An interview with Ruth Riley, WNBA player with the San Antonio Silver Stars

Holly Meade: How long have you been involved in basketball? Professional basketball?

Ruth Riley: I was drafted to Miami in 2001, so I just finished my seventh season in the WBA. I played two years in Miami , four years in Detroit and then this past year was my first year in San Antonio .

HM: So how did you come to know Christ? What's your story?

RR: I grew up in a Christian home where it was just Mom raising my brother, sister and I, and it was kind of the situation where she made sure we had a good solid foundation. It wasn't the case where I always wanted to go to church as a kid. I think there are other things that I probably would rather have done on Sunday, but once I got older I really appreciated the fact that she made sure that we had a solid base, even when deciding where I went to college. I went to the University of Notre Dame and I think that being in college and on my own away from my family really allowed me to search out answers for myself. My mom did a great job of providing me with a foundation, but then I had to decide at that point what I thought was true, what I truly believed in. I guess you could say I started to own my faith then and realized that in the decisions I was making in my life I was going to make them according to what I believed to be true. I met with the chaplain with our team, Arlene DeBardelaben, down here in Miami and she really mentored me one-on-one and that's where I really started to grow.

HM: How did she mentor you?

RR: It was the first time where I had somebody who I could ask questions of and somebody who would see one-on-one where I was in my faith-provide me with materials to read, challenge me. I think it's very important to have those people in your life that you can go to with tough questions and ask why does the Bible say this, or what do they mean here and how does this apply or just decision-making in your life and somebody who's going to give you advice from a Christian point of view. I think you can go to a lot of people for advice, but she was very helpful because I knew that was the type of advice I was seeking.

HM: What kind of struggles do you deal with as a professional athlete? I mean, you're in the public eye and trying to be a Christian.

RR: I think the hardest thing is being in the spotlight and how you handle success and failure. You know, I've been blessed to be on a couple very successful teams and we won two championships in Detroit. At the same time I've been on teams that didn't succeed as well as possible and I think that on both ends of the spectrum you have a platform when you're successful to tell people about your faith and why you think you're successful and what makes you the type of player you are. But the same is true in failure as well. You know when you're being tested and when you're not performing at your best. I think it's very important in those times to be just as strong.

HM: How have you used your platform to share your faith with others?

RR: I used to be really shy and so speaking about my faith wasn't the easiest thing in the world, but as I've gotten older I think through sports I've really opened up through opportunities of doing interviews and talking to different people. In general, athletics-and the success I've had with basketball-have allowed me to understand how to communicate better. I know where my success comes from and that I'm truly blessed to be doing what I do, so I think that I'm very open now about sharing my faith with people. A lot of church and community groups ask me if I'll speak or share my testimony, and I think they appreciate the fact that I'm very open about my faith in Jesus Christ and what He's done for me.

HM: What does it mean to you, Ruth, that somebody like Arlene took the time to invest in your life and mentor you?

RR: It means a great deal. She's truly one of the most amazing people I've ever met. She is unselfish with her time and resources and how much she cares for so many people. You know it's not just me. So many people have been blessed by the ministry that she and her husband do here at the University of Miami and in the Miami community. I see her as a role model for me in a way that she gives so much of herself to help other people and be there for them.

Holly Meade is the producer of The Lighthouse Report, a daily radio broadcast of Campus Crusade for Christ. Hosted by Campus Crusade President Steve Douglass, the program encourages Christians to be "lights" by praying, caring, and telling others about Jesus Christ.

Ruth Riley (right, in photo) poses with Tamika Catchings and Sue Bird after the USA won a gold medal in Athens at the 2004 Olympics.

Photo courtesy of Ruth Riley

Click here to read an interview with Steve DeBardelaben, AIA staff member in Miami.

Airtime for this interview is yet to be determined. Visit www.lighthousereport.com for more information.