Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
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CLOVIS — The Clovis Municipal Schools Board of Education unanimously approved changes to six board policies and three board regulations during Tuesday’s meeting. In part, the changes establish protocol for alerting parents of kindergarten through third-grade students if their child does not meet mid-year literacy benchmarks. Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Kerry Parker previously said the edited policies were meant to align the district with changes to state law. In other business at Tuesday’s meeting (all votes...
CANNON AIR FORCE BASE — It’s not unusual for Cannon Air Force Base squadrons to do physical training on Fridays. What is unusual is when dozens of undead try to attack them along the way. But that was the case during Friday morning’s zombie run. It featured over 350 airmen going for a run just over 5 kilometers while trying to escape the grasps of about 45 Clovis High School Junior ROTC students and other volunteers dressed as zombies. “A lot of squadrons have come out to do t...
CLOVIS — After 15-plus years at the helm of the Republican Party of Curry County, Rube Render announced this month he will not seek re-election when party members vote for a chairman in early 2019. Besides the typical reason a public figure gives for stepping away from their position — “I want to spend more time with my family, I’ve always wanted to say that,” he joked — Render told The News that he feels now is the time for somebody else to lead the party. He said he believes it’s bad for the county and the individual to...
PORTALES — The results are in and Eastern new Mexico University's efforts to bring down costs for students outside of the Land of Enchantment have paid off. The Portales campus recently ranked 10th out of 1,800-plus schools in a list of lowest out-of-state tuition and fees organized by U.S. News & World Report. "I'm really glad because that was our goal to make good education as affordable as possible," said Jeff Elwell, president of ENMU-Portales. "(T)o be literally the 10th...
CLOVIS — For the third year in a row, Hillcrest Park will embrace the Halloween spirit for Boo in the Zoo. That means games, face painting, a bouncy house and candy galore for local residents. Organizer Terri Chavez said organizers go into the zoo the night before the event and "transform it into a Halloween everything, from spooky to comical" with pumpkin trees and skeleton fences. "It looks like the Great Pumpkin threw up on the zoo," Chavez said of the zoo's t...
CLOVIS — Motorists used to traveling across the Prince Street overpass connecting north Clovis to south Clovis have been inconvenienced for about two months now. But officials say that's pretty much the extent of the problems caused by construction that's closed the overpass until next summer — inconvenience. Even emergency responders say they're not seeing issues they hadn't planned for. "It's something that we definitely planned for," Clovis Fire Battalion Chief Joel Ger...
CLOVIS — A fixture of the Clovis newspaper's faith pages for nearly 40 years has decided to retire her pen. Judy Brandon, who has lived in Clovis since her father became pastor at Central Baptist Church in the mid-1950s, said she always loved to write. She got her start writing faith columns for the Clovis High School newspaper when she was a student there. An opportune phone call to The Clovis News Journal office in 1979 got Brandon her start writing a column for the city n... Full story
CLOVIS — As you can see from driving or walking down Main Street, the renovation project at the Curry County Adult Detention Center is well underway. And the framework of the new addition is starting to take shape. Facilities Maintenance Superintendent Ben Roberts told The News that the concrete slabs and wall footings for the housing, medical unit and salleyport additions have all been completed. As have the initial stages of the plumbing and electrical work, with the c...
CLOVIS — One Clovis resident is proving that with some wood, a few screws, a drill and a big heart you can feed the hungry or simply lift a spirit. Anyone driving past 2004 Cameo St. in the past week may have seen the "blessing box" now located in the front yard, stocked with various food and hygiene items for anyone to take. While Janice Lopez said the blessing box idea was something she saw on the photo-sharing website Pinterest, the concept of helping the needy goes back t... Full story
CLOVIS - The Food Bank of Eastern New Mexico had much to celebrate Friday. In addition to its 35th anniversary, The Food Bank also recognized retiring board member Allan Isbell and thanked Clovis city officials for their role in the recent completion of a $70,000 capital outlay project to fix the organization's cold storage. "He has been our mentor, he has been our sounding board, he has been our rock for many, many years," board President Kathy Schafer said of Isbell....
CLOVIS — The sight of someone walking down 14th Street, after dark, wearing a mask and carrying a softball bat could be cause for alarm. But this weekend, it was fun — just part of the 25th Annual Halloween Howwwl softball tournament that runs through this afternoon. Clovis Softball Association Tournament Coordinator Roger Jackson said 150 teams competed, including 25 who were trying to win games in addition to the tournament’s costume contest. Jackson said the Howwwl is CS...
CLOVIS — An art show three years in the making debuted last week with the first "Celebrate the Art, Celebrate the Artist" event held at the Recreation Education Development Building across from ENMRSH offices in Clovis. Several ENMRSH (Eastern New Mexico Rehabilitation Services for the Handicapped) clients had their work featured as a part of the program, which was bursting with color. Local artist Patsy Delk said for three years she has been leading classes with the a...
PORTALES — The Eastern New Mexico University Board of Regents on Friday heard an update from Chancellor Jeff Elwell regarding a potential new recreation and wellness center on the Portales campus. Elwell showed a video that featured an artist’s rendering of the potential 33,000 square foot facility, which included an elevated track, basketball courts, a climbing wall, a weight room, space for fitness classes and a concession stand. Elwell said a survey completed by 744 ENMU students asking would they approve of a $3.33 per...
CLOVIS — This year’s Curry County Fair brought in more money than a year ago and saw more people in attendance. The information came from Keller Taylor, the district general manager for Spectra, the company that manages the county’s events center. Curry County commissioners heard the update during Tuesday’s meeting. Keller said the 2018 fair had a net income of about $77,000 — a 9 percent increase over last year — and had an attendance just shy of 35,000 — an 8 percent increase from 2017. Keller also provided a report on gen...
PORTALES — Eastern New Mexico’s 45th annual celebration of all things peanut is back. The Roosevelt County Fairgrounds in Portales this weekend hosts the Peanut Valley Craft & Music Festival. Organizers are touting some new features — and of course a whole lot of peanuts — at this year’s event. Karl Terry, executive director of the Roosevelt County Chamber of Commerce, said one of the biggest changes to the festival, which runs from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, is coming to the health fa...
Voters in the Land of Enchantment will consider over $150 million in general obligation bonds and a pair of constitutional amendments when casting their ballots on Nov. 6. The vast majority of that sum comes from Bond D, which, if approved, would provide $128.4 million for higher education institutions statewide. Locally the largest allocation would go to Eastern New Mexico University, with $8 million going to the Portales campus to begin phase one of the renovation of the Roosevelt Science Center, which was built in 1953....
CLOVIS — You wouldn’t know it from looking at the ballot, but Curry County voters will have two choices for county assessor when they head to the polls on Nov. 6. Candace Morrison is seeking election for a second-straight four-year term. Morrison also served as county assessor as an appointee for two years prior to her successful 2014 campaign. Lunden Hromas, a former appraiser with the county, is seeking the position as a write-in candidate. County Clerk Annie Hogland said Hromas’ name will not appear on the ballot and v...
CLOVIS — Faith Christian Family Church once again offered the community a chance to warm up - body and spirit - with its 26th annual Coats for Kids event at the church last weekend. Coordinator Carolyn Rubio-Lopez said hundreds of coats and jackets were distributed, free of charge, along with hats, gloves and snow boots on a rainy Saturday morning. "Because of the weather of course we didn't do as well as we normally do but we actually did really good," Rubio-Lopez said. "...
PORTALES — While the majority of eastern New Mexico will be gearing up for Halloween, one Portales resident will be changing gears on his bicycle during a nearly 500 mile ride across Thailand. Michael Parsons, 65, who moved to Portales in May, said he will be traveling about 60 miles via bicycle each day for nine days starting Oct. 21 as he makes his way from Bangkok to Phuket with a group of riders. Parsons, who has also toured parts of Europe and Vietnam on his bike, said t...
The rainfall eastern New Mexico saw on Tuesday is expected to continue later this week, which agriculture officials say will have a mixed effect on farmers. “We’ve had a fairly unsettled weather pattern over the last few days, a stark difference through much of September,” National Weather Service Meteorologist Todd Shoemake said. According to Shoemake, local residents can expect a break in the damp and cold conditions today but should prepare for temperatures to drop and rain to fall as we move into Friday and Satur...
CLOVIS — A vocal, vibrant, divided crowd of about 500 people greeted the New Mexico Racing Commission for its public comment session Friday. While a clear majority supported proposals for a racino in Clovis, opponents made a strong showing. Speakers during the two-hour gathering favored the project, 27-16. When those opposing were asked to stand, about a third of the audience arose. Community heavyweights were among the critics, including Clovis Mayor David Lansford and former Lt. Gov. Walter Bradley. Supporters cited the eco... Full story
CLOVIS — The Clovis Community College Board of Trustees heard the annual review of the school’s Title V grants during Wednesday’s meeting. Laura White, CCC’s Title V project director and activity coordinator, said the $2,623,624 grant paid for new technological additions to the college including interactive monitors and “Learning Glass” which allows instructors to record elements of their class. White said the grant has also gone toward the college’s new early alert system, which provides notices to students related to mi...
PORTALES — Free food, a parade and some new traditions highlight Eastern New Mexico University’s Homecoming 2018, set to kick off at noon on Monday. It runs through Saturday night’s Greyhound football game. The festivities for the 84th iteration of the annual homecoming week begin on Monday with a dance performance in the campus union at noon, followed by Songfest from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Other musical and dramatic events continue throughout the week and the Greyhound women’s soccer team hosts West Texas A&M University Wednesd...
DORA — Investigators with the attorney general’s office searched the homes of two former Dora school employees last week. The searches were related to an investigation into alleged improper janitorial supply purchases, according to court records obtained by The News following an Inspection of Public Records Act request. While documents and devices were seized during the searches, findings related to the investigation have not been released. In a search warrant affidavit, investigators allege Steve Butler, former mai...
CLOVIS — When the New Mexico Racing Commission comes to town for a site visit on Friday, hundreds of people dressed in yellow shirts are planning to show support. Vision 2020 members say a Clovis race track/casino would bring “sunny” prospects for growing Clovis, including hundreds of jobs. They also project millions of dollars in economic impact for the city, mostly provided by out-of-town visitors. Their polls, they say, show 90 percent of Clovis residents support bringing a racino to town. But not everyone is excit...
