Ed Foreman: Farm Kid to Millionaire

By Todd Fuqua

Ed Foreman (attended), an elected politician for two states, successful oilman and motivational speaker, died Feb. 2, 2022, leaving a colorful career and a lifetime of stories for future generations to tell and re-tell.

Ed was best known as a Representative in Texas and New Mexico, serving as representative for the El Paso, Texas area from 1962–1964 and southern New Mexico in Las Cruces from 1969-1971.

As a petroleum engineer, he developed a technique for drilling wells safer, faster and more efficiently. Ed became financially independent and was elected to the U.S. Congress, first from Texas, then from New Mexico, becoming the only person to be elected to the U.S. Congress from two different states in more than 150 years.

Before his political career, Ed was a millionaire as the head of Foreman Oil, Inc. in the late 1950s, following a career working for various oil and gas-related companies in the Permian Basin and had served in the U.S. Navy, U.S. Navy Reserve and U.S. Air Force Reserve.

Though Ed had a successful early career, he was proud of his accomplishments as a motivational speaker over the last 50 years.

“I know how some of you are feeling right now,” Ed stated during a seminar in 2014. “You’re thinking, if this guy’s been elected to the United StatesCongress from two different states, doing all this politicking with five different presidents and all this business, I guess we’re going to be exposed to a bunch of politics here today, aren’t we?

“No, I’ve gone straight, and I work for a living now,” he stated, immediately putting the crowd at ease.

Ed grew up on a sweet potato and peanut farm in Portales. He attended ENMU for two years before transferring to NMSU to earn a degree in civil engineering. Ed held an honorary Doctorate of Letters degree from NMSU and is a member of the Council of Peers Award for Excellence Speaker Hall of Fame.

Because of their generous support to Eastern over the years, Ed and his wife, Barbara, were named Philanthropists of the Year by the ENMU Foundation. The president of the ENMU Foundation, Stephen Doerr (BS 77), presented the award at the 2012 Homecoming Awards Breakfast.

Once he left politics in 1976, he focused on motivational training and keynote speaking, sharing the ability to master business and political communications.

“We prefer to give to organizations that truly help people to help themselves,” Ed said. “Giving back is good for the people where we live and have lived.”