ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gil Gillenwater is the founder and president of the award-winning Rancho Feliz Charitable Foundation, which has reimagined border philanthropy since 1987. Unlike the sacrifice expounded by traditional charities, Gillenwater appeals to the evolutionary greed of the human condition. He refers to this as “enlightened self-interest.” This maverick approach has enticed tens of thousands of volunteers to improve their own lives by traveling to the border and feeding their souls through serving others. According to Gillenwater, service isn’t sacrifice – it’s salvation.

For four decades, he has worked hands-on along the U.S.–Mexico border, building programs that empower both volunteers and communities through reciprocal giving and shared dignity.

He is a recipient of the Hon Kachina Award, Arizona’s highest honor for volunteerism, as well as the National Association of Realtors annual “Good Neighbor Award,” likewise honoring volunteerism. In 2021, he became the first non-Mexican to receive Sonora’s Premio a la Filantropía, as the individual philanthropic person of the year, recognizing his cross-border philanthropic work.

In 2009, Gillenwater partnered with the nonprofit Free the Slaves to launch the Free a Village program—an ambitious initiative that helps entire villages in India, often up to 20 families, transition from slavery to freedom within three years. The program’s community-wide approach to liberation and empowerment caught global attention and was selected by former President Bill Clinton as a featured initiative at his Clinton Global Initiative, a gathering of the world’s leading thinkers, philanthropists and changemakers.

In 1982, Gil and his brother Troy hiked 810 miles across the state of Arizona from México to Utah.Their route was to become the popular Arizona National Scenic Trail, traveled today by thousands. In 2026, they were acknowledged in a documentary film titled “Trailblazers” for pioneering this cross- state trail. In the February 2026 issue, Arizona Highways magazine ran a feature article about the Gillenwaters’ original trek that reached readers across the globe.

A lifelong student of Eastern philosophy and meditation, Gillenwater is a black belt in Kenpo Karate and a certified hot yoga instructor. An outdoorsman at heart, he has had countless wilderness adventures around the world and has visited over 75 countries.

In 1994, he and his brother Troy were among the first Westerners granted access by the Communist Chinese into Tibet’s forbidden “Himalayan Hidden Lands.” His six expeditions and time spent studying with remote Tibetan lamas and mystics inspired a philosophy of enlightened self-interest that now guides his approach to social change with Rancho Feliz.