Dan Baxter – Local Veteran and Small Business Owner Encourages People to Never Give Up

olympia carpet cleaning.
Dan Baxter and his family are grateful to be in the position to give back to the community that saw them through some tough times.
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By Cara Bertozzi

olympia carpet cleaning
Dan Baxter served with the Multi-National Force Haiti as a young infantryman.

Dan Baxter, a veteran and small business owner, has learned through experience not to take his current success for granted. Today, he is running an in-demand carpet cleaning business, DKB Restoration, and has a beautiful family with two children. However, he has navigated a spectrum of highs and lows both professionally and medically, and he has a story of perseverance to share in hopes of encouraging others who are enduring hard times.

Dan joined the Army and was assigned to the Infantry following his high school graduation in 1994. At this young age, he was able to travel extensively and had many rewarding experiences. He escorted VIPs, including former President Jimmy Carter and General Colin Powell, during his time in Haiti and worked for former President Bill Clinton’s security detail team as well.

Another memorable Army assignment was to Bosnia, where Dan worked with the Secret Service. His unit partnered with the FBI to arrest a terrorist assassin in that country, an achievement for which he received an award. Amazingly, he also broke his leg during that deployment but continued to walk on it for five months until returning to the States, where it was casted. This was to be the first of a number of challenging injuries that tested Dan’s mental ability to deal with setbacks.

olympia carpet cleaning
Dan Baxter was deployed to Bosnia under the command of NATO.

In 1998, Dan left Active Duty for the Reserves and transitioned to civilian life. A few years later, his path took an unexpected turn when the car he was driving was hit by a drunk driver, shattering his kneecap. Dan worked hard to rehab his knee, and it was around that time that he accepted a position in management at a carpet cleaning business. He couldn’t have predicted it, but caring for and restoring carpets in his clients’ homes and businesses to improve their appearance and increase their functionality as passive air filters would become his passion.

After working for only three months in this new role, however, Dan blew a disc in his back and found himself in the vulnerable position of being unable to walk. With a six-month waiting list to get into the Veterans Affairs hospital system, Dan struggled to get the care he needed to recuperate. He and his wife sold everything they had and held signs at the street corner when they were particularly desperate to make their rent.

Dan says this difficult time was clarifying for the couple.  His wife is also disabled. They learned the true differentiation between needs and wants and were exposed to a lot of criticism and shame for not being able to effectively meet their own needs. Experiencing this type of instability heightened their sense of empathy.

Fortunately, the Baxters belonged to a generous church community that helped to meet their tangible needs in addition to providing emotional and spiritual support. There were countless moments when they feared eviction, and then, someone would send them just the amount they needed to get through that month.

Finally, with the help of a civilian chiropractor, Dan was able to literally get back on his feet and returned to work after a year of unemployment. He took a job in management at Burger King and began to rebuild his savings. This time, Dan determined to embody the lessons he had learned from his lean times. Like many people who have had to rely on others for help, he was eager to again be in the position to reach out a hand to assist others.

olympia carpet cleaning.
Dan Baxter and his family are grateful to be in the position to give back to the community that saw them through some tough times.

After some soul searching, Dan decided to save up to start a business of his own. The flexibility was appealing, and he liked the thought of being able to hire other people who needed work and give them purpose and stability. He had enjoyed working as a carpet cleaner, and it became his long-term goal to start his own carpet restoration business. Dan gradually got this dream off the ground by taking small jobs while retaining his full-time job at Burger King. However, after only three months, he was getting enough orders to resign from Burger King and strike out on his own. It required another leap of faith by the Baxters, but the timing felt right.

Today, business is booming at DKB Restoration, and there is no lack of available work because of his reputation as a high-quality service provider. This September was three times as busy as the same period last year. In fact, Dan has filed a petition with the state to hire more employees and add another cleaning truck to his fleet. Through it all, the Baxters remain committed to remembering their journey and using their trials to inspire and encourage others. As Dan likes to say, “Everything happens for a reason, and you can trust God to take care of you and not give you more than you can handle.”

No matter your personal faith system, the Baxters are proof that you should never give up when things seem bleak because a better day may be just around the corner.

DKB Restoration can be reached at 360-688-4392 or by visiting their website.

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