Meet Jack Palmer

More Than An Employee With the passing of Charley Furrer, the BK Ford team has lost a well-respected and loved member of our family. After dedicating almost 50 years of his life to the company (retiring in 1995), Charley was an integral part of the team, and his legacy will always be remembered. more Before starting his long tenure at BK Ford, Charley served in the United States Navy during World War II. His time in the military was a formative experience that shaped his character into the dedicated and admirable person BK Ford remembers him as. After completing his service, Charley joined the team at Bird Kultgen Ford, where he began his career as a mechanic's assistant earning just 25 cents per hour. With diligence and a positive attitude, Charley quickly made a name for himself as a skilled mechanic and hard worker. Throughout his long career, Charley exemplified the values of loyalty, hard work, and dedication. He steadily climbed the ranks, earning promotions and taking on more responsibility, eventually becoming the general manager of BK Ford, a role he held for 28 years. While we are deeply saddened by his passing, we take comfort in the fact that Charley's legacy will live on. His impact on the company, and the people he worked with, will be felt for years to come. We commemorate his life and thank him for the contributions he made to our community. Charley Furrer, 96, went to be with the Lord, February 13, 2023, surrounded by his loving family.

It is important to Bird Kultgen Ford to recognize outstanding team members. Every year our management team selects one individual who represents something special. This year, leadership nominated several worthy candidates. We narrowed the list based upon our core values of trust, excellence, servanthood, positive attitude and love for trucks (The F-150 is America's number one selling truck after all). more Our winner consistently delivers all of these with a passion to serve that is truly inspiring. He’s a servant at heart, putting others before himself. His gratitude, patience, and respect for our team and our customers sets him apart.  This person’s humility, character, high energy, servanthood, urgency, and self-motivation made him stand out. We are proud to announce David Reed as our 2021 Employee of the Year. David represents the parts team, selling parts mostly to our service department. David is a “car guy” that loves everything automotive and helping customers. He has a bachelors from Canadian Mennonite University and an associate degree in automotive refinishing from TSTC. His faith is an especially important part of his life and part of why he values the spirit of BK Ford. In his spare time, he enjoys working on older cars and trucks (currently his 1991 Ford Mustang), reading, and spending time with his family. Our team trusts David because of his ability to consistently deliver and go above and beyond. We are so excited to add David to our list of past honorees that includes Mike Kinser, Anette Davis, Stephanie Mirage, Vanessa Bounds, James Graves, Jack Palmer, Randol Langdale, Richard Solano, Alvin Jackson, Cathy Bryant, Cristi Allen, Tim Pietsch, Keith Cosby, Linda Gonce and many more.

Bird-Kultgen Ford is proud to announce the retirement of Peter Kultgen after 53 years of service and leadership at Bird-Kultgen Ford. Claire McDonald and Mark Stewart have been promoted to the roles of President and Vice-President. more Peter started his career at his grandfather J H. “Jack” Kultgen’s dealership in 1968 working part time after school, holidays and summers. Following his graduation from the University of Texas, Peter went to work full time in 1974. Peter proudly succeeded Jack in the 80s and operated the dealership with his brother Edward until Ed’s retirement in 2015. Peter will continue to assist with the transition and remain as an advisor for the dealership, and looks forward to continuing his leadership and work with countless civic and charity organizations. “It has been extremely gratifying to build Bird-Kultgen into the dealership it is today. I sincerely appreciate all the wonderful customers, friends, business partners and relationships I have been so fortunate to have made over these many years. I wish to thank many of the other dealers in our area for being good and honorable competitors. It has also been rewarding to watch Claire’s and Mark’s growth and development. They are good people, leaders, and great car dealers. I know they will take care of our customers and team and strive to make Waco a better place for everyone living here. I also want to thank all my family members for their support. The best is yet to come for Waco and Central Texas. Best wishes and God bless you all.” A celebration for Peter’s retirement and the dealership’s 85th anniversary is planned for October 1st, 2021. Peter’s daughter Claire started her career at the dealership in the early 90s washing cars, stocking parts, and selling cars in the summer while attending Baylor. After a 5-year career in the aviation industry in Maryland, she moved back to Waco and has spent the last 12 years learning and preparing for this leadership role. Claire and her husband Theo have 2 daughters. In their free time they enjoy outdoor adventures, spending time on Lake Waco, and are members of Redeemer Presbyterian Church. Claire is currently on the boards of the Dr Pepper Museum and TSTC Foundation and is the current chairwoman of the TADA Texas Dealer Academy. “I am honored to have the opportunity to lead the Bird-Kultgen team into the future and to continue Bird-Kultgen’s legacy as Waco’s Ford dealership. Peter has worked hard to make sure I understand the business and how to take care of our customers and team the right way. I am proud to take the helm along with Mark, who shares the same passions and desires I have for the dealership and community. I’m grateful to our customers for your many years of support, and we will continue to work hard to earn your business every day, take care of your automotive needs, and make Waco better for everyone living here.” With 22 years of auto dealership experience, Mark Stewart joined Bird-Kultgen Ford in 2018. Mark is best known for his trustworthy sales approach, commercials, and his care and motivation for his dealership team. Mark is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the dealership. He is also a fourth generation Wacoan, having graduated from Midway High School and Baylor University. He and his wife Amanda have 2 sons, Clayton and Zach. They are members of First Methodist Waco. As a family, they enjoy sports, outdoors and being together. Mark also is a member of Partners, serving local Waco businesses. “It’s with great honor that I assume this leadership role with this great family and Waco business. I’m truly thankful for Peter’s trust in Claire and myself to continue the commitment to building something truly special that will last for many years to come. Our commitment to serving the customer and our team sets us apart. I’m excited for what Bird-Kultgen will do for our customers and the greater Waco community. The sky is truly the limit.” Bird-Kultgen has been Waco’s trusted Ford dealer since 1936. You can count on us to be fair, honest and affordable, and always committed to the tradition of quality service. We work hard to simplify the buying process, as well as provide excellent service from maintenance to service and collision repairs and make things easy and straightforward for our customers. Our passion for caring for Waco drives us daily, with our current charity focuses being: • Mustang Convertible Raffle kicking off in May, Benefitting Shepherd’s Heart Food Pantry, • Free Mammograms to those in need in October with Baylor Scott and White Breast Center, • Automotive Scholarships for TSTC students, • Supporting young farmers and ranchers at the McLennan County Livestock Sale, • The Midway and Brazos Education Foundations, and dozens of other local charity projects. • We are also actively involved in the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce, the United Way, and the Baylor Bear Foundation Ford is the #1 selling brand in Texas and the United States, and the Ford F-150s is the best selling vehicle in America.