Legacy Landowner Leads TFA in 2025

By Susan Stutts, Senior Director

David Alders of Nacogdoches was elected President of the Texas Forestry Association (TFA) at the Annual Conference held in Conroe in October. He represents Alders Enterprises LTD, a family limited partnership primarily consisting of timberland ownership in East Texas.

David is poised to lead TFA at a time when change is inevitable. The Texas Legislature is in Session. Demographics are shifting to a younger and more diverse population. That, along with the shift in national leadership, will provide opportunities and challenges for TFA, and David Alders is well-equipped to lead through this transformative era.

A strong beginning. David's upbringing on a cattle farm in East Texas laid the foundation for his understanding of land and agriculture. He credits his parents, Nolan, a vocational ag teacher and later an administrator, and mom, Virginia, a homemaking teacher and then a Texas history teacher, for their upbringing and early investments in timberlands that shaped him into what he is today.

In high school, David participated in FFA (Future Farmers of America), taking on state and national positions. He then attended Texas A&M University, earning a Bachelor of Science in agricultural economics. David took on leadership roles at Texas A&M and was President of the Student Body in 1984-1985. He was awarded the Brown Foundation-Earl Rudder Memorial Outstanding Student award at graduation.

Texas A&M holds another virtue close to David's heart: it's where he met and married Nicole. After graduation, they moved to Dallas, and David worked in commercial real estate with Trammell Crow Company, a position that would have opened doors to a lucrative career. The tragic loss of their firstborn son, however, "was a pivotal moment in their lives and caused them to shift priorities and perspectives," David said. After three years in Dallas, he and Nicole decided to move toward family and a different way of life. It just so happened that a house had been recently vacated on a family property in Woden, Texas, so they took it. Their journey has been a remarkable blend of faith, family, and a commitment to agriculture and forestland management.

When one door closes, another door opens. David started working on the family cattle farm after they moved. After about a year, he realized he would not get ahead punching cows alone, so in 1989, he established a poultry farm, which became his and Nicole's primary income. He also maintained the family’s cattle herd in Nacogdoches County.

Throughout these early years, David and Nicole went on to have eight children. "I can't say we intentionally planned on having a large family," David said. "I think, after losing Jon David, we were just so grateful to accept each child as God's blessing," David said. Later, he and Nicole adopted two local children who had lost both their parents. It was a busy time for the couple, as Nicole was also a teacher at Regents Academy for many years and the bookkeeper for their poultry business. They also started Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church, where David is still an elder. After 40 years of marriage, they have 10 children and 19 grandchildren (and more on the way).

In recent years, David and Nicole sold the original poultry farm and farmhouse to a daughter and son-in-law, but they retained a poultry farm which they built in 2001 (along with a timber-framed residence they also built at that time) on property a few miles south of Woden. As the years went on, his family gradually increased their investments in timberland. Although he's still in the poultry business, David is heavily involved in Alders Enterprises LTD's timber investments. He works on the ground to ensure sustainable management practices are being conducted, and he has a great appreciation for his logger, Ronald Murdock, whom he nominated and was chosen as the 2023 Texas Outstanding Logger of the Year.

There's more. In addition to local economic development involvement, David has an extensive history in the political arena, though he has never run for office. Always interested in public service, in college, he was a summer intern for then-U.S. Senator John Tower. A few years later, David was appointed by Governor Perry as a charter member of a new state rural agency, the Office of Rural Community Affairs, which later became the Texas Department of Rural Affairs, and served on the board throughout its existence, having also been chairman of the board. "What it did primarily was provide federal HUD grants for water and wastewater treatment utilities for rural communities and rural economic development," David said.

Since then, David has served as a gubernatorial appointee on the board of directors of the State Bar of Texas, and on the Board of Regents for Stephen F. Austin State University, where he served for 10 years, including a term as chairman.

David serves the Texas Farm Bureau and the Texas Forestry Association in the policy process. He is currently chair of TFA's Legislative Committee, where he leads discussions, implements action items, and testifies at state committee hearings on TFA's behalf. He has served in numerous other board capacities, including the Texas Agricultural Land Trust, Heritage Land Bank and is currently a member of the board of directors of Citizens 1st Bank. He is a charter member and current Vice Chairman of the East Texas (Region I) Regional Water Planning Group, a political subdivision of the State of Texas.

A steady hand of leadership. "It's an important year," David said. "There are important points in history where we have a generational change. I think the Baby Boomer generation is leaving positions of leadership in our society, and the Millennials and Gen Zers are coming in, and we will have to look for leadership from a new generation. Shifting demographics is organic and gradual, but I think we're there," he added.

David understands the importance of TFA's intentional approach to bringing up a younger generation and giving them leadership opportunities. "TFA has done a good job laying the groundwork for the future with the LEAF [Leaders Evolving Across Forestry] program. TFA is involving younger professionals on its Board of Directors and committees,” he said.

“It's a legislative year; we'll spend a lot of time in Austin. We will also see a big transition in the federal government, possibly shaking up the government as we know it. We'll need strong leadership in the board of directors and staff to represent our interests in federal and state arenas,” David said.

"We have opportunities ahead of us in terms of outreach and education that we need to be thoughtful about, partly relating to the new generations and consumers as they are further removed from the land and possibly a resurgence of interest in land, food, and the environment. All of this represents both opportunities and challenges. Being an effective voice for wise stewardship of natural resources is what TFA is about,” David said.

There's value in TFA Membership. David has a great rapport with the diverse membership of the Texas Forestry Association. He is well-versed in forestry economics and local economic development and understands the issues facing the forest sector. "My experience with the Texas Forestry Association has been deeply impactful and highlights the multifaceted benefits of membership. It's a place of networking and getting to know the various stakeholders on a personal level —whether it's consultants, fellow landowners, or industry professionals—all of them bring value to TFA," David said. "Advocacy certainly is a huge reason for being part of TFA, knowing that our interests as an industry are being advanced, and sometimes defended, in both Austin and Washington."

Several years ago, David and Nicole became life members of TFA. "I felt that the investment of being a life member in TFA was a bargain, particularly as a young person in forestry," David said. "As a landowner, that value in membership is obvious. “My family's legacy is in forestry, and I need somebody like TFA to represent me [family] and advance the industry," he added.

In his own words - forest landowners. "I’m a forest landowner, and over the years, TFA leadership has been well-represented by landowners such as Hiram Arnold and Jerry Marcontell. If you think about the membership at our annual meetings, you look around and see the old guys – my dad was there until this year – the older ones who have been there for decades are often the landowners. The reason why they’re there is not because of any salary they ever made from the forest sector. They are there because they have a passion for timberland management and ownership and many times, it’s a family legacy. It’s like their being. They are land stewards, and they care about their property. I’m proud to represent that group on the TFA board and officers this year as president because there is no class of people in TFA membership that care more about the land and forests and forestry than forest landowners.”

David also noted that employees of forestry companies can benefit from TFA in significant ways, even though their connection may not be as personal as that of landowners. TFA serves as a bridge that connects various stakeholders, creating a more informed and cohesive industry, whether one represents a family legacy or contributes to a larger corporate entity.

What he does in his “spare” time. David and Nicole have a compelling interest in history and theology. With their children grown and mostly on their own, they take time to travel abroad. They have a passion for learning and appreciating the history, culture, architecture, and food of the countries they have visited, and they enjoy it immensely.

Gratitude. “I certainly owe everything that I know about forestry to my Dad,” David said. “ And really all that I learned about life and relating with people I learned from him. Honoring your word and being a person of integrity are some of the many things I learned from Dad and Mom. I’m very thankful for God’s providence in making me a child of Nolan and Virginia Alders.”

When he could have succeeded elsewhere in the business environment, David said, “God made me a chicken farmer. Granted, we’re more into timber management now, but I’ve spent years raising chickens and punching cows and training my sons to work on the farm, and I am grateful for that. The farm put our kids through school and college, and Nicole used the proceeds to put wonderful meals on the family table.”

David’s well-rounded education, career, and various levels of public service make him an ideal person to lead the Texas Forestry Association. He is compassionate, dependable, willing, and present, and TFA members will benefit even more from his year of presidency.

Author’s note: After the hour-long Zoom interview, I told David that, considering all his experiences, he should write a book. And he said, “My kids are my book.” And then he went to feed the cows.