Daniel Palmer Takes a Leap of Faith

By STACY MOSER | Photography by JUSTIN BORJA

Daniel Palmer took a giant leap of faith.

The former executive pastor of a prominent church in Maryland recently threw caution to the winds and moved with his wife and two children back to his family home in Temple, in search of a new life.

“If I rewind to five years ago, I can honestly say I had no intention of moving back to Texas,” Daniel admits. For over a decade, he helped lead the congregation’s exponential growth. “We were a very business-oriented church, with budgets and work charts and strategies,” Daniel says. “I was heavily involved in the marketing and oversaw the arts and music programs there. But the responsibilities were eating our life —something had to change.”

In 2017, Daniel made his move. “I was 37 years old and making a complete career shift in order to start from scratch,” he says, shaking his head and smiling. He founded his own marketing firm, Morether Creative Agency, in downtown Temple, specializing in crafting marketing strategies for small- to medium-sized businesses.

The courageous streak that motivated Daniel to strike out on his own was instilled in him by his parents, Colleen and Joe Palmer. The couple embraced the idea of home-schooling their children over three decades ago, before that educational option was the trendy movement it is now. As a matter of fact, local home-schooling resources that

Colleen established during those years actually thrive in Temple to this day. Daniel says that the freedom afforded him during home-schooling allowed him to pursue his creative side — and led to his first job at the age of 15, when he was hired to do graphic designs for Professional Data Solutions in Temple.

Daniel’s characteristic sense of humor is also evident in his approach to business. His new agency’s name was inspired by an amusing conversation he overheard between his daughter, Abigail, and son, Elijah, one day.

Daniel recounts the exchange: “My then 2-year-old daughter complained to us, ’Elijah got morether than me!’ Morether? I realized that morether is her word for ‘more than more.’ Morether is above what she can accomplish on her own. She needs help. She needs an expert. So, she cries out for morether! That’s the concept behind my agency. We help stressed-out, overwhelmed CEOs or business owners and provide clarity for them. My goal is to help them do morether.”

One of Daniel’s more recent work projects took him by surprise when he was first approached about it. “I got a call from Drayton McLane’s assistant, saying that he wanted to talk about signage for the McLane Children’s Medical Center,” he explains. The hospital is a part of the Baylor Scott & White statewide medical system and Daniel felt honored to be called on to assist with any project having to do with McLane, the iconic business owner. “I figured maybe they wanted help designing signs for the parking lot or something,” Daniel laughs. He soon learned that McLane was rebranding the hospital that bears his name and sought assistance creating a logo that would be especially appealing to children.

Daniel got to work, recalling the times he’d spent in a children’s hospital with his daughter, who had been born with neo-natal cataracts. The condition required removal of one of her eyes’ lenses completely at the age of 2 months.

“We were in Maryland when she had her first surgery,” Daniel says. “We walked into the children’s hospital there and my son remembers big balloons with teddy bears in the lobby. Kids aren’t in the hospital for a good time, but If they can focus on something fun, it makes their experience better.”

Daniel and his family knew firsthand about the McLane Children’s Medical Center facility. “Abigail’s cataract showed back up when we moved here and they put a prosthetic lens in at McLane’s, so we were very familiar with the hospital. We’re so lucky to have wonderful doctors so close by.”

He says he spent time in the toy aisle at Wal-Mart, checking out what might appeal to youngsters, while reflecting on Temple’s history — built around railroad lines. “I had my kids draw a train,” Daniel says, using the drawing to visualize a playful logo aimed at children’s love for the railroad.

The new logo was released in November 2018, gracing the large building housing the medical center and overlooking its state-of-the-art playground. “The most enjoyable thing about what I do is showing clients how I can help,” Daniel says. “A light bulb goes off and they say, ‘That makes sense, I’ve never tried that.’”

So what’s the secret to Daniel’s future success? “I’ve always found the key is to surround myself with people who know more than I do,” he smiles. “Whenever gifted people feel like they’re doing what they were meant to do, and they’re not micromanaged,” he says, “they thrive. We’re doing a good job and that starts people around town talking about us. They’re realizing the value we offer.”

The Artistic Side of Daniel Palmer

Daniel remembers many Sundays he spent doodling on a church bulletin during sermons in order to pass the time, an enthusiastic following of young boys watching over his shoulder. Later, he entered drawings at the Bell County Fair and was enrolled in painting lessons during his home-schooling curriculum. “I started emulating artists I admired,” he says. “I sold a painting to the Temple Booster Club when I was 12 — they used it for the field house. When Applebee’s opened here, they commissioned a few paintings from me when I was 13.”

Now, Daniel rarely has time to lose himself in a painting, but when he does, he says, “I drink it in with joy.”

In the watercolor above, “Maris & Mantle,” Daniel combines his love of baseball with his prowess as an artist to create an eye-catching work of art.

Daniel’s Marketing Pointers

• Copy ideas. A guy named Solomon said there’s nothing new under the sun, and he said that a long time ago. It’s the same with marketing. Don’t steal your competitors’ slogans, of course, but you can do research about what’s out there, make modifications to fit your message and implement some great ideas that will work for your company.
• Ask your kids for feedback — they will probably be your most honest and helpful audience.
• Request help. You can’t know how to do everything in marketing. I have no desire to replace my water heater even if I knew how. So I hired an expert plumber to do the job. And guess what? He took less than a day to do it and probably saved me cash in the long run. And hot water means my wife is happy — so everyone’s happy!