Executive Leadership
Shawn Patterson
President & Chief Executive Officer
Shawn L. Patterson became President & Chief Executive Officer in 2022; he started with Southern Star in 2017 as Chief Operations Officer. Prior to joining Southern Star, Mr. Patterson was the Senior Vice President of Operations at TransCanada Pipeline USA Ltd. He also held the previous roles of Chief Operating Officer & Executive Vice President at Columbia Pipeline Group, Inc., General Manager for Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania and Maryland, and Vice President Engineering for NiSource.
Mr. Patterson began his career in the industry in 1995 with a passion for building strong teams, safety culture, growth platforms and optimizing organizations’ capabilities. He is a driven executive leader and takes pride in team success. Mr. Patterson has been recognized by industry associates for his innovative approach to business solutions.
Mr. Patterson received his undergraduate degree from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology and an MBA from the University of Notre Dame. He serves on the boards of the Southern Gas Association, the Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce, and the Regional Water Resource Agency (Wastewater Services for Owensboro & Daviess County, KY).
Mr. Patterson’s management team includes the following: Chris Schindler, Executive Vice President, General Counsel, Corporate Secretary & Chief Compliance Officer; Charles Crews, Executive Vice President & Chief Operations Officer; Drew Bailey, Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer; Dave Roberts, Vice President, Commercial Services & Strategy; Ashley Knight, Vice President, Human Resources; and Sarah O’Bryan, Administrative Executive Assistant.
Chris Schindler
Executive Vice President, General Counsel, Corporate Secretary & Chief Compliance Officer
Chris Schindler joined Southern Star in June 2019 and currently serves as Executive Vice President, General Counsel, Corporate Secretary and Chief Compliance Officer. Mr. Schindler brings extensive experience representing diverse energy company clients in regulatory, compliance, commercial, litigation, enforcement, and strategic counseling matters. Prior to joining Southern Star, he served as Partner at Hogan Lovells, US LLP in Washington, D.C. where he started as an Associate in 1994 and became Partner in 2002. During his time there, Mr. Schindler handled complex regulatory matters before FERC, CFTC and state commissions; drafted and negotiated commercial agreements and executed regulatory strategies for energy infrastructure projects; and litigated FERC rate cases. He was also a frequent national speaker on FERC and CFTC regulatory issues.
Mr. Schindler received his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University and continued to George Washington University to earn his Master of Arts in 1991 and Juris Doctor with Honors in 1994. He serves on the board of the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America and the Owensboro-Daviess County Regional Airport.
Charles Crews
Executive Vice President & Chief Operations Officer
Charles Crews joined Southern Star in December 2022 as Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer. With more than 30 years of industry experience, Mr. Crews has held various leadership and executive positions. Prior to joining Southern Star, Mr. Crews served as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Northeast Gas Association (NGA). Prior to NGA, he led an independent management consulting firm where he assisted clients on a broad spectrum of areas including operations management, capital investment strategies, infrastructure planning, organizational design, and business plan development. Mr. Crews also served as Vice President for Consumers Energy, one of the nation’s largest investor-owned utilities, leading the strategy, operations, maintenance, and construction for the company’s natural gas operations division.
Mr. Crews earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Ohio University and his MBA from Capital University where he graduated from both with top honors. He has attended executive leadership courses at Stanford University, Carnegie Mellon University, Rice University, and the American Gas Association.
Mr. Crews serves on the executive committee and board of directors of the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America (INGAA) Foundation and is an executive participant for GTI Energy’s newly created Reliable Affordable Infrastructure for Secure Energy (RAISE) collaborative. He also serves on the board of the Greater Owensboro Economic Development Corporation.
Drew Bailey
Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer
Drew Bailey joined Southern Star in April of 2022 and serves as Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer. Drew is responsible for overseeing all financial operations of the company, including strategic financial planning, budgeting, accounting, and capital management, ensuring the company’s financial strength and supporting long-term growth.
Mr. Bailey has over twenty years of finance and accounting expertise across several industries. Prior to joining Southern Star, Mr. Bailey was Vice President of Finance & Accounting for Energy Systems Group, a subsidiary of CenterPoint Energy (Vectren). He also held various financial positions at Vectren, in the areas of Investments, Treasury and Financial Planning & Analysis.
Mr. Bailey received his undergraduate degree and MBA from the University of Southern Indiana. He is committed to giving back to the community and has served on various nonprofit boards throughout his career. Mr. Bailey currently serves as the board treasurer at the Wendell Foster Center in Owensboro, Kentucky.
Dave Roberts
Vice President, Commercial Services & Strategy
Dave Roberts joined Southern Star in November 2023 and currently serves as Vice President of Commercial Services & Strategy. Dave oversees Southern Star’s commercial operations and business development teams. He also leads the company’s strategic planning, continuous improvement, and enterprise data functions. Mr. Roberts brings over two decades of experience in business strategy and leadership, including directing teams across numerous business functions including Customer Service, Marketing, Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain, IT, HR and Finance. Prior to joining Southern Star, Dave most recently served as Global Director of Distribution and Logistics for Unifirst Corporation. He held previous roles including business unit General Manager, Industrial Engineering Manager and started his career in Quality Planning at Toyota Motor Corporation.
Mr. Roberts earned his undergraduate degree at Murray State University and his MBA from Ole Miss. He has completed executive leadership training programs at Harvard University and the University of Michigan. He is past chair of the Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and the Owensboro Health Foundation. Dave currently serves as Board Chairman of the Owensboro Health Board of Directors and is a member of the Board of Trustees for Kentucky Wesleyan College. He is also active within our industry serving on Southern Gas Association’s Executive Council.
Ashley Knight
Vice President, Human Resources
Ashley Knight joined Southern Star in April 2019 and currently serves as Vice President of Human Resources. In this role, she leads the company’s human capital strategy, driving initiatives focused on talent acquisition, leadership development, organizational culture, talent development and change management.
With more than 15 years of experience in human resources, Ashley brings a diverse background spanning the manufacturing, training and government sectors. Her leadership has consistently centered on building high performing teams, fostering inclusive workplace cultures, and aligning people strategies with long-term business goals.
Ashley is deeply engaged in the natural gas industry and the broader community. She severs on the Board of Directors for the Owensboro Riverport Authority and actively contributes to the Southern Gas Association (SGA), where she has served on the DEI Council, Women & Leadership Committee and the HR Committee.
