WorldWide Drilling Resource

Rig Wives Take Care of Their Own Adapted from Information by the Rig Wives Foundation A small group of tough women decided a resource was needed for families of the oil and gas industry. Together, they formed the Rig Wives Foundation and are on a mission to take care of their own. Volunteers for the foundation come from all parts of the industry, from land to offshore, and they do it out of love and pride for the hardworking men and women there. The Rig Wives foundation tries to help fami l ies one issue at a time. Whether a family member has been injured, a natural disaster has hit, or someone just needs a little help and a sign that hope is still alive, Rig Wives come to the rescue. Each of the women in the founda- tion has their own personal connection to the oil and gas industry. Some of the Rig Wives were once drilling profes- sionals themselves. Board Member Diana Evans, who oversees marketing for the foundation, lost her brother Shane Roshto in the Deepwater Horizon Explosion. “I stum- bled across rigwives.org right after the explosion and wanted to contact them then. I thought what they were doing was wonderful, and one of the things I vowed to do in my brother’s honor was get involved with helping others in the oilfield,” said Diana. Links to oil and gas jobs, videos, poetry, jokes, music, and more can be found on the Web site. There is also a page for working wives to advertise their businesses as well as an online store, The Pusher’s Shack, where oil- field apparel and merchandise is sold year-round. The site can also do cus- tom designs. The Rig Wives’ annual fundraising project is a cookbook, available for pur- chase in The Pusher’s Shack, made up of recipes submitted by oil and gas 36 DECEMBER 2013 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® families from all over the world. All money collected by the founda- tion from purchases and donations is used to assist industry families in times of need. “We have made a good start and have plans for many great things to come! We developed [rigwives.org] for industry families to have a place to turn when they need support through hard times as well as happy times,” said Tanya Beeks, president of Rig Wives. The following is an excerpt of one the many poems written by drilling pro- fessionals and their families found at rigwives.org: A brotherhood of men Who have each other’s backs Watching out for one another On this they never slack Oil runs in their veins They bleed petroleum not blood They are real men That still play in the mud His resolve is strong To get the job done But safety will always be number one... Written by Rachel