Doug Walters moved to Akron, Ohio, in the mid 70's from Madisonville, KY. He started to work at the age of 14 for the Island Creek Coal Company and as a boy worked in the company store, a life strangely similar to the song I Owe My Soul To The Company Store. After a few years of dabbling in different jobs in the area, he moved North to Akron, Ohio, where his father lived. Doug traveled lightly, speeding across the states in his treasured 1969 Chevy, and he carried with him his bank account, a whole $40, in his pocket. By this time in his life, he had only completed a seventh grade education.

  Doug settled into the Akron area, and time ticked away. At the age of 20, Doug bought his first semi-truck, a 1966 White Freight Liner, and a trailer. He created a business for himself as an over-the-road long-distance owner-operator. Doug and his Dad would run the roads together, not unlike the old west cowboys galloping from town to town, trying to out-do each other.

  Unfortunately, in 1980, Doug was involved in a major wreck. This setback put him out of business for a while, and it took a few months for Doug to completely recover. When Doug did finally get back on his feet, he was eager to get back on the road. With a little money and a whole lot of ambition, he discovered and purchased an old $2,500 Diamond Rio that you could out-run on foot. Armed with his toolbox, bailing wire and duct tape, he set his mind to the challenging task in front of him.

  Years continued to fly by, and in 1988, Doug was doing rather well. He decided to incorporate, and founded R.D. Walters & Sons Trucking, Inc. After watching his hard work pay off and watching his business grow into a rather large company, Doug continued to create other businesses. In 1990, Triplett Truck and Trailer Repair, Inc. was born, and in 1992, Doug created W & W Brokerage, Inc.

  Doug was always very involved in his community. In 1996, Doug was elected President of the Traffic Club of Akron, and around the same time, also started Polymer Exchange, Inc., a recycling company. By now, 20+ years had gone by since Doug first arrived in Akron with his old Chevy, $40, and his 7th grade education. Business was good — no, business was great! Doug was working 7 days a week, and would do whatever it took to get the job done. He had a work ethic that was a sign of the era he grew up in.

  Fast forward to 2002. Doug purchased 60,000 square feet of manufacturing space situated on 4 acres, and started compounding polymers while running 24 hour shifts. Building the extrusion lines with used equipment and parts that he purchased gave him a jump on the competition.

  With all of this going on in his life, Doug took time off to get his GED in 2004. "I have been down a lot of roads and it did not really mean much at that point in my life. I didn’t need it for a job! I just wanted to see if I could get it done. In these times you better have a college degree just to live," Doug declared.

  Doug has always had a saying in the office to keep the motivation going: "Its not how much we did in gross sales today. How much did we fold up and put in our pocket?" Doug explained, "This saying was not to put anyone down, but really to make the people working for you aware of what it costs to make money. I lived by this my whole life and it works!" On Feb. 15th, 2007, Doug sold out to a company in North Carolina. Having been a dedicated businessman and having worked hard his entire life, Doug decided it was time to retire.

  As you now can see, that did not last long! Here he goes again, starting a fresh and exciting new adventure with Barb & Doug’s Nashville Nights, a long-overdue country music gathering place where musicians can jam and country music fans can enjoy some fantastic, old-fashioned entertainment! Watch some of Doug's Karaoke Videos.

  Doug has always loved music! Together with his right hand woman, Barb, who is his best friend and one-true love, they are always in sync and completing each other's ideas and thoughts. They are pretty much a country music tag team when they walk in the place!

  Barb and Doug want to bring back the music to Akron, to bring back some of the past and to introduce some of the new country. Their genre will include lively jam sessions, a lot of dancing, and just down to earth F-U-N in a place where you will feel safe in today’s modern society and feel like everyone is part of a big ol' family.

  In my mind I can hear Doug reminiscing, and he will always start off our conversations with, "I can remember in the old days when Akron was the HOT SPOT, the last stop to party before you hit the East Coast (trucker talk)"

  So keep watching our website as we move along, creating, building, and evolving the all-new and exciting Nashville Nights in Akron! Here everyone gets a turn to tell an old story, while at the same time enjoying making new memories and new friends!