David William Horton

David was born October 19, 1944 in Memphis, TN to Rev. Robert Yandell Horton and Willie Mae McAlexander Horton. He was the youngest of four sons.

He is survived by his wife, Laurie Smith Issler Horton, daughter Amy Horton Bunton (Michael), son Bart Wilbur Horton (Neka) and their mother, Jo Horton O’Cain. He is also survived by his “bonus”son Philip F. Issler, Jr (Lisa). His children blessed him with eight grandchildren and one great granddaughter. He was a very proud grandfather and bragged about his grandchildren often. David is survived by two brothers, Curtis Horton of Madison, AL and Charles Horton (Dixie) of Memphis, TN. He is also survived by many nieces, nephews and cousins who have long stayed connected through the Horton Family Reunion held in Milan, TN each July. David was preceded in death by his parents and his oldest brother, John Robert Horton.

David graduated from Treadwell High School in Memphis in 1962 and from Lambuth College in 1967. During his college years, he formed a band with several friends and they were called the Showmen and then they changed the name to Dinkie T and the Imps. They played gigs all over West TN and the surrounding area and he was able to pay most of his tuition at Lambuth with his earnings.

David formed his company, Horton & Associates, in 1982. In the beginning, he was an independent claims adjuster and handled insurance claims for many different companies. After several years, he became a licensed private investigator and also obtained his real estate appraisers license. He trained many young people in these professions over the years. Towards the end of his career, he became a Rule 31 Mediator. David was a born leader and was instrumental in organizing the West TN Claims Association and the local chapter of IFA (Independent Fee Appraisers) and was a Governor’s appointee to the Tennessee Private Investigation and Polygraph Commission.

After relocating his office to downtown Jackson, he became very active in the Jackson Main St program, which later became Jackson Downtown Development Corp. You could always find him working at the annual Blues Fest, the main fundraiser for JDDC. David loved our downtown and was always so proud of the progress it has seen over the past 30+ years. He and his partner, John Allen, had a vision of what our downtown could become and together, they helped shape it into what it is today.

In 1990, he purchased a farm in east Madison County and with it came a community and collection of dear friends, such as Jeff Gantt and Scott Gantt, who extended his family. He began building a herd of Brangus cattle which he grew and sold throughout the southeast. He loved his time on the farm whether it was clipping pasture, checking his cows or drinking coffee with Laurie on the porch, while enjoying the beauty of nature.

David taught Sunday School or was involved with the youth group at First United Methodist Church for 50 years, beginning at the age of 18. When he decided it was time to retire from teaching and start attending the Family Life Forum adult class with Laurie, the church presented him with a plaque and study Bible. He was always so proud of all the young people he taught and enjoyed seeing them grow into productive adults. David was always quick to tell everyone that he had never had a drop of alcohol, even when he was playing gigs across West TN with his band. He would always tell his Sunday School students that you didn’t have to drink to have a good time.

David loved his wife and family and was always so happy when the children would come to visit. He loved letting the grandchildren drive the Kubota RTV all over the farm. He would ride with them, but they did the driving. David was a mainstay at the Horton Family Reunion (Est 1916) each year. He would obtain and deliver the hickory wood used to cook the pigs in the pit. He will be missed by all his relatives that he only saw once a year at the reunion.

The family would like to thank West Tennessee Healthcare Hospice for the wonderful care they provided to David over the past 9 weeks. Thanks also to caregivers, Vickie and Timmy. Your care and compassion meant so much to all of us. David’s last and most unselfish act was to donate his body for medical education and research.

A memorial service will be held at First United Methodist Church, 200 S. Church, Jackson, TN on Thursday, December 2. The visitation with the family will be 9:30 am – 11:30 am, with the service immediately following.

Memorials may be directed to First United Methodist Church, 200 S. Church St, Jackson, TN 38301, St Jude Children’s Research Hospital, P.O. Box 50, Memphis, TN 38101-9929 or to the charity of the donor’s choice.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.GeorgeASmithandSons.com for the Horton family.