Love and Oil do Mix

FHSU GRAD JANEL STAAB finds true calling through mid-life career change.

Some people go their entire lives without finding their one true love. Gove County native and Fort Hays State University alum Janel (Herl) Staab has been fortunate enough to find not just one but two - her husband Kurt and her work as a geologist in the Kansas oil industry.

Janel grew up on a farm near Castle Rock, where her father, a farmer, invested in a few oil wells. When Janel was a middle school student, they drilled for oil on her family’s property. Janel begged her dad to take her with him to the location.

“Dad said it was no place for girls,” said Janel. “I would beg him every day to ride along.” One day he finally gave in. It was gritty and grimy work, but she loved it.

Janel met her high school sweetheart, Kurt Staab, at Thomas More Prep-Marian High School in Hays when she was 16. Kurt’s family owned Staab Oil Company. She often rode with Kurt to the different well sites to explore the world that she had always been told was “not a place for girls.” It was then that she finally got her chance to experience a well site from the derrick to the doghouse, not knowing that this would eventually become her future profession.

After high school, Kurt and Janel enrolled at Fort Hays State University. Kurt majored in ag business, and Janel in sociology with an emphasis in criminal justice. Janel’s parents were big advocates of higher education and wanted all their children to obtain degrees. Her mom was especially fond of FHSU, which might explain why both of Janel’s brothers and oldest sister are all FHSU graduates. Janel, on the other hand, wasn’t necessarily keen on the idea of college. She was ready to get married and start a family.

“To make sure we finished college, our moms made a deal that neither would pay for a wedding until we graduated,” Janel laughed. The deal held. Janel graduated in December 1990, and Kurt in May 1991. Shortly after Kurt’s graduation, they were married.

Janel’s career path quickly turned in a different direction after her marriage to Kurt. With 9,000 acres of land and 700

cattle, she needed to explore other work options that would allow her the flexibility to be on the ranch to help Kurt when needed. Then with the addition of children, Erica, born in 1994, John in 1995, and Zane in 1999, she was also a busy mom.

Janel did interior design and remodeling work, including a faux finishing job that she did free of charge for G & J Accents to help draw in new business. After that, the jobs came rolling in, too many to complete, so she started teaching the process to others. Later she expanded her business to include custom blinds, eventually expanding into home and business remodeling.

In 2005, after the passing of Kurt’s dad, Kurt and Janel bought his share of Staab Oil Company. Janel rediscovered her love of the oil business and became more active. Being a co-owner gave her a whole new perspective, and she started to pay more attention to all aspects of the business. She took particular interest in what the company geologist was doing on the well site. Janel watched as

he collected and analyzed samples to determine how drilling should proceed. One day she told Kurt, “I could learn how to do that,” so, in 2011, she decided to go back to college to get a degree in petroleum geology.

Janel was hesitant to tell anyone about her plans to work in a male-dominated field. Would she be accepted in this line of work? Could she go to college and raise a family too? Would she fail? - were just a few things that were set in her mind. To her surprise, she received full support from her family, even her dad, who she thought wouldn’t be happy with her decision. Randy Kilian, a well-site geologist, and Butch Drylie, a logging engineer, were the first to know of her plans. Both played important roles in her onsite training, making the transition into this new career almost seamless.

Janel discovered that much had changed since she walked the halls of Fort Hays State University in the 90s. Mastering new technology was a challenge. Computer software and scientific calculators were all foreign to her.

“I had to ask my children for help,” Janel laughed. She often shared the kitchen table with her son John, doing homework. “He was probably my biggest cheerleader.” Although she faced many obstacles, Janel was determined to make this mid-life change and follow her passion. During her senior year, her class, which consisted primarily of 20-year-old men, headed to Utah and Colorado for Field Camp. She spent three weeks in the field, applying her new research skills and identifying and analyzing geological features. For Janel, this was the kind of real-life experience she craved.

The group first stopped at Dinosaur National Monument, then Ketobe Knob in Price, Utah. This unique area was discovered by and named after Dr. Kenneth Neuhauser, retired FHSU geology professor, and his brothers. Although it was a long time to be away from her family, this experience at Fort Hays State University made a lasting impression on the budding geologist.

Janel graduated in December 2013 and spent the first few months on location with other geologists. Her mentors, Randy Kilian and Butch Drylie taught her everything they could. With Butch’s help, she learned how to read and interpret log sheets that show the various formations at each depth which assist in picking the best location to drill. It was in the Fall of 2014 when Janel experienced her first well site; on her own.

“It was a surreal moment, a personal high,” she said. “It has been an amazing experience for Kurt and me. We love working together and making challenging decisions on when and where to drill.” Although this is a family affair, Janel’s role as a geologist is no simple task. Before deciding to drill, she must complete preliminary work, including

comparing logs from other nearby sites. Once drilling starts, Janel tracks the time to drill each foot to determine the change in the rock formation. She then looks at rock samples every 10 feet and analyzes them under a microscope. She’s looking for a dark liquid bubbling out of the rock samples – evidence of oil.

“Sometimes you’re surprised and find oil in a formation that no one else in the area has,” said Janel.

It isn’t a glamorous job. In fact, it can be dangerous at times. Gases stored in the ground for millions of years are released during drilling, which, if not handled correctly, can be hazardous to the crew. Additionally, countless days can be spent on the well site to oversee the process. Janel has spent as many as six days on one well site, with only short breaks for sleep. It’s not unusual to find her in the early morning in the geo shack, recording rocks and ordering tests to decide when to set pipe.

It’s been a big change in Janel’s career from interior design to geology. Instead of selecting paint and fabric swatches, she is now looking for oil in rock formations and logging samples. With the combination of Janel’s determination, hard work, and the knowledge and skills she obtained at FHSU, she fulfilled her dream.

After 31 years, Kurt and Janel are still enjoying the life they have built together as a couple, as parents, and as co-owners of an oil company and working ranch. Their diligence has paid off. Their children are following in their footsteps, planting and harvesting the fields, and working cattle - building the Staab legacy.

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