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It’s Time to #MeetWilden! Meet Martin Blenk, Co-Chair, Director & CEO.

1. What is your name?

Martin Blenk

 

2. Which Wilden neighbourhood do you live in?

Lost Creek Point

 

3. What do you do for work?

I joined the Wilden management team as Director, Co-Chair and CEO in 2019 when my dad fully resigned. Back in the 90s I was involved in developing the Wilden master plan, then pursued a career in marketing and web development in Germany before moving to Kelowna to help manage the family business.

 

4. How do you relax after a hard day at work?

Depending on how hard the day actually was, a brief hike in the Wilden back country will do. Preparing a nice meal and devouring it with my wife Chrissy and a glass of local wine never fails. Sometimes I pursue my virtual reality career, hauling stuff across the galaxy in my spaceship. Or I simply hang out on the couch with the pets and watch a movie.

5. What is your secret superpower?

Faking actual superpowers.

 

6. What are some of your favourite things about living in Wilden?

Just opening a window feels like being out in nature, with all the birds and little critters around the ponds and wetlands, creating that unique summer soundtrack.

 

7. What is the most amazing adventure to go on in the Okanagan?

Wine-touring with guests from Europe and watching their bewilderment about some of those wines being indeed great, quite shockingly.  

 

8. If you were an animal living in Wilden, which one would you be?

A raven! I always had a passion for aviation and food.

 

9. If you could give $1M to charity, which one would you choose?

Of course a good portion would go to our Blenk Family Fund for Youth Mental Health. But I’d also want to support organizations that advance education all over the world, both in general and in science.

 

10. Tell us about one of your greatest adventures/memories in Wilden so far.

Before our family even had purchased the lands, we were hiking the whole area extensively, while the vision for a sustainable community surrounded by this incredible nature slowly shaped in our heads. Then, only a few years later while working on the masterplan, I was hiking it all again with planners and civil engineers, and the blurry vision manifested into actual maps and technical drawings. Today, when I walk through the existing neighbourhoods and see how the vision is becoming a reality with actual people living in it – that’s simply awesome.

 

11. If you could choose anyone to be your neighbour, who would you choose?

We are quite happy with our existing neighbours and actually would want to keep them. But as this is a hypothetical question, today I’d say Thom Yorke of Radiohead. Although this could change on a daily basis.

 

12. If you didn’t have to sleep, what would you do with the extra time?

I’d be napping.