You would not expect an immensely successful company owner to be the humblest person in the room. You also would probably not expect him to be a high school boy sporting an outfit in varying shades of blue. However, your expectations would be proved wrong by the existence of Sam Wilkinson, the owner of the verified Instagram account K47sports. Like one caption stating “baseball = back. Me = ,” might lead you to believe, Sam’s passion for sports cards has grown into an immensely successful business, earning 100% positive feedback with over 5000 items sold.
With all of this success, one would expect Sam’s ego to be insufferable. However, if you speak with Sam about his business you will hear about two things. One would be his passion for sports, the other would be his desire to create something meaningful.
Sam doesn’t just collect trading cards because he likes them. He has used his knowledge and expertise to create success that most adults strive for. “Sam is someone who is super ambitious, smart, and does what he wants instead of just talking about it,” says Patrick Donahue, who originally met Sam in the trumpet section of band class and now frequents basketball courts with him. Donahue made it clear that Sam’s ambition and success isn’t flaunted though. “I didn’t know anything about his business until I saw it on his computer,” Donahue clarifies. When receiving remarks of amazement or congratulations from his fellow Eagles Eye writers, Sam responds that while he is incredibly proud of himself, what is most important to him is creating something that betters the world. Many high school students have passion. But Sam has used his passions for sports, economics, and business to give card collectors around the world joy.
Sports fanatics typically spend most of their time on the field. Sam, on the other hand, has made himself indispensable off of it. He spends most of his weekends working at the Durham Bulls, managing parking, mascots, and fans. He is also in charge of sports statistics for the Enloe Football Team. Coach Clark, head coach of the Enloe Football team, had only good things to say about Sam’s dedication, “All season, he was with us every football game […] He worked hard at it, he gave up his Friday nights all fall to help us, I can’t say enough good things about him.” Sam gives 100% to everything he does, even if it is documenting the stats of a team that isn’t exactly always winning. “You could see that it was important to him that he did a good job,” Coach Clark added, “he just impressed me off the bat.”
Sam’s dedication is also obvious from his work as Sports Editor on the Eagles Eye. The sports section has flourished under his helping hand, he’s grown accustomed to editing multiple articles at a time with the patience and dedication of an expert. However, his most notable contribution to the class has been the gift of conversation. “Sam Wilkinson is an eccentric individual,” Akshat Yadav, Enloe Now Editor, remarks. “Whether it be being electrocuted at a restaurant in Wilmington to being randomly told he runs a sports card company, my conversations with him are delightful, insightful, and I learn something new each time.” You can always count on Sam for a witty joke or a philosophical comment about his purpose in life. He doesn’t view the world as something to let happen to him, but as countless opportunities to learn. As Nelson Stalworth, fellow Enloe Now Editor, put it, “I love Sam bro, talking to Sam is like talking to an old man with 900 years of wisdom under his belt but who also maintains the energetic joyfulness characteristic of youth. He’s funny, he’s knowledgeable, and you can talk about pretty much anything with him. He’s the kind of guy who’ll have something meaningful to say no matter what the topic is.”.
Sam is sure to take UNC Chapel Hill by storm next year, probably the only business major who has as much experience as he does. Whether he continues to do sports statistics or edit sports articles, we are confident that he will find more ways to immerse himself in his greatest love. In his final remarks, Coach Clark stated, “He’s a very intelligent, passionate, hard working young adult that’s going to do great things whatever he chooses to do.” We have been so lucky to know Sam Wilkinson in all of his glory and we couldn’t agree more. Good luck Sam!
