David Bauer - #1

Since my sophomore year of high school, I have become very close with a former Wheaton football player who was one of my football coaches. During my high school years, we would often drive back to the suburbs after practice and in this way, we spent a significant amount of time together. In addition to coaching football, Eric ran a for-profit real estate business that’s sole purpose was to support the private, Christian school that I attended. My interactions with Eric dramatically affected how I viewed the apparent dichotomy between the world of enterprise and Christian ministry. I have a passion for inner-city Christian ministry since my freshman year of high school and I have struggled to reconcile that with my passion for enterprise. He stressed to me that God gives everyone different spiritual gifts and if one can create economic value and is called to the world of enterprise, it is their responsibility to give back these economic gains to God to use for His Kingdom. He has helped me reconcile my passion for inner-city ministry along with my love for the world of enterprise due to the potential for a mutually beneficial relationship.

In my senior year of high school, Eric left the real estate business that he was running to start a real estate private equity group. Even though his new business wasn’t directly tied to a Christian ministry, Eric made it a priority to donate proceeds from his PE group’s income to create a scholarship fund for the school that he had just left. He also made a point to mentor younger contractors who were new to the field or needed a second chance. This business model inspired me due to his commitment to serve God’s kingdom on the backend through economic proceeds as well as through mentorship.

For the past two summers, I have interned at Eric’s PE firm and have been involved in everything from basic operations to performing due diligence. Eric’s ability to run a successful business while maintaining a kingdom mindset has been inspirational. Frankly, I think being exceptional at one’s job is one of the best ways to witness for Christ. I find the stigma that creating economic value is inherently not “Christian” to be false and my relationship w/ Eric has reinforced that view. Specifically, I have found the PE model to be very appealing due to its relational nature and the ability to create economic value. In many ways, it is through my friendship with Eric that has given me the desire to work in the private equity space.