A. E. Leonard Endowed Scholarship

Established in 1993, the A. E. Leonard Endowed Scholarship in Range and Wildlife Conservation was funded by the members of the Leonard Family and L&H Packing Company in memory of Mr. Al E. Leonard.

Mr. Leonard was born on the family's cotton farm in Roscoe, Texas in 1922. Al Leonard was married to Doris Helen Athey for forty-six years and they had three children Sharen, Terry, and Kenneth. As of 2009 there are eight grandchildren in the family.

Al Leonard founded L&H Packing Company of San Antonio in 1961, a business that is still in operation today and is operated by his son Ken Leonard. Mr. Leonard was involved in other business interests prior to founding L&H Packing Company. He served as Chairman for the Southwest Meat Packers Association; was a member of the Board of Trustees for the Southwest Theological Seminary; and was a member of the Board of Directors and Executive Committee for the American Meat Institute.

Mr. Leonard took great joy in ranching and in wildlife. An avid outdoorsman, he found himself at home on the plains of Africa and the Rocky Mountain peaks, but his true peace was found with his family in the outdoors. He instilled in his family a great respect for the land which is continued today by his grandchildren's involvement in the habitat and wildlife on the family's ranches. This passion for the land was evident in the family being awarded the Lone Star Land Steward Award by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department in 2001, a full ten years after Mr. Leonard passed away.

The scholarship is designated for any undergraduate major in the Department of Natural Resources Management (Formerly the Department of Range and Wildlife Management). Additional criteria require that the student have a GPA of 2.5 or greater; and, be a resident of Texas. Mr. Ken Leonard of San Antonio has requested that he be notified of the student selected for this award prior to the actual confirmation of the award.

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