Welcome to the Forum, Steve.
Wife and I lived in Tyler, Texas for a year back in the '80's. Then, there was Bobbye Hall's House of Hobbies, in Dallas, plus another shop whose name I don't remember in the Galeria (sp?) mall somewhere there.
Surprising that an area as big as the Dallas-Ft. Worth metroplex can't sustain a few hobby shops, but a lot of stuff is online now, and actual shops are harder and harder to come by. If you live in a hobby desert, it's a desert that's getting bigger.
If you post questions here, in the appropriate forum, you're likely to get better answers from the members than you could even get in a hobby store. There are people here with real expertise.
Glad you joined us!