Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association Nominees for the Board of Director Positions

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1 Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association Nominees for the Board of Director Positions Each position up for election is on a separate page for readability. Please don t forget to scroll down to page 7 to see all the biographies. President-Elect Nominees Roxanne Myers grew up in Texas and earned her BS in Pharmacology/Toxicology at the University of Wisconsin - Madison. Through her travels in the United States, Roxanne worked in sales from reference materials to pharmaceuticals. She was a key sales representative for Wyeth Pharmaceuticals in the Eastern United States. In her travels through Europe and South America, Roxanne worked in education, small business and sales before she joined Lost Oak Winery in Beginning in the Tasting Room, Roxanne is now General Manager and oversees the tasting room, special event operations, as well as production and sales of 10,000 cases of wine annually. She is now a co-owner of Lost Oak Winery. Lost Oak Winery won Best Small Business of the year in 2017 from the City of Burleson. Involved in various civic organizations, Roxanne is a Vice Chair of the Burleson Area Chamber of Commerce and previously led the Tourism Alliance a group that manages funds promoting local tourism. She is a former Director of the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Foundation and currently serves as Secretary of the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association. Fluent in Spanish, Roxanne is married to Eduar Lamprea from Colombia and has two children, 2 and 8 years old. Patrick Whitehead is Managing Partner and Winemaker at family owned and operated Blue Ostrich Winery & Vineyard near the town of Saint Jo, Texas. A member of TWGGA since 2010, Patrick currently serves on the TWGGA board as director at large, he is a board member for the Texas Wine Foundation and chairs the TWGGA annual conference committee. Patrick s previous business experience includes over 20 years as a corporate executive for large media outlets such as CBS Radio, iheart Media and Gannett Co. During Patrick s career in media, he produced many charitable events of behalf of Cooke Children s Hospital, Make A Wish Foundation and Hurricane Katrina victims among others. Patrick has also co-owned several small business franchises, which he operated jointly with his wife Julie Fredrick Whitehead. Today, Patrick and Julie are focused exclusively on Blue Ostrich Winery & Vineyard.

2 Secretary Nominees Roxanne Myers grew up in Texas and earned her BS in Pharmacology/Toxicology at the University of Wisconsin - Madison. Through her travels in the United States, Roxanne worked in sales from reference materials to pharmaceuticals. She was a key sales representative for Wyeth Pharmaceuticals in the Eastern United States. In her travels through Europe and South America, Roxanne worked in education, small business and sales before she joined Lost Oak Winery in Beginning in the Tasting Room, Roxanne is now General Manager and oversees the tasting room, special event operations, as well as production and sales of 10,000 cases of wine annually. She is now a co-owner of Lost Oak Winery. Lost Oak Winery won Best Small Business of the year in 2017 from the City of Burleson. Involved in various civic organizations, Roxanne is a Vice Chair of the Burleson Area Chamber of Commerce and previously led the Tourism Alliance a group that manages funds promoting local tourism. She is a former Director of the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Foundation and currently serves as Secretary of the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association. Fluent in Spanish, Roxanne is married to Eduar Lamprea from Colombia and has two children, 2 and 8 years old. Patrick Whitehead is Managing Partner and Winemaker at family owned and operated Blue Ostrich Winery & Vineyard near the town of Saint Jo, Texas. A member of TWGGA since 2010, Patrick currently serves on the TWGGA board as director at large, he is a board member for the Texas Wine Foundation and also chairs the TWGGA annual conference committee. Patrick s previous business experience includes over 20 years as a corporate executive for large media outlets such as CBS Radio, I Heart Media and Gannett Co. During Patrick s career in media, he produced many charitable events of behalf of Cooke Children s Hospital, Make A Wish Foundation, Hurricane Katrina victims among others. Patrick has also co-owned several small business franchises, which he operated jointly with his wife Julie Fredrick Whitehead. Today, Patrick and Julie are focused exclusively on Blue Ostrich Winery & Vineyard. Glena Yates was born in Ardmore Oklahoma and grew up on the family ranch where she learned to raise Hereford cattle and farm hay. To further her firsthand knowledge of ranching, Glena graduated from the University of Texas in Austin with a Bachelor of Arts in Biology. After meeting Ronnie Yates at UT, the couple were married in After Ronnie received his JD at Southern Methodist University the couple moved to the Highland Lakes (Marble Falls) area where they raised their two Children, Ron Jr. and Kara. Glena enjoyed a 40+ year career in the title insurance industry at Central Texas Land Titles, Inc., where she served as President before she retired a few years ago. She was president of Texas Land Title Association (TLTA) from In 1991, she was honored by her peers with TLTA s highest honor Title Person of the Year. More recently TLTA named Glena an Honorary Member for Sustained Meritorious Service. From her skilled leadership as TLTA President during a very challenging time for our industry to her passion for education through her service on the Land Title School Committee, she has truly created a lasting legacy of service, said Leslie Midgley, CAE, Executive Vice President and CEO of TLTA. In 2007 the Yates family bought Spicewood Vineyards and then started Ron Yates Wines in Ron Jr. served as president of the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association from Along with three vineyards Glena is involved in the management of two cattle operations and four ranches in different parts of Texas.

3 Treasurer Nominees Clark Hornbaker grew up on a Kansas wheat and dairy farm. After obtaining a degree in accounting at Abilene Christian University, Clark became a Certified Public Accountant. His career as a CPA included work at a national CPA firm, serving as CFO of a public company and serving as managing partner/owner of a local firm in Austin and in Celina,Texas. Clark also taught continuing education to CPAs and accounting students at Michigan State University. In his later career, Clark created businesses in healthcare management and internet sales. In 2007 Clark returned to his agricultural roots to create Eden Hill Vineyard and Winery. Together with his wife Linda, son and winemaker Chris and daughter Wendy, they pursue their passion for growing Texas grapes and making award winning Texas Wine. Clark has also been involved in his local community as a board member and treasurer of North Texas Winery Association, a past board member of Celina Chamber of Commerce and is active in the Preston Trail Rotary Club.

4 Director-At-Large Nominees Keith Burch grew up in Lazbuddie watching his father and grandfather farm, and joined in as soon as he was old enough. He knew from a young age that he wanted to be a farmer. His love for the land and growing things were in his heart and soul from the very beginning. Keith graduated from Texas Tech University with a bachelor s degree in Agronomy and worked through the master s program in Crop Science before coming home and starting his farming operation in He started with just 800 acres his first year, and has since grown his farm to more than 5,000 acres. Keith grows a variety of row crops -- cotton, corn, milo, wheat, green beans, black eye peas, and sunflowers are some that he has grown before and is currently producing. Keith also serves on various boards and advisory committees in the area. He currently serves on the Parmer County Ag Advisory Board and the Plains Cotton Growers Board. He is also currently on the board of directors of Five Area Telephone Cooperative in Muleshoe, Texas. He has previously been on the Parmer County Appraisal Review Board as well. How did a farmer start growing grapes? Keith and his wife, Brenna, had always talked about owning a vineyard but merely considered it a dream. After surviving the hellacious drought of 2011 and the drab years to follow, they both knew something had to change. The irrigation wells were losing their water supply fairly rapidly and the outlook of a successful farming operation seemed grim. The couple decided to attend the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association (TWGGA) annual conference in Frisco, Texas in February Keith and Brenna learned as much as they could about growing grapes and the wine industry in that short weekend. After discussing the possibility on the way home, the pair decided to go for it! They soon got on the phone and began trying to find the vines and supplies they would need to plant soon. Keith quickly planned and built a planter that would work to plant the first seven acres. He also used his innovative skills to design and build other equipment that would be needed in the vineyard - a mist sprayer and a small grain drill were the first. Keith and Brenna planted the first vines on Good Friday They have since expanded the vineyard to its current 25 acres. They grow five varieties - Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Riesling, Roussanne, and Tempranillo. Keith Burch is a knowledgable farmer and grower. Many peers call on him for advice and he is always willing to help. He is a conscientious decision maker and an innovator. He takes pride in his work as well in his family. He and Brenna have two children - Libby (7) and Keller (4). Meredith Eaton has a background in the service industry and in property management. When Meredith decided to start a vineyard and winery, she went back to school in order to sharpen her business and marketing skills with a great focus toward extending her knowledge of grape growing and wine making. Meredith earned her degree in viticulture & enology in the spring of During her time in school Meredith was recognized academically, graduated with Summa Cum Laude honors, and she earned three wine medals, including one gold, in two state-wide non-commercial wine competitions. In 2014 Meredith directed her focus to designing the Firelight Vineyards business and she quickly began to set everything into motion. She found the perfect building nestled on the quaint historic square of Valley View, TX. Meredith turned her vision into reality and the dream was born in In addition to running both wineries and the tasting room in Valley View, Meredith is growing her own small vineyard in Valley View, TX which is part of the Texoma American Viticulture Area. Julie Kuhlken, co-founder of Pedernales Cellars, oversees the marketing and hospitality operations and is artistically responsible for the Pedernales Cellars brand. A graduate of Stanford University, Julie received a doctorate in Philosophy and has taught at universities in Europe and North America. She is a regularly published author, and involved in community development as a member of the Gillespie County Economic Development Commission.

5 Region 2 Director Nominees Gabe Parker planted his first vineyard in 1983 and has been a winery owner for 30 years. Gabe and his wife Barbara are the co-owners of Homestead Winery in Denison, Ivanhoe and Grapevine. Gabe is a founding member of the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association and has served as the Association s president several times in addition to holding other TWGGA board positions. Gabe has a strong belief that the Texas wine and grape industry potential is dependent on unrestricted sales and industry cooperation. Before committing full time to the wine and grape industry, Gabe worked as a project manager in the Oil industry for 20 years. He has also served as the President of the Lake Fannin Volunteers, dedicated to preserving the historic Lake Fannin Park, a property listed on the National Registry of Historic Places. In addition to managing three wineries, Gabe and Barb also operate a working cattle ranch and are busy with their three grown children. Susan Steger is the owner of Tara Vineyard & Winery and Athens Brewing Co, overseeing all winemaking, vineyard and retail operations. Tara Vineyard and Winery opened in 2006, while Athens Brewing Co. opened in Susan is Of Counsel for Fragomen and focuses on business immigration programs and policies. She has experience with start-up companies, multinational corporations, mergers and acquisitions, reductions in force, I-9, LCA compliance programs and government audits. Susan represents clients in many different industries and consults to wineries regarding immigration. Susan is a member of the Fragoman s Corporate Compliance committee. Her practice includes all aspects of U.S. business immigration and employment-based immigration training for in-house professionals. Susan was named by Dallas Magazine, as best immigration lawyers in 2017 and has worked pro bono for the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program, the Human Rights Initiative providing pro bono assistance to children who qualify for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS). She also serves on the Dallas Women s Lawyers Advisory Board and has served as President. Pertaining to the wine and grape industry, Susan has served on the board of the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association, the Pierce s Disease Advisory Board and other related advisory boards.

6 Region 4 Director Nominees Mark Tyler grew up cotton farming and ranching in Post, TX. He graduated from Texas Tech University with a Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems. He is the co-owner of Pentec Pension Management Group in Midland and has been growing wine grapes since Mark, his wife Darlene and four daughters are members of Stonegate Fellowship Church in Midland. In addition to serving on the board of directors for the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association, Mark also serves on the Midland High School Choir Boosters Board. Dusty Evans has been a Midland county cotton/hay farmer and rancher for 20 years. He and his wife Sandra have one teenage daughter and are members of the Midland First Baptist Church where they serve the Lord, church and many charitable organizations. Dusty planted wine grapes following the drought beginning in 2009, as many farmers did, in need of an alternative crop. He planted 3 acres of vinifera grapes in 2010 and was encouraged by the fact that they did well in the severe heat of West Texas. Dusty continued to plant blocks of wine grapes for 4 years. Today, Dusty manages 35 acres of vinifera wine grapes outside of Midland, Texas under the Sprayberry Vineyards name. Becker Vineyards, Grape Creek Vineyards, Lost Oak Winery, Pedernales Cellars and The Austin Winery are customers of Sprayberry Vineyards.

7 Glena Yates was born in Ardmore Oklahoma and grew up on the family ranch where she learned to raise Hereford cattle and farm hay. To further her firsthand knowledge of ranching, Glena graduated from the University of Texas in Austin with a Bachelor of Arts in Biology. After meeting Ronnie Yates at UT, the couple were married in After Ronnie received his JD at Southern Methodist University the couple moved to the Highland Lakes (Marble Falls) area where they raised their two Children, Ron Jr. and Kara. Glena enjoyed a 35 year career in the title insurance industry at Central Texas Land Titles, Inc., where she served as President before she retired several years ago. She was president of Texas Land Title Association (TLTA) from In 1991, she was honored by her peers with TLTA s highest honor Title Person of the Year. More recently TLTA named Glena an Honorary Member for Sustained Meritorious Service. From her skilled leadership as TLTA President during a very challenging time for our industry to her passion for education through her service on the Land Title School Committee, she has truly created a lasting legacy of service, said Leslie Midgley, CAE, Executive Vice President and CEO of TLTA. In 2007 the Yates family bought Spicewood Vineyards and then started Ron Yates Wines in Ron Jr. served as president of the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association from Along with three vineyards Glena is involved in the management of two cattle operations and four ranches in different parts of Texas.