Ben Alexander
Benjamin Bates Alexander was born on October 31, 1920, to Omer Virgil and Emma Mabel Bates Alexander. From his birth until age seven, he was raised in Guymon Ok. It was in 1927 the Alexander family moved to Lubbock, Tx, where Ben would remain until 1940. There he graduated from high school and attended Texas Tech University. His stay at Tech was cut short though; he rejoined his parents in Eunice, NM in 1940 to help run the family grocery store. An entrepreneur, Ben expanded the grocery business to Hobbs, Jal, and Seminole, and then founded DA&S Oil Well Servicing, Incorporated in 1952.
On May 22, 1942 he wed Gerry Ann Dunham in Artesia, NM. That same year he joined the United States Army and finished in 1944 as a First Sergeant in the infantry. He returned to Eunice where he and Gerry raised two children.
In 1955 the family moved to Hobbs where Ben and Gerry remained for 46 years. DA&S became a highly successful company due to Ben's dedication and vision. He was commited to providing service to the Permian Basin at a fair price, while maintaining a high standard of quality for his customers, and providing his employees with benifits beyond just a pay check. It was that attitude that made DA&S the largest well servicing company in the area when Ben retired in 1986. In addition to DA&S, Ben dounded DASCO Land, and an oil and gas venture, DASCO Energy. He is currently president of both and returns weekly to New Mexico to oversee them and his cattle ranch, now operated by his grandson Atlee Snyder.
His commerce achievements are only a few of the many areas Ben has been involved in. His civic service and professional associations are numerous and include chairman of the committee that created the New Mexico Junior College District, board member of both the New Mexico Junior College Foundation and College of the Southwest, member of Hobbs First United Methodist Church, and chairman of the Permian Basin Petroleum Association, to name only a few.
Ben has also been honored with multiple tributes including Outstanding Citizen of Hobbs in 1967, Hobbs Citizen of the Year in 1971, Hobbs News-Sun Person of the Century in 2000, Pertleum Hall of Fame Inductee in 2003, Texas Tech Hall of Legacy Inductee in 2007 and namesake of the NMJC Student Center in 1996.
As of 2001, Ben again calls Lubbock home. He and Gerry moved to be closer to their granchildren and friends. Ben's return to Lubbock meant a return to extended family and old high school friends. His favorite saying of late is, " Left Lubbock in 1939 dancing cheek to cheek with these school chums and came back in 2001, dancing belly to belly."
