CALDWELL — Three years ago, Allen Startz found himself in an unwanted kinship with thousands of other oilfield workers in South Texas’ Eagle Ford shale — laid off with few prospects nearby.

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He left his home in Bryan to work in the Permian Basin in West Texas, making plenty of money, but growing exhausted from the grueling 450-mile trip he made every couple of weeks to visit his family, whom he missed dearly. Today, however, he wakes up in his own bed each morning and heads to a job operating oilfield services trucks in the northeastern Eagle Ford, just 30 miles away.

“I finally get to see my kids all the time,” said Startz, 52. “This is actually the first time I’ve ever worked and gone home on the same day. I’m getting back in the swing of things being a dad.” [read more]