On Tuesday, January 26, Walter Jackson “Jack” Sleeper, Jr. passed away in Dallas, Texas. Mr. Sleeper was a long-time supporter of MPGE and its programs and a great friend.
Sleeper was born August 6, 1929 in Wagoner, Oklahoma. He graduated from Wagoner High School and entered the Navy in 1947. While stationed as an air traffic controller in Rhode Island in 1959, Jack met Tess while attending a dance. They were married the following year.
In 1952, Mr. Sleeper completed his time in the Navy and enrolled at OU to study petroleum engineering. Upon graduating with honors in 1955, he went to work for Shell Oil Company as an exploration engineer. During his ten years there, three of them performing research in the fields of reservoir engineering, geology and petrophysics, Mr. Sleeper held the titles of Project Engineer, Senior Exploration Engineer and Senior Production Geologist.
In 1965, Sleeper joined DeGolyer and MacNaughton as a petroleum engineer. He performed many field studies that took him throughout North and South America, the North Sea and the Middle East. In 1968, he was elected Vice-president and became Senior Vice-President in 1974. He was named to the Board of Directors in 1978, and, on January 1, 1995, Jack retired from DeGolyer and MacNaughton, having worked his way up to President and Chief Operating Officer.
Mr. Sleeper was a Licensed Professional Engineer in both Oklahoma and Texas. Because of his expertise, in 2003, he returned to the industry to serve as an advisor for Matador Resources.
Always appreciative of the opportunities he had in his life, Sleeper enjoyed giving back to the institutions and communities that provided for him. Since 1995, Mr. Sleeper served on MPGE’s Industry Advisory Board. He was dedicated to student success and sponsored not only a scholarship program but donated two rooms for students to utilize during their studies, the Sleeper Lounge and the Sleeper Team Room.
He will be greatly missed.
