(This week The Columbian-Progress spotlights Will Houston of Houston’s Columbia Cleaners.)
Q: When and where were you born?
A: I was born in Columbia Sept. 25, 1984.
Q: Where did you attend school?
A: I attended school in the Columbia School District. I went to Southern Miss and Delta State for college.
Q: Where do you work? Tell us about your job/company.
A: My dad, Reed, and I both own and operate Houston’s Columbia Cleaners, and we have a laundry mat in Prentiss and one on High School Avenue next to Family Dollar. My dad and I are both hands on here and one of us is always here. We’re always dealing with every from tagging clothes to pressing to dry cleaning.
Q: What led you to your profession?
A: When I graduated from college my dad decided to run for mayor. I came into the cleaning business so he could run for mayor, and he got elected. I’ve been here ever since.
Q: What do you enjoy most about your job?
A: Being my own boss. You don’t get to set your own hours per se, but you get to work as hard as you want to work or not as hard as you want to work. That’s a plus and a negative.
Q: What was your first job?
A: I worked here on Saturday morning with my grandpa. In college I bartended.
Q: Who is the person who has been most influential in your life?
A: My grandfather, Bill, and my dad. I’m 33 so we’ve worked together for 30-some-odd years. That was the greatest thing.
Q: If you could relive one day from your life, what day would you choose?
A: Last April 27 when my baby girl died I wouldn’t have taken her to daycare. I would’ve kept her home.
Q: What is your spouse’s name? What does he do for a living?
A: Amy Houston. She works for Pediatric Dental Group for Drew Middleton near Lake Serene.
Q: Do you have children?
A: We have Josie, who will be three in March, Blakely, who passed away in April, and we’re having a third one due July 4.
Q: If you could have anything for your last meal on earth, what would it be?
A: I’m a huge eggs benedict fan.
Q: If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?
A: I went to Normandy, France, when I was in college and would love to go back there to see everything that I missed in our short four-to-five day trip we had there. I was a history major and loved World War II, that 1930-1945 era of American history. It’s one thing to see ‘Private Ryan,’ ‘Band of Brothers’ and World War II movies, but to actually see what they went through at Pointe du Hoc and those places is amazing. It’s one of those things that doesn’t disappoint.
Q: What hobbies do you like to do in your spare time?
A: I golf. To my wife’s detriment I like to play golf.
Q: What do you enjoy about living and working in Columbia and Marion County?
A: I’m still here with all my friends. I know everybody. It’s nice to be comfortable. Sometimes you want to get outside your comfort zone, but sometimes it’s nice to know when you walk out you know everybody. You get to be comfortable in your situation in a stable setting.
Q: If you could have lunch with anyone from your life or history, who would it be and why?
A: President James Madison because he’s the only one who had the surviving notes from the Constitutional Convention and the Constitution we have now. I’d love to nitpick him about what got kept, what got thrown out and what compromises happened. I think it would be pretty interesting. They kind of foresaw everything we’re going through. It’s trying to stand the test of time.
Q: Would you rather read a good book or watch a good movie and why?
A: Read a good book because of the vivid detail in a book. They can put whatever they want to on screen, but the vivid details an author can write down how the texture of the sand felt or the temperature of it on a beach where on a screen you just see a beach.
Q: What moment in your life has had the biggest impact on you?
A: The day that my mother, Beverly, died in 2015. I had never had a grandparent or anyone else close die, and she was the first person close to me that died. I was a momma’s boy. Everyone could attest to that.
Q: What would be the No. 1 thing on your Bucket List?
A: I’ve never been to Washington D.C. I’d love to go to D.C. I’ve been to about four or five capitals in Europe but never been to my own nation’s capital.
Q: If you could describe your morals in three words, what would they be?
A: Straightforward, truthful and even headedness.
Q: How would you like to be remembered?
A: As a good husband, good father and a good friend. That’s all that matters.
— Joshua Campbell
Pictured Above: Houston’s Columbia Cleaners’ Will Houston runs the Second Street business with his father, Reed. | Photo by Joshua Campbell
