David M. Orchard
October 21, 1952 - January 7, 2025
Past HGS Bulletin Editor, Geologist, Poet, Writer, and Business Entrepreneur
Remembered by Linda Sternbach
We want to take this time to remember one of HGS's most dedicated volunteers, Dave Orchard (1952-2025), who made a lasting mark on HGS history by becoming Editor from 1996-1997 and then continuing to publish the print magazine as the owner of Manzanita Alliances from the mid-1995 to mid-2000s. Dave served HGS as a long-term committee member on publications, including the Bulletin, and was Guest Night chair in 2018. He is fondly remembered for his sense of humor, wit, and creative writing, including poetry.
On a personal note, Dave and his wife, Marie Orchard, have lived in Houston for 45 years, raised three children, enjoyed ten grandchildren, and sponsored two young men from Liberia who became beloved family members, college graduates, and US citizens.
Dave grew up in California and earned a BA in Anthropology at Stanford University in 1974. During college summers, he fought fires for the California Division of Forestry. His interest turned to petroleum geology, and he attended the University of Texas at Austin, graduating with an MA in geology in 1979.
When Dave got involved with HGS, he was a geologist and exploration manager at BHP in Houston. When the oil industry suffered a downturn in 1995, Dave pivoted away from geoscience and started his own publishing and translation business called Manzanita Alliances. He kept his hand in the petroleum news by acting as HGS Bulletin volunteer editor, supervising layout, and taking charge of the print and mailing issues. Linda Sternbach followed Dave as editor and worked closely with him and his staff at Manzanita from 1995 to 1998. Dave had a vision for the HGS Bulletin that included improving the cover design, adding better graphics, and using color printing. Before Dave, the HGS Bulletin was all black and white and looked like it was typed out by hand. After Dave’s improvement, the HGS Bulletin became what it looks like today.
Dave was beloved by many because of his keen interest in any type of geology, his sharp mind, his analytic ability, and his sense of humor. When things went wrong, Dave would always see the humorous side of magazine publishing problems and management snafus. Then, he would crack a joke and let everybody know the situation's absurdity. In one of his Editor columns Dave mused on "Nine Easy Steps to Longer Sentences." One suggestion: Use weasel words as often as possible. For more effective weaseling, replace “will” and “would” with “can” and “could”.
Dave’s love of geology drew him back into the petroleum business in 2006. He left Manzanita Alliances and became a staff geologist at Conoco Phillips in Houston. Dave trained himself to be an expert in carbonate petrophysics. He was in charge of well operations and development in the Permian basin. In 2016, Dave joined Layline Energy. His interest was in developing shallow oil production from Pennsylvanian (Cisco, Canyon) clastic and carbonate reservoirs in two thousand active and shut-in wells on the Red River Arch, north Texas.
In 2017, Dave fulfilled a dream to purchase country property (with a pond!) near New Ulm, Texas, as a family retreat. At the same time, he renewed his interest in firefighting and joined the New Ulm Volunteer Fire Department.
Dave was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2022 and passed away on January 7, 2025. A funeral service is planned for February 21st at St. Bartholomew Catholic Church in Katy, Texas, at 10:30 am. Friends can contact Marie Orchard at marie.orchard@gmail.com.
Obituary at https://www.schmidtfuneralhome.net/obituaries/David-Merle-Orchard?obId=34358241