Ryan Whittaker got clean when he was 15 years old in 1997. He started a company called Sober Water in 2024 to “Help people. End plastic.” He donated 40 acres in Southern Colorado for the purpose of building a low-cost or no-cost substance abuse treatment center. He has an amazing company that gives back to society more than it takes, and has plenty of room to grow in the ever increasing water market. Invest in people. Invest in water. Join us and become a shareholder at soberwater.org.

soberwater.org

Q. If you are in recovery, what was your drug(s) of choice and when is your sobriety date?

A. I was just a pothead skater that said I would never drink, but then I started drinking too. My sobriety date is 8-14-97. I was 15 years old when I got sober.

Q. Is there anything special in your sobriety toolkit that helps keep you sober?

A. I would say having made 88 meetings in 90 days, starting from the day I got out of my last rehab, but failing to make a full 90 meetings in 90 days, was still an amazing start and an attempt that made all the difference in the world. Nothing super special but a tool I still use today; always go to meetings. Don’t ever stop going to meetings.

Q. Do you think addiction is an illness, disease, a choice, or a wicked twist of fate?

A. It’s an illness that only some of us humans have to deal with.

Q. Where are you from and where do you reside now?

A. I am from NV, never really lived there, and I live in CO for part of the year and TX for part of the year.

Q. What is one word you would use to describe yourself?

A. Willing.

Q. Describe how you came to your “rock bottom” point.

A. I had 12 non-violent felonies by the time I was 15. I was miserable and hated my life.

Q. If you ever retire, would you prefer to live by the ocean, lake, river, mountaintop, desert, or penthouse?

A. By the mountaintop. Always.

Q. How do you measure success?

A. By making sure I am a good human and good to other humans, as well as looking at how long it takes me to get from “the problem” to the “solution.”

Q. What is your biggest pet peeve?

A. Shoes in the house. 😉

Q. If you had an extra million dollars, which charity would you donate it to?

A. Sober Water.

Q. Who has been the biggest influence throughout your life?

A. I would say all of the older folks in 12-step recovery.

Q. If you could give advice to your younger self what would it be?

A. Don’t be so emotional.

Q. Who made you feel seen growing up?

A. My mother, but only for a little bit until her disease started to take over.

Q. From what school of thought or teacher did you learn the most from?

A. 1990’s 12-step recovery and Buddhism.

Q. What major event or realization shaped who you are?

A. The 12 Steps.

Q. What do you love most about living sober?

A. I don’t go to jail nearly as often ahhahahah!

Q. Which part of your treatment and recovery do you feel was the most interesting or unexpected?

A. When people from 12-step recovery were working in the treatment centers that I was in.

Q. What’s your concept of a Higher Power?

A. Just a source, a higher energy that I can tap into, a helpful and must have tool for life (it gets super hard some days) and my recovery.

Q. What is your Astrological sign?

A. Pisces

Q. Who is your favorite celebrity in recovery?

A. Robert Downey Jr.

Q. What books are you reading now?

A. ”The New Emotional Intelligence”  -Travis Braderry.

Q. What book would you most like to see turned into a movie or TV show that hasn’t already been adapted?

A. My book “Clean At 15: Anyone From Anywhere Can Get Clean, Anytime.”

Q. Are you binge watching any TV series?

A. Always, binge watching The Office or Ancient Aliens.

Q. Who are your heroes in real life?

A. Mike Ness (Social Distortion).

Q. What is your favorite city?

A. Durango, CO (Town).

Q. What is your favorite cuisine?

A. Indian.

Q. What is a style trend you wish would come back?

A. Pay phones.

Q. What is the best and or worse piece of advice someone has given you?

A. There are many paths to recovery.

Q. What is the best piece of advice you’ve given someone else?

A. Go to meetings.

Q. What is one thing that always makes you smile?

A. Comedy.

Q. What do you value most in a friendship?

A. Connection and care.

Q. What do you consider your greatest achievement?

A. My sobriety and the ability to help others because of my sobriety.

Q. What would constitute a “perfect” day for you?

A. Hunting, camping & fishing followed by a night or a week in a cabin or cozy home with a lover.

Q. What is your biggest regret?

A. Being way too self reliant. Not asking for direction from others enough.

Q. What is the greatest risk you’ve ever taken?

A. Sober Water.

Q. Have you ever been arrested and, if so, what for?

A. Grand theft auto, to name a few.

Q. What is something you’ve learned about yourself in the last six months?

A. The mind of the human seeks negativity first, many times because we were always looking for a ‘threat’ before modern times. For 250,000 years humans were always looking for and facing a threat on a daily basis. It is only now in modern times that humans can go all day or their entire lives without the fears of pre-historic humans — so we come up with things to be worried about by being negative. It is our brain’s natural tendency to do so.

Q. What is something you are currently curious about?

A. If I can be successful in my 40’s and debt free in my 60’s all while giving most of my earnings to house the unhoused and the newly sober.

Q. How important are your pets to you?

A. Super important. My dog Copper always loves me.

Q. What is your motto?

A. End plastic. Help people.