Don Wilson

WILSON , Don On Monday, December 17, 2012, Don Wilson passed from this life at the age of 66 in Raleigh, NC. Don died in his home, with his wife by his side, following a six year fight with Merkel cell carcinoma, a rare neuroendrocrine cancer. He was born on March 1, 1946 in Baltimore, MD. Don is survived by his wife of 12 years, Constance N. Wilson, M.D. He is also survived by his father, Donald Hurst Wilson of Baltimore, MD; his brother, David Alexander Wilson (Rev. Valerie) of Milroy, IN; his sister, Laura Ellen Muglia (Robert) of Seattle, WA; two daughters from a previous marriage, Sarah Elizabeth Wilson of Palo Alto, CA and Beverly Callaway Wilson of Brooklyn, NY; his aunt and godmother, Ann Townsend of Seattle, WA; and his cat, Comet. He was predeceased by his mother, Winifred Leist Wilson, in 1982. In 1959, Don became the youngest person in the Baltimore Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America to attain the rank of Eagle Scout. Through scouting, camping with his family, and hunting with his father, Don developed a lifelong love of the outdoors. In 1964, Don graduated from the Baltimore Friends School where he played on two MSA championship lacrosse teams and was elected President of the student government. He was grateful to his teachers and coaches for many lessons learned. In 1968, he received his AB degree from Yale University, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude with Honors in Economics and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. In 1976, he received an MBA with Distinction from Harvard Business School and a JD from Harvard Law School. He was a member of the Bar in North Carolina and in Massachusetts. As a Supply Officer in the U.S. Naval Reserve, Don qualified in submarines onboard USS GATO (SSN 615), a fast attack nuclear submarine, in 1971. From GATO, he shipped out to Vietnam, where he served for a year as a Naval Advisor to the Vietnamese Naval Supply Center in Saigon. Don attained the rank of Lieutenant; his oar is at rest. In 1991, Don discovered an archaeological site on his farm in Baltimore County that proved to have been continuously occupied for over 9000 years. As a steward of this land, Don registered the site with the State of Maryland and placed his farm in the Maryland Environmental Trust. Don served as a Trustee of the Archaeological Society of Maryland. In 1997, Don completed Education for Ministry, a four-year extension course of the School of Theology, The University of the South, Sewanee, TN. He was an active member of St. John's Episcopal Church in Glyndon, MD, where he served on the Vestry and was a Lay Eucharistic Minister. He also served as a Trustee of The Bishop Claggett Center in Buckeystown, MD and was active in Maryland Episcopal Cursillo. Don chose to follow and serve Jesus Christ, his Lord and Savior, as best he was able. Don worked for The Boston Consulting Group and for Black & Decker before founding Micro Wholesalers, Inc. in 1983. By 1996, MWI had evolved into an Inc. 500 Company focused on computer network training. In 1997, following the sale of MWI, Don met the love of his life and his partner in life, Connie Wilson. He moved to Raleigh, NC to work with Connie in the biopharmaceutical company that she founded in 1995, Endacea, Inc. They married in 2000. Don devoted the rest of his life to working with Connie to advance Endacea's technologies, based on discoveries made by Connie, including an anti-sepsis drug, a biomarker for sepsis, and an immunotherapy for cancer, to the patients who need them. Don served as President, CEO, and General Counsel of Endacea. Don was grateful for the care that he received from Drs. Nghiem, Bhatia, and Parvathaneni in Seattle and Drs. Berry and Hahn in Raleigh.
A Requiem will be celebrated at St. Timothy's Episcopal Church, 4523 Six Forks Rd., Raleigh, NC at 11 AM on Friday, December 21, 2012. Burial will follow in Historic Oakwood Cemetery, Raleigh, NC. In lieu of flowers, Don's request was that any memorial contributions be made to "University of Washington MCC Research" and sent to: Paul Nghiem, MD, PhD, University of Washington Dermatology, 850 Republican St., Brotman Building - Room 242, Box 358050, Seattle, WA 98109. Share your condolences at
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