HONORARY ADVISORS
Frank Armstrong
Frank Armstrong was born in Laredo, Texas and raised in Hebbronville. A fifth generation Texan he obtained both a Master of Science in Petroleum Engineering and a Bachelor of Laws degrees from The University of Texas. He is Manager of Armstrong Ranch, Ltd. which owns and operates cattle ranching operations in Jim Hogg County. He currently serves as Chairman of the Board of The First National Bank of Hebbronville. He resides in Corpus Christi where his law practice is limited to representing land and mineral owners. His community involvement in Corpus Christi includes serving as Chairman of the CHRISTUS Spohn Development Foundation and past member of the Board of Trustees of St. James Episcopal School. He is a member of the King’s Men and was named King Alonso 56th in the annual Buccaneers Day celebration.
Giovana Benitez
Giovana Benitez grew up around a family owned stocker and pre conditioning yard in Edinburg, Texas. She has been actively involved in the management of the operation since 2011. Giovana has participated and volunteered in several community regional and state organizations and is a senior at University of Texas Rio Grande Valley in Edinburg, majoring in Finance and Economics. Giovana is eager to help promote South Texas agriculture, cattle industry and landowner property rights.
Presnall Cage
Presnall Cage is a third generation South Texas rancher who operates his family’s property in Brooks County, Texas. Presnall was raised in Falfurrias and graduated from Texas A& I University in Kingsville where he was an officer in the Sigma Chi fraternity. He was commissioned a second lieutenant in the U. S. Air Force and became an instructor pilot at Laredo Air Force Base and a forward air controller in Vietnam. Awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with nine oak leaf clusters, he was discharged from the service in 1973with the rank of captain. He is currently a pilot of both fixed wing aircraft and a helicopter…the latter used primarily for cattle work.Presnall raises commercial Hereford and crossbred cattle and manages the family’s mineral holdings in Brooks and Maverick Counties in Texas as well as Lincoln and Cheyenne Counties in Colorado.
Presnall and his wife, Stephanie, reside on the ranch near Falfurrias, where Presnall is a director of the First National Bank, having been a founder and director of the Greater South Texas Bank. They have three children, Grady Cage, Valerie Ziegler, and William Cage and three grandchildren. Presnall serves as a director of Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, is a member of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, the Texas Order of St. Hubertus (a hunting and game conservation group) as well as several San Antonio social organizations, among them, The Order of the Alamo, The German Club, The Argyle, and The San Antonio Country Club.
A.R. "Felo" Guerra
A. R. "Felo" Guerra is descendant of early pioneering Valley families which were ranching on the banks of the Rio Grande dating back to the mid 1700's. He attended McAllen & Edinburg schools graduating from Edinburg High & afterwards attended Pan American College. Since the 1960's he has been involved with his family in managing their agricultural & mineral interests in Hidalgo & Starr Counties. He is active in his community as a member of St. Anne's Catholic Church, Linn-San Manuel Community Improvement Committee, Easter Seals, UT-PAU Foundation Board & First National Bank Board. He also operates a cow-calf operation and occasionally runs some stocker calves. Felo & Maxine, his spouse of 35 years, are pleased parents & grandparents of 4 children 2 grandaughters.
J.E. "Eddie" Guerra
Pharmacist, Oil/Gas Investments and Oil/Gas Development, Real Estate Investments
Eddie currently serves as the Sheriff of Hidalgo County after winning the position during the 2014 mid-term elections. Current Hidalgo Co. Sheriff, former Hidalgo County Precinct 4 Constable, landowner from Linn, his family has owned property in South Texas for over two centuries, a STPRA member since 2010.
W.T. "Tommy" Guerra
Tommy Guerra of Guerra Ranches is a fourth-generation rancher from Starr County. He graduated from Rio Grande City High in 1960 and received a BBA degree from UT Austin in 1964. In 1964, he married Corinne “PeeWee” and they have been married almost 49 years. Tommy and PeeWee have one son, Billy and two daughters Jeannie and Sissy.
Tommy worked for 7 years at First State Bank in RGC. He is also a member of a number of organizations: TSCRA, NCBA, and TLMA. He was on the Cattlemen’s Beef Board (National Cattlemen’s Beef Association) for six years. He served as State President for two years on the Independent Cattlemen’s Association of Texas. In addition, Tommy has also served on various state and national committees through the years. He currently serves on the STPRA Board of Directors.
Sarita A. Hixon
Sarita Armstrong Hixon is a former member of the Texas Historical Commission and currently serves on the board of the Texas State Historical Association. She has previously been on the boards of the San Jacinto Museum of History Association, San Jacinto Historical Advisory Board, Friends of Communities in Schools, San Jacinto Museum of History Association, Contemporary Arts Museum and Foxcroft School in Middleburg, Virginia.
Professionally, she is the Kenedy County Commissioner Precinct 3 and was an associate attorney with Andrews & Kurth, LLP.
Sarita received her BA from the University of Texas at Austin and her JD from Southern Methodist University School of Law. She was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, and currently resides in Houston.
Bruce P. Hoffman
Throughout his 29 years in the financial services industry, Bruce has shown an unyielding dedication to helping his clients pursue their goals and preserve their wealth. As someone who for many years has tended his family’s ranch in Alice, Texas - established in 1897 - he knows a thing or two about being a proud steward of precious resources. His clients look to him for straightforward advice and insight into the big picture of their finances. He uses a thoughtful approach that takes into account their needs and risk tolerance.
He became a financial advisor in 1990, driven to do something to help people plan their financial future. Over the course of his career he has become a well-respected financial advisor. In 2019, Bruce and two other financial advisors established Coastal Bend Wealth Partners in Corpus Christi and have continued to provide personalized services to their clients.
A native of Alice, Texas, Bruce earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from The University of Texas at Austin and is a Life Member of the University of Texas Exes. He has served his community as a member of the Corpus Christi Rotary Club for 25 years, including 3 years as a board member, he has been recognized as a Paul Harris Fellow and was awarded the Spirit of Rotary Award by the club. He is now a member of the Alice Rotary Club, where he currently serves as President; Episcopal Church of the Advent, where he has been a member of the Vestry for three years as well as serving as Junior Warden; Corpus Christi Mustangs; Alice Chamber of Commerce member; served as a member of the board of South Texans’ Property Rights Association and now serves on its Advisory Council.
Bruce served as a STPRA director from 2013 – 2019 and now serves in an advisor. He is a firm supporter of wildlife habitat and conservation, serving as a board member and past president of Wildlife in Focus, Texas Cattle Raiser’s Association and as a member of Texas Wildlife Association.
Bruce and his wife Gail, live on their ranch in Alice. They have two children and three grandchildren.
Jesse W. Howell
Jesse Howell has lived in southern Jim Wells County his entire life and is active in several agricultural operations, including a cattle feedlot, silage operation and liquid feed plant. He is president of Jim Wells Company LLC, Jesse W. Howell Cattle LLC, Howell Industries Inc., Howell Cattle Co., and part owner and an honorary director on the board of South Texas Property Rights Association. Since 1982, he has been on the Board of Directors of Texas Farm Credit.
A.C. "Dick" Jones IV
A.C."Dick" Jones IV of Hebbronville,Tx. manages his cattle operations through Jones Ranch LLC. His ranching headquarters are at Jones Borregos Ranch south of Hebbronville in Jim Hogg Co.
In addition to ranching, Jones' other business activities include directorships with First National Bank of Hebbronville, First National Bank of Beeville,and Mestena Oil & Gas Co. He is also a director of Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, Texas Wildlife Association, advisory director Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute and trustee of Texas A&M Kingsville Foundation.
He and his wife Ann have three children, Katherine Camille, William Whitby III and Laura Christina.
Beth Knolle-Naiser
Beth Knolle Naiser is part of a family which has ranched in Texas since its members arrived with Stephen F. Austin’s first colony. Beth grew up in Houston, where her father was manager of the Houston Livestock Show for 22 years. She graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Texas at Austin in 1971 and has lived in the Coastal Bend area since that time. She now raises beef cattle on the Knolle Farm & Ranch, which was once one of the nation’s largest dairy operations. In 1997, she opened a bed and breakfast on the ranch, specializing in hospitality and "country luxury". Beth is married to Stephen Naiser, who has been in the custom grass planting business for 27 years. Besides her service on the STPRA board, Beth is a member of the board of directors of the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association and is very involved with that organization’s promotional activities.
Joe Maley
Joe Maley is a life long resident of Bee County where both sides of his family have farmed and ranched since the 1890's. Joe graduated from Pawnee High School and earned a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture Education from Southwest Texas State University: now Texas State University. He taught school for three years before joining the staff of Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) as a Field Representative in South Texas, while maintaining a family ranch. He took of leave from TFB for a period of time to do agriculture consulting and development in several foreign countries, primarily Saudi Arabia. After return to TFB, Joe managed the Austin legislative office, before moving to the main office where he was Director of Organization, with emphasis on Public Policy at the State and National level. Joe's and Martha's son and daughter and their families live close by and are involved with the ranch in South and Central Texas.
John Prukop
John Prukop lives in Jim Wells County and has been farming since 1974 in Jim Wells, Kleberg and Nueces Counties. Mr. Prukop holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Texas A & I University in agricultural economics. Mr. Prukop serves as chairman of the Kleberg-Kennedy Soil and Water Conservation District and is Vice Chairman of Texas AgFinance, where he has served as a director since 1990.
Gene “Primo” Walker Jr.
Gene “Primo” Walker Jr., a rancher and Webb County native, joined STPRA’s board of directors in January of 2017. Currently ranching in South and West Texas and western Mexico, Primo’s ranching career has spanned almost 50 years, beginning on Vaquillas Ranch, 10 miles south of Aguilares. He graduated from high school in Mirando City in 1975 before graduating from Southwest Junior College in Uvalde in 1977 and TCU’s Ranch Management program in 1978.
Primo has been a member of Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association for 50 years, serving on its marketing committee for 30 years and as chair of its fever tick committee for two years. He also served on the Mirando City school board for 12 years and the Hebbronville auction and commission board of directors for 15 years. Primo and his wife, Carllyn, have one son, three daughters and seven grandchildren.