Name: Sarah Kern
Company: Helmerich & Payne
Title: Industry Affairs Specialist, Principal

Who’s your favorite Oklahoman?
I love famous Oklahomans, especially musicians, that continue to be involved in our great state – like Blake Shelton of course, and Wayne Coyne, the lead singer of the Flaming Lips.

If you could eat one food the rest of your life, what would it be?
I don’t care as long as it’s covered in Maldon Flaky Sea Salt.

Mountains or beach?
Mountains for sure. Got a chance to ride a train through the Alps a few years ago and it was an incredible experience.

Have you met anyone famous?
Well thankfully we all get the chance to meet famous legislators, authors, journalists, and politicians at Annual Meeting every year! It’s practically a revolving door of famous people at this point. Thank you Petroleum Alliance!

What’s your favorite drink?
Coffee and the Smoked Sage Margarita from El Secreto at Hotel St. Francis in Santa Fe (IYKYK)

Favorite college team?
Go Pokes! I love Oklahoma State.

In one sentence, what do you actually do all day in your job?
I actively and strategically promote H&P thought leadership. I absolutely love my job and am thankful that I have been given an opportunity to follow my passion and grow my career alongside as H&P has grown as a company over the years… and I also edit a lot of technical papers.

Favorite band in junior high?
This was when 90s/2000s Contemporary Christian Music was at its height so I would say dc Talk, Newsboys, or Jars of Clay.

Name of your pets?
Sadie (fluffy calico cat) and Betty (big black dog)

What was your first job?
Babysitting!

What was your first car?
1988 red Jeep Cherokee… bring back that boxy body style!

If you could have dinner with one person, alive or dead, who would it be?
In true Millennial Woman form, I will have to go with influencer and independent journalist Jessica Reed Kraus, aka House Inhabit. I encourage everyone to support her and purchase her new Drill Baby Drill t-shirt!

What was your favorite TV show as a child?
All the TGIF shows on ABC.

What’s the number one item you would save from your burning house?
My collection of my mom’s vintage t-shirts from the 1970s and 1980s.

What is your favorite thing about working in the oil and gas industry?
The sense of pride, ownership, and a higher calling that people in the oil and gas industry feel is really something special. Bringing people out of poverty, keeping people alive, increasing quality of life, having some sort of impact on nearly every manufactured item on earth – modern society has us to thank in so many ways, and it’s a huge honor to be a part of it. I also love the global aspect of our industry. Sometimes our industry is viewed as a very narrow demographic, and it couldn’t be farther from the truth. Go to an oil conference in a foreign country and you will see every nationality, skin color, and background. Our industry is diverse!

What is your favorite holiday?
All holidays are 100 times more fun once you have kids! I love celebrating anything with our 2-year-old daughter, Lucy, and 4-year-old son, Cass.

What is the best gift you have ever received?
My long-story-short version of the birth of my first is that my water broke very unexpectedly when I was 27 weeks pregnant. They were able to stop labor and put me on hospital bedrest, where I remained for about two more weeks, and then delivered Cass via emergency C-section under general anesthesia. Cass was 3 pounds, born at 29 weeks gestation, and spent 64 days in the NICU. I remember sitting with my husband Cody in Cass’s NICU room when he was about three days old – it was dark, and he was connected to all sorts of wires, tubes, and other equipment keeping him alive. It all finally sunk in after being pretty emotionally numb for a few days, and I said to Cody, “We have been given a precious gift.” It was a tough road there for a bit at the beginning, with it being hard to even decide to have more than one child because of the trauma we experienced and the uncertainty about its reoccurrence, but our children, Cass and Lucy, are our biggest blessings. We’re in the thick of the toddler “groundhog day” stage right now but our perspective from Cass’s beginnings keeps us in check – we have so much to be thankful for.

What is the first thing you would do if you won the lottery?
Go back to the Alps.

Last movie you saw at the theater?
People still go to the movie theater?

What’s your favorite app?
Trying my best to become a LinkedIn influencer over here… add me!