Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
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Federal officials recently turned down Quay County’s application for disaster relief in the wake of hail damage and flash flooding that occurred in the wake of late May’s severe storms. County manager Daniel Zamora said Monday after the county commission meeting he received word last week from officials with the Federal Emergency Management Agency that it had rejected the county’s bid for disaster relief. Zamora said the FEMA official that inspected washed-out roads and bridges assessed only $200,000 in damage in the county — well under t...
The name of Tucumcari's annual Fired Up festival derives from its event-ending fireworks show or the annual fire-and-choreography performance by Odd-Lab. But the "Up" part of the festival also could refer to several low-riders during the car hop contest Saturday afternoon in the VFW Post 2528 parking lot. Hundreds of people gasped, cheered and applauded as they saw the front ends of low-rider vehicles bounce nearly eight feet into the air due to their souped-up hydraulics and suspensions. The...
SAN JON — The superintendent for San Jon Municipal Schools received a one-year extension on his contract and a state-mandated 6% pay raise from the district’s board Wednesday. Alan Umholtz’s annual pay will rise to about $123,000 a year. Receiving a two-year deal upon his initial hiring last year, his contact now will expire in June 2025 with the extension. The board’s action followed a 40-minute closed executive session. Umholtz’s contact was on the agenda for two previous meetings, but action was delayed because of the absence of board mem...
Tucumcari city commissioners during a special meeting Sept. 5 approved fourth-quarter budget adjustments and fourth-quarter financial reports for fiscal year 2023 that were a few days late on a state deadline. Commissioners had delayed action on the resolutions during previous meetings because of lingering questions, and they still voiced some reservations last week. City manager Paula Chacon said the New Mexico Department of Finance and Administration originally wanted the reports by July 31 but issued an extension to Aug. 31. Chacon said the...
State-ranked Raton scored four touchdowns in the second half Friday to put the game out of reach during a 41-0 victory against a host Tucumcari team still coping with the recent death of a teammate. The Tigers (2-2), ranked fifth in Class 3A by MaxPreps.com, racked up more than 350 yards of offense, mostly in the second half. Tigers quarterback Jacob Mattorano went 11-for-22 passing for 143 yards and three touchdowns. Joseph Saenz rushed for 118 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries....
Mesalands Community College stated in a letter to a state senator the financially troubled college was not “at this time” considering the option of becoming a branch of a four-year university. State Sen. George Munoz (D-Gallup) in late July wrote letters to Mesalands, Eastern New Mexico University and New Mexico State University, urging Mesalands to consider a partnership or make the Tucumcari college a branch campus of one of the universities. He requested a response by Aug. 28. Last Monday, Mesalands board of trustees Chairman Richard Pri...
Tucumcari’s head football coach said his players still were coping with the death of a teammate, which prompted the cancellation of a non-district home game Friday against McCurdy. Javion Martinez, a freshman running back and linebacker on the Rattlers squad, died unexpectedly at his home on Aug. 26. Funeral arrangements were pending; a service at Rattler Gymnasium tentatively was planned. In addition to the football game, several other Tucumcari Public Schools sports events were canceled or postponed. The Rattlers’ next football game is a non-...
Logan's volleyball team on Saturday captured its second tournament title in as many weeks - this time, defeating host Tucumcari in the championship match. The Lady Longhorns overcame an opening-set loss to prevail 17-25, 25-13, 25-14, 25-19 in the finals of the eight-team Tucumcari Invitational. Logan (6-0) also won their Lady Longhorn Volleyball Tournament the previous weekend. Kaylee Williams, the tournament's Most Valuable Player, made a team-high 13 kills and added four aces for Logan. Teamm...
Tommy Wallace is hopeful his ranch in southern Quay County sits amid a substantial field of oil, natural gas and helium that could produce dozens, perhaps even hundreds, of well-paying jobs. Wallace said in a phone interview last week that Louisiana-based Moran-Lavaca is “pretty sure” a substantial amount of helium exists on his property off Norton Road and at a recently drilled spot near Grady. He said he learned about the strike about six months ago. The Grady area well is on property owned by Elmer White, White confirmed on Friday. Tho...
The Quay County Courthouse in Tucumcari soon will have an improved and more sophisticated security-camera system. The county commissioners on Monday unanimously approved spending about $61,000 to install the Verkada cameras. The purchase, a five-year deal, was recommended by Sheriff Dennis Garcia and the 10th Judicial District Court. Jacob Farris, a sales representative for California-based Verkada, demonstrated the camera system by videoconference during the commission’s meeting. Farris said the cameras can be accessed by smartphone or r...
An apparent paperwork oversight prevented Tucumcari city commissioners on Thursday from approving a resolution for $319,000 in state capital outlay funds slated for street improvements. The inaction also prevented approval of an agreement for capital appropriations for the same project. Project manager Ralph Lopez said the capital outlay funds, which were awarded during the New Mexico Legislature’s session earlier this year, probably would be used for resurfacing South Third Street from the Quay County Courthouse to Main Street. However, at l...
The board of trustees for Mesalands Community College came to a consensus it was too early to commit to pursuing additional partnerships or a merger with a four-year institution, including possibly Eastern New Mexico University. Mesalands’ interim president Allen Moss asked the trustees during their Aug. 22 meeting for input regarding a response letter he was writing to state Sen. George Munoz (D-Gallup). Munoz, a member of the Senate Finance Committee, in late July wrote letters to Mesalands, ENMU and New Mexico State University, asking t...
Tucumcari Public Schools is seeing a significant rise in enrollment this fall, according to its superintendent and principals. Superintendent Aaron McKinney told the school board during its regular meeting on Aug. 21 that total enrollment in the district is 921, compared to 854 last year. That is nearly 8% higher. Elementary principal Tonya Hodges said her school’s enrollment stood at 461, with six or seven more students pending. She said that compares to 404 students a year ago. Middle school principal Lendall Borden said his enrollment was 2...
LOGAN - The Lady Longhorns took a path to redemption Saturday during their season-opening volleyball tournament. First, they dominated defending champion Tucumcari 25-11, 25-14, 25-10 during the morning semifinals. The Lady Rattlers later wound up in third place after downing Grady in five sets. Then the Lady Longhorns after a slow start downed Springer - the team that bounced Logan out of contention for the tournament title last year - by a score of 22-25, 25-16, 25-12, 25-20 in the finals....
The Tucumcari City Commission during a special meeting last week approved its Infrastructure Capital Improvement Plan for the fiscal years 2025 to 2029, with upgrades to basic services taking up the lion’s share of the lengthy list. The list over five fiscal years comprises 57 projects with a total cost of about $120 million. The prioritized plan serves as a wish list and guidance to the New Mexico Legislature in its annual awarding of capital outlay funds. The No. 1 item on the fiscal-year 2025 list was wastewater system improvements to East R...
A Tucumcari teen's 1990 GMC pickup truck doesn't look look much right now, sitting in a Tucumcari Automotive bay mostly disassembled. But within a couple of months, it will be a show truck that will be entered into the NSRA Southwest Street Rod Nationals in Oklahoma City. Truck owner David Olguin, 16, isn't bankrolling the rebuild through his part-time Pizza Hut job. Instead, Tucumcari Automotive owner Robert Moore has enlisted a growing number of local businesses and people to chip in with...
LOGAN - New Mexico's Secretary of Education paid Logan Municipal Schools a congratulatory visit after the district pulled off a rare trifecta with Spotlight Schools designations in its elementary, middle and high schools. After a three-hour tour of the schools Thursday morning, Education Secretary Arsenio Romero saluted the students, teachers, staff and parents during an assembly in the main gymnasium. "I want to take a piece of that and replicate it across New Mexico," Romero said of Logan's...
The Tucumcari football team and its fans did a lot of celebrating late Friday at Rattler Stadium. Then again, if you'd won your first game in almost two years, you'd do a lot of celebrating, too. The Rattlers, anchored by a stout defense that forced six turnovers, scored five unanswered touchdowns in the second half to roll to a season-opening 32-6 victory over Mescalero Apache. It marked a successful debut for new Tucumcari head coach Tarik Embrack. Tucumcari sophomore back Daymion Urioste...
Tucumcari's volleyball team overcame a 2-0 match deficit and a bad case of jitters by rallying to defeat Fort Sumner 23-25, 18-25, 25-15, 25-21, 15-12 on Saturday in both teams' season-opener. Sisters Caylee and Cambree Benavidez led the Lady Rattlers with nine kills each. Haisley Huffman added six kills. July Lafferty added four blocks, and Kirksey Smith totaled three service aces. Tucumcari coach Dana Benavidez said it was only the second time her team has defeated perennially tough Fort Sumne...
LOGAN - Logan grabbed a two-touchdown lead before Alamo Navajo even touched the ball during a 50-0 Longhorns victory in nine-man football action on Saturday. Here's how it happened: The Longhorns, after securing the opening kickoff, ran nine plays for 58 yards. Quarterback Brock Burns finished the drive by connecting on a 9-yard touchdown pass to Devin Kotara for a 6-0 lead. On the ensuing kickoff, the Cougars' returner let the bouncing ball get behind him, then slipped trying to pick it up near...
A state senator is urging Eastern New Mexico University and financially troubled Mesalands Community College to consider a partnership or make the Tucumcari school a branch campus of ENMU. One area lawmaker said he would oppose such a partnership or merger of Mesalands. The presidents of both educational institutions said they are open-minded to Sen. George Munoz’s proposal. Munoz, D-Gallup, in late July wrote separate letters to the ENMU board of regents and the Mesalands board of trustees. The Quay County Sun obtained the letters and other c...
With no apparent objection from the public, the Tucumcari City Commission on Thursday adopted ordinances that slightly change annual rate increases for water, sewer and garbage collection services. The commission held a public hearing for a second and final reading of ordinance changes that were approved unanimously by Mayor Ralph Moya and commissioners Mike Cherry, Christopher Arias and Paul Villanueva. No one from the gallery rose to speak against or for the alterations. Arias and Villanueva each cast their votes by phone. Moya said Arias...
Avery Cavett of House made her final year in 4-H a memorable one during the Quay County Fair. Cavett, 18, swept the grand champion and reserve champion slots in the steer and heifer shows, plus showed a reserve champion goat during the five-day fair that wrapped Saturday night. 4-H members become no longer eligible after they turn 19 years of age. So this was her last hurrah. "It was a great way to end my show career in Quay County," she said Saturday. "It makes me happy to know I finished so...
SAN JON — The San Jon Municipal Schools board on Wednesday approved a five-year facilities master plan and a resolution for a proposed $250,000 bond issue for the November election with the hope to receive a state grant up to $30 million to build a new school. The plan and the additional debt were required for the district to receive the proposed grant from the New Mexico Public School Facilities Authority. The general obligation bond issue would go to voters for the Nov. 7 election to fund district renovations or new buildings, computer s...
It's been a hot summer, but new Tucumcari football coach Tarik Embrack noted that his still-young team will need to keep its cool to have a better chance to succeed this season. Tucumcari will open the season at 7 p.m. Friday with a home game against Mescalero Apache. The Rattlers traveled to Pojoaque for a scrimmage on Thursday, which was Embrack's first chance to see what his players would do in an 11-against-11 situation. Embrack graded his team a "C" in its performance, with "a lot of positi...