Fred Kirkwood retires from AOG utility after four decades of service

George "Clay" Mitchell, Fort Smith Southwest Times Record

Mon, January 19, 2026 at 10:05 AM UTC

4 min read

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When Fort Smith Mayor George McGill proclaimed Jan. 8 as “Fred Kirkwood Day,” the honor recognized more than a job title or a retirement date. It marked the close of a four-decade career defined by service to customers, coworkers and the community Kirkwood chose to call home.

Kirkwood, chief customer experience officer for Arkansas Oklahoma Gas, a subsidiary of Summit Utilities, retired Jan. 13 after 40 years in the natural gas industry. In that time, he helped lead customer-focused operations across six states, serving more than 625,000 customers.

But Kirkwood’s path into the industry was anything but strategic.

“I’d like to sound real strategic, like I planned it all out, but that’s not the case,” he said with a laugh.

Fresh out of college at Central State University in Oklahoma, Kirkwood applied for jobs largely for one reason: to get closer to the woman he was dating. She returned to her family's home in Roland, and Kirkwood, then living in Mississippi, wanted to be back in the River Valley.

He applied to both AOG and ABF. ABF offered first, but required a year in Nashville. When AOG called the next day, the decision was simple.

“I’m gonna get there quicker,” he said. “So I took the job. And 40 years later, I’m still here.”

At the time, Kirkwood said he knew little about the natural gas business.

“I didn’t know anything about gas except that my mother paid the gas bill,” he said. “But once I got here, the business intrigued me. The interest just kept growing.”

An industry that changed — and one that didn’t

Looking back, Kirkwood said the heart of the job has remained constant: providing an essential service that keeps homes warm, businesses running and families safe.

“What’s always stayed the same is the dedication of the people,” he said. “Really good people who care deeply about what they do.”

What has changed, he said, is how utilities meet customers where they are.

“When I started, everything was handled by mail or in person,” Kirkwood said. “Now it’s about meeting customer needs electronically, making it easy and accessible in today’s world.”

That shift toward customer experience became the most personal part of his work, particularly during moments of hardship.

“When bills were high, and people were struggling, that’s what stuck with me,” he said. “Being able to help them find a solution, that mattered.”

Under Kirkwood’s leadership, AOG and Summit expanded energy-efficiency programs, payment options, and assistance initiatives designed to move beyond short-term fixes.

“A payment plan can be a Band-Aid,” he said. “But insulation, weatherization, those are solutions that help families for the rest of their lives.”

Community as a classroom

Although Kirkwood didn’t grow up in Fort Smith, he became deeply rooted here, serving with organizations including Leadership Fort Smith, the Fort Smith Boys and Girls Club, United Way and the Greater Fort Smith Association of Homebuilders.

Those roles, he said, shaped how he approached leadership.

“Every organization gave me a different perspective on how the community works and what people really need,” Kirkwood said. “That understanding helped us build programs that actually made a difference.”

He credits that engagement with helping him see the human side of infrastructure — from families struggling to stay warm to seniors living alone in inefficient homes.

“Being involved in the community wasn’t separate from my job,” he said. “It was essential to it.”

Lessons that began at home

Kirkwood traces his leadership philosophy back long before his first day at AOG — to his mother.

A single parent raising four children, she worked daily while still finding time to help neighbors, feed other kids and care for extended family.

“She was the greatest example of servant leadership, even before anyone called it that,” Kirkwood said. “She had very little education, but she taught us hard work, integrity and helping others, even when you don’t have much yourself.”

Those lessons, he said, carried seamlessly into his professional life.

“I’ve been fortunate to work for an organization that allowed me to bring who I am to the job,” he said. “That’s how we served our customers.”

Looking ahead

As retirement approaches, Kirkwood said his first challenge will be not driving to work.

“For 40 years, I’ve always been on,” he said, joking that even the company’s time-off policy earned the nickname “Fred Time Off.”

In the months ahead, he plans to spend time with family, travel with his wife and eventually return in a consulting role to help develop future leaders.

“I’ve been incredibly fortunate,” Kirkwood said. “This industry, the people I’ve worked with, this community, it’s been a gift.”

And even after four decades, he makes a point to credit those who helped shape his journey from the beginning.

“I can’t do an interview without mentioning the Home Builders Association,” he said. “They became family in my first week on the job, and they’ve been part of every success since.”

For Kirkwood, the legacy isn’t measured in years or titles, but in relationships, the very thing Fort Smith chose to honor with a day bearing his name.

This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: From first job to 40-year career, Fred Kirkwood retires from AOG

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