Trusting Gut Instincts and a Friend’s Advice

By Noelle Bartl

Alumnus Burk Ellison (BBA 80) has trusted his gut instincts for years and it has served him well. While in high school in Albuquerque, Burk’s parents encouraged him to go to UNM, however, his gut instinct told him to go to ENMU with his friend Steve Hodge (attended). This big decision opened a path that led Burk to his current position as the president of DistributionNOW’s (ticker symbol DNOW) Supply Chain Services in Houston, and in meeting his wife Kathy.

During his first semester at ENMU, a couple of friends, Steve Wells (BS 78) and Phil Demmel (MBA 80), encouraged Burk to join the PIKE fraternity and try out for the basketball team. So he did, and he made the team! He played under Coach Sterling Gibson (MA 62) and with some of ENMU’s great players, Bob Kirkley (BS 78), Reggie Hawkins, Dana Altman (BBA 80) and Doug Gibson (BS 80). He was also blessed to meet his wife Kathy (Wendland) (attended) who was a fellow athlete playing on the Zia volleyball (1978-80) and basketball teams (1978-79). The couple would like people to believe that their love story began when they met in the Greyhound Arena training room, when in actuality they met at a PIKE fraternity party … a tale as old as time.

“I loved Portales and ENMU was awesome,” remembers the 1980 Marketing Student of the Year. When recalling how he could really connect with his professors, Burk stated, “One in particular, Dr. Finical, took me under his wing and provided guidance as I navigated my courses.” With help from Dr. Finical and his other professors, Burk graduated cum laude and went on to a 37-year career in the oil and gas supply industry. It opened doors for him to travel the world, meet fascinating people and even be a part of ringing the bell at the New York Stock Exchange.

DistributionNOW currently has over 300 locations in 20 countries and more than 4,500 employees. Burk described the company for us non-oil-industry folks as the “Walmart of the oil and gas industry, providing oilfield equipment, services and supplies for the upstream, midstream and downstream markets all over the world.” Burk has traveled to 33 countries; places like Angola, Egypt, Malaysia, the Middle East, Scotland and Russia. He has enjoyed traveling to most but claimed his favorites were Australia and the United Arab Emirates ... except when temperatures reach 130 degrees Fahrenheit.

“I’ve been fortunate to work with a lot of smart people who have taken DNOW from a business segment of National Oilwell Varco (NOV), to its own publicly traded company in 2014,” Burk acknowledges. “The DNOW team are my second family. It is important to me to make sure my ‘family’ is taken care of,” stated Burk, who arrives at work every day by 5 a.m.

Previously Burk was the leader of the Energy Group, U.S. and International Sales and Operations, and it was crucial for him to be available to his overseas colleagues. He continues that habit with DNOW, where he recently took on a leadership position with their newly formed Supply Chain Services.

Regarding his immediate family, Burk and Kathy have been married for 37 years. As Burk navigated his career path, Kathy taught science and coached high school and middle school girls’ basketball, volleyball, and track and field. Their son Brett is an attorney for CB&I in The Woodlands, Texas, and their daughter Kenzi recently went to work for DNOW in Houston as a recruiter. The couple also owns a ranch northwest of Houston with a Brazos River Valley view, where they raise Black Baldy cows and calves as a retreat from their busy lives.

Thanks to trusting his gut in choosing ENMU, Burk has sustained a rewarding career with DistributionNOW. “Eastern students are recognized as having discipline and a strong work ethic, as many work very hard to pay for school while studying,” said Burk. “I’m proud to be an ENMU Greyhound.”