Behind the Brand: Why the Hill to Horizon Scholarship Means Everything to Me

Most people see the clothes.

The drops.

The branding.

The future I’m building with The Buff Ginger.

But if you really want to know what drives me —

what pushes me to keep going, keep growing, and keep giving back —

it’s this: the Hill to Horizon Scholarship.

Because long before TBG existed, long before the rebrands and Shopify builds and late nights working…

I was a kid from Man, West Virginia.

A kid who grew up on these hills.

A kid who saw the struggle, the pride, the heartbreak, and the strength of this town.

A kid who didn’t come from money, didn’t have a straight path laid out, and didn’t have all the resources other places take for granted.

But I had people who believed in me.

Coaches. Teachers. Mentors.

People who gave me opportunities I couldn’t have gotten on my own.

And I told myself back then:

“If I ever get the chance, I’m going to give that same opportunity back.”

Hill to Horizon isn’t just a scholarship.

It’s a promise.

A promise to the next generation that where you come from doesn’t limit where you can go.

It’s for the kids who grind.

The ones who show up.

The ones who fight through challenges people outside these mountains will never understand.

The ones who have potential so big it deserves a shot — even when the odds say otherwise.

Every shirt sold.

Every order placed.

Every bit of support for The Buff Ginger helps fund a dream for a student who needs that push…

that belief…

that chance.

This scholarship is personal to me because Man is personal to me.

This community raised me.

These hills taught me.

This town shaped me.

And now, through Hill to Horizon, I get to pour something back into the same place that poured so much into me.

To the parents, teachers, coaches, and kids of Man, WV — thank you for letting me do this.

It means more than most people will ever know.

This isn’t just about college money.

It’s about hope.

About pride.

About showing our youth that the horizon is bigger than the hills they see every day.

And as long as The Buff Ginger exists, so will this scholarship.

From Man — for Man — with everything I’ve got.

— Ryan

Founder, The Buff Ginger

Creator of the Hill to Horizon Scholarship