live well. give well.
Don Allen Wilks
Philanthropist, Dallas TX
Don Allen Wilks was 38 in January 2000 when he achieved his goal of early retirement. He left a thirteen year career at Deloitte & Touche, where he was a partner in the Consulting Division and the firm’s National Director of Business Insurance Consulting. He and his wife spent the next thirteen months traveling in New Zealand, Southeast Asia, and Nepal. Since then, he has traveled extensively with multi-month trips in Central and South America, India, Nepal, and the USA, including a voyage to Antarctica.
Don and his wife Teri have completed two major school projects in the small, rural village of Khari, Nepal. The first was the construction of The Devisthan Primary School in 2006. The second was the 300 student capacity Baladevi School opened in 2009 which will eventually serve Grades 1-12. These projects came about due to a special relationship with Mr. Tanka Karpri, a university student who was their Nepali porter during their 2000 travels. Don and Teri took on the responsibility to raise the necessary funds and provide ongoing oversight and guidance, but fully realize the heavy lifting was done by Mr. Kapri and the citizens of Khari. Don plans a return trip to Khari later in 2010. The funds for these schools were raised through a simple grass-roots effort of contacting everyone the Wilks had ever met and asking for a small donation.
Don currently has two ongoing projects. The first is to expand the world-wide support they received in fundraising for the first two schools. He wants to formalize the grass-roots support that built the first two schools with their new organization, The Global Community for Education, LLC. The Wilks have received State of Texas approval and have applied for tax-exempt 501(c)3 status with the IRS.
Don’s second endeavor is the book he has written, tentatively titled “Twenty Things I Wish I Knew When I Was Twenty,” where he is currently in the initial phases of interesting a publisher.
Don holds an MBA from Southern Methodist University and a BBA in finance from Texas A&M University—Commerce. His interests include backpack traveling, hiking, mountain biking, and sharing his thoughts on life with others.
