Today we’d like to introduce you to Bill Weinaug
Hi Bill, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
My family is from western New York. I grew up with five sisters. I was the only boy. I had a beautiful mother and father who cared for us and took care of everything. We had a strong family connection. My mom and dad were always there for us. My dad was tough as he was a World War II Army man. I had to stay on the straight and narrow.
I graduated from Penn State with an engineering degree and got a great job in Jacksonville, Florida, with a fairly large architecture/engineering firm, where I worked on some incredibly cool projects. At a very young age, I had the opportunity to move to Orlando to head up the mechanical group there. I got registered as a mechanical engineer and became the youngest associate vice president of that firm.
About five years after that move, I was invited by friends to join a small firm as a partner. At the time, there were just 10 of us. We sold and bought the firm several times, growing it to over 300 before selling it the last time to a group that is now over 4,000. I remained with the firm as a Vice President until retiring in December 2024.
At the same time as all this engineering/business fun, I was able to grow my family and build a beautiful life. Somewhere in the middle of my career as an engineer, I started to focus on sustainability and developed a passion for creating some kind of special personal green legacy. Initially, this began with my family and our home. Eventually that family passion grew into Wekiva Island. Wekiva Island was an incredible little environmental diamond in the rough that I wanted to transform into something truly remarkable, as it sits on one of the most beautiful and extraordinary pieces of land in the State of Florida. Now, being retired, I am able to look at the next chapter of my life. I’m more passionate than ever about Wekiva Island, one of the only public windows to the incredible Wekiva River and the wilderness that surrounds it. I’m excited to show how we can take sustainability in business further, while still having fun.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I have been very fortunate in my life. For the most part, life has been good. I grew up in a small town, which protected us from many bad things other kids may experience. It was a place where people did not lock their doors and left the keys to the car in them.
My mother and father felt it was part of their responsibility to see that their kids received a higher education. My mother got a job helping all through college. They were dead set on paying all the bills. Our job was to get good grades. I was fortunate to be able to go to one of the best engineering schools in our country, Penn State. I remember getting a part-time job with the Architecture and Engineering Department and having to explain to my parents that it was good for my career. Ultimately, I did work for the University and a small local engineering firm for four of my years at Penn State.
So, I went to college, did well, and landed a great job. I’ve made good money throughout my life, and I’ve always had amazing friends and family. Every step of the way, I’ve been very fortunate. I’ve always had God in my life. I’m sure that’s what made things easier when life wasn’t perfect. My relationship with HIM helped make even the worst manageable and always allowed me to put any bad behind me fairly fast.
Wekiva Island was kind of a side-hustle when I purchased it September 30, 2008. It was all about building on that sustainability passion that was in our lives. I really wanted to do something good for our community, our state, our country, our planet. But there were many powerful others that did not see it the same as me. Because of this, the early years of Wekiva Island were very difficult … defiantly NOT a smooth road. However, our passion kept us pushing through all of those roadblocks.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Wekiva Island?
Wekiva Island is an environmental center located on the wild and scenic Wekiva River, fueled by fun. We offer a craft beer and wine bar, canoe, kayak and paddleboard rentals, cabanas for rent, a food truck with incredible eats, an art gallery, an education center and more. As I mentioned, it’s one of the only public ways to access and experience the beautiful Wekiva River. That’s one of the things that drew me to this location to begin with, and one of the reasons I’m driven to preserve and protect it. I’m very proud of what we’ve built around the three pillars our business is based on: Sustainability, Education and Art. I hope people will come to Wekiva Island and have fun—and leave inspired.
Do you any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
My childhood best friend, who is still my best friend to this day, is someone I’ve shared so many of these memories with. His father and my father went to high school together, and later, they both served in World War II. My dad, Bill Weinaug, and his dad, Edwin Wintermantel, had a strong bond, a bond that extended to me and Mikel, Ed’s son. Mikel and I where about the same age, and he lived just up the road from us. I remember the first time Mikel came over to visit me. He found me outside playing in the front yard. I was pushing sticks through the mud that had collected at the edge of the road. It wasn’t raining; the mud was there because, well … I was drooling into the dirt! I was using the sticks as if they were trucks. Mikel came over, saw what I was doing, and said, “Oh, okay, that’s cool.” So, he got down there in the mud with me, and we started pushing sticks around together. That’s how we became friends. Later, I showed him the sandbox in the backyard. It was this beautiful, big sandpit, filled with brand-new, shiny Tonka trucks. Mikel was a little confused—why was I playing with sticks in the mud when I had all these amazing toys? But that was just how things were for me. It’s such a vivid and fun memory.
As I got older, my family was fortunate enough to spend time at a lake up in the mountains of New York, called Cuba Lake. My grandmother bought a family place there, and we would spend our summers hanging out by the lake. I have so many fond memories of Cuba Lake. We had this really cool boat, and I’d take it out and race around on the water. Oh my gosh, I could go on and on with stories from the lake—those were truly amazing times.
In my teenage years, I spent a lot of time with friends. One of our favorite traditions was getting together to watch *Monty Python*. I don’t know if you all remember Monty Python, but we watched it religiously. It brought so much laughter and fun into our lives. I think about my childhood, my family, my friends, and the memories we created, and I feel incredibly blessed. Growing up in the small town of Allegany, New York, with just 90 people in my graduating class and maybe 400–500 people in the entire high school and junior high combined, was special in its own way. It was a tiny little place in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by cornfields for cattle. But it was home, and it gave me so many beautiful memories.
Pricing:
- Vessel Rentals: https://wekivaisland.com/water-rentals/
- Cabana Rentals: https://wekivaisland.com/reservations-2/
Contact Info:
- Website: https://wekivaisland.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wekivaisland/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wekivaisland
Image Credits
For all but the headshot: Andi Mans
