Paul Allen's impact on the Pacific Northwest and beyond

SEATTLE  --  Paul Allen was a builder, who thought globally and deeply invested locally.

Those who knew him say he built corporations, around which, built community and, most importantly, he built up the people around him.

Bill Hilf the CEO at Vulcan is one of many grieving the loss of Paul Allen. But he is one of few, who knew Allen personally; what drove him, what inspired him and why.

Allen’s reach extended around the globe. From finding cures for infectious disease to wildlife conservation, he cared about the health of our oceans and climate change.

He spent a great deal of time and money focused on how to make the Pacific Northwest a better place to live and work and play.

“Paul has had a tremendous impact, from saving the Seahawks to museums here MoPOP, formerly the EMP, the living computer museum, the flying heritage collection, the Seattle Art Fair, Upstream Music Fest, it goes on and on,” says Hilf.

Maybe his most well-known work is what he did co-founding Microsoft.

One of his final local projects aims to tackle homelessness. According to Allen's website, his philanthropic contributions exceed two billion dollars.