~ Our Team ~
Our Team
Benny J. Deal, President
Benny J. Deal was born in Perryton, Texas. Benny joined the Fort Worth office of Price Waterhouse in June 1982 after obtaining an undergraduate degree in accounting from Texas Tech University. During Benny’s tenure with Price Waterhouse his client focus and industry specialization was in the oilfield services industry. From 1984 onward, he was one of seven members of the U.S. Price Waterhouse firm’s oil field services consulting group. As a result of this responsibility, he was assigned consulting and auditing engagements on several large national and multi-national oil field service companies including Loffland Brothers Drilling, Mid-Continent Supply Co., Harrisburg, Inc., Ico, Inc., and Western Co. of North America. As a Senior Manager, these engagements included field work in several countries, including Mexico, Venezuela, England, Scotland and Kenya. In 1991, Benny joined Republic Health Corporation as Director of Financial Reporting. At Republic Health Corporation, Benny’s overall responsibilities included both external and internal financial and operational accounting reporting. In 1992 Benny received an opportunity to join the Houston, Texas based investment firm of Tredex Holding Company as the Chief Financial Officer. Tredex is engaged in the wholesale flooring industry.
In late 1994 Benny and his family relocated to the Texas Panhandle in Perryton, Texas, where he worked for three years in a family owned business. He was responsible for all accounting, systems, back-office and financial reporting for these privately owned and affiliated companies. These businesses were purchased by Dawson Production Services, Inc. in late December 1997. After the purchase, Benny stayed on as staff and his responsibilities at Dawson included assisting in the complete re-design of the accounting and financial reporting model for their affiliated companies, including the selection, purchase and implementation of a new information and accounting system.
In early 1999 Benny and his brother John purchased Hi Plains Hull Company, an oilfield servicing company. Hi-Plains Hull Company responsibilities include all financial accounting and reporting functions of the company and operational and strategic planning and implementation.
Since the purchase of Hi-Plains Hull Company in February 1999, Benny has been involved in the start-up of four additional companies in the oil, gas and agriculture industries. Responsibilities often transcend the accounting and finance areas and over the past few years have included extensive involvement in the operational and strategic decision processes of these companies. Ownership interests include real estate, ranch and farm properties, trucking companies, agricultural by-products companies and oil and gas well services.
Benny and his wife Gina have three children and one granddaughter. Hannah their oldest, is married to Brian Ducas. They have a daughter Aubrey and reside in Lubbock, Texas. Chelsea and her husband Joshua Collum reside in Little Rock, Arkansas. Their youngest daughter, Aimee, resides in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and attends university there.
Cifford D. Wakefield, Vice President, Operations Manager
As a fourth generation rancher and farmer, Cliff has a proud family heritage that is tied to the land and agriculture. Living in Beaver County, Oklahoma, Cliff is a 1994 graduate of Forgan high school.
Cliff attended Seward County Community College, and NorthWestern Oklahoma State University where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree.
After his university studies, Cliff moved back home where he met his wife Ashley, who is a registered nurse. Cliff and Ashley married in Dec. 2001, and have two children; Michael age six, and Lillian age two. Since graduating college Cliff has pursued different avenues of work. However, none of those opportunities have captured his heart like farming and ranching.
Larry D. Pancake, Sales Manager
Larry Pancake was born in Amarillo Texas, and raised in the Canadian river country of the Texas panhandle. He grew up on horseback learning the traditional arts of the Texas cowboy. Learning to rope and perform all phases of ranch work has enabled Larry to become a proficient horseman and successful competitor in both ranch rodeo and traditional rodeo events. In the mid 1990’s Larry heard the call of the high country and relocated to Red River, NM. For the next 10+ years he was a professional hunting and fishing guide throughout the inter-mountain West and the desert SouthWest. These trips included guiding for big game hunters tracking deer, elk, antelope, bear, and mountain lion. Along the way fly fishing became an integral part of his business and life.
Larry currently holds a position on G. Loomis Rods Pro Staff and guides 60+ days a summer in the high country and in the Florida keys each year. His travels throughout the U.S. have brought him in contact with all walks of life. Larry has been a guide for and roped with some of the foremost entertainers and athletes in the country, establishing personal friendships with many of his clients. Larry has become involved in many charitable and celebrity events each year, raising and donating thousands of dollars each year. These events include the following: The Roundup for Autism, The Dean Smith Celebrity Rodeo, and Josh Beckett’s Celebrity Hunt for Charity. Larry currently splits his time between Red River, NM and the Texas Panhandle, spending many days a month on the road at various rodeos and ranch related events. Larry is currently endorsed by Master Saddles, Coolhorse/Foust Feeds and Hi Plains Trading Company.
Greg and Dianne Johnson, Advisory Management
Greg and Dianne have been passionate about healthy food and farmland stewardship for 20+ years. They operated a small organic farm in Maine for a dozen years before coming West. After pursuing a few different endeavors they felt called back to working the land, facing a new and different set of challenges the Western farming and ranching scene offered.
Greg’s experience as operations manager of lumber and paper mills in Maine has made him a good fit to run operations at Sharp Iron L&C - Colorado division. Dianne’s background includes a master’s degree in nutrition-based natural health and the pursuit of natural and organic growing methods for many years.
They are involved with a locally grown foods coalition and offer other farm-raised products in their local area.
They are also president and vice president of Str8way Ministries, a ministry that takes mission groups to orphanages in Nicaragua and Kenya where they share the love of Christ and help them to start producing their own wholesome nutritious food in a sustainable way... as God intended!
