Page "Dave Thomas (businessman)" Paragraph 2

At 12 Thomas got his first job at The Regas, a restaurant in Knoxville, Tennessee, then lost it in a dispute with his boss.

However, there was a large autographed poster-photo of Thomas just inside the entrance of The Regas until the business closed down in 2009.

He vowed never to lose another job.

Moving with his father, by 15 he was working in Fort Wayne, Indiana at the Hobby House Restaurant owned by the Clauss family.

When his father prepared to move again, Dave decided to stay in Fort Wayne, dropping out of high school to work full-time at the restaurant.

Thomas, who considered ending his schooling the greatest mistake of his life, did not graduate from high school until 1993 when he obtained a GED.