Ryan Trisler grew up in Noblesville and went to Noblesville High School. After graduating, he headed off to Cincinnati Christian University to earn his degree in biblical studies and ended up falling in love with his future wife. The couple wanted to start their lives together close to home, so they moved back to Northwest Indiana.
For a while after graduating, Trisler wasn’t completely sure what he wanted to do career-wise. Rather than let himself get discouraged, he decided to push forward. He worked all kinds of jobs exploring what was out there until he found the right fit.
“You just have to stick with it and keep moving forward. Don’t just sit around waiting to figure things out – keep moving forward. Eventually, you’ll find what it is you like doing and forge a path forward from that, but until then, you have to keep going,” said Trisler.
Today, Trisler works at People’s Bank in the commercial loans department and couldn’t be happier.
“I like that it's different every day and it's always a challenge. There’s always something new going on that’s mentally stimulating. Plus, there's hardly any downtime which is great. I really enjoy it,” said Trisler.
When he’s not at work helping people get loans, Trisler likes to spend his time partaking in an activity many people may not even realize exist; he plays baseball for a vintage baseball team called the Deep River Grinders through the Lake County Parks Department.
The Grinders play by the old rules of baseball, particularly the baseball rules from 1858. That means they play with no gloves, bat with wooden bats, and do all kinds of other interesting things that are no longer done on today’s baseball fields.
“It takes you back and gives you a break from regular life. When you walk across the bridge at Grinder Field on game day, it’s like walking back in time,” said Trisler.
What Trisler loves the most about baseball, and why he plays in a vintage league, is that baseball is a reflection of American history.
“What I find interesting about baseball is that the history of baseball follows the timeline of America all the way from the Civil War to segregation to desegregation and to the modern era. Baseball ebbs and flows with our country’s changing culture and parallels the evolution of America over the last 150 years,” said Trisler.
Trisler is grateful to the Lake County Parks department for holding such an amazing extracurricular that helps keep baseball’s rich culture alive.
“It makes me happy that the parks department and us 30 volunteers put this on. It’s nice to be with people who have the drive to put on a historical program and preserve a little bit of something that some people might consider niche. It's definitely something that is key to the history of America,” said Trisler.
Aside from being a vintage baseball enthusiast, many people may not know that Trisler is a stroke survivor. He had a stroke in 2020 and had to stay in the hospital for a week. For a while afterward, he couldn’t do the things he loved and had to work really hard to get back to his usual self. This experience was very eye-opening for Trisler and has made him appreciate life in a completely new way.
“I feel like I feel things differently now. I’m a bit more emotional – I feel like it has enabled me to feel life a little bit deeper and appreciate the smaller things more,” said Trisler.
Now, with his love for his job, his passion for baseball, and his newfound gratitude for life, Trisler is focused on spending time with his wife and two awesome kids. He wants to show his kids that there are all kinds of ways to be successful and that what matters most is being present in other people’s lives.
“My kids are the ones who inspire me to be better. They show me how to prioritize having fun and laughing every day, and that is something that I need to remember. That kind of happiness is the key to being successful and being all that you can be,” said Trisler.