BOOKSY

Birth Name: Ryan Little

Age: 38

F3 Start Date: 5/28/2024

Main AO Posts: The Green, Iron Horse

What led you to F3, and how did your first post challenge you or inspire you in unexpected ways? and how did you get your F3 nickname?

It was the end of the school year, and I had just finished a year rebuilding a workout routine using my Peloton. Around that time, I received our neighborhood newsletter. In it, I saw a short listing for something called F3. At first, I was skeptical. I assumed it might be a church group or a men’s organization with a message about masculinity that didn’t align with me. But I was curious, so I read through the website and even did some Googling. The more I read, the more it sounded like a group of guys meeting early in the morning in local neighborhoods to work out together and support each other. I decided I would go the next day. I only did one drive by before pulling in.

My first post was the day after Memorial Day. A lot of guys had done the Murph the day before, so the crowd was smaller. After a warm-a-rama, Scout started us off with Roxanne burpees. I just started doing burpees and the rest is history.

What surprised me most came after the workout. I got a text from Scout, Spike, and PO inviting me to join them at Iron Horse the next day. I didn’t go, but I turned to the person I was with and said, “I think this group might actually get me into shape.”

As for my nickname, I’m a high school English teacher, the guys naturally started asking about my favorite book. I completely blanked. Scout must’ve figured “Booksy” fit well enough.

What impact has F3 had on your life, and what lessons or moments stand out as defining your journey? 

The biggest impact I’ve noticed is around looking forward. A true community has men from different walks of life and every life stage (40, 45, 50, 60 and beyond). F3 has given me an imagination to what a man, a father, a husband, or a friend can look like at those ages. I see examples of guys showing up consistently even when work is hard or life feels overwhelming. I see them supporting each other in both the big and small moments.

Yes, F3 is there when someone faces a crisis (illness, job loss, loss of a loved one). These are important, but F3 is also there for the smaller everyday struggles: Sick kids, tough work situations, tricky conversations. Showing up in the morning builds a community where those things can be carried together. That day to day consistency and the friendships it creates has been the biggest surprise and joy for me. 

What’s been the hardest challenge you’ve faced—either in life or in F3—and what did it teach you about perseverance?

The hardest challenge I’ve faced was losing my mom to colon cancer right before my senior year of college. She was only 45. I was the oldest of four, and my youngest sister was just nine at the time. That loss taught me that not everything happens for a reason. Grief is brutal and cannot be charted.

But it also taught me something about perseverance. Specifically, some things cannot be fixed, they can only be carried. I see this truth reflected in F3. When we show up each morning we connect and carry our burdens together through the beat down. Sometimes it’s shared in the COT, sometimes it’s a quick word during a water break. No one offers a quick fix. Instead, the group offers fellowship, brotherhood and a willingness to stand and work beside that man for as long as it takes. I think that kind of presence is powerful!

What else would you like to share about Booksy to the PAX that maybe most of us don't know?

I was a classics major in college so took a lot of ancient Greek and Latin. I went to seminary and from that experience felt the call to become a teacher. I’ve really enjoyed the journey!