GSF Alumni Winter 2009 Newsletter

Happy holidays, all! This is the first of our quarterly newsletters, much delayed but now a scheduled event. To contribute, contact us at gsfalumni@gmail.com. And do contribute. or we'll be forced to harvest information from various dubious sources such as Facebook. We will publish anything that does not offend the readers or that does not concern Tiger Woods. On to your news and contributions.

A Tragedy in Tomball, TX - RIP Dana Burkett

On a somber note, alumnus Dana Burkett was killed in a one car accident on December 16th near Tomball, TX. Dana died in his beloved Corvette, fast cars being both a blessing and a curse. He was interred at Klein Memorial Park. Memorial donations can be made to The Dana H. Burkett Memorial Scholarship fund, c/o Prosperity Bank, 25820 US 290, Cypress TX 77429. He is survived by his parents, his wife Rene, three children, two grandchildren and two brothers. There are no words to describe our feelings regarding Dana's early exit from this life, other than that he was a good man. An epitaph good enough for any.


From Jeff Shepard, Houston TX

Hello All!
Have been enjoying life as retirement was meant to be! We are still in Houston at the same home number (281-579-3976) and will be around for another year or so. After that, we will be moving to Georgia about an hour drive east of Atlanta in a development called Reynolds Plantation. Plenty of golf and fishing with rolling hills and thick with trees and a good-sized lake (called Oconee) that has about 80 miles of shoreline. We're looking forward to the move! Y'all drop us a line sometime! We'd love to hear from you!
Best Regards,
Jeff and Trisha Shepard
19202 Hanston Ct.
Houston, TX 77094
713-724-0975 (Jeff's cell)
jeff.shepard49@yahoo.com

Jeff Shepard's 60th (contributed by your faithful Blogmaster)

Speaking of Mr Shepard, he celebrated his 60th at the The Falls resort in New Ulm with a very cold round of golf (48 degrees at tee off, 41 degrees at the finish) accompanied by 12 companions (no references to the Apostles, please), followed by a surprise party of 60-odd friends, relations, supporters and fellow sufferers arranged by his charming and obviously mental wife, Trisha (who else would a) put up with him and b) arrange a surprise party at a place as well hidden as Hogwarts and c) pull it off as a total surprise?). Suffice it to say that certain liquids flowed freely. Amongst other alumni, Bruce Watson and his bride, Ed and Dave Webb, Marshall Bennett and yours truly soldiered on to the end... and suffered mightily the next morning at Schobels. Doug Stegall had the sense to depart before the liquids began to flow. All in a good day's work... Congratulations, Mr. Shepard. Tally ho, and lead on!

(Sorry if we've forgotten any alumni from our list, but your correspondent was quite incapable of keeping notes after 9PM).

From Ricky Prudhomme, Oberlin LA

After 26 years of service my offshore career ended abruptly, and I think unfairly, but I have put that and the offshore behind me. Suffice it to say I was very unhappy to leave the family, but I find that the family has found me and I continue to talk to many of my old friends. I live in Oberlin, La. and enjoy hunting, fishing and spending time with my family during my time off. Give me a call if you're in town. We'll hoist one for the old days.

From Kyna Agerton, Houston TX

The building that once housed GlobalSantaFe has now closed...lease is up, and everyone has moved on either as employees of Transocean, new companies, retirement, new horizons, and some still searching for another great company to work for. Though I dare to say the later would be a tall order.

Many employees of GlobalSantaFe never took the time to walk outside and discover the abundance of nature residing on the acreage that the little city of GlobalSantaFe sat upon. There was a certain peace that one could find, just listening to the rustle of leaves gently blowing in the wind, or the chirps and chatter of so many species of birds...Cardinals, Blue Jays, Woodpeckers, Carolina Chickadees, Mocking Birds, American Goldfinches, Wood Thrushes, Grackles, Hummingbirds, Sparrows, and I'm sure many more that I did not see. We often had Cormorants, sometimes 4 at a time, all diving for fish as I threw bread out into the lake. Occasionally we had a Mallard, Wood Duck, Fulvous Duck, Green Heron, and for a few days this past October we even had a Snow Goose who must have been feeling tired on his migration and stopped for a little rest. A couple of years ago, rarely seen anymore, I viewed a Red-Headed Woodpecker flying from tree to tree and it was a sight to behold. Growing up in the Memorial area all my life, that was a species of bird that was once abundant. There was a pair of Red-Bellied Woodpeckers, and I was lucky to see one of their offspring flying with them...again tree to tree...Oaks, Pines, Pecan and even a Wild Persimmon. Of course we had rabbits hopping around, opposums (who carry no diseases and eats rats, mice, snails, and roaches), squirrels and raccoons doing what they normally do, and even coyotes that unfortuantely I never got to see. I had heard from security officers how they would see a coyote drinking from the lake in the middle of the night, and one of the many neighbors of the building describing were they saw a coyote and how it did not seem to be frightfull of them or the dog they were walking. We had a Great Blue Heron who graced the lakeside in search of fish and a grand sight it was to see, though it has been several years since I saw him. Recently we had a huge stately white crane (Great Egret) standing around the lake in various areas searching for his next meal...one of the several kinds of fish...Perch, Striped Bass, and Catfish. Each day that I saw him, I felt in awe of this beautiful creature. There were bullfrogs bellowing on the banks and if you got too close, plop, splash, and under the water they went. The lake was full of turtles, mainly Red-Eared Sliders, occasionally a Mud Turtle, and once I saw a Snapping Turtle when the water was brackish at one end of the lake. There were snakes, but I only saw one little grass snake in 7 years, and again it was unfortunate that I never got to see the Western Ribbon Snake or the Rat Snakes that were reported to me. When someone would call me to tell me about these snakes, I always said don't kill them, but was always too late to get outside to see it, for I knew it would be beautiful. I know quite a bit about snakes, as growing up in Memorial in the 50s we saw them everyday, along with the many scorpions. Both of my parents were bitten by venomous snakes. The snakes at the lake were harmless, and many a day that I walked through the sometimes high weeds along the banks of the lake, I never came across a Water Moccasin. Though I did get stung by Hornets.

Of the sights that most employees saw were the Black Vultures, and sometimes the Turkey Vultures, the Black-Bellied Whistling Ducks, and of course our domestic ducks that I still continue to feed each day. We had many baby ducks that grew into adults, but as the cycle of life goes, we had many baby ducks (adult ducks too), that became prey to the owls by night and the hawks by day. Just yesterday as I was completing the daily feeding routine, one of the neighbors who I had met and talked with numerous times before was almost jogging to get to me before I left the property. He had his laptop in hand and said he had something he wanted to show me. I asked if it was the Red-Tailed Hawk? He said, "you've seen it?" I had seen him many times over the years in the trees, trying to escape the Blue Jays that loved to harrass him, or her. Rino, the neighbor, had managed to capture a gorgeous picture of the Red-Tailed Hawk of 15375 Memorial Drive. There were a couple of times I saw the beautiful hawk sitting on top of duck, eating it. One of those times it was Brownie, everyones favorite duck. It was heartbreaking for me to see, but I learned a great deal about the behavior of the hawk, and chalked it up to Life.

Each day in this world, we have a chance to learn about nature, and about ourselves. We have triumphs, and we have defeats...same as it is in nature. I once saw the hawk gallantly try to catch a Whistling Duck in the air, but this day the hawk was defeated and the duck lived to fly another day. It's not always the biggest and strongest that wins. The hawk did not give up the fight for food, for life, he just waiting patiently for the next opportunity. I have a credo and many of you who know me have heard me say it. ALL are GODs creatures and deserve to live, and for you and I, we hope to always prosper in good health, faith, love, happiness and friendship.

GSF Alumni Trivia (donated by Kyna Agerton)

Have you ever heard of a Seahorse Stampede?! Well many, many years ago when Global Marine was located in California, using the well known seahorse on the big "G" logo, the picnic became known as the Seahorse Stampede. The phrase got a bit lost through the years and after the addition of many new employees, and of course the merge with SantaFe, we defintely had to loose the Seahorse. But if you ever see a reference to a Stampede via alumini emails, blogs or what have you, it is referring to a gathering whether it be a picnic or something else.

To add to Kyna's invaluable memory (she really does know where the skeletons are), mini-Stampedes are encouraged wherever and whenever there are enough alumni to fill a bar or a picnic table. Post your plans to gsfalumni@gmail.com and we'll be sure to post them.

From Kelly Millsap, Houston TX

Hi to all my Global Marine and GlobalSantaFe friends. Wishing you all a wonderful upcoming holiday. Miss you all and hope this holiday finds you thankful for the good things life has to offer.

A Question from George Matej, Sheridan, TX

Can anyone come up with the number of people George Watson fired?

Now, you have to be a Global Mariner to even think about this, as George Watson was long gone to his maker prior to the GlobalSantaFe merger. The answer to the question is unknown, but the last two administrations come to mind: "billions and billions".

Andy Dement Solves the Problem

Andy Dement, according to his Christmas card to yours truly, has printed and given away $250 billion at last count. We have obviously applied for a grant... and propose that he be made our next Secretary of the Treasury.

Ebun Akindele Offers Resume Advice

Contact Ebun Akindele at ebunakindele@yahoo.com for excellent advice from Rob McGovern at JobFox.com as to how to write a resume and apply when it may appear that you are over qualified for a job.

John and Suzie Donahoe

Have retreated to the wilds of Asheville, NC and are fully retired. Their back yard appears to contain black bears and various other fauna; we've asked John to set up a webcam back there, since Suzie would, we are sure, appreciate some peace and quiet (it will take him months); and we want to market the video stream to "Extreme Sports" and "Field and Stream".

Recent Departures from the Empire

Drew Baker
Loretta Carpenter
Dan Hansen
Charles Keaton
Bob Labbe
Pat Norton

Farewell, and Happy Holidays

That's it for us. For those you that we may have forgotten to mention, please do write to gsfalumni@gmail.com and share your news. May your respective gods keep you safe and warm in the bosom of your families. And DO pay attention to the contents of the blog. We do our best to keep on top of things, but nothing happens without YOU. Otherwise we just make stuff up.

The alumni directory on the blog has been updated as of December 2009.