Biography

Patrick Edward “Pat” Ryan is a management consultant with the Washington Federal Practice of PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and has lived in Montgomery County Maryland most of his life.  Prior to joining PwC, he was the staff director and Chief Counsel for the Committee on Veterans Affairs of the U.S. House of Representatives.  He has a long history of civic involvement in Montgomery County, from serving with homeowners’ associations and parent teacher organizations to more recent service as the co-chair of Action in Montgomery, a coalition of 30 churches and synagogues working for social justice for county residents.  Pat also serves as the Vice Chair of the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans (NCHV), a non-profit organization advocating services to eliminate homelessness among those who served in the Nation’s armed forces.

In his professional life, Pat works with a PwC team that is dedicated to helping the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) improve the delivery of benefits and services to veterans.  His work for the Committee on Veterans Affairs spanned 21 years and three chairmen. He also worked for the VA for nine years as an attorney, budget analyst, and benefits counselor, and was recognized for outstanding contributions.  He earned his law degree from Georgetown University Law Center and his undergraduate degree in government and politics at the University of Maryland. 

Pat’s family, which includes five siblings, moved to Silver Spring in 1957 when he was four years old.  He has lived with his wife Kathie and his three children in the Fairland area of Silver Spring since 1984.  Their children attended local public elementary and middle schools and all three graduated from Good Counsel High School.  Kathie continues to serve as a county crossing guard at the elementary school they attended.  His oldest daughter Kerry is a career Montgomery fire fighter and is married to Jaymie Birney, also a career fire fighter.  Their son Daniel lives in Arlington and works as consultant, while youngest daughter Julia is a student at Towson University. 

Pat’s recent work with Action in Montgomery has involved working with members of his own congregation and those of other AIM congregations on such diverse issues as work force and affordable housing, improvements to neighborhood recreation centers, better access to Federal immigration services, and improved access to taxicabs, particularly for the disabled and the elderly.  He also continues to serve on the Fairland Master Plan Civic Advisory Committee, which meets to consider potential development and its effect on citizens in the Fairland area of eastern Montgomery County.  His work with NCHV involves advising the staff and other board members on legislative strategy and fundraising.  Pat has also previously served in volunteer and leadership roles with parent-teacher organizations (W.T. Page Elementary, Good Counsel High School), Cub Scouts, and the Calverton Swim Team.  He also serves as a lector and participates in the adult choir at the Church of the Resurrection in Burtonsville, MD.