Father and Son Share a Legacy of Service

​The American oil and gas industry may be big business, but the community of energy producers across Colorado is a tight-knit group.

Shawn and Kyle Reed, father-and-son engineers at two of Denver’s leading petroleum engineering companies, have thrived among this small crowd, but it is making a meaningful impact on their communities that brings the Reed family the most joy. 

​When Kyle was young and Shawn was building his career in the oil and gas industry, the family relocated several times across Oklahoma and Texas. Both father and son graduated from the University of Oklahoma’s Mewbourne College of Earth and Energy before the whole family finally landed in Colorado. As they have grown their careers, families and ties to the philanthropic network, the Reed family has planted strong roots in Colorado.

“Denver has been a great place to raise my family, strengthen my career and develop friendships and partnerships,” Shawn said. “I understand the charitable needs in Denver better as I get more involved in my city, and it feels good to be able to support the place that has given me so much.”

​The Reed family’s generosity centers on providing fellow citizens, especially children, with opportunities to succeed and flourish. Shawn, a partner and petroleum engineer at Reed Energy Consulting, and his family are longtime ​supporters of Denver’s Tennyson Center for Children, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping children who have experienced severe abuse, neglect and trauma. The organization began as a Christian orphanage in the early 20th century and is now one of the Rocky Mountain region’s leading treatment centers to help stabilize, heal and reintegrate at-risk youth.
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Shawn is equally passionate about supporting the Colorado Children’s Chorale, an award-winning musical education organization for kids from all ethnicities and socio-economic backgrounds. The program serves 1,500 kids a day during the schoolyear and offers them world travel and experience. As a board member, Shawn also helps host regional choir tours and supplement school resources for more than 180 schools in the Denver metro area and beyond. He believes the combination of early intervention in the lives of children who face trauma and prevention of home-life problems through outlets like choir is the “one-two punch” to facilitate a great quality of life for kids facing hard times. ​

Supporting children and helping them develop, thrive and reach their potential is an impactful investment in our city, state and society, No matter where they’ve come from, I’m fortunate to be able to play a part in their future. - Shawn Reed

​Together Shawn and Kyle, a reservoir engineer at QEP Resources, support Freedom Service Dogs, one of the nation’s leading service dog training organizations. ​​The non-profit rescues dogs from animal shelters and trains them to be assistance animals to both civilians and veterans.

Shawn’s father and Kyle’s grandfather is a long-time supporter of the organization and recently stepped down as a board member. Since his board retirement, Shawn and Kyle have continued the family legacy of advancing the group’s mission and promoting activities.

“Freedom Service Dogs is such an important part of healing and strengthening our communities,” Kyle said. “For people living with disabilities, this charity can mean the difference between isolation at home and being empowered to be mobile and living a full and complete life. I’m glad I get to be involved in the transformation it brings to people’s lives and that I get to do it with my father and grandfather.”

Kyle, like his father, is also passionate about improving the lives of children. He and his wife are working to expand their family through the foster system, offering support, encouragement and love to another child.
 
“From the people, vibrancy and impactful nonprofits, the Denver community greatly enriches our lives, and we can’t wait to share what we’ve built together with a new member of our family,” Kyle said. “We want to contribute to the richness of this city and help others, especially children, experience all the very best things Colorado has to offer.”
 
Shawn and Kyle learned the concepts and rewards of hard work early on in their family, the classrooms of the Mewbourne College of Earth and Energy and the Colorado oilfields, and they strive to commit those values to their industry as well as their community every day.
 
Whether creating and discovering energy through engineering or committing their own energy through service and volunteerism, generations of the Reed family are dedicated to their Denver neighbors, and they look forward to continuing to make a lasting and continuing impact. 

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Blog Author

Sarah Warren
Director of Communications and Events
University of Oklahoma, Mewbourne College of Earth and Energy

​For more information, contact

 (405) 325-8981 or sarah.warren@ou.edu 

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Disclaimer:
The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author of this blog are solely their own and do not represent the official policy or position of the Colorado Oil & Gas Association or members. Any content or opinion provided by the author(s) are their own, and are not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company or individual.