Douglas Ryland Fox

Douglas Ryland Fox passed away peacefully on Sunday, June 1, 2025, in Williamsburg, Virginia, after a brief illness. He was surrounded by family—and by a few birds who found his hospital windowsill, offering comfort at the end just as they had throughout his life.

Known to family and friends as Ryland, Douglas was born on January 17, 1949, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to Virginia “Ginny” Wight Fox and Joseph Hervey Fox, who both preceded him in death. The family—including his sisters, Helen Fox Hansen (the late Douglas) and Anne “Jackson” Fox Verburg (Richard “Rico”)—relocated to Rochester, Michigan, in the late 1950s.

His sisters have many fond memories of growing up with Ryland including family car trips to visit relatives in Virginia, long days at Red Knapp’s barn behind their house, and nightly family dinners. He wasn’t so much into the horses, but he and his pals wandered around the neighborhood and fields. They spent one summer crafting a boat that sank to the bottom of the creek immediately after the launch.

While Helen and Anne eventually relocated, Ryland became a loyal Michigander who spent most of his adulthood living in a comfortable house in Pontiac, where he loved his garden, the birds that visited, and playing golf. He spent a meaningful career writing grant proposals for Oakland County Schools.

He was the family historian and did much research and wrote chronicles of Aunt Helen and Ginny and Joe.

Ryland nurtured a close-knit circle of friends from his days at Rochester High School and Central Michigan University. They brought him tremendous joy and a deep sense of community as they moved through life together. For decades, they attended music festivals together and faithfully convened for their annual Thanksgiving gathering—an event he eagerly anticipated for months beforehand and fondly recounted for weeks afterward.

In 2023, Ryland moved to Williamsburg, where he, his sisters, and Rico designed and built a beautiful home to share, “Sib Nation” - just off the James River where the Fox ancestors once lived. Though his time at Sib Nation was far too short, Ryland was truly at home there, enjoying daily cribbage games, family movie nights, an ongoing pinochle tournament, and many hours in his utopia—a comfortable chair on the back porch in the sun. Between pages of the newspaper or a good book, he watched over the critters in the woods, tended his many bird feeders, and enjoyed the company of a good dog now and then. He mounted a formidable defense against beavers and tolerated—but did not condone—the thievery of squirrels.

Ryland was a kind and gentle soul, happy to spend much of his time in quiet solitude: walking in the woods, tending his garden, watching birds, and reading many, many books over the course of his life.

Equally, he cherished time with his family. A self-declared “go-alonger,” he brought an easygoing sense of calm to even the most boisterous of gatherings. At the annual Fox, Hansen, Verburg, and Eden Christmas gathering—a 50+ year tradition—he was the best and most diligent cookie decorator, the go-to cranberry cutter, and the clear favorite to win almost any game. He frequently took the gold in the New Year’s Eve Family Game Olympics, though he always seemed to delight more in someone else winning.

In addition to Helen, Jackson, and Rico, Ryland is survived—and was deeply admired and adored—by his nephew, Eric (Shelby) Hansen, and his niece, Kathryn (Gregory) Hansen Eden, and their children: Samantha Rylie Hansen, Joseph Tobey “JT” Eden, Lucas Ryland “Lucky” Eden, and Sawyer Reed Hansen. He also held dear his many aunts, uncles, and cousins.

The family has too many fond memories to catalog: croquet games on the lawn, a dignified resistance to war, a giggle at the Sunday comics, his ear for good music (especially the Rolling Stones and Beatles), and his appreciation for a good whisky, just to name a few.

He had a kind and generous spirit, was a thoughtful card sender, preferred to give neatly wrapped books as gifts, and reliably sent a silver dollar to each of the youngest generation in the family on their birthday every year. He always had time for a game, a chat, or group crossword puzzle solving. With his tall frame and big heart, Ryland’s hugs were a gift that unfailingly let the recipient know they were well loved.

We miss him dearly already.

A family service will be held in December in Williamsburg. We welcome all who loved Ryland to celebrate his life by spending a bit of time doing something he loved - take a walk in the woods, finish a crossword puzzle, spend some time soaking up the sun, read a good book, or hug someone you love.