DBU Report Summer 2021 - Page 31

SUMMER 2021 31 and ambassador for Christ in the marketplace of professional sporting events. Matt was an active athlete in high school and was a walk-on with the DBU Patriots in 2001. He played four years and received the Dallas Baptist Patriot Award as DBU’s most outstanding student-athlete for the 2004-05 season. “At the time, I thought my coaches were teaching me about baseball, but actually God was preparing me for life after it.” “I learned a ton about baseball but more about life,” he says. “My baseball career at DBU taught me how to manage change and persevere in challenging situations. With all of the coaching changes, I had to continue to prove myself over and over again. The situation forced me to be mentally tough and to work harder than anyone else. I still use those skills today. I take pride in my work ethic, mental toughness, and the ability to perform at a high level under pressure. At the time, I thought my coaches were teaching me about baseball, but actually God was preparing me for life after it.” After graduating Summa Cum Laude from DBU in 2006 with a Bachelor of Science in exercise science, Matt joined his in-law’s athletic LED display company, TS Sports. Matt was first a sales representative and then Vice President of Sales and Marketing, after helping the company reach record high sales—establishing himself as a top executive in the industry and securing contracts with all five major sports leagues. Now known as Southpaw, the company’s roots go back to 1954 as a small family-owned business called Waldrum Sign Company. Over the years, the company expanded, focusing on high school teams and minor league and college sports. Today its high-quality LED displays can be found in sport stadiums all across the country, including the Dallas Cowboys and Mavericks/Stars, Philadelphia Eagles, and Atlanta Braves, among others. Matt served at Southpaw as Executive Vice President and successfully managed the business through the challenges of COVID-19, with top priority on keeping as many jobs as possible while accomplishing $30 million in backlog sales for 2021. Most recently in April, the board voted Matt to be the next President of the company, and he began leading its day-to-day operations in May. Matt married his high school sweetheart, Allison, who is a daughter in the Waldrum family and also a DBU alumna. They have three boys, Maddox (11), Mason (9), and Manning (5). The Ritters are residents of Dalworthington Gardens and members of Fielder Church in Arlington. From the first stirrings of faith in his childhood, Matt’s relationship with Christ has motivated his pursuit of excellence in life, whether on the baseball field, at home with his family, or in the company boardroom. At the end of every email he sends, he attaches a verse that inspires his devotion to give God his best every day: “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:9).