Colorado School of Mines, 1964
Hometown: Whittier, CA
Inducted November 2010
Mr. Vernon A. (Bud) Isaacs, Jr. graduated from the Colorado School of Mines in 1964 with a Professional Degree in Petroleum Engineering. Upon commissioning as a Second Lieutenant, Mr. Isaacs served in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, including combat operations in Vietnam with 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, receiving a number of Vietnamese combat ribbons, the Combat Infantry Badge, Silver Star, Bronze Star with Valor, and a Purple Heart for wounds suffered during combat.
Following military service, Mr. Isaacs emerged as an industry leader in petroleum engineering. He held positions with Coquina Oil Corporation, Union Oil Company, and CALCO in drilling and production engineering as well as planning and property valuation. Mr. Isaacs joined Petrol-Lewis Corporation in 1976 and accepted a promotion to Senior Vice President of the corporation in 1981. In 1985, he founded V.A. Isaacs and Associates, Inc. to advise companies in the purchase and sale of oil and gas properties, and in 1989, established RIM Companies, a private oil and gas property management firm with production operations across the continental United States.
Mr. Isaacs contributes significantly to the community as both a leader and volunteer, serving as the Director of Enduring Resources, LLC; a member and former distinguished lecturer of the Society of Petroleum Engineers; and previously as an Executive Board Member of the Independent Petroleum Association of Mountain States and Chairman of the Coalbed Methane Committee. He is a current member and past President of the Denver Chapter of the Society of Petroleum Evaluation Engineers. Mr. Isaacs has been an active volunteer of Boy Scouts of America and currently serves on its Executive Board. In addition, he is on the Board of Trustees for Denver Inner City Parish, the Development Board for Uplift, and serves as a Trustee for Alliance for Choice in Education. Formerly, he served on the Board of the Winter Olympics Committee, Ski Club Vail, and demonstrated enduring support for the Colorado School of Mines as the Chair of the Reunion Gift Committee and a member of the Student Recreation Center and Marquez Hall Campaign Committees.
Mr. Vernon Isaacs is married to the former Kaye Mataxis of Washington, D.C. with whom he has three children, three granddaughters, and a grandson on the way.