Name: Winters, David
Title: Owner of David Winters Livestock
Texas A&M Class: 1964
Inducted: 2018
David Winters was born in Temple, Texas in 1942. He was raised in Evant, Texas on a ranch where his family raised cattle, sheep, goats, and hogs. Throughout his childhood, Winters spent his summers and weekends working with the family’s cattle on ranches in Texas, Colorado, and Kansas, always making it back just in time for the start of school in August. His lifelong passion for livestock was formed during these years, but his true calling became evident to him after working in the sale barn, spurring him towards a career in livestock marketing. In 1960, he graduated from Evant High School where he played football and ran track.
Winters began his collegiate career at Abilene Christian University in 1960. After a few semesters, he decided his love for livestock could be turned into a career with an education in agricultural marketing. He transferred to Texas A&M University in 1962, where he majored in Agricultural Economics. During his time in the department, David benefitted from the influences of his professors, specifically crediting Drs. Don Huss, Carl Shaffer, A.B. Wootan, and Ty Timm.
Graduating with a B.S. in Agricultural Economics in 1965, Winters started graduate school at Texas State University to be closer to the family cattle operations in Brackettville and the sale barn in Lampasas. Winters has worked with and traded livestock and cattle as a progressive and successful entrepreneur for more than 50 years. These business pursuits have been his life’s passion and they have culminated in service to many agricultural organizations throughout the state and nation. At the encouragement of his father, Winters bought enough stock in the 1st State Bank of Brackettville in 1977 to become president, and served in that role until 1981. During his time as a rancher, he has traded land and livestock throughout the southwestern states, and due to his position on the border, he also traded internationally with various entities in Mexico.
Having always held a strong commitment to service, David has been a member and director of various organizations to improve the agricultural industry. These directorships include the Texas Sheep and Goat Raisers Association, four banks, the Texas Cattle Feeders Association, the American Lamb Board, the Texas Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, and the Texas Animal Health Commission. Winters is a member of the Association of Former Students and the 12th Man Foundation. He has also given back to the students of Texas A&M University through an endowed scholarship in memorial to his son, Charles Lee Winters. In his community, he is a member of the First United Methodist Church of Del Rio, a past Master of the local Los Moras Lodge.
Winters and his wife, Sara, live near Del Rio, Texas, and have four children, Thomas D. Winters, Perry Bradshaw, Christin McDonald, and J. Carter Winters,’95, along with 9 grandchildren.
