David Terry, executive director of the WTAMU Enterprise Center

In the sixth grade, David Terry’s dad bought him a mutual fund and the dream of growing up to work on Wall Street was born. In fact, the Boise City, Oklahoma, native interviewed the president of Merrill Lynch in 1991 just to find out what being a stock broker was all about. He graduated from West Texas A&M University in 1995 with a degree in finance but David never quite made it to New York City.

“My wife, Robin, and I grew up together and got married in 1991 and had a baby,” says David, 36. “It was my desire to see God work and use me in whatever capacity. I have a heart for rural people and rural places and I wanted to be in business but I also wanted to be a husband and a father. So that kept me out of Wall Street.”

It’s probably safe to say that there are a number of people who are glad he stayed in town, as his eight years of helping entrepreneurs has resulted in the growth of more than 1000 small businesses through the WTAMU Enterprise Center. He learned the importance of networking early on when he worked in the admissions department at his alma mater. That job led to a series of jobs that ultimately landed him in the company of Don Taylor, author of Up Against the Wal-Marts. David was a stock broker for a few years, but helping people secure their finances became more about selling and less about helping.

In 1998 he went to work for the Small Business Development Center and spoke at 98 seminars in his first year, some with Don. Two years later, with a newly-earned master’s degree in business, David broke away from the development center and started a private consulting group with Don for the college of business at WT. The continuing theme for David, and his goal for his overall career, was to help people.

“Don was really my mentor. We were a good match and he poured himself into me,” he says. “At the time, the state was looking for a solution to the problem of migration and lack of diversification in rural communities. Our solution was the business incubator that would assist people in starting and growing businesses in the Panhandle.”

Don and David took their idea to the state of Texas and the result was an appropriation of $1.5 million in the first year and a matched Economic Development Administration grant. With that money, they bought a building on north Western Street, renovated it and opened the Enterprise Center in 2002. Sage Oil Vac, Inc. was their first client and subsequent first graduate from the Incubation program.

In short, the process of business incubation involves assisting businesses in their formative years, aligning personal, business and financial goals, looking at strengths, needs and bridging the gap between the idea and the end result. David calls it “putting flesh on the bones.”

“The Incubator works best with someone with substance,” he says. “We look at everything an entrepreneur needs, whether it’s money, marketing, technology. We help build their foundation.”

The Enterprise Center took off, but after several years of building businesses together, Don was diagnosed with lymphoma and lost his battle with cancer in 2007. Though devastated by the loss of his friend and mentor, David knew he had been trained by the best and succeeded him as the executive director.

“Really, Don was the champion and the cheerleader. It was his vision but not his task to complete,” says David.

Other ventures followed, like investing in and opening the Japanese Steakhouse Chop Chop, a business that David manages on less than 10 hours a week. He refers to it as his “little conflict of interest at 34th and Coulter.” David is a board member of the National Incubation Association, a member of Leadership Amarillo and Canyon, and the president of the Canyon Booster Club. In addition to his work in the community, David and Robin will be sending their son, John David, off to college this year while cheering for their daughter, Jenna, at her middle school basketball games.

David’s business sense was cultivated early, and while he never wound up in NYC’s Financial District, he isn’t a person with regrets.

“This is more about developing entrepreneurs than businesses,” says David. “I believe a person with a good idea can be taught. They aren’t just born. Some characteristics make some entrepreneurs better than others and this place can help them.”

The Enterprise Center is 5,000 square feet of administrative space for David, two additional coaches, Jeff Reed and Cori Burns, as well as other staff. Then there’s 26,000 square feet of rentable space for business in the incubation program. Currently, they are at 96 percent capacity.

“It took us six years to get the building ready. We did it with the Field of Dreams mentality. We built it and they’ve come. You know, a friend of mind called me after the Twin Towers fell,” he pauses. “So I’m glad I’m here. This is an exciting place to be.”

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