Fireweed Strategies LLC has expanded our team for our Alaska magazines and publications for 2025. Will Leschper is now leading all content, design and production for the Alaska Resource Review as well as other Fireweed publications including those of the Alaska Miners Association and the Alaska Support Industry Alliance. He has been designer and production manager of Fireweed's publications since 2020. Will is a nationally recognized writer and photographer, and a frequent contributor to national magazines with more than 20 years in publishing. Direct news, photos and story requests to Will (leschperw@gmail.com). Mary (Leschper) Schaper is now supporting business and advertising for all Fireweed publications for 2025. Mary has over a decade of experience in energy policy communications in Washington, D.C., with roles on U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s staff, on the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and at the American Petroleum Institute. Mary is the primary contact for advertising and financial questions (mary@lunastrategiesdc.com). Lee Leschper remains the CEO of Fireweed Strategies, an Anchorage-based LLC founded in 2015 to share the full story of Alaska’s resource development industries. As some of you may have heard, Lee was involved in an accident last fall, but he remains committed to Fireweed’s mission while continuing his recovery. Fireweed Strategies publishes unique magazines that connect key industries with diverse audiences while highlighting resource development’s impact on the state’s economy and national security. Note from Publisher Fireweed Strategies ROBERT "BOB" BENTON STILES JR., AGE 82, PASSED AWAY ON MARCH 31, 2025, IN SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, SURROUNDED BY FAMILY. Born in Victoria, Texas on December 18, 1942, Bob lived a life as big, bold and spirited as the landscapes he loved to explore. Bob was a dynamic leader and global adventurer whose professional achievements were matched only by his deep civic and spiritual commitments. A tireless volunteer, accomplished international businessman, and devoted dog trainer, he brought passion, integrity, and a servant's heart to every corner of his life. A proud alumnus of Central Catholic High School (1961) and Texas A&M University (1968), he earned his degree from the School of Aerospace Engineering, where he served as the Chairman of the Student Branch of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Bob began his career in the aerospace industry, but it was in the resource development sector that he found his calling-serving as President of Drven Corporation, Past President of Diamond Shamrock's Coal Division, Past President of the Alaska Coal Association and Past President of the Resource Development Council. His work took him from the mountains of Montana to the rugged frontiers of Alaska, and across the globe to Japan, China, Korea, Taiwan, and Mexico, where he marketed projects with vision and enthusiasm. Whether building bridges between cultures or forging deals in the boardroom, Bob brought unmatched energy, curiosity, and fearlessness to the task. Bob had stories for every occasion, some that were probably better left untold, but he told them anyway. He had a wanderlust that could not be satisfied and had an everlasting sense of adventure. He hiked, biked, hunted, and fished in nearly every corner of the earth and was always up for anything that sounded remotely dangerous. He was afraid of nothing. His children will always cherish the memories made outdoors — hunting from Texas to Montana, fishing from helicopters in Alaska, 4x4ing through the backcountry in his beloved International Scout, and getting gloriously stuck in remote parts of Colorado and Montana. Bob was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Deb Stiles; his parents, Robert Benton Stiles Sr. and Rose Lavelle; his brother Doss Stiles, and his great-grandson, Henry "Hank" Haynes. He is survived by his sisters, Lisa Williams and Christine Frank (Chris); his children, Cindy Silverstein (Brad), Wendy Stiles (significant other Jeff Sill), Robert Stiles III (Lori), Scott Stiles (Marty) and his former wife, Sandra Kiolbassa, the mother of his children, with whom he shared a common bond. Bob was a proud grandfather to Katie Haynes (Mark), John Blair (Jill), Grace Torres (Ethan), Samantha Silverstein, Ellen Brodbeck, Shelby Janaky (David), Jett Power (significant other Rebecca Anthony), Rachel Cole (Padraig Keane), Shane Cole (Kaybree), Robert "Ben" Stiles IV (fiancé Reagan Hayes), Sydney Stiles, Bryton Wolfe (Kendall), Scotty Stiles, Annika Stiles, and Jovonte Ginez. He is also survived by his cherished great-grandchildren; Emily & Juliet Blair, Colton & Ava Haynes, Hudson Torres, Brody Brodbeck, Kashton & Kellan Cole, Ronan & Fianna Keane, and Jack Wolf. Many nieces and nephews and his faithful black Labrador Retriever "Major." A celebration of Bob's extraordinary life was held May 12 at Holy Spirit Catholic Church in San Antonio. IN MEMORIAM: ROBERT 'BOB' STILES JR. VOLUME 2 | ISSUE 2 | SPRING 2025 6 ALASKA RESOURCE REVIEW SPRING 2025
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