reflections on his former communications role.
Ducal Court / Trey — Drag, community, and a pageant discussed during the recording.
Alamediacs — Ryan’s former Alameda improv group.
Farm Aid — Ryan mentions his years working backstage near the episode’s close.
Books, music & culture
Anne Rice’s vampire novels — Ryan credits them with helping him enjoy reading.
Harry Potter; The Baby-Sitters Club; Audible — Siobhan’s reading and listening experiences.
Madonna / the Confessions album — Birthday banter, records, and music.
Soul Train — Representation, attraction, and early influences.
Salem Witch Museum / the Putnam family; the House of the Seven Gables — Family connections and genealogy stories.
Oh, Mary! / the Curran Theatre — Ryan’s birthday theater plans.
XM Radio / Little Debbie — Radio memories and an unexpected delivery from a listener.
💡 Key Takeaways
Leadership means making room for others. Ryan believes mentoring and thoughtful transitions help organizations keep growing.
Creative tools can support—not replace—an artist’s vision. Ryan describes using Photoshop to plan his paintings and sees potential in adding painted layers to digital illustrations.
Family is built through care and connection. Ryan shares how adoption, chosen family, and intentional relationships have shaped his life.
Grief and humor can coexist. The conversation makes room for hard emotions as well as the unexpected moments of levity that help people through them.
Joy can be communal. Ryan reflects that working alongside others may help him reconnect with his art and creative momentum.