Bryan J. Bohnert has defied all odds to become the man he is today. Born one of five siblings, he spent a large part of his life in boys’ homes, shelters and foster care.  As a teenager, he lost all interest academically when a 7th grade math teacher told him that she would only pass him on to the next grade if he had no intentions for college.  At sixteen years old, Bryan found himself on the run in a stolen vehicle. He was sleeping underneath overpasses and eating whatever food he could scrounge up at nearby campsite garbage bins.

Soon after, Bryan was arrested and placed in jail.  As he stood before the judge in a small western Oklahoma courthouse, the judge asked him “What do you want out of life?”  With tears running down his face, he said only two words, “a Dad.”  Three weeks later, Bryan was placed in a Children’s Home in Clinton, Oklahoma where he met two very special people that helped change his life forever.   Steve and Toni Gemaehlich, Sunday school teachers at a local church, opened up their homes and hearts as a sponsor family for Bryan.  Six months later, Steve and Toni asked Bryan to become a permanent member of their family, and their new names became Mom and “Dad.”

Aside from his hobby of speaking for teen organizations and high schools around the world, Bryan has a full-time career as a contract consultant for the United State Air Force, and an international author of three previous books titled Words Of Wisdom for the Bachelor, Words Of Wisdom for the Bachelorette and his favorite, Words of Wisdom Encouragement for the American Soldier.