Southwest Research Institute® (SwRI®) News
Printer Friendly VersionMcBride, Ames elected to SwRI (Board of Directors
San Antonio, Texas -- The elections of General William V. McBride (USAF, ret.) of San Antonio and Eugene L. Ames Jr. of San Antonio to chairman and vice chairman, respectively, of the Board of Directors of Southwest Research Institute® (SwRI®) were announced today during its 52nd annual meeting.
McBride, a retired U.S. Air Force vice chief of staff and former president of the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, previously served a two-year term as vice chairman of the SwRI Board. He became an SwRI Trustee in 1983 and a Board member in 1992.
Ames is chairman and chief executive officer of Venus Exploration, Inc. He became an SwRI Trustee in 1993 and a Board member in 1994.
In other actions at today's meeting, the chairman announced the election of J. Dan Bates to a third term as president of the Institute. The elections of McBride, Ames, Bates, and other officers of the Institute occurred at the annual meeting of the Board of Directors held November 22, 1999.
Also, five prominent members of the business community and three academicians were elected trustees of SwRI.
They are: James R. ("Jim") Adams, retired chairman of the board, Texas Instruments, Inc., San Antonio; Guy Bodine, president, Bank of America-Texas, Dallas; Dr. John R. Brazil, president, Trinity University, San Antonio; Fully Clingman, president and chief operations officer, HEB, San Antonio; Palmer Moe, executive director, Kronkosky Charitable Foundation, San Antonio; Dr. Mary Ann Rankin, dean, College of Natural Science, The University of Texas at Austin; Jamie Rochelle, general manager and chief executive officer, City Public Service, San Antonio; and Dr. Ricardo Romo, president, The University of Texas at San Antonio.
McBride is the recipient of more than 25 military citations including the Department of Defense Distinguished Service Medal, four Air Force Distinguished Service Medals, and the French Croix de Guerre. His military service began in 1942, and he served as a pilot, navigator, and bombardier. Over his 36-year career, he was assigned positions of command and staff duty at all levels of responsibility.
From 1971 to 1972, he was vice commander-in-chief of U.S. Air Forces in Europe. From 1972 to 1974, he was commander of the Air Training Command, Randolph Air Force Base, San Antonio, and from 1974 to 1975, he was commander of the Air Force Logistics Command, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. In 1975, he became the vice chief of staff of the U.S. Air Force, a post he held until his retirement in 1978. From 1982 to 1987, he was president of the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce.
McBride is a member (emeritus) of the Board of Directors, the Air Force Association, Arlington, Virginia; the Board of Trustees, the San Antonio Medical Foundation; the Board of Trustees, the Falcon Foundation, Colorado, Springs, Colorado; Site and Design Committee, the Air Force Memorial Foundation, Arlington, Virginia; and a trustee emeritus of the Aerospace Education Foundation, Arlington, Virginia.
Ames, who holds a bachelor's degree in geology from The University of Texas at Austin, is an independent oil and gas producer. He is also chairman and chief executive officer of Venus Oil Company, and is a managing partner of the Ames Company.
From 1992 to 1994, he was chairman of the Independent Petroleum Association of America, the national trade association that represents independent oil and natural gas producers in Washington, D.C. He is currently chairman of the Texas Oil and Gas Association and is a member of the Policy Committee of the American Petroleum Institute.
In addition, he is a member of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists, the Society of Independent Professional Earth Scientists, the South Texas Geological Society, and the All-American Wildcatters.
In 1993, he received the Distinguished Service Award from the Texas Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association, awarded in recognition of his service to the oil and gas industry. In 1995, he was selected as Lone Star Steel's "Chief Roughneck of 1995," one of the most prestigious awards given in the domestic oil and gas industry.
For more information about SwRI's new trustees, contact Deborah Deffenbaugh, Communications Department, Southwest Research Institute, P.O. Drawer 28510, San Antonio, Texas 78228-0510, Phone (210) 522-2046, Fax (210) 522- 3547.
