Tom L. Ward

Tom L. Ward is a prominent Oklahoma City businessman and philanthropist. ^[2] He is currently the chairman and CEO of Mach Resources, ^[3] a privately owned energy company in Oklahoma City, OK. He was the founder and former chairman and CEO of Tapstone Energy ^[4] and SandRidge Energy, Inc. ^[5] and is the former president, chief operating officer, and co-founder of Chesapeake Energy. ^[6]

Contents

• Early life
• Education
• Philanthropy and community involvement
• Honors and awards
• References
• External links

After growing SandRidge into a $10 billion company, ^[7] Ward and SandRidge parted ways in 2013. The decision to move on from Ward was made without cause, ^[7] along with two separate board investigations concluding nothing improper and no wrongdoings occurred during his tenure as chairman and CEO. ^[8]

Ward, who Bloomberg coined "a natural gas icon" in 2017, ^[9] has founded and led several successful oil and gas companies throughout his career.

Ward is also owner of TLW Trading, L.L.C., Heritage Feeders, L.P., and TLW Land and Cattle. ^[10] TLW Trading, L.L.C. invests both financially and physically in commodities, focusing primarily on energy, specifically on North American natural gas markets. Heritage Feeders is ranked within the top 10 cattle feeders in the United States. ^[10]

Early life

Ward grew up in Seiling, Oklahoma, where he was raised and attended high school. In high school, Ward competed in football, basketball, baseball, and track. ^[11] During his senior year, he worked with his uncle in local oil fields. ^[5] Before leaving for college, Ward met his future wife, Schree. ^[11]

Education

Ward graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1981 with a BBA in Petroleum Land Management.

Philanthropy and community involvement

Ward co-founded White Fields in 2000 and serves as the chairman of the board. White Fields' mission is to provide a continuum model of care offering a long-term home for abused and neglected boys. They strive to meet the physical, emotional, educational, and spiritual needs of these boys by giving them a long-term home, counseling, and guidance. At White Fields, the boys can stay as long as they need to in order to heal, unlike many other short-term arrangements. ^[12] In 2016, the Oklahoma Department of Human Services partnered with Ward, through White Fields Inc., and Eckerd Kids to provide innovative software that uses predictive analytics to prevent childhood tragedies. ^[13]

In 2002, the Tom L. and Sch'ree Ward Fieldhouse at Anderson University was named after Ward and his wife for their gift that completed the construction of the Kardatzke Wellness Center in Anderson, Indiana. ^[14] The couple also created a scholarship program for young people who are members of Crossings Community Church in Oklahoma City to attend Anderson University, a private Christian institution, for tuition comparable to an Oklahoma state school. ^[14]

In 2005, Ward provided a free campus for SeeWorth Academy with an ideal location, where 400 students could gain a balanced curriculum without outside distractions and influences.” ^[15]

In 2014, Ward invested $17 million dollars into the 96-year-old vacant Mideke building in Bricktown, in downtown Oklahoma City, to reestablish it as Tapstone’s headquarters. Renovations include the east alley wall of the warehouse being modified with a “transparent glass façade,” and a partial revamp of the interior by integrating existing historical architectural elements into the new design. Additional renovations include a 3,600-square-foot expansion for an All About Chai Coffee and Tea. ^[16]

Ward was highly active in sponsoring major downtown activities in December 2014, such as the SandRidge Tree Lighting Festival and SandRidge Santa Run. Ward and SandRidge also worked intently with Alva's minimum security Bill Johnson Correctional Center located in Oklahoma. “Through the partnership, rehabilitation, non-violent inmates earn the opportunity to return back to the workplace.” ^[17]

Ward was a member of the Professional Basketball Club LLC, which owns the NBA's Oklahoma City Thunder, until he sold his interest to George Kaiser in April 2014. ^[18]

Ward is a committed member of several education-affiliated organizations. He is a former board of trustees member for Anderson University in Indiana, is a member of the Economic Advisory Council of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, and participates on the board of visitors for the OU Health Sciences Center. He is also on the board of the department of medicine, the board of trustees for The World Golf Foundation, ^[19] and a member of The First Tee, which is an organization developed to help “shape the lives of kids and teens from all walks of life by introducing them to values inherent in the game of golf.” ^[20] Ward also contributes as a member of the Nopetro board of directors. ^[21]

Ward has provided substantial scholarship money to Oklahoma colleges and universities to help students achieve their higher education goals and find work in the state after college. ^[22] Ward played a major role in revitalizing downtown's Central Business District. Ward oversaw the renovation of the former Kerr-McGee Tower into SandRidge's corporate headquarters, which is now known as SandRidge Commons. Ward is notable in restoring rundown buildings, such as Oklahoma City's historical Braniff Building, by adding retail, contemporary office space, and restaurants. Ward also directed 120 Kerr from a "dilapidated parking structure," to a modern office building. ^[23]

Ward is also the chairman ^[24] of the Tom L. Ward Family Foundation, which supports several nonprofits, including Positive Tomorrows ^[25] and Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform. ^[26]

Honors and awards

Ward was inducted into the Oklahoma Heritage Foundation's Hall of Fame in 2012 ^[27] and was one out of four honorees chosen for the Neal Horton Award at the 2014 Dean A. McGee Awards Ceremony for his role in the revitalization of downtown's Central Business District. ^[28] In April 2006, Ward was chosen as a Friend of Children Honoree by the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy. ^[29] Ward was honored by Big Brothers Big Sisters with the Judge William R. Saied Founder's Award for his advancement of mentoring in Oklahoma City. ^[30] In 2008, The National Philanthropy Day Past Award was also presented to Ward for being an Outstanding Philanthropist. ^[31]

Related Research Articles

The Oklahoma Libertarian Party is the state affiliate of the Libertarian Party in Oklahoma. It has been active in state politics since the 1970s, but due to Oklahoma's ballot access requirements the party has been an officially recognized party during only portions of the last twenty-five years. In 2016, The Oklahoma Libertarian Party regained ballot access. The state party has secured ballot access through at least 2024.

The Oklahoman is the largest daily newspaper in Oklahoma, United States, and is the only regional daily that covers the Greater Oklahoma City area. The Alliance for Audited Media lists it as the 59th largest U.S. newspaper in circulation.

Chesapeake Energy Corporation is an American exploration and production company, headquartered in Oklahoma City.

Mary Fallin is an American politician who served as the 27th governor of Oklahoma from 2011 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, she was elected in 2010 and reelected in 2014. She is the first and so far only woman to be elected governor of Oklahoma. She was the first woman to represent Oklahoma in Congress since Alice Mary Robertson left office in 1923.

KSBI, branded as News 9 Plus, is a television station in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, affiliated with MyNetworkTV. It is owned by locally based Griffin Media alongside CBS affiliate KWTV-DT. The two stations share studios on West Main Street in downtown Oklahoma City; KSBI's transmitter is located on the city's northeast side.

Kirk Humphreys is an American politician who served as Mayor of Oklahoma City from April 9, 1998, to November 3, 2004. He was considered a favorite candidate of the Republican party establishment for U.S. Senator in 2004, losing to former Congressman Tom Coburn, MD in the primary. Humphreys was appointed to The Oklahoma City Public Schools Board as Chairman, but was later unseated by former state Sen. Angela Monson.

Aubrey Kerr McClendon was an American businessman and the founder and chief executive officer of American Energy Partners, LP. He also co-founded Chesapeake Energy, serving as its CEO and chairman. He was an outspoken advocate for natural gas as an alternative to oil and coal fuels, and a pioneer in employing fracking.

Shane David Jett is an American politician from the state of Oklahoma, who is the state senator from Senate District 17, which includes northern Pottawatomie County and eastern Oklahoma County. He was a member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 2004 to 2010, representing House District 27. He also serves as chairman of the U.S. Treasury CDFI Fund Community Development Advisory Board.

Northwest Classen High School is a public high school serving students in grades 9–12 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

SandRidge Energy, Inc. is a company engaged in hydrocarbon exploration in the Mid-Continent region of the United States. It is organized in Delaware and headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Clayton Ike Bennett is an American businessman and chairman of the Professional Basketball Club LLC, the ownership group of the Oklahoma City Thunder, an NBA franchise formerly known as the Seattle SuperSonics. Bennett is the chairman of Oklahoma City-based Dorchester Capital Corporation, as well as the chairman emeritus of the board of directors of the Oklahoma Heritage Association and served as chairman of the Board of Regents of the University of Oklahoma from 2011–2019.

Strata Tower at Oklahoma Commons is a prominent skyscraper in the central business district of downtown Oklahoma City, in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The tower has 30 floors and is 393 feet (120 m) tall, making it the sixth-tallest building in Oklahoma City and the eleventh-tallest in the state. It was the headquarters of gas production and exploration company SandRidge Energy Corporation. In January 2010, SandRidge announced a $100 million renovation, designed by Rogers Marvel Architects, for the building and four other buildings to be called SandRidge Commons.

Leadership Square is a mixed-use office tower complex in downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States. The complex was completed in 1984 and comprises One Leadership Square and Two Leadership Square. One Leadership Square is taller at 285 feet (87 m) and 22 stories. Two Leadership Square is 224 feet (68 m) and 16 stories. They are the 10th and 19th tallest buildings in Oklahoma City, respectively.

David Holt is an American attorney, businessman and Republican politician who is the 38th mayor of Oklahoma City and dean of the Oklahoma City University School of Law. He is a member of the Osage Nation. He served in the Oklahoma Senate from 2010 to 2018, eventually as majority whip.

Jeff Bell is an American executive. He is the CEO of PPLSI, an Ada, Oklahoma-based corporation that markets legal and privacy management services in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. He also serves as chairman of the board of DOMedia LLC and as a venture partner of NCT Ventures LLC.

Thomas E. Love, was an American billionaire businessman. He was the founder, owner, and executive chairman of Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores.

Frank Criner Love, Jr. was an American lawyer and president of the Kerr-McGee oil company.

John Kevin Stitt is an American businessman and politician serving as the 28th governor of Oklahoma since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he was elected in 2018, defeating Democrat and former state Attorney General Drew Edmondson with 54.3% of the vote. Stitt was reelected to a second term in 2022, defeating Superintendent of Public Instruction Joy Hofmeister, a Republican turned Democrat, with 55.4% of the vote. A member of the Cherokee Nation, Stitt is the second Native American governor after former Oklahoma governor Johnston Murray.

References

External links

• White Fields website