Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
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The attorney for Tucumcari city manager Paula Chacon stated in a letter to the city commission written on her behalf that she would rescind her earlier offer to resign. The letter accused Mayor Pro Tem Jerry Lopez of harassment, a hostile work environment and a conflict of interest. Copies of the letter were distributed to the commission before its regular meeting Thursday. During the public comment portion of the meeting, eight people — including several city department heads — voiced their support for Chacon, prompting applause from the cro...
Two applicants for the Tucumcari Public Schools superintendent position were criminally charged years ago but not convicted. Several more have been named in lawsuits against their respective school districts, and two resigned under pressure from their boards. Eight people have applied for the position to replace Aaron McKinney, who retired on Jan. 1 after 18 years at the helm. At least two of the applicants have strong links to Tucumcari, including one who is a TPS administrator. The Quay County Sun examined the applications through an open-rec...
Though the funeral was more than 160 miles away, Jeri Herrera of Tucumcari stood as she watched a livestream of law enforcement officers carrying away the cremains of fallen New Mexico State Police officer Justin Hare of Logan. An estimated 2,000 people attended Hare's funeral Wednesday at Legacy Church-Central Campus in Albuquerque. At least another 800 people, such as Herrera, watched online. Legacy Church in Tucumcari offered to show the livestream on one of its large video screens. About 15...
It’s official — Tucumcari Mountain Cheese Factory makes the best feta cheese in the United States. The company earned a second-place finish in March in the World Championship Cheese Contest in Madison, Wisconsin. That was an improvement from its third-place finish in the world in 2022. The competition is held every two years. The only entry in the feta cheese division to top Tucumcari Mountain Cheese Factory was Team Krusa from Arla Foods Krusa of Denmark, which finished runner-up in 2022. Team Krusa earned a score of 99.4 points, ahead of Tucu...
On this date ... 1974: High winds wreaked havoc on the region, leading to property damage and brush fires. A big gust knocked over the press box of Rattler Stadium onto the reserved seating section. The stadium’s public-address system and some bleachers also were damaged. Firefighters were called to put out a brush fire four miles south on Norton Road. A brush fire also was reported in a hay stack behind the Sheraton Inn in Tucumcari. Winds gusted up to 67 mph. — A total of 18 candidates filed for county offices. James Knight, Becky Bry...
Tucumcari schools Wednesday — Breakfast: Peach and yogurt parfait, Cocoa Puffs cereal, cinnamon graham cracker, fruit cocktail, orange juice, 1%, skim or strawberry skim milk; Lunch: Green Frito pie, chef salad, pinto beans, shredded romaine lettuce, diced tomatoes, salsa, fruit cocktail, 1%, skim, chocolate skim or strawberry skim milk. Thursday — Breakfast: Blueberry muffin, string cheese, Lucky Charms cereal, cinnamon graham cracker, fruit cocktail, apple juice, 1%, skim or strawberry skim milk; Lunch: Cheeseburger, turkey with cheese wrap,...
Saturday — Six-week dog training class. Tucumcari Dog Training and Tucumcari MainStreet are sponsoring a dog obedience class on Saturdays from April 6 through May 11 at the Tucumcari Railroad Museum. Cost is $50 for the class and includes a free clicker and training log. Proceeds from fees will go to Paws and Claws animal rescue and the museum. This course will cover dog safety, basic obedience commands and solutions to common canine behavior issues. Advance registration required; visit tucumcaridogtraining.com/obedience-lessons to sign up. F...
I’m seeing a particular objection to Christianity repeated often on the internet. It started, I believe, among some Muslims, but has spread to the larger culture. The objection is this: In the Bible, Jesus never claimed to be God. He never said, “I am God. Worship me.” I’m not sure what has made this criticism so popular recently. Can I be harshly direct and say it’s stupid? Maybe not. Maybe I should be lighthearted about it and say it’s “all hat and no cattle.” It’s a vacuous statement either way, especially if you’ve ever bothered to read th...
Spring fever is in full bloom at Head Acres, evidenced by tissue boxes, allergy meds and decongestants. There are also dozens of little plantlets growing in cut-down toilet tissue holders, and peat cups scattered around the house. They all look alike to me, but my husband Wayne can tell me what’s in each little set. We’ve tried longer than not to get tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers of all kinds, and various other veggies to grow with fair to little success. The other day, Wayne surprised me with an assortment of sunflower seeds, in beautiful sha...
An anonymous reader sent a letter last week reprimanding the newspaper because it “refuses to publish” an important story. “There is a big cover up,” the letter read. Our reader is referencing a lawsuit settled in February by the state’s Children, Youth and Families Department. The lawsuit alleged improper handling of a 2020 case in which a Clovis child was placed in her father’s home after her mother died. The father, Juan Lerma, subsequently killed the child, Samantha Rubino, and left her body in a garbage can. Our newspaper reported on...
Recently, Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard, after pushing the Legislature for a 25% tax hike on New Mexico oil and gas producers, made the decision to pull those “highly valuable” tracts of land and not lease them. That decision has raised concerns that her actions may violate her fiduciary responsibility to maximize revenues from the lands under her control. Garcia Richard told the Albuquerque Journal, “It’s worth it to temporarily forgo the dollars (from leasing immediately) to make billions more in the future by leasing out the...
The world as I know it has ended. I agree with Ron DeSantis on something. On March 25, the Florida governor and former mini-Trump wannabe signed into law a state ban for children ages 13 and younger from social media while also requiring 14- and 15-year-olds to get parental consent. Forget the fact that Florida’s new law will almost certainly be challenged in court, it’s still a step in the right direction. We’re facing a mental health crisis among our children, and social media has a lot to do with it. That and the COVID pandemic. Natio...
Haden Judd won five individual events, powering the Logan boys team to a team title at the 17-team Logan Varsity Meet on Saturday. Judd won the 200-meter dash (23.36 seconds), 400-meter dash (51.62 seconds), 110-meter hurdles race (16.42 seconds), pole vault (14 feet, 6 inches) and long jump (20-4). That enabled the Longhorns to edge Farwell, Texas, by 86-84 in the race for total team points. Fernando Ureste of Tucumcari won two individual events for the Rattlers — the 1,600-meter run (4:57.76) and 3,200-meter run (10:31.05). Tucumcari f...
Tucumcari had a rough week, suffering three losses at the West Las Vegas Baseball Tournament. In the tournament finale Saturday, district foe East Mountain grabbed a 9-0 lead before the Rattlers got on the scoreboard during a 12-4 loss. Tucumcari coach George Montano noted his team started slow, stranding runners on base in the first two innings without scoring. East Mountain (7-6) rapped 15 hits during the game. Tucumcari starting pitcher Kamren Apodaca and reliever Josh Griego each gave up four earned runs. “Ham started the game and threw w...
Tucumcari scored 13 runs in the final three innings to secure a 20-8 victory over Mora on Saturday and capture third place in the West Las Vegas Softball Tournament. Caylee Benavidez and Harley McKinney of the Lady Rattlers, who finished 2-1 during the weekend, each were named to the all-tournament team. Tucumcari head coach CJ Oglesby said he could have selected six players to the all-tourney team, including also Alexis Ramirez, Mia Estrada, Haisley Huffman and Kylee Carmichael. "But the play of Caylee and Harley stood out," he said. "Not...
Logan blew two late leads during a baseball doubleheader loss Friday to Gateway Christian at Roswell. In the first game, the Longhorns led 7-5 at the top of the final inning, but the Warriors rallied for three runs to win it 8-7. In the nightcap, Logan commanded a 10-1 lead in the sixth but lost it completely when Gateway scored 13 runs in the bottom half of that inning during a 14-10 loss. “Our youth and inexperience in big games showed a little yesterday,” Logan coach Kyle Griffiths said. “We have some new pieces that we are working into...
The Logan softball team hit well but dropped a season-opening doubleheader Friday at Dora by scores of 29-23 and 20-13. For the Lady Longhorns in the first game, Camryn Cantrell went 3-for-5 hitting with a walk, a double, four stolen bases and four runs scored. Marilyn Moreno went 2-for-2 with a double and a triple and six RBI. She also reached base additional times on three walks and being hit by a pitch. In the second game, Presley Griffitt went 3-for-3 with a double and four RBI. She also was hit by a pitch and scored four runs....
The Quay County Health Council is offering free Narcan training at 5:30 p.m. April 9 at the Tucumcari Middle School Library. The training will last about an hour and will show how to identify an opioid overdose, the laws that protect citizens who are trying to save a life, how to use Narcan and and follow-up care for overdose victims. Free Narcan tests — a $140 value — will be provided to each participant. The health council also will offer free lockboxes to safety store medications or edibles in the home to keep those substances away from chi...
The Quay County Health Council will host a suicide-prevention program from noon to 1 p.m. April 10 at the San Jon Senior Center. The council has two contractors training in suicide prevention called QPR, or question, persuade and refer. The free program provides information to participants on questions to ask, appropriate response and resources available when they have friends or family members showing signs of self-harm. Death rates by suicide from 2015 to 2020 in Quay County were among the highest in New Mexico....
These individuals were booked into the Quay County Detention Center from March 27 to March 31: — Kathleen Dotson, 19, no address listed, protective custody. — Troy D. Cooper, 44, Tucumcari, contempt of court. — Joseph A. Lucero Jr., 39, Tucumcari, receiving stolen property (over $250). — Santos Preciado, 32, Tucumcari, contempt of court. — Michael S. Morgan, 39, Barlow, Kentucky, charge not listed. These individuals were released from the Quay County Detention Center from March 27 to March 29: — Raul Antonio Villaloboz, 39, Tucumcari,...
The board for the Greater Tucumcari Economic Development Corporation on Wednesday extended the contract of its interim director through December as it tries to straighten out its books and nonprofit status in the meantime. Kristine Olsen, interim director for the EDC and placeholder director of the Tucumcari/Quay County Chamber of Commerce, will be paid $20 an hour, plus a $4 service fee. Her hours are capped at 80 per month. Olsen had been budgeted at 20 hours per week, but she asked for 80 a month. She said there were some weeks where she...
New Mexico’s elections recently were ranked best in the nation by the Elections Performance Index, a project of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Election Data and Science Lab described as “a non-partisan, objective measure of U.S. election administration.” The news comes as county clerks in the state are preparing for the June 4 primary election. Early voting in the primary begins May 7. The rankings, released in late March and based on the 2022 midterm elections, use a variety of performance indicators measuring aspects of electio...
These calls were made to the Tucumcari-Quay Regional Emergency Communications Center from March 25 to March 31: March 25 — 6:45 a.m.: Vehicle theft in 1900 block of South Mountain Road, Tucumcari. — 8:46 a.m.: Harassment in 600 block of East Tucumcari Boulevard, Tucumcari. — 9:29 a.m.: Theft in 200 block of East Center Street, Tucumcari. — 9:56 a.m.: Threat at South Third Street and West Evans Avenue, Tucumcari. — 11:03 a.m.: Trespassing in 400 block of North First Street, Tucumcari. — 11:51 a.m.: Theft in 2300 block of South First Street, Tuc...