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James (Jay) Ed Downes, 61, co-founder and President of Energy
Dynamics, passed away July 1, 2000, in LLano, Texas.
Born September 25, 1938,
in Falls county, Texas, he was a graduate of Duncanville High School and The
University of Texas at Austin where he received a Mechanical Engineering degree.
Jay began his career with Cooper Energy and White Motor Company in Mt. Vernon,
Ohio, Houston, Texas and Springfield, Ohio.
He and his family moved to Alice in
1978 and established EnDyn (Energy Dynamics, Inc.) along with his partner, Tracy
Little. He later purchased a well-established Alice-based firm, OMS (Oilfield
Motor Service) and expanded into South America with the startup of EnDyn de
Venezuela.
Jay was sincerely interested in the economic development of
Alice, America, and considered this as much a full-time job as running of his
companies. Jay was a member of Jim Wells County Master Planners and the Board of
directors of Wells Fargo Bank, Alice. He was also active in the Jim Wells county
Industrial Foundation, Highway Development Committee and the Beautification
Committee to name a few. For his development efforts, Jay was named "Alice
Citizen of the Year" in 1996 by the Alice Chamber of commerce.
Jay's
strong faith was evident in his lifelong affiliation with the Methodist Church.
He was a member of the First United Methodist Church of Alice where he served on
various committees and taught Sunday School.
Like most South Texans, Jay
loved the sport of football. He showed his support for the Alice Coyotes by
serving as president of the Alice Coyote Booster Club for two years. Jay
was a loyal supporter of all Alice Youth Sports Programs including all Coyote
Athletic competitions, Swim Team, Boys & Girls Club, and AAU Track Programs,
just to name a few. He was also an avid fan of Longhorn Football and was found
tail-gating on most fall weekends in Austin in the fall.
However, anyone,
associated with Jay Downes knew that every second of his free time was dedicated
to the game of golf. Whether playing at the Alice Country Club or the Old Course
at St. Andrews, Jay was always looking for the edge to improve his current
handicap of five (5). This dedication was not limited to his game, but included
volunteering his time as a past president of the ACC Board of Directors,
Greens Committee and spear heading many capital improvement projects at the
course, and free "professional" instruction.
Below is a statement that Jay Downes made for a
Compressor Tech written by Jake Elliott in May-June of
1998.
"This company is nothing more or less than a group of people who
have voluntarily joined together in a common enterprise. The things we build
produce, service and the way we respond to our customer requirements are the
direct result of our collective character."
The statement crystallizes
the thinking behind the formation of this unusual working partnership and
perhaps helps to explain the respective successes that have been built upon a
base of mutual respect and solid friendships.
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