Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
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PORTALES – The director of the Portales Islamic Center said Friday the mosque was attacked by vandals Friday for a fifth time since June 1. Ahmed Benssouda, the director, said police and firefighters responded to a report of smoke emerging from the center about 1 a.m. Benssouda said there was smoke inside the building as well as outside. In addition, Benssouda said, "racial messages" were spray-painted on the center's walls, including "the N-word" and the initials "KKK." Benss...
Monday *Portales Farmers’ Market opens for the season – 5 p.m., corner of First Street and Avenue B, Portales. Open Mondays and Thursdays 5 p.m.-sellout through the end of October. Information: 575-760-0690 *Roosevelt County on Cloth work session – 5:30-6:30 p.m., Golden Student Success Center, ENMU, Portales. Explore Roosevelt County history and landmarks through images on cloth. Stitch, work with fabric markers, fabric paint, or other media. All ages welcome; children need adult supervision. Basic supplies provided. Free;...
The New Mexico Public Education Department has relaunched New Mexico Vistas, a website meant to make it easier for parents and school officials to understand how schools are performing. But superintendents for Clovis and Portales schools said last week it will take some time to utilize the data to their benefit. The new system uses a point-based grading system rather than an A-F letter grade used before to classify schools. Portales Superintendent Johnnie Cain said the system is easy to follow and understand, but he’s not y...
On this date ... 1940: O.M. Williamson, assistant professor of agriculture at Eastern New Mexico College, looked a gift horse in the mouth — and then accepted it on behalf of ENMC. A Clovis business man donated a 9-year-old Percheron stallion to the college, “from which it expects to service a wide area in Eastern New Mexico in need of registered blood among its livestock,” the Clovis News-Journal reported. 1941: Funeral services were held at Charles V. Steed Memorial chape...
The books listed below are now available for checkout at the Clovis-Carver Public Library. The library is open to the public, but patrons can still visit the online catalog at cloviscarverpl.booksys.net/opac/ccpl or call 575-769-7840 to request a specific item for curbside pickup. “The Woman Who Wore a Badge” by C.K. Crigger. January Billings is starting over after bringing her husband’s murderer to justice, when a stranger shows up at her ranch door. The sheriff, weaseling out of his duties, has sent him to enlist her help...
Curry Residents Senior Meals Association 901 W. 13th St. Clovis Monday: Brat on a bun, sauerkraut, baked beans, Jell-o. Tuesday: Closed. Wednesday: Open-faced pork sandwich, mashed potatoes, California veggies, sugar cookie. Thursday: Green chile cheeseburger, French fries, Cole slaw, cake. Friday: Baked tilapia, rice pilaf, broccoli, roll with butter, peaches. Baxter-Curren Activity Center 908 Hickory, Clovis 575-762-3631 Monday: 8:30 a.m. Exercise, 10 a.m. Line dance, Jewelry Pals, 1 p.m. Line dance, Canasta, Quidler, 5...
I saw a news item flash across my iPhone last week noting the 16th birthday of the iPhone. And so I clicked on it and was reminded just how many items the marvelous device in my pocket had replaced. It replaced my home phone for starters. I no longer have an alarm clock at my bedside either. I hung on to a specific model of cheap desk calculator until a few years ago when I realized the one on my cell phone was as good and as easy to see and use. I quit wearing a wristwatch...
Noelle Bartl has been raising funds for Eastern New Mexico University for 23 years and there is no signs she is letting up any time soon. Bartl serves as ENMU's associate vice president for advancement and executive director of the ENMU Foundation. She is proud to note that the advancement office has raised $42 million for the university since 1978, which she attributes to "team efforts," and that this year, the ENMU Foundation has awarded $679,000 in scholarships to ENMU...
Several flights at the Clovis Regional Airport were delayed on Monday due to the airport’s automated weather observing system unit shutting down, according to a news release from the City of Clovis. The AWOS unit is owned, operated, and controlled by the Federal Aviation Administration. The release stated that the unit provides “up-to-the-minute” weather reports, such as wind, temperature, relative humidity and other weather conditions, to pilots. Monitored by the FAA staff, the weather reports are easily accessible via t...
The Clovis Municipal School board got some new people in charge Tuesday with the annual change of officers. In one of the first items of business at their regular session, board members elected Terry Martin as President, Cindy Osburn as Vice President and Sharon Epps as Secretary. “We rotate to allow everyone a chance to lead. It’s the same as it’s always been,” Martin said after the meeting.. The officials serve a term of one year. “I’m glad the community puts their faith and trust in us,” Martin said. Shawn Hamilton was...
A Stage 3 emergency water emergency that went into effect Wednesday was properly declared by John DeSha, the city’s public utilities director, according to Portales City Manager Sarah Austin. The Portales City Council did not declare the emergency, but two councilors reacted to it at a council meeting on Tuesday. Ward B Councilor Oscar Robinson said it is unfair to place restrictions on residents when the city will not fix leaks in its own water system. A water leak near his home has persisted for weeks, he said, and has not...
One of Nancy Mascarenas' friends has no idea why the Clovis woman was in Colorado Springs last month. But that's where Mascarenas was when she was shot and killed early June 23. Esperanza Baca said she regarded Mascarenas as a sister. "She was kind of like an aunt too. She was friends with my mom," Baca said. Baca said Mascarenas was in Clovis until recently. "I always remember when Nancy told me, 'You are one of the most considerate people I know,'" Baca said. Baca said Masca...
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...
Tuesday *Independence Day Wednesday *Clovis Community College Board of Trustees special meeting – 8 a.m., CCC, 417 Schepps Blvd., Room 512, Clovis. Information: http://www.clovis.edu/about/administration.aspx or 575-769-4003 *Public input meeting for the 2025-2029 Roosevelt County Infrastructure Capital Improvement Plan (ICIP) – noon, Commission Room, Roosevelt County Courthouse, 109 W. First St., Portales. County residents encouraged to help determine top five capital projects for the next five years, including road enh...
In my last column, I explained why I think the secretary of state should not interfere in an effort to force a referendum on six bills passed this year by the state Legislature. Now I’d like to look at two of the bills being targeted. House Bill 4 will make it easier for more New Mexico residents to exercise their right to vote. More specifically, the bill will automatically register voters through the Motor Vehicle Division, bringing more eligible voters onto the rolls. It will restore the voting rights of convicted f...
Sometimes I think I “own” the supporters of Trump, the way they seek to “own” the liberals. All I have to do is make a case against Donald Trump and they come out of the woodwork. Often, they take issue with me over the issues rather than Trump per se; more often they attack me as a person. I’ve been called un-American and unpatriotic, a liar, a baby killer, a hater, and most of all — gasp — a liberal. None of that really bothers me because I know they’re wrong about me, except of course for the liberal part. Let the record...
A few years ago, around the time of the last presidential election, a friend told me a story. She was at Mass in the Philly suburbs, and when the homily began, the priest started to tell the congregation why they could not vote for Joe Biden and still be consistent with Catholic doctrine. He told them that while he was not telling anyone to vote for Trump, he could not in good faith remain silent about Biden’s support for abortion. The priest said if Biden were not a s...
Secretary of State Antony Blinken recently returned from a trip to Beijing, where he met with senior officials of the government including Chinese President Xi Jinping. His return was heralded by the Washington Post with the headline, “Blinken ruffles feathers by stating US ‘does not support Taiwan independence’ after meeting China’s Xi.” The story noted that several Republican Congress persons castigated Blinken for “kowtowing” to China by stating, “the Biden administration...
I miss Independence Day. Independence Day was once a celebration of liberty; a tribute to revolution, insurrection, and secession. It has mutated into a day to worship government and its employees. It has become a parody of itself. Maybe this is why it is more commonly known today as “the Fourth of July.” This downplays its anti-government roots and dismisses independence. Of course, most of this happened before I was born, so what I miss is the idea of an Independence Day I’v...
Roswell hosted its annual UFO festival this weekend, remembering that strange flying saucer incident in July 1947. So this is a good day to look back at another of our region’s unexplainable extraterrestrial events. Early in the morning of Jan. 21, 1976, a pair of Clovis police officers – Corp. Randy Johnson and Officer Henry Perez – noticed a red, white and blue flashing light moving in the sky as they traveled west in the 400 block of West 14th Street. Police logs show...
Clovis Meals on Wheels, a non-profit organization, is seeking assistance from their community by encouraging residents to partake in their community yard sale on July 8. Executive Director, Mary Weigl said that the organization has always thrived to provide delicious and nutritious meals to the elderly, disabled and homebound residents of Clovis. Due to the pandemic, the organization has lost a lot of clients and is struggling to financially bounce back. She said that this yard sale is to help not only get their name out...
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...
Local historians tell us that during the early 1900s, Roosevelt County boasted more than 100 schools in the tiny communities that sprinkled the Plains like cornmeal. By 1957, that number had dwindled to six districts: Causey, Dora, Elida, Floyd, Portales, and Rogers. In May that year, the Rogers community made the painful decision to shutter the doors on its school with only 62 students remaining on the roster following graduation. By fall, many of those students were at...
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...
