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The Sabine River Authority of Texas is governed by a nine-member Board of Directors. Each board member serves a six-year term. The Governor of Texas appoints three board members every two years. Directors are required to reside within a county situated wholly or partially within the watershed of the Sabine River. The members of the Sabine River Authority Board of Directors are leaders in their communities. They are dedicated citizens who are active participants in the water issues being addressed by the Sabine River Authority of Texas.

2010 SRA Board of Directors

SRA Board of Directors
Board Meeting - Orange, Texas
Standing left to right: David Koonce, Don Covington, Cary "Mac" Abney, J. D. Jacobs, and Stan Mathews
Seated left to right:Earl Williams, Connie Wade, Connie Ware, and Cliff Todd


SRA Board Members


Stanley N. "Stan" Mathews
Pinehurst, TX
President
Appointed:
December, 2005
Stanley N. "Stan" Mathews
President

Pinehurst, Texas

Stan Mathews owns and operates Mathews Jewelers, Inc., established in Orange, Texas in 1984 and expanded to Beaumont in 2002. Born and raised in Orange as the son of J. L. and Laverne Mathews, he is very active in his community. He has served as Board Member, Vice President of Economic Development and Life Ambassador for the Greater Orange Area Chamber of Commerce. He was named 1997 Small Business Person of the Year. He previously served as a school board member of Little Cypress Mauriceville ISD and as an advisory board member for Memorial Hermann Baptist Orange Hospital. Mr. Mathews is a member of the Texas Jewelers Association, a member of the Beaumont Chamber of Commerce, a member of the Lamar University Cardinal Club Board of Directors and a 22 year member of the Orange Rotary Club. In his leisure time, he enjoys golf, fishing and travel. Stan and his wife, Linda, have two children and three grandchildren and reside in Pinehurst, Texas.




Don O. Covington
Orange, TX
Vice President
Appointed:
July, 1999
Don O. Covington
Vice President

Orange, Texas

Don Covington is chairman of Beacon Maritime Inc. and is being reappointed to the board with a term to expire July 6, 2011. In his career, he founded Texas Drydock, Inc., which later became TD-Halter, L.P. He spent 30 years with Levingston Shipbuilding Co. He is a member of the Society of Naval Architects and Propeller Club-USA. Mr. Covington is also a former member of the Port Arthur and Orange Chambers of Commerce, and a board member of First Christian Church. He formerly served in the U.S. Army and attended Lamar University. Mr. Covington and his wife, Claire, have three sons and reside in Orange.




Earl Williams
Orange, TX
Secretary/Treasurer
Appointed:
September, 2001
Earl Williams
Secretary/Treasurer

Orange, Texas

Earl Williams is CEO of Tool Tech Machining in Beaumont, a partner of Cypress Bayou Industrial Painting, and president of Cypress Bayou, Inc. and is being reappointed to the board with a term to expire July 6, 2013. He has served on the board since 2001 and also served from 1994 to 1999. He received a bachelor's degree from Howard Payne University, a master's degree from Stephen F. Austin State University and completed post-graduate work at Texas A&M University. Mr. Williams and his wife, Suzanne have two children and live in the Orange area.




David W. Koonce
Center, TX
Secretary Pro-Tem
Appointed:
December, 2007
David W. Koonce
Secretary Pro-Tem

Center, Texas

David Koonce is vice president of General Shelters of Texas Ltd. Mr. Koonce is past president of the Shelby County Chamber of Commerce, past president and treasurer of the Shelby County Bass Anglers, and a district chairman for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo's Area Go Texan committee. He also serves on the Shelby County Historic Commission and is a committeeman of Shelby County Ducks Unlimited. Mr. Koonce received a bachelor's degree from Stephen F. Austin University. He and his wife Angela, are members of the First Baptist Church of Center.




Connie Wade
Longview, TX
Past President
Appointed:
November, 2003
Connie Wade
Past President

Longview, Texas

Ms. Wade moved from the Texas panhandle to the piney woods of East Texas in the summer of 1978 and fell in love with its natural beauty, history and its people. Since moving to East Texas, Ms. Wade has volunteered on behalf of local, state-wide and national candidates and served the Gregg County GOP Party as its secretary, vice-chairman and as an election judge. At the 1992 State GOP Convention, she chaired the sub-committee on education for the platform committee and in 1996, was elected as an alternate to the GOP National Convention in San Diego. She served on the Governor's Commission for Women from 1995-1996. She has also worked at the Texas Department of Agriculture as a scheduler for Commissioner Susan Combs. Having won a contested primary race in March 2004 for Gregg County Clerk, Connie was sworn in to that elected post in January 2005. Ms. Wade holds credentials as a Certified Investment Officer (CIO) under the Texas Public Funds Investment Act and is a member of the County and District Clerks Association of Texas. She resides in Longview with her husband, Jerry Gipson. Their son, Shannon, resides in Spring, Texas, along with his wife and children.




J.D. Jacobs, Jr.
Rockwall, TX
Appointed:
September, 2001
J.D. Jacobs, Jr.
Rockwall, Texas

J. D. Jacobs, Jr. is a farmer and rancher and is being reappointed to the board with a term to expire July 6, 2013. He resides in Rockwall County where he farms 4,000 acres of cotton, corn, milo and wheat and runs a 100-225 head cow/calf operation. Mr. Jacobs is a current member of the Rockwall County Extension Service Advisory Board and serves as vice president for the Rockwall County Farm Bureau Insurance Board. He is a former member of the Farm Service Agency County Committee. Mr. Jacobs and his wife, Ollie, have three children and three grandchildren and are members of the Lake Pointe Baptist Church of Rockwall.




Connie Ware
Marshall, TX
Appointed:
December, 2001
Connie Ware
Marshall, Texas

Ms. Ware currently serves as the President and CEO of the Greater Marshall Chamber of Commerce. Ms. Ware was appointed to serve as Chairman of the Texas Commission on the Arts by Governor Bush in 1995. She served as chairman until 2000. Ms. Ware was a founding board member on the Texans for the Arts advocacy group and the Marshall Regional Arts Council. She received the 1988 "Outstanding Citizen" award from the City of Marshall. Ms. Ware has chaired numerous political committees and has served as a delegate to the Texas Republican Convention since 1990 and as an alternate to the National Republican Convention in 1992 and 2000. She was Harrison County Republican Chairman from 1990-1996. Ms. Ware and her husband, James, reside in Marshall.




Cliff R. Todd
Carthage, TX
Appointed:
December, 2007
Cliff R. Todd
Carthage, Texas

Mr. Todd currently works for C and J Energy Services in corporate sales. Previously he was the executive director of the Marshall Economic Development Corporation. He is a member of the Texas Economic Development Council. He is a past member of the Austin and Carthage Rotary clubs and a past president of the Carthage Rotary Club. He retired after nearly 30 years with the Texas Department of Agriculture, serving in Austin and later with the TDA Rural Economic division for the entire East Texas region. He is involved in overseeing the management of his family owned farm and ranch in Panola and Rusk Counties. He has served as a longtime adult and college Sunday school teacher for over 25 years. He currently serves as a deacon for Central Baptist church. He enjoys being a pilot and spending time outdoors on weekends on their farm. His wife, Denise, is a retired kindergarten teacher. They have one adult daughter, Sara of Dallas. Todd received a bachelor's degree from Stephen F. Austin State University.




Cary "Mac" Abney
Marshall, TX
Appointed:
September, 2009
Cary "Mac" Abney
Marshall, Texas

Cary "Mac" Abney of Marshall is a certified public accountant and president of Abney, Simmons and Co. PLLC. Mr. Abney is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants, and Texas Forestry Association, and a board member of the Marshall Harrison County Joint Airport Zoning Board. He is also past president of the Harrison County Housing Finance Corporation and Harrison County Airport Advisory Committee, secretary and treasurer of the Harrison County EMS (Dist. #2), and secretary of the Fern Lake Club. Abney received a bachelor's degree from Southern Methodist University and is a graduate of the College of Financial Planning. Mr. Abney and his wife Claudia have two children and three grandchildren and reside in Marshall.


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