Jim Reese

James Lee "Jim" Reese (born c. 1957) is a farmer, businessman and politician from the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Appointed by Republican Governor Mary Fallin as Oklahoma Secretary of Agriculture, Reese was sworn into office on January 10, 2011. He also acts as Fallin's chief advisor on policy development and implementation related to agriculture, food, and forestry. Reese serves concurrently in Oklahoma City as the commissioner of the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture.

Biography

Reese graduated with an associate's degree in drafting and design from the community college Northern Oklahoma College at Tonkawa in Kay County. He procured a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering technology from Oklahoma State University at Stillwater. Reese also attended the United States Department of Agriculture Supervisory Academy at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas.

Reared on a wheat and dairy farm, Reese and has maintained since 1978 his own farming enterprise at Nardin near Blackwell, Oklahoma. In 1986, he was elected to the Oklahoma House of Representatives, which he served from 1987 to 2001. Reese retired from the state legislature when he was selected to serve as the Oklahoma State Executive Director for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Farm Service Agency under the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush. As executive director, Reese delivered federal agriculture programs to Oklahoma farmers and ranchers through more than 60 county offices across the state. Reese served in that position for eight years. In 2008, Oklahoma House Speaker Chris Benge selected and appointed him as his Policy Advisor to the Speaker of the House. Secretary Reese is a long agricultural and rural advocate and feels that Oklahoma agriculture is a vital part of Oklahoma's economy.

Jim Reese (Texas politician)

James O’Quinn Reese, known as Jim Reese (born December 14, 1929), is a businessman who served from 1968 to 1974 as the mayor of Odessa, Texas. From the 1960s to the 1980s, he was a figure in the development of the two-party system in West Texas. In 1978, he lost the Republican nomination to future U.S. President George W. Bush for Texas' 19th congressional district seat in the United States House of Representatives. Bush was then defeated in the 1978 general election by the then Democrat, later Republican, Kent Hance.

Background

An only child, Reese was born to Arvil Lloyd Reese (1911-1968) and the former Mary Louise Pearce (1910-1980) in the defunct community of Hasse in Comanche County near Abilene, Texas. The Reese family moved repeatedly during Jim’s childhood as Arvil searched for employment amid the Great Depression. Arvil worked for the Texas Department of Highways for a time, having been assigned to place finich concrete on bridges. He also held various jobs in the oil industry and was during the end of his working years a Butane dealer in Gustine in Comanche County. During his boyhood, Jim Reese attended eighteen different schools and resided in such locations as Sidney in Comanche County, Bronte in Coke County, Monahans, Brady, Corpus Christi and Odessa, Texas, as well as McAlester, Oklahoma.

Jim Reese (musician)

James Gordon Reese, Jr., simply known as Jim Reese, (7 December 1941 - 26 October 1991) was a longtime member of the famed rock and roll band, The Bobby Fuller Four. Being virtuosic at a variety of instruments, he is perhaps best known for his guitar work (both lead and rhythm). He provided backing vocals and rhythm guitar to the Bobby Fuller Four's greatest hit, "I Fought the Law."

Early career

While always aspiring to be a guitarist in a band, Reese was initially turned down by the Rock Kings, a local El Paso band, before joining the Counts in the April of 1958. At this point, Reese was playing piano with the group, and was featured on the their first release, "Thunder," in October 1958 (Reese and The Bobby Fuller Four would later cover this track as "Thunder Reef"). For their next release in 1959, "Child of Fortune," Reese switched to rhythm guitar.

Over time and with changing lineups, Reese broke away and headed his own band, the Embers, after internal arguments within The Counts caused band members to become polarized. The Embers saw the return of former Counts bands mates Googie Dirmeyer, and Jerry Bright. Originally under the name the Royal Lancers for two years, the group evolved, and Reese soon found his calling with lead guitar, quickly becoming one of the most distinguished rock guitarists in El Paso. Notable members of the Embers included Howard Steele on bass, Dalton Powell on piano, and Bobby Fuller on drums.