Family’s 13th child is No. 11 to graduate from Corona del Mar High

The Condon family of Newport Beach have had someone walking in Corona del Mar High School’s graduation ceremonies for 31 years — all within one generation.

Youngest of 13 children Zoe Condon will graduate June 18.

After parents Allen, 76, and Margot, 75, had their first three children, the couple welcomed their first adopted child, Adam. They then decided to continue adopting throughout the years.

“It was never part of our plan,” Allen said. “Each situation was different, but we knew we could devote ourselves to each one.”

The siblings are Anthony, 49; Nicole, 47; Tristan, 45; Adam, 43; Tyler, 35; Dillon, 31; Bree, 29; twins Logan and Brady, 27; Arianna, 24; Alix, 23; Max, 20; Zoe, 18.

The family often jokes that the siblings go “from A to Z” with Anthony as the oldest and Zoe as the youngest.

“People might assume that we don’t get along because there’s so many of us and we’re so different,” Zoe said. “But we’re not only siblings. We’re best friends.”

Among the siblings lies a spectrum of nationalities including Irish, Norwegian, Brazilian, Polynesian, African and Italian.

Tristan, the youngest among the biological children, said she sees her parents as angels.

“After us three, my mom couldn’t have more children but they wanted more,” Tristan said. “They saw these kids who needed homes and felt they had the financial capability for all of us.”

Allen works as an owner and property manager of apartment complexes under his company, The Condon Group. Margot is a professor of education at Pepperdine University.

For Zoe, being the youngest was something she said never bothered her but instead motivated her to be the best she could be.

“Having everyone to look up to and seeing the paths they went down, they’re all examples of where I could end up,” Zoe said.

Adam is a professional chef at a private golf club in Kona, Hawaii. He said older sister Nicole helped support him during one of his first culinary experiences.

“When I was about 15, I became a doughboy for a bakery called Sweet Life,” Adam said. “My sister managed it and took me under her wing.”

Nicole managed the former bakery in Fashion Island during the late ‘80s, back when the outdoor mall used to house Sears and JCPenney.

Bree, the middle child of the family, currently models and has had acting roles in television shows including “The Vampire Diaries,” “NCIS” and “Full House.”

She said her love for performing was inspired by her older brother Tyler, who participated in theater productions put on by the South Coast Repertory during his childhood.

While the Condon clan has a wide range of interests, some easily find their common ground within their alma mater, Corona del Mar High School.

“We’re so different, but we’ve all walked through those doors,” Bree said. “I wasn’t even alive when some of my older siblings graduated from CDM, but it brings us closer when we talk about school. It’s a time we actually share together.”

With the exception of Logan and Brady, who both graduated from Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, all the Condon siblings have graduated from Corona del Mar.

During Zoe’s time at Corona del Mar, she devoted all four years to playing on the school’s varsity soccer team and the past year to being Associated Student Body’s Rally Commissioner. She said this role in organizing and helping host the school’s rallies motivated her to earn an internship with an event planning company.

While interning, Zoe will begin classes at Irvine Valley College.

As she completes her chapter at Corona del Mar, Allen said he is proud of everything she has done.

“You fight for your individuality in a big family,” Allen said. “But she’s her own person. They all are.”