By Younas Chaudhary
In 1979, in the thick of the Iranian hostage crisis, a lean, brown-skinned Iranian-looking young man arrived in Chanute, Kansas, scouting for oil. That was me and, at that time, Kansas had nothing but farms.
I was broke, knew little English, and had no experience in the oil and gas business. Traveling around town in an old yellow Ford Pinto, I was an aimless lease hound. I knew just a man who had advertised in a paper that farmers in Chanute and surrounding areas were selling oil wells and leasing their land for oil and gas production. I was purchasing oil leases on behalf of Canadian investors from public companies who were interested in investing in Kansas oil wells. It was easy to raise money by penny stock public companies in those days in Canada.
Every morning I would take my old beat-up Pinto and drive around the black top and gravel roads around Chanute, Iola, and other nearby towns hoping I could meet farmers and convince them to lease their land for drilling oil wells. Several days and weeks went by with no luck. I randomly stopped in front of a large farmhouse near Iola with the name “Leo” outside it. I nervously knocked on the door and an older, heavy-set gentleman opened the door. It was around 11:30 am and Leo invited me inside with a smile.
We sat down and I told him I was looking to lease land to drill oil wells in the area. Leo introduced me to his wife who was a lovely happy lady. He asked me where I was from, and I told him I came from Canada, and I was originally from Pakistan. Leo, like other Kansas farmers of the time asked if Pakistan was a state in Canada. His geography didn’t go beyond Chanute and rarely beyond Kansas. He asked more about my strange name and my religion and when I told him I was Muslim, he didn’t know or had any idea what it meant those days.
A few minutes into our discussion, Leo found out that I was a clueless, green newly minted oil lease hound who couldn’t even read an oil and gas map! Leo was very kind. He taught me the fundamentals of leasing lands from local farmers for oil and gas and introduced me to other farmers’ friends and his relatives in the area. This led to acquiring my first oil and gas leases in the area.
The trust that formed between this total stranger, a brown immigrant, and this White Kansas farmer developed from one thing- humanity. He and his wife were very generous and often invited me to their home and shared their delicious home-cooked lunches and dinners. Leo gave me common sense tips and told me to lease a contiguous block of land from the adjacent farmers without any gaps and his genuine, straightforward attitude helped start and build my oil business in Kansas.
I had no business plan. In fact, I didn’t even know how and where I was going. Leo helped and led me successfully to lease land for drilling all around his farmland. He gave me that initial confidence and positive outlook that every entrepreneur needs, especially those with no experience.
As years passed, Leo and I became good friends. My business grew and by 1982, I left for Wichita, around 120 miles from Chanute. Leo was the first name and phone number on the front page of my old, tattered notebook, my Rolodex of those days. He gave hope and inspired this stranger to start a business and to prosper.
When I look back 40 years from the first day I met Leo, I remember his hospitality, his smile, friendliness, and humility. I owe it to this simple Kansas farmer for inspiring me, for his humanity, and his kindness and I wish every aspiring entrepreneur had a Leo in their lives. Stay Blessed!
Disclaimer
The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this article are my own and do not represent the opinions of any entity with which I have been, am now, or will be affiliated. Further, I make no warranty regarding the accuracy or effectiveness of my recommendations, and readers are advised to consult other advisors as well as their own judgments in making business decisions.
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