Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
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Before the Clovis Community College (CCC) Board of Trustees hire a new president, the board needs to decide on hiring a consulting firm to help them find qualified candidates for the job. Board Chair Lora Harlan presented an update on progress toward choosing a firm at the Wednesday’s regular board meeting. In July, the board voted to appoint Trustee Jan Bradburn and Harlan to seek out proposals from companies that can help them in the search. The proposals will include the cost, what each company is going to do, and the t...
Editor's note: This is one in a continuing series of state-of-the-entity interviews with local officials. Col. Jeremy Bergin is the commander, 27th Special Operations Wing, Cannon Air Force Base. Bergin took command in May. Also in this interview is 27th Special Operations Wing Chief Master Sgt. Colin Fleck. Q: Tell us a little bit about yourself. What inspires you? What frightens you? What makes you laugh out loud? A: (Bergin) Both my mom and my dad served in the Air Force....
It was a busy, yet successful, two-day summit for Ogallala Commons (OC) as they put on their first ever Brazos River Headwaters Local Food Summit at Clovis Community College (CCC) on Tuesday and Wednesday. OC describes itself on its website as a multi-state "nonprofit education and leadership organization that reinvigorates commonwealth to build vibrant Great Plains communities." OC's website states the organization has established chapters in areas covered by the Ogallala...
Xcel Energy announced on Wednesday that it will invest approximately $770 million in existing Texas and New Mexico power generating facilities by extending the life of two older natural gas-fueled units, constructing solar generating systems and adding battery storage. According to an Xcel press release, the investments are designed to “meet growing electricity needs and retire power plant generators that have served customers for close to seven decades.” Xcel Energy’s plan is to extend the life of the two natural gas units a...
With the first day of school just around the corner, the Portales and Clovis school districts have been boosting security measures in response to concerns of students, parents and school employees. Portales is implementing a new system called Rave Panic. This consists of an app that all teachers and administrators will have access to on their phones. It allows them in emergencies to dispatch law enforcement to their location with the push of a button. "It's for fire, ambulance...
The summer break ends on Aug. 7, the first day of classes, for students in Grady and Melrose schools, with classes to begin on dates ranging from Aug. 9 to Aug. 21 in other districts in Curry and Roosevelt counties. Students and parents should be ready for somewhat longer school days as schools have additional time requirements to help bring student achievement levels up after the COVID-19 pandemic. Following are first days of classes and other important information for students and parents to know before class begins. Some...
This week marks week 23, and Baby Sena is the size of a grapefruit. I’ve definitely been able to feel the growth inside of me, considering I can’t button any of my pants anymore. I’ve officially moved into maternity clothing. Also, I know my belly is stretching because of how itchy my skin gets throughout the day. Still no stretch marks yet … but I’m sure they’ll make their appearance toward the end. Ever since we found out Baby Sena is a girl, all of our family has started gifting us with goodies and shopping for all thi...
Editor's note: This is one in a continuing series of state-of-the-entity interviews with local officials. Sandra Taylor-Sawyer is the director of the Small Business Development Center at Clovis Community College. Q: Are you seeing an increase in clientele (people who seek to start new businesses)? A: Yes, we are. Really, since 2021, we have seen an increase in the number of people who are wanting to start to expand or diversify their business. Q: How well-prepared is a...
The Clovis City Commission on Thursday heard from residents concerned about living conditions at the Lo Lomas Apartments. Two women who led the discussion brought along several residents who shared their experiences with the management of the apartments, saying they felt threatened and neglected. “Who are we as Clovis to leave them like this?” one of the women asked the commission. Conditions cited included elderly residents living with mold in their apartments and no air conditioning. The property is a 55-unit housing com...
U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, D-New Mexico, has introduced a bipartisan Women in Agriculture Act that would make sure women's agricultural opportunities and potential obstacles would be addressed within the U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). "The ideas that are in this act came from sitting down with ranchers and farmers in Roswell, in Lea County, in Curry County," Leger Fernandez said Tuesday in an interview, "so they're the ones who were explaining what they...
Play in the water. Eat a popsicle. Stay in the shade if you can. That's good advice for these hot summer days – for man and beast. "We get the water hose, or we turn on the sprinkler for them so they can go ahead and have some time to cool off," said Stephanie Chavez, curator at Hillcrest Park Zoo, explaining some of the ways park officials try to ensure zoo residents stay cool. "I know our hyena is one of our animals that absolutely loves to play in the water," Chavez s...
Editor's note: This is one in a continuing series of state-of-the-entity interviews with local officials. KC Messick is the general manager for the Curry County Events Center and Fairgrounds. Q: We're about a month out from the Curry County Fair, scheduled Aug. 15-19. How are you preparing? What can we look forward to? A: All the maintenance prep is underway. We're just getting the barns ready for the junior livestock show and just getting the marketing prepped so that we can...
At their regular meeting Tuesday, the Curry County Commission voted to move forward with the demolition of two concession stands on the fairgrounds. Curry County Events Center (CCEC) and Fairgrounds General Manager, KC Messick, presented the reasoning for the demolition to the commission Tuesday morning. The two concession stands have not been used for the last few years because of them not being up to code. "It would be my recommendation to demo those two small buildings and...
The citizens of Portales are doing a good job at conserving water, but there is still more that needs to be done, John DeSha, the city's public utilities director, on Tuesday told the Portales City Council. The Stage 3 water emergency was declared on June 28, and the mandatory restrictions on water use that were enacted then still apply, DeSha told the council. The city wellfield's capacity has been reduced over the last several years due to the declining levels in the O...
Quite a few updates to give on Baby Sena since the last time I wrote. Where to start? Well, I crossed a pretty big milestone with hitting the 20-week mark of my pregnancy. Halfway there! I got to see the baby for the first time since April, and to say a lot has changed is an understatement. The last time I got an ultrasound, Baby Sena looked like a gummy bear. Now, the baby is very active, has all 10 toes and 10 fingers, and has started to kick frequently. I love that I’ve gotten to feel the flutters finally and that baby i...
Editor's note: This is one in a continuing series of state-of-the-entity interviews with local officials. Ron Jackson has been the mayor of Portales since 2018. Q: Talk about the recent water emergency declaration. What was the reasoning for this? How long do you think it could be in effect? A: We're in stage three, which is our most critical stage to go into just because of our water shortage and its overuse. When we got all the good rain toward the beginning of June,...
The Clovis Community College (CCC) Board of Trustees voted unanimously Wednesday to seek proposals from multiple entities to assist in their search for CCC’s next president. The board then voted to appoint Trustee Jan Bradburn and Chair Lora Harlan to seek out the proposals. The proposals will include the cost, what each company is going to do, and the timeframe each can provide. “We realize that the biggest duty that we have as a board of trustees is upon us right now as we search for a new president,” Harlan said durin...
While firework shows in Clovis and Portales last week created quite a picture in the sky, local fire departments stayed busy on the ground fighting flames. The calls and responses didn't stop for the departments until the sun came up Wednesday morning. None of the incidents that occurred during the holiday caused major damage or injuries, according to fire officials. Local fire departments start preparing for the Fourth of July holiday about six months in advance, according to...
It has been over three years since COVID-19 shut down the world, and Quay and Roosevelt County health officials believe that while COVID isn’t necessarily gone, positive cases in the area have gone down significantly. “There continue to be cases across the country, and in the Clovis area,” said Jason Mitchell, Chief Medical and Clinical Transformation Officer with Presbyterian Health Services. “We are seeing very few COVID-19 patients hospitalized at this time.” Mitchell said, however, hospital staff are anticipat...
Grant funding for Curry County, including Melrose, Texico and Grady is expected to help make various improvements throughout the smaller communities. At their regular meeting Tuesday, the Curry County Commission heard a presentation from Amy Johnson Bassford with Johnson Brassford Consulting. Brassford discussed $60,000 that was received by Curry County from the New Mexico Department of Finance and Administration's capacity building grant in January 2023 and what the grant...
A former Portales teacher is suing the school district after she claims to have been forced to resign for teaching the book “The Hate U Give” to her freshman honors English class. The teacher, Kelly Cradock, was employed by Portales Municipal Schools from August 2020 to February 2022. “Mrs. Cradock’s first amendment rights were violated, her rights under the New Mexico Human Rights Act were violated,” Cradock’s attorney Kristina Martinez said. Portales schools Superintendent Johnnie Cain declined to comment on the lawsuit. A...
The nation celebrates freedom on Tuesday and Clovis-Portales will join in with fireworks displays starting at 9 p.m. in both communities. Clovis hosts its annual “Smoke on the Water” at Greene Acres Park. Activities begin at 11 a.m. with a basketball tournament, skateboarding contest, music and more until the light show begins at dark. “This year is probably going to be the biggest that Clovis has seen,” said Cari Kelly with Global One Media, sponsor of the event. “I’ve been talking with our fireworks shooter, and he’s pu...
Editor's note: This is one in a continuing series of interviews with local officials. Walon Jones has been the road supervisor for Curry County since 2018. Q: What has the last month been like for you? Having to manage all the roads in Curry County after those huge rainstorms? A: Super busy. We've been, you know, blading roads, trying to get washouts filled up, just getting roads where they're passable. Not 100% repair because we just don't have the time. We've been patching...
Pregnancy is a wild thing. Seeing and feeling my body change every day is something I’ve had to adjust to. I’m currently at the 19-week mark, which means Baby Sena is the size of a mango. Oh, and it also means I’m one week away from finding out what the gender of this baby will be. One thing I’m really happy about lately is the fact that I haven’t been nauseous every single day in this second trimester. I never realized how exhausted I truly was there at the beginning. Now that my energy has been somewhat back to normal, I fe...
Editor's note: This is one in a continuing series of interviews with local officials. Johnnie Cain is the superintendent for Portales Municipal Schools. Q: The Legislature made up some new rules for public schools' classroom time that go into effect this school year. What's changing at Portales Municipal Schools? A: The biggest thing we're going to do for adding classroom time is we're going to go 30 minutes extra a day. So, you know, we'll go from 8 to 3:30, instead of 8:05 t...
