Paul is very committed to making the Des Plaines River a better place. He works tirelessly as a volunteer on a number of on-going river programs while also working full time at Abbott Laboratories. In 2001, as a board member of the Illinois Paddling Council, he designed a new program for Lake County Forest Preserve District, becoming the lead River Steward for Section IV of the river and recruiting, training and overseeing a core group of volunteers in numerous activities. One day he might be digging tires from the riverbed, another coordinating a volunteer cleanup, and in between, as a lifelong canoeist, sharing his paddling skills and getting people excited to get on the river.