What I respect the most about Ms. Ruth, is how Flexible she is in mind, body & spirit. She is really open to people’s beliefs & encouraging to people to build upon what ever beliefs they have. I have learned a lot about myself and have definitely realized many things about my own faith from our conversations.

We first met after I called her—a cold call—looking for sponsorships, since the NCAA had just changed its rules that allowed student athletes to receive benefits for their name, image and likeness. I wanted to make some connections, not for money, but for services—some massage, in exchange to be on my Instagram.

Ms. Ruth & I had a great conversation, but she said “no” to helping, yet later called back and asked me to help her with the NM Dream Center and other volunteering. She wanted me to help her by volunteering instead of using my Instagram. Her work to support the sex traffic victims & teen homeless was a really powerful way for me to give back & get involved in the community.

So, we met and everything took off. Not only did we do massage & stretching, we also talked about making an impact with positive thinking, trust and more. We also talked about some “hard subjects”, as Ms. Ruth calls them, about marijuana, porn, alcohol and other addictions that many college athletes turn to when they are bored, lonely or sad. These are real conversations and needed, and Ruth makes it easy to talk about.

Soon, I met her family and started having dinner with her family, going on hikes, making greeting cards with her mom, going to church with her family and so much more. She make’s me feel like I’m a part of her family.

Next, I brought some of my teammates to dinner at Ms. Ruth’s house, and they became a part of Ruth’s family as well. I moved away to another football team, but AJ & Chad kept spending time with their family, and I’m happy I was able to open that door for those relationships.

If you have the chance, I definitely say to work with Ms. Ruth, you’ll be happy you did.