Committees: Honors & Awards
Distinguished Member of the House Award
Accomplished geologist, leader with patience, respect for all, tireless worker, dedi-cated to the principles and mission of the AAPG
David J. Entzminger joined AAPG in 1979, and has been a contributing member to the Association and numerous of its affiliated societies and sections from day one. He was raised with the simple ethic that one should see how much they can do for a dollar rather than how little they have to do to get a dollar. Further, he believes you should give back to an organization that has enriched and benefitted your professional and personal experiences which he believes AAPG has done and continues to do. He has been chosen to receive the Distinguished Member of the House of Delegates recognition because of his work ethic and the polite manner in which he leads by consensus and ultimately drives to a conclusion.
David is currently the Regional Geological Manager, Permian Basin, for Whiting Petroleum Corporation in Midland, Texas. He received his Bachelors of Science in Geological Engineering from the University of Idaho College of Mines in 1976, and his Masters of Science from Idaho State University in Geology in 1979. He then began his career with ARCO in Houston followed by time with Horn Resources and Cabot in Denver then back with ARCO in Midland and BP in Houston in positions of increasing responsibility. In 2003, he moved to Midland with Tom Brown and since 2005, has been with Whiting Petroleum.
He has been very active in the AAPG Division of Professional Affairs and is a Certified Professional Geologist, DPA SW Section Councilor, and Education Committee Chair. He is a member of the Energy Minerals Division. David has been a Delegate to the AAPG House of Delegates from the West Texas Geological Society for seven years and an Alternate for several years prior to serving as a Delegate. He has served as HoD Chair of the Constitution and Bylaws committee and twice as Vice-Chair.
His professional affiliations include being President of the Permian Basin Section of the Society for Sedimentary Geology, President of the West Texas Geological Society and he is currently President-Elect of the Southwest Section of AAPG. He is also a member of the Rocky Mountain Association of Geologists and the Permian Basin Geophysical Society. He has served on committees for field trips, luncheon speaker series, guidebooks and has presented and co-authored numerous papers on geology, reservoirs and hydrocarbon recovery. His volunteer efforts have been recognized with numerous Service Awards, Best Poster Awards, and the DPA Certificate of Merit.
I have been privileged to know David Entzminger and his family for many years. Actually I like to say I have known him from the time he did his contouring by pencil with dotted and dashed lines to the time he began to make them solid lines. He has a quiet unassuming confidence about him. He truly wants to hear everyone’s point of view and know that they have had a chance to express themselves fully and to win the day for their idea. Each HoD Chair wants the members of the Constitution and Bylaws Committee to be an independent thinker and frankly an experienced no-holds barred advocate for AAPG. When issues come before the committee for their adjudication from the HoD Chair, AAPG Executive Committee, Advisory Council, or from the Floor, there will be a discussion and usually substantial debate about the issue’s relevance, impact short and long term, and whether it belongs in the C&BL Committee or somewhere else. Controlling that discussion and capturing what was said and turning it into a motion and getting it to a committee vote as the chair, or for the chair, is often yeoman’s duty. David was in the middle of some very important issues being debated by some very strong-willed, caring committee members, all of whom did a terrific job. AAPG is stronger today for their efforts and David’s demeanor and spirit in capturing and presenting fairly their work product.
Though David Entzminger would never agree, the geoscience communities with whom he has associated have benefitted far more from his “others above self” attitude than they will ever know. He is a fine gentleman and geoscientist continuing to set an example that deserves our respect and applause.