User:Soniagonzalez

== Ryan Ries == Ryan Brent Ries (born September 20, 1975). Los Angeles-based, Ryan Ries, is a crazy man, a visionary, and a prodigal. He’s a hero to kids around the world who are misunderstood, left for dead, and cynical about religion. As co-founder of The Whosoevers, Ries has been invited to tell his story and the vision of The Whosoever movement based on based on John 3:16 KJV. They "seek[s] to impact those whose pain has previously driven them to addictive or self-destructive behaviors.

== Background ==

Ries spent nineteen years widely known for his work in the skateboard, snowboard, and music industries. He managed one of the top skateboard teams and his marketing insights helped build C1RCA Footwear. On the music side, he headed up Art Direction for Base 9 Film & Music. Additionally, he worked with Special Blend Outerwear, Forum Snowboards, Foursquare Outerwear, and Jeenyus Snowboards. He is known for pioneering the event, Skate Jam, a large festival style contest that brought the skate and music cultures together.

Ries traveled the world, hung out with celebrities, and dove head first into everything the world had to offer—money, women, drugs. However, after many years of partying, overdosing, and seeing his friends die, he was “over it.” He knew he had to make some serious changes or end up dead. However, he was at a point where he was drinking every day and often mixing that with drugs. “I had to drink just to turn my brain off.

As a last resort, in a hotel room in Panama, Ries decided to reach out to God. “Okay God, if you’re real, prove it. I don’t want to live like this anymore. I’ve been doing this for 19 years and I’m over it. How many drugs can I do, how much alcohol can I drink, how many girls can I sleep with, and still feel like something’s missing?”

After praying in that hotel room, and turning his life over to Christ, Ries stole a Gideon’s Bible from the hotel room and read it on the flight home. The rest was, as he likes to say, “a done deal.” He stopped the drugs, the drinking, the lifestyle, and everything that was destroying his future. His friends and co-workers immediately saw a change and He emerged with a new vision for his life, a new direction to channel his drive and passion. However, he didn’t want to leave behind his friends or the skate-art-music culture he had so much love for.

== The Whosoevers ==

After taking a year off to skate, surf, and reflect on his future, Ries, along with friend and rock star, Sonny of P.O.D., had a vision to launch The Whosoever’s in 2008 – a worldwide movementfor kids who’ve been left behind. According to Ries, “We’re not trying to tap into the culture, We ARE the culture.”

Along with numerous speaking engagements, Ries is right back where he belongs overseeing all aspects of The Whosoever’s, including their much sought after apparel line. In addition, he and his team are producing the 2nd Annual Whosoever Session in Los Angeles titled, Threat to Formalized Religion… I AM. The two-day FREE event includes many the hottest bands and speakers around, including Brian "Head" Welch (Korn), Fieldy (Korn), Bethany Hamilton (Soul Surfer), Lance Mountain (Pro Skater), Icon For Hire, Dominic Balli, and many more.

In late 2011, God gave Ries the inspiration for, Murder Your Flesh, based on Romans 8:13, which says, “For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.” According to Ries, “I was murdering my flesh in the world, now I am murdering my flesh daily to live for God.” So many kids are asking, “How do I do this??” They don’t have many people in the church they relate to and they don’t feel like they have a safe place to talk about what they are going through – Porn, Drugs, Abuse, Suicide, etc.”

That same year, Murder Your Flesh miraculously turned into a 30-city U.S. tour, later expanding to South America, England and Australia.This became possible after a brand new 40-foot motor home was donated to The Whosoever’s. Upon completion of the tour, Ries was inspired to begin writing the Murder Your Flesh book – a highly vulnerable, step-by-step book to continue reaching the thousands of kids in need of this message. In the words of Ries, “We’re all going through the same things in life and ALL need to know that we're not alone.”

== External links == The Whosoevers Official Website

The Whosoevers - Facebook page

== References == "seek[s] to impact those whose pain has previously driven them to addictive or self-destructive behaviors."