David Horton

David Horton was born and raised in Texarkana. He grew up with three siblings: two older sisters and one younger brother. “I loved to ride my bike through our neighborhood as a child. I mowed yards in the neighborhood to make spending money and also worked summers at my father’s small business repairing bicycles and lawnmowers. I discovered I did not enjoy working on bikes but loved making a small engine run,” David says.

David graduated from Texas High School in 1973 and within six months, married the love of his life, Teresa Horton. “We met during my senior year of high school and have been married for 51 years. We still deeply love and care for each other all these years.”

David immediately went to work full-time at his father’s business, Ace Cycle Supply, located on Spruce Street in Texarkana. David began at a young age in his father’s company. He says, “I remember being ten years old and watching Dad, trying to learn everything. When he worked on a small engine, he set it on a table, and I was not tall enough to see everything. He would scoot a stool up, and I would watch and try to soak in everything I could. As I got older, he allowed me to turn bolts, and in my last year of high school, I was able to go to school half a day and work half a day. It was natural for me to begin working there full-time after graduating from high school,” David says.

After working there for five years, David joined the Texarkana Texas Fire Department as an entry-level firefighter and paramedic. He continued to work 30 hours a week at Ace Cycle Supply next to his father.

“My father, David Winston Horton, only had an eighth-grade education, but always had good advice and wisdom to share with me. He taught me to work hard, take care of my family, always put back money for savings, and to be prepared for whatever we may face in the future,” David says.

David would put those values learned from his father in place when he became a father to the couple’s son, Kevin Horton. “The day I held my son in my arms for the first time is the most joyful day I can remember. It’s hard to describe how great it felt to be a father. I made mistakes along the way and was not always the best example I wanted to be, but we could not ask for a better person than our son Kevin,” David says. David would work hard, becoming a captain in the Fire Department before retiring after 25 years of service.

Retirement did not last long, as the father-son duo purchased Small Engine Specialist of Texarkana in 2006. David and Kevin worked tirelessly to grow the business, adding many new lines and parts that are still carried today.

“Our only child, Kevin, is now 43 years old. I could not be more proud of him. He and his wife, Michelle, now own Small Engine Specialist of Texarkana. When we started working together almost 20 years ago, he had many questions and quickly learned the business. Within a year or less, he had advanced to where I had to ask him for help with the newer model mowers,” David says.

David and Teresa also have two grandchildren, Summer (24) and CJ (21), and five great-grandchildren.

David’s advice for younger fathers includes: Always put God first and put your family as your next highest priority. Work hard and pay your bills on time.