Service Beyond the Uniform: Brian Byrd on Education, Second Chances, and Community Safety

After spending more than three decades serving Toledo, Brian Byrd could have stepped away from public safety and settled into retirement.

That did not last long.

Service had been part of his life for too many years, and Brian quickly discovered that slowing down completely was not in his nature.

Today, the former Toledo Fire Chief and Public Safety Director continues serving the community in new ways. He works as Assistant Director of Safety at the Toledo Zoo and has also created a volunteer education program through Byrd Nest Safety Consulting that works with participants in a Lucas County court diversion program.

In this episode of Taylor Community Connection, Community Ambassador Terry Crosby sits down with Brian to talk about life after public service, the importance of education and mentorship, and why helping someone understand a mistake can sometimes be more powerful than simply telling them they made one.

For Brian, the uniform may have changed.

The mission has not.

Finding a New Chapter After Public Service

Retirement was an adjustment Brian was not entirely prepared for.

After years of leadership and a career that kept him constantly moving, suddenly having nowhere he needed to be felt uncomfortable.

Brian had promised his wife he would give retirement six months.

He made it about that long.

During that period, he traveled, took on contract work, assisted with emergency response planning, and remained involved in community projects.

Eventually, another unexpected opportunity came along.

Someone sent Brian a job opening at the Toledo Zoo.

The timing could not have been better.

Brian had recently gone through a health challenge and was considering what the next part of his life might look like. Working at the zoo had also been a childhood dream, second only to becoming a firefighter.

He applied and found himself beginning another chapter in safety and service.

As Assistant Director of Safety, Brian works with health and safety training, code compliance, staff safety, and the many different situations that come with operating a major community destination.

He says the learning curve has been significant, but that is part of what he enjoys.

No two days are exactly the same.

That feels familiar.

Seeing an Opportunity to Make Education More Meaningful

Brian’s work through Byrd Nest Safety Consulting grew from another experience after leaving city government.

While doing community work with the Lucas County Prosecutor’s Office, Brian became familiar with a diversion program available in certain lower level, nonviolent firearm related cases.

Participants may be required to complete firearm safety education as part of that process.

Brian is also a firearms instructor.

When he learned about the educational requirement, he began asking questions.

What should someone actually learn from the class?

Does a general lesson address the circumstances that brought that individual into the court system?

Most importantly, what would help keep someone from making the same mistake again?

Those questions stayed with him.

Brian had spent enough time in public safety to see people return to the court system repeatedly. He wanted to know whether education could do more to interrupt that cycle.

So he approached the prosecutor’s office with an idea.

He would volunteer his time and build something more personal.

Teaching the Situation, Not Just the Subject

Brian did not want to create another generic class.

He wanted the lessons to connect to real life.

Working with adult probation, Brian receives participants who are required to complete the educational program. He keeps his classes small so there is room for conversation and individual attention.

The sessions often extend well beyond the original two hour requirement.

Each participant may have arrived in the room because of a different situation.

Brian uses those differences as part of the learning experience.

The class becomes an opportunity to talk openly about choices and circumstances while allowing participants to learn from one another.

Brian also makes an important point at the beginning.

The room is meant to be a safe environment for discussion.

His goal is not to embarrass anyone or repeatedly remind them that they made a mistake.

The goal is to understand what happened and help them make a different decision the next time they face a difficult situation.

Becoming More Than an Instructor

For Brian, the relationship does not necessarily end when the class does.

He gives participants his personal phone number.

If someone has a question later or simply needs someone to talk to, Brian tells them to call.

Several have.

That part of the program may be just as important as anything written into the lesson.

Brian believes some people simply need someone willing to listen and show that they care about what happens next.

The conversations also allow him to better understand why people make certain choices.

Fear can be part of it.

A lack of information can be part of it.

The circumstances surrounding someone’s life can be much more complicated than they first appear.

Brian does not believe that understanding those circumstances means removing personal accountability.

Instead, it makes education more useful.

The goal is to help someone recognize the consequences of a decision while also giving them tools to avoid making the same one again.

When Brian checked with adult probation about participants who had completed his program, he was told that none had returned to the system for a similar firearm related offense at that time.

Brian is careful not to take all the credit.

He simply hopes the class and the continued support have contributed in some way to helping people stay on a better path.

Turning Support Into a Better Learning Experience

Taylor Automotive Family has also stepped in to support Brian’s work.

One challenge Brian faced was finding a classroom where he could provide the kind of practical education he envisioned.

His previous location limited what could be demonstrated during the course.

Taylor Automotive Family’s support is helping cover classroom space that gives Brian more flexibility to teach through realistic examples and conversations.

For Brian, that makes the educational experience stronger.

It also means he can continue offering the program as a volunteer.

He does not take payment for teaching the classes.

Brian jokes that the work is a form of therapy for him.

Seeing someone learn something that may help change the direction of their life is its own reward.

That idea is especially important to both Brian and Terry, who have spent much of their lives looking for ways to mentor and support people throughout Toledo.

Helping People Be Ready to Save a Life

Brian and Terry’s shared commitment to community education extends into another project as well.

The two are cofounders of CPR 419, an initiative that provides free CPR education to people throughout the community.

Now in its fifth year, the program has continued to grow.

Brian says previous sessions typically drew more than 100 participants, while the upcoming event had already registered more than 200 people at the time of the interview.

The idea behind CPR 419 is straightforward.

Give more people the knowledge and confidence to act when someone needs help.

For Brian, there is no way to put a value on giving someone a skill that could one day save a life.

Continuing to Serve in a Different Way

Brian Byrd spent decades protecting Toledo through the fire department and city leadership.

Today, he is still thinking about safety.

But his work also reflects something broader.

It is about what happens when someone is given another opportunity.

It is about helping a person understand the decision that brought them into a courtroom and giving them better information for the future.

It is about mentorship that continues after the class ends.

It is about teaching someone CPR before the emergency happens.

And it is about recognizing that service does not have to end when one career does.

Brian’s next chapter may look different from his years as Fire Chief and Public Safety Director, but the purpose behind it remains familiar.

Find a need.

Use what you have learned.

And do what you can to help.

👉 Watch now to hear Brian Byrd share how his years in public safety inspired a new approach to education, mentorship, and second chances throughout the Toledo community.