It was April 15, 1969 – Tax Day – financier David Wilds’s first day on his new job, when a co-worker asked him what he was doing after work.
Wilds simply said, “nothing.”
But that “nothing” turned into something when he agreed to accompany his co-worker to the Downtown YMCA. There he found a place to run, a community to call home, and a passion that would take him more than 100,000 miles across 68 marathons.
“It was the only Y that had an outdoor track,” laughed Wilds, who is an avid runner and retired private equity investment founder and managing partner of First Avenue Partners. “We had to go out on the fire escape and go up on the roof just to get on the track.”
When Wilds walked through the YMCA doors in 1969, he had no way of knowing how much that choice would influence his life. It not only sparked a lifelong commitment to fitness and marathon running, but it also began a YMCA membership spanning more than five decades and connected him to a community that has shaped both his life and the future of the YMCA of Middle Tennessee.
“The mission of the Y is so much broader and deeper than just our facilities where we work out,” Wilds said.
Discovering the Full Reach of the Y
As a businessman, Wilds initially understood the YMCA largely through the lens of its wellness facilities. But when he was invited to serve on the YMCA of Middle Tennessee Board of Directors about 25 years ago, board service opened his eyes to the vast scope of the organization’s community impact. Over the years, Wilds became one of the organization's most trusted volunteer leaders, eventually serving as Treasurer and Finance Committee Chair. Drawing on his professional experience, he helped to strengthen the organization’s financial future and guided the Y through significant challenges and opportunities, including a restructuring of its operations in 2013-14.
One of the most transformative moments came during the pandemic when the YMCA received an unrestricted $18 million gift from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott. Wilds helped Y management and volunteers develop a plan to maximize the impact of the donation. The funds allowed the Y to build reserves, strengthen operations and programs, invest in facilities and, most importantly, invest in people.
“What that gift did was give us the opportunity to position the Y for the future, not just solve the current cash flow problem,” Wilds said. And it was evidence that others recognized what Wilds had long known: the Y’s impact in the community is tangible, deep and often critical, as it was during the pandemic when the nonprofit operated childcare for the children of essential workers.
Speaking of his experience as a Y volunteer, Wilds said, "[As a board member] I took way more than I brought. I learned so much more about the community being on the board. I met people I would never have met, and learned about programs the Y has, I would never have known about.”
Supporting Those Who Serve
Among the many causes Wilds has championed is his passion for helping provide camp experiences for children of military families.
A Marine Corps veteran, Wilds and his wife, Cindy, have spent years supporting opportunities for military children to attend camp, build friendships and enjoy time with peers who understand what it feels like when parents are deployed overseas. Last summer, more than 100 military children participated in camp through collaborative efforts and funding he helped facilitate and secure.
“I just think that the camp experience is impactful for the child,” he said. “They get to be with other children in the same situation. They can talk about it or just have fun.”