Originally published in Charisma News
Ryan Ries, co-founder of The Whosoevers, a cause-based movement set out to build and strengthen at-risk youth, tells his story of overcoming a life filled with pain, sorrow and emptiness from drug, alcohol and porn addiction in a new film produced by I Am Second.
At a young age, Ries, a California native and avid skateboarder, began to experience the party scene and exposure to pornography. When he was in first grade, he found a bag full of porn magazines, and in fourth grade, he began to understand their purpose. By high school, the addiction had grown, as had his love for partying.
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“When I got to high school, I was introduced to cocaine. It was more experimental at that time, but after high school is where it started getting to be more of a habit. It turned into a routine. That’s just what I did. I partied,” said Ries. “I would wake up, go to work, go skate and go get wasted.”
Ries soon felt the reality of his life.
“I had the nice house, the motorcycles. I had literally done laps around the world like four times, slept with girls, did drugs but nothing got me off anymore. I was empty,” Ries said in his I Am Second film.
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While on business in Panama City, Florida, Ries overdosed on cocaine and was found by one of his co-workers who suspected him dead. The next morning when Ries woke up, he knew something had to change. He went back to his hotel room and pleaded with God for answers.
“I said, ‘Prove that you’re real to me because I see religion around me—my parents and these Christians—and I don’t relate to them,’ ” said Ries.
After picking up to a hotel copy of the Bible, Ries began to get some of the answers he needed.
“I read that Gideon Bible for six hours straight—all the way to LAX,” said Ries.
By the time he landed in L.A., Ries was blown away by what he had discovered. Believing he needed to share his story, Ries co-founded The Whosoevers with Sonny Sandoval, front man for multiplatinum rock band P.O.D., and Brian “Head” Welch of the band, KORN. An organization using live music, skateboarding and street art that allows Ries to talk openly to people about substance abuse and sex addiction, what began as a way to help support local communities has today transformed into a global effort.
The Whosoevers movement is supporting school programs, rehabs, sober living homes, human trafficking prevention and local charities. Ries’ hope is to creatively inspire people to stand together and work for change and reach millions of people around the world.
