Chicago businessman, entrepreneur, and philanthropist Dr. Willie Wilson visited the Madison area this past weekend, at the request of Boys and Girls Club of Dane County CEO Michael Johnson, to share his inspiring life story. In the end, as he has been known to do throughout his philanthropic career, Dr. Wilson shared much more than his story, giving away thousands of dollars in donations while he was here, including free gas to almost 600 people on Sunday.
Among those donations that Dr. Wilson made was a $10,000 to the Boys & Girls Club of Dane County. While he was here, he also made $20,000 worth of donations to parishioners at a variety of local churches including Mt. Zion Baptist Church, Christ the Solid Rock Baptist Church, Lighthouse Church, and End Time Ministries.
“When he walked into the room at Mt. Zion, you would have thought he was a rock star. It was so amazing to see. Those older adults were so happy to see him,” Johnson tells Madison365. “He made eight separate visits while he was here in Madison. He literally helped a thousand people this past weekend. He brought with him a full band and pretty much put on a concert at every church he visited. It was so inspirational to see.”
A total of 934 older adults were given cash by Dr. Wilson to help them with their bills or to purchase a meal, according to BGCDC. At a Mobil Gas Station on Allied Drive off Verona Road, Dr. Wilson paid for gas for 584 people. “By one o’clock, there was already 500 cars in line,” Johnson remembers, “and the gas giveaway wasn’t going to start until 2!”
On Saturday morning, Dr. Wilson hosted a press conference at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Dane County’s new McKenzie Regional Workforce Center in Fitchburg in an event that was moderated by Latonya Jackson and Jamahal C. Boyd Sr. While Dr. Wilson inspired many Madisonians this past weekend with his monetary generosity, his uplifting rags-to-riches life story left many Madisonians invigorated.
A Louisiana sharecropper’s son who left home at age 13, Dr. Wilson was able to succeed through years of hard work and unwavering focus, as he journeyed from working as a janitor for $2 an hour to becoming the proud owner of several McDonald’s franchises in Chicago. He expanded his business to the health and medical industry in several countries worldwide and he now owns Omar Medical Supplies.
Dr. Wilson is also a well-known philanthropist, generously donating millions to support faith-based and non-profit organizations. Dr. Wilson’s story is a powerful reminder that one can overcome any obstacle and succeed in life with hard work, persistence, and a kind heart, Johnson says.
“I have been following Dr. Wilson in Chicago for years. And when he ran for mayor [of Chicago] last year, I got an opportunity to meet him,” Johnson says. “So I started following him and I saw how he gave a million dollars away in gas and there were thousands of cars trying to get gas at 10 gas stations in Chicago.
“Then one Sunday, I saw him give him cash directly to older adults on the South Side of Chicago. And I was just blown away,” Johnson adds. “I heard the story of how he took a million dollars cash to New Orleans after the flood [Hurricane Ida] and wanted to give it directly to the people. I knew this guy was amazing.
“Last year, he told me he gave $10 million away and 99% of his wealth goes to churches,” Johnson adds.
Johnson talked with Dr. Wilson via social media to see if he could make a trip to Madison and he soon agreed.
On top of this trip to the Mackenzie Workforce Center and all of the churches, Dr. Wilson met with young men in the community when he stopped by the half-court men’s basketball tournament going on at the Allied Drive Boys and Girls Club on Saturday.
Dr. Wilson also met with people from the Black Men Coalition of Dane County and offered $20,000 to several young Black entrepreneurs to help them start their own businesses.
“He said to come back to him in two weeks with a business plan, otherwise he might forget about it,” Johnson smiles.
After Dr. Wilson preached at Lighthouse Church on Sunday, about 150 individuals made a firm commitment to rejoin the church, Johnson says, indicating a strong desire to renew their faith and reconnect with their spiritual community.
“It was a real honor to be around him this weekend,” Johnson says. “He was so down to earth. He told people that he met that ‘I am you.’ He was wearing sharecropper overalls. He was able to affect so many people’s lives in such a short period of time.
“I’ll be honest with you,” Johnson adds. “I hated to see him go.”
