The Impact of Being sponsored by The Warrior Brand

This post has been a long time coming as throughout the 2024 Long Drive season I had the luxury of being sponsored by my friends, Tara and Jason Thompson at Warrior Supplies out of Thunder Bay, Ontario, or as I expressed to many longtime friends of Lake Helen Reserve just outside of my hometown of Nipigon, Ontario (across the bridge as we say back home). Now, I will say I am not an Indigenous Canadian; I personally don't know the struggles or hardships that have been generational to many. I did, however, grow up with a specific view of things as well as having many Indigenous friends in my life from my very beginnings in this world right up until today. Even just the other day, my best friend and I were messaging back and forth about his son wanting to be a goalie (poor guy). I want to speak to my experiences through that year and the culture/information I was able to provide to others who didn't truly know the history behind things as best I could from the perspective I had learned and grown up around.

Growing up in Nipigon, Ontario, I didn't see color; I saw people. We actually had quite a bit of diversity throughout the town: Indigenous, French, Finnish, Italian, Greek. But as a young child, I didn't know any different. My friends were my friends, and it truly didn't matter, which is exactly how it should have been. I spent lots of time on the reserve in my childhood and have many great memories. We all played hockey together—ice, road, tennis court—it really didn't matter where. We were just always playing hockey somewhere when we could, and the bonds I've built through that to this day are still with my best friends, who I've stood beside at many weddings, along with sadder times such as funerals as we are getting older.

Now I'm not going to ignore that during some phases of life there were things brought to my attention that I didn't agree with, certain things I, to this day, have a hard time thinking about when said, certain slander, and jokes made, the racist remarks, things I even have said in a time of anger during situations that I would never say today. As I sat down a few years ago with a few really good friends around Christmas time on a trip home, we all had a conversation about things we had said to one another along the way of growing up and how we all said things as dumb teenagers that today we just never would. (I was the only non-indigenous one at the table.)

But I honestly couldn't have asked for or could have asked for better friendships that I have built over my lifetime with my childhood friends. We always felt like a team, a group, and when on the ice, we came together as one on many occasions. Even though it was over 20 years ago now, the respect, friendship, and love have never really changed. My people will always be my people, and they all know who they are.

Now, obviously, trying to be a professional athlete that travels and competes in sports isn't cheap. Travel costs, equipment, and entry fees all come with a price, and finding the means to cover those costs isn't always the easiest thing to do. In my 2024 season, I did have some help from Jason and Tara. It was honestly a big transition year for me as certain life changes had occurred, and stress was relatively high. But the Warrior group jumped on board and were very gracious with things. Now, I know in Northern Ontario, especially in the region I grew up, there is thankfully a lot of awareness around Indigenous people and the history that has happened. It's obviously never enough, but people and the general public are hopefully aware of the culture, the history, and the reconciliation needed now and for the future. What I will say, having traveled across North America, all over Canada, there isn't honestly as much awareness. I wore my Warrior-logoed hat at every event I did that season, from Alberta to Montreal, California to Florida, and everywhere in between. I was on the road doing close to 50 events, including charity outings and corporate events that summer. I even spent two weeks in Europe doing a tour of Switzerland, Austria, and Germany. I honestly can't count how many times I got asked what the logo was on my hat, and having conversations about the company and speaking about the Indigenous ownership and the culture of my hometown gave me this proud feeling of it all. Is it small in the grand scheme of things? Sure, but for those moments, it meant a lot to me.

St Moritz Switzerland,

As much as we feel that the awareness is there, I'm not completely sure it is. Even at all the events I did within southern Ontario, I was very surprised at the lack of general knowledge many had of Indigenous culture and people. It was like I was giving history lessons at some points. Now, I understand the world is a very busy place these days, and people have a lot of their own things happening in this economy today, and it's hard to listen and understand the hardships of others in the past and today.

The one thing I am proud that I was asked is, "Why was an indigenous company sponsoring me?" It's simple: in our community, we don't see color; we see people. My sponsors were some of the best people, friends, and some of their family was like my family since we were children. Even when it wasn't asked, I made it a point to mention I wasn't indigenous, not in a negative way, but in a way that let people know, again, heritage and race didn't play a role when it came down to it in our community. Good people are just that—good people.

I was absolutely proud to wear the Warrior Logo, and had such excitement doing so; it was like a hometown badge of honor to represent people on a world stage who were willing to help out an athlete based not just on what he could provide as a return on their investment in him, but to show we are all one in the same community. I am beyond proud of every one of my friends in my hometown community, some for being amazing parents, some for being amazing leaders, providers, and role models, and some for just making it through the tough days that may have passed or that lie ahead.

In closing, I can say that being a non-indigenous person sponsored by an Indigenous-owned and operated company, which also happened to be local to my own town and family friends, meant everything to me. To me, it meant I had done it right; I had treated everyone equally and respected my friends and elders along the way. To me, it was a sign of respect on both ends that even though I moved away 8 years ago, the bonds made and friendships built had never changed. If you are reading this as a business owner, please Google Warrior Supply Thunder Bay. Jason and Tara have built something amazing in the community and have many different ways to help companies grow, from supplies, electrical, engineering, and more. Check out their website below.

Thank you and

Miigwech

Ryan

warriorsupplies.ca