Former Chicago Bear joins Make-a-Wish Illinois board

Make-A-Wish Illinois has announced the election of former Chicago Bear, Desmond Clark, 36, of Vernon Hills, as a member of the board of directors for the organization’s Illinois chapter.

Currently, Clark serves as the managing partner of MSK88, a medical device sales company he founded in Chicago. He has also developed his own real estate business under the Coldwell Banker umbrella.

He spent 13 years in the National Football League as a tight end for the Denver Broncos, Miami Dolphins and for nine years with the Chicago Bears. Clark co-hosts a radio show “Sportsmanlike Conduct” on 1410 AM and has previously served as co-host on ESPN’s Bear’s Post Game Show.

Long interested in giving back to the community, he started the 88 Wayz Youth Organization, a leadership/mentoring program to assist youth in select Chicago and Florida schools, in 2008. His work with Make-A-Wish Illinois is his first nonprofit board position.

“I would like to look back on my life and know that I had a direct or an indirect impact on changing or influencing kids’ lives for the better through giving back to our community,” Clark says of his philanthropic work.

He completed his undergraduate degree in communications at Wake Forest University. He has four children.

As a member of the board of directors of Make-A-Wish Illinois, Clark joins 20 other directors who oversee the strategic direction of one of the largest Make-A-Wish chapters in the world. The organization will grant more than 700 wishes to children with life-threatening medical conditions in Illinois this fiscal year.