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January 2023 ~ Giving Back: Paul Bednar
Paul Bednar
SERVICE BY PUPPIES
By Lorelei Ball
PUPPIES GALORE
One of the main organizations Paul supports is K9s For Warriors (K9FW). K9FW is the largest service dog provider for veterans. K9FW provides fully-trained service dogs for veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), military sexual trauma (MSA), and traumatic brain injury (TBI). The mission of this organization is to end veteran suicide as an estimated 20 veterans per day take their life. To date, K9FW has paired over 800 veterans with service dogs.
After attending an open house at the K9s For Warriors campus, Paul and his wife, Alicia, decided to become puppy raisers. They took several K9FW puppy-raising classes prior to receiving their first puppy and training it to become a successful service dog.
Since then, the Bednars have raised and trained five more puppies. Two of those have gone on to become successful, certified service dogs. These dogs now live with and provide a veteran with service, healing and support. One puppy has become a station dog and stays at a police/fire/rescue station, providing workers with emotional support while another was unable to become a service dog and was adopted.
Currently, the Bednars are raising Mando, who is sponsored by and has become the official team dog for the Washington Commanders NFL football team. Although Mando participates in various community service and charitable events with the Commanders players, his purpose is to become a life-long “Battle Buddy” for a veteran. The Bednars work daily with Mando on his service dog cues and taking him out in public to fulfill this objective as he is almost ready to finalize training with the K9s For Warriors professional trainers.
Paul hopes to continue to support K9FW by raising even more puppies, satisfying his passion for giving back to our veterans.
PAUL’S JOURNEY TO REAL ESTATE AND GIVING
Paul Bednar first moved to Jacksonville in 1990, right after his freshman year at Bowling Green State University in Ohio. He transferred to the University of North Florida (UNF), where he went on to earn a BA in health science with a minor in community health and exercise science in 1994.
Paul left the health and wellness industry in 1995 to transition to corporate finance and accounting. He eventually returned to school at the University of Phoenix and graduated with an MBA in 2003.
Two days before hurricane Matthew hit in 2016, Paul’s mother suddenly passed. As a huge part of his life, his mother’s death led him to do some soul-searching. He reflected on his career and realized he wanted to work with both people and numbers, so he created a six-month exit plan to leave his accounting manager position and enter the world of real estate. Paul says with a grateful heart that he has not looked back since. The same can be said about his time working with K9s For Warriors as he continues to give back to his community on a daily basis.
