Pages past - Feb. 13

On this date ...

1983: Robert Marquez, an 11-year-old sixth grader at Lincoln Jackson Elementary School and a newspaper carrier for the Clovis News-Journal, received a certificate of appreciation for lending some bilingual assistance to a police officer who had stopped an individual who didn't speak English.

Robert was making his rounds delivering papers by bicycle when Clovis Police Officer James Troyer flagged him down to ask if the youth could speak Spanish.

Robert replied that he could, and spent the next several minutes acting as interpreter between Troyer and the person he was questioning.

With assistance from Robert, the situation was resolved and the individual was released.

"I was glad to help," Robert said. "It felt good to do it."

1978: Firefighters were still on the scene of a fire that had started the day before and destroyed much of the El Rancho Milling Company on West Street in Clovis.

During the worst of the inferno, flames were shooting 100 feet in the air, and the smoke was visible from Portales.

Clovis Fire Chief Joe Maddox said by the time his department was notified, the fire was already too far advanced to save the structure, and added that he expected to have at least one unit at the scene for the next several days.

The fire occurred on the one-year anniversary of the fire that destroyed the Floyd School, according to the Clovis News-Journal article.

Pages Past is compiled by Betty Williamson. Contact her at: [email protected]