Board of Directors
Brent Hopkins

Suemaur Exploration & Production, LLC
Chairman

Brent Hopkins obtained his BS in geology in 1981 from the State University of New York at Cortland. He has been involved in Suemaur Exploration & Production, LLC, since its inception but formally joined the company on January 1, 2008, as president and CEO. Previously, Hopkins was hired as exploration manager of Gedd, Inc., in 2002, before later becoming the president of the company. While at Gedd, he was responsible for overseeing various domestic assets along with international investments in Papua New Guinea, Columbia, South America and Belize. Hopkins spent the first 20 years of his career with Genesis Producing Company in various capacities from geo-tech to exploration manager. Hopkins is a past president of the Corpus Christi Geological Society, chaired the GCAGS Conference in Corpus Christi in 2007 and has been chairman of the Corpus Christi Oilmen's Tennis Tournament for the past several years, helping to raise money for API, SPE and CCGS scholarship programs. He also is a member of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists and Society of Exploration Geophysicists.

Eugene Garcia

Hurd Enterprises, Ltd.
Immediate Past Chairman

Eugene Garcia is president of Hurd Enterprises, Ltd., part of a fourth generation family business engaged in oil and gas exploration, ranching, real estate development and investments. Garcia is a member of the executive team of these Hurd Entities with direct responsibility over the Oil and Gas exploration and production and Ranching businesses.

Garcia currently serves as chairman of the Board of Directors for the Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association. Previously, he served as a member of the Board of Directors for the Boy Scouts of America, Alamo Area Council and held the position of committee chairman with the Boy Scouts of America, Saint Mary's Hall Troup 496 following two years as scoutmaster. Additionally, Garcia served as the chairman of the Board for Habitat for Humanity of San Antonio, board member for Mission Road Ministries and as a member of the McDonald Observatory Board of Visitors.

Garcia graduated from Texas A&M University with a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering and earned his MBA from the Florida State University. After spending several years in the co-op program at NASA and working at NASA's Kennedy Space Center as a payload project engineer, Garcia changed career paths and joined the Intel Corporation in 1995 in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. He worked as a business analyst and supervisor at Intel until moving to Austin, Texas, to work for Dell Computers in 1999. He was manager for Dell's Product Development and Procurement organizations until 2004 when he joined his family's business, Hurd Enterprises.

Allen Gilmer

Enverus (formerly Drillinginfo)
Class D Director

Allen Gilmer is the founder, chairman and former CEO of Enverus (formerly DrillingInfo, Inc.), and co-founder and director of Vecta Oil & Gas, Ltd., formed around his patents in the field of multicomponent seismology in 2000. Gilmer is the immediate past chairman of the Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association, a member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Royalty Owners-Texas, and has served on the Board of the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers. He is past Texas chairman and National board member of the Department of Energy's Petroleum Technology Transfer Council. He also serves on the advisory board for the UT El Paso College of Science and Colorado School of Mines Petroleum Engineering Department. Gilmer was selected as Large Company CEO of the Year for Central Texas in 2014, Top 7 NAPE Influencers in 2014, Texas' Outstanding Geoscientist in 2012 in Texas Monthly magazine, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in Central Texas in 2012 and Top 100 Energy Influencers in 2011.

Raymond James Welder III

Welder Exploration & Production, Inc.
Class D Director

Raymond Welder is a geologist, earning a degree from Washington and Lee University, now serving as the president of Welder Exploration & Production, Inc. Prior to founding the company, Welder served as a staff exploration geologist for the Dan A. Hughes Company in his hometown of Beeville, Texas. Welder currently serves on the executive board of the Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association, as the president of the Post Cambrian Log Library Association, and as vice-chairman of the Rockford Institute. Raymond has served as the former treasurer of the South Texas Geological Society, the former co-chair of the Our Lady of Grace Habitat for Humanity Campaign, and as the former president of the Washington and Lee University San Antonio Alumni Chapter. He is the recipient of the 2008 Boss of the Year Award by the San Antonio Desk and Derrick Association.

David F. Martineau

Martineau Petroleum
Class D Director

David F. Martineau, former exploration manager for Pitts Oil Company, LLC., began his association with the Pitts organization in 1972. He received a bachelors of science degree in geology from The University of Texas at Austin. He is a Certified Petroleum Geologist and licensed as a Texas Professional Geoscientist. He is an active member of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists, and serves as an associate trustee for the AAPG Foundation. He is a current member of the Interstate Oil & Gas Compact Commission, the Barnett Shale Water Conservation and Management Committee, Dallas Geological Society and Society of Independent Professional Earth Scientists. He is also a past chairman of the Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association and is on the Board of the Foundation for Energy Education and Executive Committee of the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers. David served 11 years on the Geological Foundation Advisory Council of The University of Texas and is currently a member of The University of Texas Systems Chancellor’s Council Executive Committee.

Stephen N. Castle

Cowboys Resources Corp.
Class D Director

Stephen N. Castle is owner and president of Cowboys Resources, Corp., residing in Midland, Texas. After earning an accounting degree from Angelo State University and an MBA from The University of Denver, Castle has gained extensive experience in the oil and gas industry, working for Mobil, Tom Brown and Hanley Petroleum. Then in 1999, Castle started his own company, Cowboys Resources Corp.

Castle is a former chairman of the Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association. He also serves on several boards, including Boy Scouts of America, Midland College, First Capital Bank of Texas, Manor Park, and other church and civic organizations.

Walter G. "Tad" Mayfield

Goldston Oil Corporation
Class D Director

Walter G. "Tad" Mayfield is an owner, director and president of Goldston Oil Corporation, a Houston-based, family oil and gas exploration and production company that was founded in the 1930s. Goldston Oil Corporation is the General Partner of Goldston Realty, Ltd. After receiving a B.S. degree in petroleum engineering from The University of Texas, he began working as an engineer for Goldston Oil Corporation. Goldston manages the exploration and development of oil and gas reserves and has production in Montana, New Mexico, Arkansas, Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas and Canada, with the majority of production being in Texas.

Mayfield is very active with community involvement as a board member and former chairman of the Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association, a board member and past chair of the U.S. Oil & Gas Association, trustee and past chair of the Board of Trustees for the Kinkaid  School - a K-12 grade independent day school in Houston founded in 1906. Mayfield is a current University of Texas at Austin Development Board member; former Engineering Advisory Committee member for the Petroleum Geosystems Engineering Department at the University of Texas; member of the Young President's Organization; and past Executive Board and Management Committee member of the Coastal Conservation Association - Texas.

Scott L. Anderson

Anderson Oil Ltd.
Chairman Emeritus


Scott Anderson graduated from The University of Texas with a B.S. in petroleum engineering in 1980. He then started work at Anderson Oil, opening and managing the company’s Appalachian Basin office in Lexington, Kentucky from 1981-1985. Following that, he moved to Houston, where he continues to co-manage all Anderson Oil assets with his brothers today.

Anderson is a past chairman of the Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association, serves on the advisory board of Memorial Hermann’s Children’s Hospital and is on the board of the Post Oak (Trotter) YMCA.

Joseph C. Abel

M. D. Abel Co.
Chairman Emeritus

Joseph Abel is current president and owner of M.D. Abel Co. He attended Southwestern University in Georgetown and transferred to the University of Texas, graduating with a B.A. in history in 1978. Initially his primary role working for M.D. Abel Co. was overseeing production, where he was responsible for field operations like workovers, hookups, drilling and more. Later on, he took control of leasing, running records and general land work. In 1997, Abel bought the company and gained full control of all operations. All together, Abel has been in the industry for more than 30 years.

Rex H. White, Jr.

Attorney & Counselor at Law
Chairman Emeritus

Rex White is an attorney and counselor at law, as well as mediator of oil and gas matters. After graduating with a B.S. degree in geology from The University of Texas in 1956, White received a master’s degree in geology with a minor in petroleum engineering in 1960. He then graduated from The University of Texas Law School in 1967. White has since gained extensive legal experience, serving as the assistant attorney general for the state of Texas from 1967-1976. He has been partner of several prestigious law firms across Austin, before starting his own practice in 1998.

White currently serves on the board of directors for the Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association and Saratoga Resources, Inc., in addition to being a member of the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission and the Oil Field Clean Up Advisory Committee.

Patricia D. Boswell McCall

Boswell Interests, Ltd.
Secretary, Class B Director

Patricia Dean Boswell McCall attended SMU and graduated from TCU with a major in education and a minor in speech therapy. Her family’s business (involved in oil and gas, ranching and real estate) was started in the late 60’s by her deceased husband, Bruce Boswell, and is run primarily by her son, John, though she and her daughters are active participants in the Partnership, with Pat serving as secretary and treasurer.

Pat and her husband Clyde S. McCall, Jr. are both Explorer Members of TIPRO. They each have served on the Board of Petroleum Club of Fort Worth and are active members of the Dallas Petroleum Club, as well as IPAA and the Texas Alliance. Clyde has held the office of Secretary of the TIPRO Board of Directors, while Pat has been vice-president of the then Region IV (Dallas/Fort Worth). During her tenure, she reactivated the monthly TIPRO Tuesday Luncheons. She currently serves as secretary of the Board of Directors of TIPRO and is a former recipient of the prestigious “Mr. TIPRO” award.

John H. Swords

Swords Strategic Business Consulting
Treasurer, Class B Director

John Swords currently serves as a business consultant and board member to several clients in the energy, real estate and financial transaction businesses. He has over 27 years of experience in tax and strategic business consulting with PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP and its predecessors prior to taking early retirement in 2000. In 1973 he joined Lybrand, Ross Bros. & Montgomery after graduating from Rice University. He was later admitted to the partnership of its successor, Coopers & Lybrand, in 1980. There he served corporate clients including mid-size to large companies involved in energy, real estate, and technology. He also performed tax and estate planning services for a number of wealthy individuals and families.

Mike Pedrotti

Texegy
Region 1 Representative

Mike Pedrotti has over 30 years of experience in the oil and gas industry. He originally began his career as a petroleum landman with TXO Production Corporation in 1985. In 2003, Pedrotti co-founded and was president of LMP Exploration, Inc. The next year, Pedrotti caused the merger of LMP Exploration, Inc. into LMP Exploration Holdings and LMP Exploration Operating with private equity partners Greenhill Capital and Lime Rock Partners, and was president of both these companies. LMP Exploration Holdings sold all of its assets in January 2008. Pedrotti later formed SV Energy with Rajan Ahuja in 2011 as an oil and gas exploration company. Together, they partnered with GCP Capital Partners and bought the assets that were eventually sold to Texegy LLC. Pedrotti is a graduate of Texas A&M University.

Grant Johnson

Lone Star Production Company and Helmsman Minerals
Region 2 Representative

T. Grant Johnson is the president of Lone Star Production Company and Helmsman Minerals, LLC. Johnson received a BBA in petroleum land management from The University of Texas in 1981. He began his career as a contract field landman where he gained experience in courthouse records and oil and gas leasing. From 1983 to 1991, he served as land manager for Alcorn Exploration, Inc. During his association with George A. Alcorn, Johnson formed Lone Star Production Company, which participated in projected generated by Alcorn. Johnson is a member of TIPRO, the American Association of Professional Landmen, Houston Association of Professional Landmen, Permian Basin Landmen's Association, Houston Producers Forum, IPAA, ADAM Permian and ADAM Houston. He also is a licensed Texas real estate broker. Johnson has held several offices for WHAPL including president in 1987-88. He also served as president of HAPL from 2008-2009. In 2009, Johnson was named HAPL's "Outstanding Landman of the Year." For AAPL, he currently serves on the NAPE Operators Committee. Johnson is past chairman of AAPL's Annual Meeting Committee, Forms Committee and NAPE Operators Committees. Johnson received the "AAPL Committeeman of the Year" Award in 2014. He currently serves as TIPRO's Region 2 Director.

Matthew Hairford

Matador Resources Co.
Region 3 Representative

Matt Hairford is president of Matador Resources Company. He first joined Matador in July 2004 as its drilling manager, and later was named vice president of drilling in May 2005. He became vice president of operations in May 2006, and then executive vice president of operations in May 2009 before assuming the role of president in November 2013. He previously worked with Samson Resources, an exploration and production company, as senior drilling engineer, having joined Samson in 1999. From 1998 to 1999, Hairford was senior drilling engineer with Sonat, Inc., a global company involved with natural gas transmission and marketing, oil and natural gas exploration and production and oil services. From 1984 to 1998, he served in various drilling engineering capacities with Conoco, Inc. Hairford received his Bachelor of Science degree in Petroleum Engineering Technology from Oklahoma State University in 1984. He is an active member of TIPRO, the American Association of Drilling Engineers, the American Petroleum Institute and the Society of Petroleum Engineers. Hairford has also undertaken additional training through Stanford University’s Executive Education programs, including the Stanford Graduate School of Business flagship six week Stanford Executive Program.

Michael Kendrick

Kendrick Oil and Gas Co.
Region 4 Representative

Michael Kendrick has been with Kendrick Oil and Gas since 2011. He handles the day-to-day operations of the company, focusing on their Texas and Oklahoma investments. He is a member of the Texas Independent Producers and Royalty Owners Association (TIPRO), the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers, the Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA), and the Abilene Geological Society. Kendrick graduated from Texas Tech University, earning his degree in financial planning.

Dennis Hendrix

Great Western Drilling Co.
Region 5 Representative

Serving as vice president and general manager of operations, Dennis Hendrix joined Great Western Drilling Company in the summer of 1992 after 11 years with Chevron Corporation. He graduated from Oklahoma State University and joined Chevron right out of college in the company's drilling division. While at Chevron, Hendrix worked in most phases of engineering, including drilling, production and reservoir engineering. He also served as a production supervisor over a large area in southeast New Mexico. As opportunities at Chevron were leading him overseas or to undesirable locations, he decided to leave the major for a smaller, independent operator where he could be a larger part of the overall cycle of new project development. Several years after joining GWDC as a reservoir engineer, Hendrix became the manager of operations. Later, he also was made a vice president of the company. The 80-plus-year-old company is known for drilling and producing wells all over the Permian Basin and being a seasoned implementer of waterfloods. The company has participated in multiple horizontal projects and most recently, has begun an operated horizontal venture in the Permian. At TIPRO, Hendrix has enjoyed participating in the State Issues Committee and serving on the Board of Directors for the last several years. 

 

 

David Walker

P. David Walker, Inc.
Region 6 Representative

David Walker previously served as president of Cambridge Production, a private/family-owned oil and natural gas exploration and production company. Walker also holds numerous working interests and royalty interests in producing oil and gas.  In addition, Walker is an active member of various organizations, including the Society of Exploration Geophysicists, Dallas, Denver, Houston and Permian Basin Geophysical Societies, Panhandle Geological Society. He also is a past president of the Panhandle Producers and Royalty Owners Association and a past president of Amarillo Geophysical Society.  He received a bachelors of science degree in geology from Texas Tech University.

 

William M. Wallace

Wallace Petroleum Investments, Inc.
At-Large Representative

William Wallace graduated from The University of Texas at Austin with a BBA in 1976. He began his oil career in Midland Texas upon the creation of Wallace Petroleum Investments, Inc. in July of 1986. Since 1986, Wallace has been engaged in many aspects of the oil and gas business including acquisitions, divestitures, drilling, production, and ownership in a service company (pulling units) located in Sundown, Texas. In 2004, he served on Texas Energy Planning Council, and is currently vice president of the Committee of Texas Independents.

Bob Ranck

El Ran, Inc.
At-Large Representative

Robert "Bob" Roland Ranck graduated from Texas Tech University with a BBA in 1971. Upon graduating, he moved to Chicago where he would end up doing stints at different companies before making his way back to Lubbock. Ranck has been engaged in many aspects of the oil and gas business including acquisitions, divestitures, drilling, production and ownership since 1975. His father would end up starting EL RAN, INC., an operations company, in May of 1991, where Robert would go to work for him in all facets of the business, and eventually become president and owner upon the passing of his father. He has been the past manager of Ranck Minerals & Energy, served on the TIPRO Board, and donated his time and money to many charities and foundations he holds near and dear to his heart. In his younger days, he was an avid outdoorsman, enjoying everything from skiing, hunting, fishing, and scuba diving. Now adays, Ranck's main hobby is photography, and when he’s not at the office or taking pictures he can be found in his backyard with his 2 Labrador retrievers.

Ranck was awarded the association's Mr. TIPRO Award for 2020 for his loyal dedication to the association and service to the industry. 

Ron Whitmire

EOG Resources, Inc.
At-Large Representative

Ron Whitmire is director of government relations for EOG Resources. Before joining EOG in April 2019, he was in various government and public affairs positions at EnerVest, Ltd. for 14 years and Parking Drilling Company prior to EnerVest. He earned a Bachelor's degree from the University of Oklahoma.

 

Jud Walker

EnerVest Ltd.
At-Large Class A Director

Jud Walker is president and CEO of EnerVest Operating Company where he previously served as executive vice president and COO. He joined EnerVest in 2009 as vice president of geosciences and director of new ventures. Prior to joining EnerVest in 2009, he was employed with Chesapeake Energy. Walker was the lead geoscientist for multiple plays within both the Delaware and Val Verde Basins during his seven-year tenure at Chesapeake. He is a founding member of the Next Generation Giving Circle, associated with the Greater Houston Community Foundation. He also serves on the board of the Sam Houston Area Council where he is currently executive chairman of the Eagle Scout Association. Walker holds a Bachelor of Science in geology from Texas Christian University and a Master of Science in geological sciences from The University of Texas at Austin.

 

Tom Janiszewski

Occidental Petroleum Corp.
Chairman's Appointee

Thomas Janiszewski is vice president-regulatory and land for Occidental Oil and Gas Corporation and is responsible for Oxy's U.S. mineral and surface interests, including the lease administration and division order functions. He also manages the groups responsible for regulatory and environmental permitting, compliance and reporting, and regulatory advocacy. Janiszewski previously was assistant general counsel of Occidental Oil and Gas and was responsible for legal support Oxy's U.S. operations and Global Supply Chain. Prior to that, Janiszewski served as legal manager for Occidental Petroleum of Qatar. His broad domestic and international experience includes joint operations and development, acquisitions and divestitures, major construction projects and oil and gas litigation. 

Prior to joining Oxy in 2000, Janiszewski held various positions in ExxonMobil's Law Department, including ExxonMobil Development Company where he worked on major projects in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, Alaska, and Angola, and Exxon's Litigation Section handling oil and gas cases. Before graduation from law school, Janiszewski spent 11 years as a reservoir engineer for Exxon. 

Janiszewski holds a Bachelor's Degree in Geological Engineering from Michigan Technological University and a Juris Doctor from Loyola University in New Orleans. He is a member of the Texas and Louisiana Bars, the American Association of Professional Landmen and is a Registered Professional Petroleum Engineer. 

He is a member of the Board of Directors and has previously served as chairman and vice chairman of the New Mexico Oil and Gas Association (NMOGA). He is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association (TIPRO) and the Permian Basin Petroleum Association (PBPA). 

Matt Most

Ovintiv
Chairman's Appointee

As vice president of government relations and sustainability, Matt Most's teams are responsible for U.S. policy initiatives and governmental relationships for Ovintiv (formerly Encana Oil and Gas, Inc.) as well as sustainability reporting and risk assessment company-wide. Previous to his current assignment, he led Encana Natural Gas, Inc., providing compressed and liquefied natural gas fueling solutions to a variety of industries. 

Most serves on several professional and community boards, including:
-Anti-Defamation League Mountain States
-Children's Museum of Denver
-Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce
-Junior Achievement - Rocky Mountains
-Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association
-Texas Oil & Gas Association
-University of Colorado Denver Business School

Most joined Encana in 2010 from Edison Mission Energy where he held an array of energy trading and environmental policy positions. He also served as chairperson of the Environmental Markets Association for three years and as director for five years.

He holds a Bachelor's degree from Clark University in Environmental Science and a Master of Business Administration from Babson College. 

Gary Rohmer

PwC
Chairman's Appointee

Gary Rohmer is a managing director in the tax practice of PwC and has served as a corporate tax advisor for over 30 years. He has extensive experience in corporate and partnership taxation, advising clients on numerous tax planning issues including business formations, debt restructurings, acquisitions and dispositions of lines of business and internal restructurings. During the last 15 years, Rohmer has focused on providing M&A tax services and is currently the leader of PricewaterhouseCoopers' mergers and acquisitions oil and gas U.S. energy tax practice. In this capacity, he is extensively involved in providing due diligence and structuring services with respect to acquisitions of companies and/or lines of business in all sectors of the oil and gas and energy services industries for both financial as well as strategic buyers.