BILL'S STORY

I Wasn't Who I Was Pretending to Be.

I grew up in church. Sunday school. Youth group. The whole thing. I knew the language, I knew the verses, I knew how to look the part. But knowing the truth and actually living by it are two very different things — and somewhere in my adult years, I let the gap between those two things grow into a chasm.

I still believed. I never stopped believing. But I wasn't surrendered. I wasn't walking with God — I was just carrying his name around like a credential I'd earned a long time ago and stopped thinking about.

That drift cost me. More than I'll say here. But the heaviest price was this: I fell into alcoholism. And for a long time, I lived in what I can only call the wilderness — lost, stuck, ashamed, and not sure I had what it took to find my way back.

The Moment Everything Changed

I finally surrendered. Not to a program. Not to a plan. To God. I gave him authority over my life — the whole thing — and what happened next wasn't dramatic. It was quiet. But it was real.

I've been sober nearly ten years now.

About a year into my sobriety, I packed a tent and headed alone into the Great Smoky Mountains. No agenda. Just me, my Bible, and the backcountry. I was sitting in that tiny tent — probably the most at peace I'd felt in years — when I came across 2 Corinthians 5:17.

"If any man is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. The new has come."

I had to read it twice. Then again.

Because that was me. My past — the addiction, the shame, the failures, the man I'd been — it had been put to death. I was living something new. And I hadn't fully understood that until that moment, sitting alone in the Smokies with nothing to distract me from the truth.

On my one-year anniversary at the age of 46, I had that verse tattooed on my arm. It was my first tattoo–the only one I have to this day.

The Tattoo That Kept Starting Conversations

Something I didn't expect: people ask about it. Constantly. Strangers. Co-workers. Men I meet in passing. They see the verse code on my arm, and they ask what it means.

And every time they ask, I get to share the verse and what it means to me. It takes less than 30 seconds, but it might make a life-long change for someone. Sometimes I get to go a little deeper and share my story, my testimony, and talk about the Gospel. Either way, a door opens that I would never have opened on my own.

That's been happening for years. And one day in 2025, a thought hit me hard enough that I couldn't shake it:

What if other men had that same door? What if what they wore opened the same kind of conversation my tattoo has been opening for years?

That was the beginning of TRŪ Wear.

Why a T-Shirt?

Partly because I've always loved a great tee. But mostly because I could never find Christian apparel I'd actually wear in public — that I was proud to be seen in. Everything I found was too soft, too preachy, too on-the-nose, or too cliché to start any real conversation.

I wanted something bold. Masculine without trying too hard. Designed with craft. Something that didn't announce itself — but that would make a man with eyes to see stop and wonder.

That's where the verse code came from. Instead of spelling out the Scripture, every TRŪ Wear design carries a simple shorthand code representing the book, chapter, and verse of the scripture tied to the design’s message. Subtle enough to wear anywhere. Clear enough to make someone curious. And when they ask — the door opens. Just like the tattoo.

Why TRŪ?

The name came instantly. I believe it was given to me.

TRŪ is short for truth. And truth, in the only framework that has ever held up for me, isn't a philosophy or a moral position. It's a Person. Jesus said it himself: I am the way, the truth, and the life.

The brand is built on three commitments rooted in John 8:31–32 (J8132):

  • SEEK Truth — hold fast to Christ’s teaching.
  • SPEAK Truth — disciple others, share Christ, open doors.
  • LIVE TRŪ — walk in freedom from sin, shame, fear, and the lies of the world.

That third one is the hardest. Ask me how I know.

What Living TRŪ Actually Looks Like

It's not a highlight reel. It's daily work. It's showing up when you don't feel like it. It's failing, getting back up, and doing it again. It's being a husband, a father, a stepfather — carrying those responsibilities seriously because God entrusted them to me and I know what it looks like–what it feels like–when a man doesn't.

I'm a work in progress. I've got scars from my wilderness years, and I earned every one of them. But I have my faith as my anchor and compass. Every time I drift, it brings me back.

Outside of TRŪ Wear, I spend as much time outdoors as I can get — hunting, hiking, exploring the backcountry when I can. I'm a musician and songwriter. A creative soul who finds purpose in making things. Originally from Kentucky, I've lived in the Nashville area for nearly 30 years. Husband of a woman who is a genuine gift from God. Father of two grown kids. Stepfather of four. Step-grandfather of three. I’m an old dog, but still learning.

I'm not flashy. I used to be. I don't need that anymore. I know who I am in Christ — and that's enough.

What I'm Hoping This Brand Does

I'm not trying to build a fashion label. I'm not trying to be notable or well-known — I'd honestly rather work in the shadows. What I want is simple and enormous at the same time:

I want to see a resurgence of Godly men. Men who are not ashamed of what they believe while living in a world that is moving the other direction. Men who want to do better — and actually do. Men who become better fathers, better husbands, better friends, better leaders. When that happens, the world gets better. Not because of a brand. Because men stepped up.

If TRŪ Wear opens one conversation, reminds one man of who he's supposed to be, gives one father the conviction to show up differently and consistently — it's done what I built it to do.

"I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith." — 2 Timothy 4:7 (2T478)

That's the standard. That's what I'm chasing. And I'm inviting you to chase it with me.

WEAR YOUR FAITH. LIVE TRŪ.

If the story resonates — the gear is built for men like you.

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