It is with a heavy heart we start our 2017-2018 season.  The suffering and loss of life in our state and in the Gulf Coast has been so hard to watch. Most of us that have been in the oil patch for a while have lived along the gulf at some point or still know lots of people that are down there trying to recover. However, the bravery, compassion, and outreach from our country and so many selfless individuals are inspiring.  Once the immediate danger has passed, we must start the difficult conversations: preventing future disasters, securing energy, funding recovery of the stricken areas, and the impacts of climate change, to name a few.  As geologists and earth science professionals, these conversations affect our lives and our jobs.  I believe our knowledge of the earth will be needed as our world grapples with the impacts of rapid changes in our society and our environment.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful summer.   Your ETGS board of directors is preparing for another informative, educational and fun year of events.

The first thing on the agenda is a Social at the Rose City Draft House, August 24th 5-7 pm, ETGS will provide the food, and drinks will be discounted.  We copied the Dallas Geological Society in having an end of summer social to reconnect, check your membership status, and have a good time.   Please thank Hunter Carr when you see him for doing a great job organizing our socials.

Many of you attended the Basic Log Interpretation class in July taught by Paul Hene.  The popularity of it took us by surprise.  There was so much interest that Paul had to divide the class into two days.  We were fortunate to be able to offer it for free, including lunch and breakfast, thanks to the generosity of so many people:  First and foremost Paul for donating all his time and considerable talent to teach and organize the class, John Jacobi of Covey Park Energy for sponsoring lunch, XTO for donating the conference room, and Schlumberger for donating the manuals and coffee. 

It has been my honor and a privilege to serve as President of this society.  Particularly since ETGS has such a talented and dedicated group of volunteers, from the committee chairs that organize our events, to our scholarship and education committees who help to educate and bring more young people into our profession.  Also Barbara Cade, our administrative assistant, and Rachel McNerney (Hill), our webmaster, do a great job of keeping us organized, communicating and on track.  I thought this would be my last newsletter; however, since no one else has stepped forward and it has been so much fun, I look forward to serving another year.

I hope those of you that made it to AAPG ACE in Houston last month enjoyed it as much as I did.  There were lots of good talks and poster sessions, just not enough time to see them all. I even won a beautiful Brunton AXIS transit from Forestry Suppliers.  It is a great tool for field work and I am happy to lend it out, if anyone wants use it.   Thank you Kathy Moore, manager of Petroleum Data Library in Tyler, for staffing our booth at ACE.  She did a wonderful job representing us and signed up some new members.