Photo Release -- Thompson-Draper Reappointed To PHA Commission

Prominent business woman will serve third term as Harris County Commissioners Court appointee


HOUSTON, Dec. 15, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- The Harris County Commissioners Court on November 23 reappointed Cheryl Thompson-Draper to the Port of Houston Authority (PHA) Commission. Initially appointed to the PHA commission by the county commission in July 2000, Thompson-Draper is the third woman to serve on the port commission since the inception of the original Ports and Harbors Board in 1909 and the first appointed by the county commission and county judge.

A photo accompanying this release can be found at: http://media.primezone.com/poha/

"We warmly welcome Commissioner Thompson-Draper's return," stated PHA Chairman Jim Edmonds. "Her leadership as chair of the port authority's Cruise Task Force and as member of the Pilot Task Force and the Pension Committee has been exemplary. Additionally, she has served with distinction as chair of the Small Business Committee through which she was instrumental in the formation, implementation and success of the port authority's Small Business Development Program. Her fresh ideas, tenacity, and drive have been instrumental in helping maintain the port's economic vitality, and we look forward to continuing our work with her."

Commissioner Thompson-Draper brings years of business experience and community involvement to the PHA. She is the retired president, chief executive officer, chairman of the board and owner of Warren Electric Group, Ltd., the 83-year-old, woman-owned enterprise that distributed wholesale electrical, automation, telecommunications and utility products. Commissioner Thompson-Draper began her career with the company in 1970 and held a variety of positions before moving to her top executive position. In 2000, Warren Electric Group generated sales revenues of $315 million. Warren Electric Group was the largest woman owned and managed business in Houston for many years as well as third largest in the state of Texas. Warren Electric Group (stateside) was sold in December 2002 to Summit Electric Supply out of Albuquerque, New Mexico. The Warren companies of the Caribbean (Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic and Trinidad) were sold in March 2003 to Sonepar SA, in Paris, France.

Always an entrepreneur at heart, Commissioner Thompson-Draper also opened, managed and ultimately sold Thompson Baton Twirling Academy and C & J Hobby Shop. Currently she is the owner and President/CEO of several businesses, including Cypress Pony Land Company (formerly-Thompson Real Estate Company), T bar D Ventures Company, and Miss Houston-Harris County Rodeo Queen Pageant. She also is a co-owner/financial backer of the Texas Star Masters Dance Studio. With her husband John Draper, Commissioner Thompson-Draper co-owns and co-manages T bar D Ranch, an enterprise engaged in cow/calf, equine, pecan orchard and whitetail deer hunting operations in the southern Texas counties of Lavaca, Harris and Val Verde.

Along with her business interests, Commissioner Thompson-Draper is involved with many community and charitable organizations. She currently serves as the president of the Miss Rodeo Texas organization and the immediate past chairman of Theatre Under The Stars. She serves as a trustee and a member of the finance committee for First Methodist Church of Houston, a member of the Rotary Club of Houston where she is a Paul Harris Fellow and a past board member, a life member of the National Association of Women-Owned Businesses, Daughters of the American Revolution, and other organizations. In 2002, Texas Governor Rick Perry appointed her to the Economic Development Task Force. She currently serves on the Governor's Business Council.

Commissioner Thompson-Draper is a charter investor of the Texas Women's Venture Fund and a charter investor of Post Oak Bank. She currently is or recently has served in leadership/board positions for the Boys and Girls' Country, Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, the Greater Houston Partnership, Super Bowl XXXVIII Host Committee Board, Hugh O'Brian's Youth Leadership (HOBY), Houston Farm and Ranch, Junior Achievement, the United Way of the Texas Gulf Coast, the Olympic 2012 Board, Mayor's Summit on Women United and other organizations. Her benevolent endeavors also support such academic institutions as Houston Baptist University, Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine, Texas A&M College of Engineering, the University of Houston College of Engineering and the University of Houston National Advisory Council.

Commissioner Thompson-Draper has garnered several honors and awards of distinction. She has been named "Texan of the Year" by All Those Texans, honored as one of the "Women on The Move" by the Texas Executive Women and recognized by the Mayor of Houston, Harris County Judge, U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Port of Houston Authority as the "International Executive of the Year." The Texas Women's Chamber of Commerce named her a "Woman of the Century." She also has been honored with the Houston Metropolitan Study Award in recognition of her work with Theatre Under The Stars. The YWCA of Dallas and the City of Dallas has presented her with the "Woman of Distinction" award. Additionally, Ernst & Young selected her as "Entrepreneur of the Year" for the Houston Region and is an honored member of Ernst & Young's National Hall of Fame.

Commissioner Thompson-Draper was most recently honored with her own "Tall Texas Tale" as a featured lady in the new book Texas Women. That book was released in November 2003 at the Women's Museum in Dallas, Texas.

Commissioner Thompson-Draper has three grown and married children and four grandchildren, her 92-year-old mother, and her best friend and husband of 14 years John. She is an avid horseback rider, cattle rancher, and pecan farmer. She gives God all the glory for the great things He has allowed her and her family to achieve.


The Port of Houston Authority owns and operates the public facilities located along the Port of Houston, the 25-mile long complex of diversified public and private facilities designed for handling general cargo, containers, grain and other dry bulk materials, project and heavy lift cargo, and other types of cargo. Each year, more than 6,600 vessels call at the port, which ranks first in the U.S. in foreign waterborne tonnage, second in overall total tonnage, and sixth largest in the world. The Port Authority plays a vital role in ensuring navigational safety along the Houston Ship Channel, which has been instrumental in Houston's development as a center of international trade. The Barbours Cut Container Terminal and Central Maintenance Facility are the first of any U.S. port facilities to develop and implement an innovative Environmental Management System that meets the rigorous standards of ISO 14001. Additionally, the port is an approved delivery point for Coffee "C" futures contracts traded on the New York Board of Trade's Coffee, Sugar & Cocoa Exchange. For more information, please visit www.portofhouston.com

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