Arts: Dr. Aaron Hawley
Born in Marion, Illinois, and raised in Louisiana, Hawley has called Texas home for 23 years. He graduated summa cum laude from Ouachita Baptist University and earned advanced degrees from Hardin-Simmons University and the University of North Texas. He moved to Odessa in 2009 to become the director of choirs at Permian High School. Under his direction, the choir program received superior ratings at contests, performed in Hawaii, New York, London, Chicago, Orlando, and Dallas, and was featured at the 2018 Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) Convention. Since assuming the role as the Executive Director of Fine Arts for ECISD, the district has continued to be named as a Best Community for Music Education (9 Years) and as an Art District of Distinction (3 Years). He has actively served the Arts community in Odessa as a TMEA Vocal Division Chair, UIL Assistant Executive Secretary, and on the committee on standards for the Texas Music Adjudicators Association. He is President of the Odessa Arts Board and as an education liaison for the West Texas Symphony. He and his wife, Lauren, are members of Immanuel Baptist Church. They have a 9-year-old son, Shiloh; an 8-year-old daughter, Alice; a 6-year-old Son, Wyatt; and a 3-year-old son, Cyrus.
Media: Bob Campbell
Campbell is a 77-year-old native of Amherst, and graduate of West Texas State University who has worked as a reporter, photographer and editor for a dozen newspapers in Texas, Colorado, Kansas and Missouri. He worked for the Midland Reporter-Telegram from 2004-10 and the Odessa American from 2002-04 and went back in 2014 for his current stint with the OA. He covers religion and the energy industry. His writing won him second place for business writing in 2021 and 2022 in the Texas Associated Press Managing Editors’ Contest. In 2021, he published a book of 125 personality features titled “People of the Basin.” He has four children, Colin, 53, Casey, 49, Paige, 40, and Jon, 36, and eight grandchildren. His wife Ruth is the Odessa American’s city editor. He is also a musician and songwriter.
Business: Mike Withrow
The Austin native attended the University of Texas from 1980-1981 majoring in Business Management and was on the Longhorn baseball team. He was drafted after his junior year to play professionally for the Chicago White Sox. In 1984, following his professional baseball career, he entered the title insurance industry and worked in Austin, San Marcos and finally in Odessa. In 2005, He opened Basin Abstract & Title, a title insurance company that serves residential and commercial buyers and sellers. He is a member of First Methodist Church. He serves on the board of Odessa Industrial Development Corporation; is a member of the Compliance Committee of Odessa Development Corporation; and is an Affiliate member of the Odessa Board of Realtors. He has previously served on the board of Odessa Housing Finance Corporation and was a former Agent at Large for Texas Land Title Association board of directors. He was previously honored to receive the Entrepreneur of the Year award and was a Business Hall of Fame recipient. He has been married to Judy for 41 years and they are parents of three sons and are also grandparents to seven grandchildren with one more on the way.
Community Service: Tim Edgmon
Edgmon was born in Odessa but moved to Oklahoma City the middle of his junior year where he graduated from Putman High School. He attended Kansas University on a golf scholarship his freshman year but decided he needed to transfer to Texas Tech to complete his degree in Business Administration. He worked for Southwest Airlines during college and then went to work for Hertz Rent-A-Car while in Lubbock. After graduation, he transferred to Hertz – DFW. He moved back to Odessa in 1986 to work with his mother, Pauline Appel, at Appel Insurance. In 1996, he purchased the agency, naming it Edgmon Insurance until February of 2014 when he sold to Higginbotham Insurance. He has spent most of his volunteer efforts working with youth organizations. He served on the Odessa Development Corporation board where he was the President. During that time, he had many accomplishments including the Sewell Training Center that brought Ford Motor, Sewell Ford and Odessa College together for a training center. The center is now training students from all over the country. He remains the Managing Director of the Odessa office today. Tim and Theresa, his wife of 41 years, have two children and six grandchildren.
Education: D’on Paquette
D’on Paquette was born in Odessa and is a lifelong Odessan. She attended ECISD, graduating from Odessa High School. She attended Odessa College for two years and graduated from Angelo State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education in 1989. Upon her college graduation, she went to work for her alma mater, ECISD, where she has been since 1989. She has worked at Lamar Early Education Center, Cavazos Elementary, Noel Elementary, and Carver Early Education where she is now employed. She not only teaches at ECISD, but also spends time teaching at St. John’s Episcopal Church as a Sunday School Teacher, Vacation Bible School Teacher and Youth Group Sponsor as well as a Vestry Member. She has also coached for the Odessa Soccer Association and the YMCA as a Basketball Coach, and an Odessa Girls’ Softball Association Coach. Paquette has received numerous Education Foundation Grants over the past six years and has been named Carver Teacher of the Year twice. In 2019/20, she was named ECISD Elementary Teacher of the Year. She also loves traveling with her daughter, Reagan.
Government: Greg Simmons
Born in Arlington, Simmons has called Odessa home for 33 years. He graduated with a Bachelor’s of Business Administration in Finance from Baylor University in 1988 and went back to Baylor for his MBA in 2003. He has worked for several banks, including First Republic Bank, NCNB, Bank One and Texas Commerce Bank. He served as the Odessa President of Wells Fargo, Community National Bank and has been President of American Momentum Bank since 2016. He was first elected Ector County Commissioner for Pct 2 in 1999 and has been re-elected six times. He is serving his 25th year as a Commissioner. Simmons is a 28 year member of the Kiwanis Club of Odessa serving as the club’s secretary, treasurer and president over the years. He is a previous Board Member, Allocations Chair and Campaign Chair for the United Way of Odessa. He is a Board Member of Grow Odessa, Past President for the Permian Basin Mission Center, Board Member for Permian Basin First Priority and Deacon and Trustee for The First Baptist Church of Odessa. He is married to Cami and they have three sons and one daughter, as well as a 2-month-old grandbaby.
Health & Science: John Molland, M.D.
Molland was born in Western North Dakota. He attended Montana State University where he received a Bachelor of Science Degree with Honor’s in Microbiology. Additionally, he participated in Immunology research. He attended the University of North Dakota School of Medicine, graduating with a Doctorate of Medicine in 1991. Dr. Molland then moved to Texas to pursue an Ob/Gyn Residency at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center of the Permian Basin. He completed his residency training in Obstetrics and Gynecology in 1995. Upon completion, he went to work with Dr. Richard Pietila for four years and then on to independent practice. In 2002, he founded The Women’s Center of the Permian Basin, PA. Molland has delivered more than 15,000 babies and is Board Certified and a Diplomate in the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology and a Fellow in the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. He is a member of the Texas Medical Association and Ector County Medical Association. He is an Assistant Professor at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and participates in the teaching of Ob/Gyn Residents, and medical students. He and his wife Julie have three sons.
Humanities: Sara Kate Billingsley
Billingsley is Presiding Judge of the 446th District Court of Ector County, and serves as the first female District Judge in Ector County. She is licensed to practice law in Texas and New Mexico. She hears family law cases where her primary focus is protecting Ector County kiddos. She started as a musical theatre major at Texas Christian University and earned a degree, graduating magna cum laude, from the University of Texas of the Permian Basin. She attended The University of Oklahoma. During COVID, she started a Judge Sara Kate Quarantine Explorer Challenge for kiddos. During the “SNOVID” apocalypse, when Odessans did not have electricity and/or food, she organized a 100-person army to cook and deliver meals and other items. She serves on the board for Odessa Arts, the President’s Advisory Council for UTPB, and the Advisory Council for Young Professionals of Odessa. She received the Women of Distinction award from the Girl Scouts of the Desert Southwest, the Odessa Under 40 Award in its inaugural class from the Young Professionals of Odessa, the Hometown Hero Award from The Salvation Army of Odessa, and her favorite award — “Best Director” from her cast of Charlotte’s Web in 2022.
Law: Gaven D. Norris, Esq.
Norris is a native Odessan who has lived in Odessa his whole life except for about six years when he lived outside the area for school and work. He graduated from UTPB in 2010 with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science. He received his Juris Doctorate at the Thurgood Marshall School of Law at Texas Southern University in 2014. He has a varied resume, having worked in the legal arena holding down several different jobs while attending school. He worked at the NAACP Legislative Bureau. He was a Legislative Aid to State Rep. Yvonne Davis, and worked in the Litigation Department for ExxonMobile, British Petroleum and Liberty Mutual Insurance. After graduation from Law School, he moved back to Odessa to set up The Gaven Norris Law Office. Along with private practice, he has also served as the Assistant County Attorney for Upton County and a staff attorney for the Crisis Center of West Texas. His list of community service is a long one, including Annie’s House Education Foundation, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., Adinvita School Executive Board, Odessa Arts Board of Directors, Odessa College Foundation, Odessa Development Corporation Compliance Committee, Odessa Police Department Academy Advisory Board, plus his church, St. Matthew Baptist Church Finance Committee. He and his wife, Candace, have 7-month-old twin daughters.
Philanthropy: Scott Thane
Thane is a born and bred West Texan. Born in Stamford, he has called Odessa home for 45 years. After graduating from Abilene High School, he attended Western Texas College and then returned to Abilene to work in the cattle industry before moving to underground construction. He founded Scott Thane Ditching Service, LTD in 1979. He supported the Odessa College basketball program and was involved in the adopt a player program. He also sponsored the Odessa College Rodeo. He is a longtime supporter of the Permian Basin Rehab Center, as well as Crossroads Fellowship, where through his small group, he has supported many underprivileged families during the holiday season. He was on the Odessa Country Club Board and continues to serve on the membership committee. He and Phyllis have been married 46 years and have two children and nine grandchildren.
Ranching/Agriculture: Michael Jay McCollum McCulloch, D.V.M.
Born in Odessa, McCulloch graduated from Permian High School, he attended Texas A&M University, where he got his degree in Animal Science and served as the President of the Pre-Vet Society. He later graduated from A&M in 1979 with a Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine. He returned home to Odessa, and began working for Dr. Mike Wempe at the Ark Animal Hospital, as well as Tall City Veterinary Hospital in Midland. Through the years, he’s helped build three veterinary clinics in Odessa and started an emergency veterinary clinic in Midland. Two of these original locations are still veterinary practices today including Permian Basin Veterinary Associates. In 1985, he opened Alamo Veterinary Hospital in Odessa and became owner of Grandview Veterinary Clinic in 1992. He also served as a contract vet for several local veterinarians. He has served in leadership positions on both the Permian Basin and Texas Veterinary Medical Associations. In 1994, he was appointed to the Texas State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners by then Texas Governor Ann Richards, serving for six years. Since 2000, he has served as President of the McCulloch Land and Cattle Company and general manager of the Osoba Ranch Company and the Cross Heart Flying M Ranch. He’s been married to Kathleen McCollum McCulloch for 49 years.
Religion: Chris Harrington
Born in Odessa, He graduated from Permian High School in 1993 and attended Odessa College. He obtained multiple certifications from NACE International in the prevention and mitigation of pipeline corrosion. He works full time for Phillips 66, but has also served as a bi-vocational Missions Pastor and elder at Immanuel Baptist Church since 2013. He has led many people on mission trips to Kenya and Alaska. In 2017, Chris and his wife Leesa founded Nourishing the Nations Kenya, a registered 501c3 non-profit organization in the U.S. Nourishing the Nations is also a registered non-governmental organization in Kenya. The organization feeds about 17,000 meals per month to school children in six different church locations in western Kenya. NTN has built hundreds of homes for widows in Kenya, drilled eight water wells, offered pastoral education to pastors in rural western Kenya, and has provided access to medical care for some severe needs. His desire is to mobilize people to share the good news of Jesus Christ. He loves planning and preparing teams from Odessa and abroad to serve on the mission field. He strives each day to live out the two greatest commandments from our Lord, to love God and love others. Chris is married to his high school sweetheart, Leesa and they have 2 sons, Mason and his wife Kacie and Logan and his wife Kara. Logan and Kara are expecting their first child in March.
Service in a Profession: Dr. Kalpana Prasad
Born in India, Prasad aced the medical school entrance exam and earned a place at the prestigious Patna Medical College, one of Asia’s oldest. Her dedication was recognized with a statewide merit scholarship during her studies. Years later, she found herself in Texas, completing her residency in Internal Medicine at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in Odessa and fulfilling her commitment to serve in an underserved area in Monahans. Kalpana and her husband have been both life partners and medical partners for over three decades. Together, they’ve transformed Permian Internal Medicine Associates into a beacon of healthcare excellence. Their practice was recognized as the Best Medical Practice by the Readers’ Choice of the Odessa American in 2023. Prasad’s medical achievements include her American Board of Internal Medicine board certification since 2002 and her recognition as a Fellow by the American College of Physicians (FACP) in 2010. She and her husband have two children. Their daughter, Dr. Smriti Prasad, MD, MPH, is pursuing Residency in Dermatology at Oregon Health and Science University and is a new mother to their only grandchild. Their son, Vivek, is a senior at McCombs Business School at UT in Austin.
