Jim McInvale (the Gallery Furniture guy) is a kind of local celebrity around here in Houston. He's not an artist or an author, or an entertainer, even. However, he has a rags-to-riches story that is so inspiring. He went from having very little to building a furniture-store empire, to becoming part owner of a sports team, a bidder at our world-famous Houston Rodeo, and a philanthropist in so many areas. But what makes him amazing to watch is his humility and extreme generosity to our city. He is someone who doesn't talk much about his beliefs but instead seems to follow his own moral compass, paying it forward. I was very young when his weird commercials started and people would chuckle at his bravado in selling his furniture in local commercials. So it's great to see how he was faithful with little, created a model of how to do business, coupled it with helping others before it was really the politically correct thing to do, and became so influential. He recently had a bad fire in his main warehouse, and the whole City of Houston almost wept to see him so beaten. But, of course, he rose, literally, out of the ashes and said that the business would continue to thrive with his family's and the communities prayers and support. I would love to see him write a book, but I doubt it will happen. In person, he's low-key, quiet, and keeps his head down. But he's sure been good to everyone around him...right down to autographing a basketball for my kids when he was sitting, worn out, in his store working one day, which he didn't even need to do. He seems like he would have a great story to tell to more than just Houston. He means the world to people around here, though.
Links for more information: News on Jim.
[caption id="attachment_10" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="From left: Jim McIngvale, George Bush Sr., and Walt Dunnigan"]
[/caption]Choice quote: "Oh yeah, we're here to stay."
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