Photo credit: Midland County Public Library Foundation / Rosalind Redfern Grover (left) pictured with Linda Cowden (right)

What happened: Midland bids farewell to one of its stewards. Rosalind “Roz” Redfern Grover passed away on Nov. 21 at age 84. Services will be held at First Presbyterian Church on Thursday, Dec. 11, at noon, followed by a reception at Midland Country Club. She leaves behind family, friends, and a community she helped shape.

For more than half a century, Grover stood at the center of Midland’s key institutions: health care, children’s services, civic life, and the region’s oil and gas industry. Her leadership was grounded in conviction, hard work, and the belief that Midland had the capacity to meet every challenge.

A life intertwined with Midland’s growth

Born in Midland, Grover originally planned to become a history teacher, but life eventually took her in another direction. She and her husband, Arden, entered the oil and gas business, building careers that positioned them as principled leaders during decades of change in the Permian Basin.

Grover believed deeply that West Texas deserved strong, modern health care. That belief guided decades of service at Midland Memorial Hospital, where she chaired the Midland Memorial Foundation Board of Governors and helped steer long-term improvements that expanded specialty services and strengthened the hospital’s ability to serve a fast-growing region.

A long record of philanthropic leadership

Beyond health care, Grover played a significant role in supporting cultural, educational, and community institutions across Midland. She served with the Petroleum Museum and lent her support to the Midland Symphony Guild. She also backed the Midland County Public Libraries, which named an annual Library Benefactor Award in her honor.

Her philanthropic work earned recognition from the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, local fundraising groups, and civic-service awards, including a finalist spot for the Dallas News 2021 “Texan of the Year” for her leadership across philanthropy, business, and public service.

A guiding force in both industry and community

As CEO of Redfern & Grover Resources, LLC, Gover navigated the oil and gas industry’s boom-and-bust cycles with steadiness, and she became a trusted voice in the field. In 2008, the Permian Basin Petroleum Association (PBPA) awarded Roz and Arden its highest honor, the Co–Top Hand Award, recognizing a lifetime of integrity, stewardship, and service. PBPA later described her as “an absolute giant… in every place she set foot.”

The institutions Grover strengthened continue to serve thousands of families across West Texas. Her name appears on leadership rolls and acknowledgments, but her legacy lives on in the Midlanders whose lives changed because she showed up, pressed forward, and invited others to do the same. In a city defined by builders, Roz Grover stood among the rare few whose work continues long after she is gone.