Houston Deal Flow Breakfast - February 2024

Mr. Donnell is a Principal for Amberjack Capital Partners, a firm he joined in 2016, and oversees numerous portfolio investments for the firm. From 2013 to 2016, Mr. Donnell served in various positions for PPHB, LP, a Houston-based investment bank focused on transactions within the energy industry, where he advised on mergers and acquisitions. Mr. Donnell holds a Master of Science in Finance from the University of Texas at Austin and a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from Rhodes College.

Bill Byle began his career at Texas Commerce Bank (now JPM), followed by Amegy Bank, and then Texas Capital Bank. While in banking he covered corporate and investment banking. Most recently, at Texas Capital Bank, Bill was Managing Director in Syndications focusing on private equity sponsors, followed by creating a national beverage industry vertical for the bank. At Amegy Bank, Bill led a private equity initiative that invested into 40 private equity funds with 25 managers.

Bill also worked full time for Faust Distributing for two years and continues to serve on their Advisory Board. After leaving Texas Capital Bank, Bill formed BIG Advisors a consulting firm focused on his historic relationships in the food and beverage industry as well as assisting banks, mezzanine funds, and private equity funds. He holds Series 7 and 63 FINRA licenses.

Sam Veselka joined Pelican in 2018 and currently serves on the Board of Directors of AWC Frac Technology, Shepherd Safety Systems, Vault Pressure Control, and WedgeRock Engineered Solutions. Sam has helped to facilitate the sale of Epic International to Cooper Machinery Services, Air Relief to Fluid Flow Products, Pride Energy Services to Innovex Downhole Solutions, and Performance Multi-Flow Solutions to DNOW.

Prior to joining Pelican, Sam worked at Cameron, a Schlumberger company, running the North American aftermarket business for the Valves & Measurement division. After graduating from business school, Sam joined Cameron and served in several different roles focused on M&A, strategy, and business development. Before attending business school, Sam worked at a privately held, Houston manufacturing business in the construction industry, working in numerous functions including finance, operations, sales, and marketing. During this time, Sam worked closely with the owner tackling the unique challenges associated with growing small businesses.

Sam earned his MBA from the Jones Graduate School of Business at Rice University with a concentration in Finance, and a B.A. in Economics from the University of Colorado in Boulder.