PuroVet

Marine Corps General | Combat Veteran | Public Servant | Veteran Advocate

Major General (Ret.) Cornell A. Wilson Jr. brings nearly four decades of distinguished military leadership, combat command, public service, and advocacy for veterans and military families to his continued mission of helping those who served succeed in their next chapter.

General Wilson was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps in 1972 after graduating from the University of South Carolina. Throughout his career, he commanded Combat Arms and Combat Service Support organizations at the Company, Battalion, Group, and Brigade levels and held senior leadership assignments throughout the United States and around the world.

Selected as a General Officer in 1999, General Wilson served in numerous senior command positions, including leadership assignments with U.S. Marine Forces Central Command, Marine Forces Europe and Africa, Marine Forces Command, Marine Forces Southern Command, and II Marine Expeditionary Force.

In 2003, General Wilson served a combat tour in Iraq as Commanding General of a Joint Task Force of Coalition Partners in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He retired from the Marine Corps in 2010 after a career defined by leadership, service, accountability, and mission accomplishment.

His commitment to service continued well beyond the military.

General Wilson served in the Governor of North Carolina’s cabinet as the first Secretary of the newly created Department of Military and Veterans Affairs and previously served as the Governor’s Military Advisor. In these roles, he worked to strengthen military communities, support service members and their families, protect military installations, and help connect veterans with employment and new opportunities.

His distinguished service has been recognized with numerous military and civilian honors, including the Navy Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, and North Carolina’s Order of the Long Leaf Pine.

Today, General Wilson brings that lifetime of leadership and service to PuroVet. He understands that veterans leave the military with something extraordinarily valuable: the ability to lead people, solve problems, adapt under pressure, build strong teams, and remain focused on accomplishing the mission.

Through PuroVet, General Wilson helps champion a new mission for veterans—transforming the skills and leadership developed through military service into opportunities for business ownership, financial independence, community impact, and continued service.

For General Wilson, veteran entrepreneurship represents more than a career opportunity. It gives veterans another place to lead, build teams, create jobs, serve their communities, and continue making a difference long after their military service has ended.

The mission may change. The responsibility to lead and serve continues.