Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
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After serving as Tucumcari’s interim city manager twice in three years, Mark Martinez has become city manager without the “interim.” The Tucumcari City Commission voted to hire Martinez as the city manager Thursday and approved a two-year contract with Martinez that includes an annual salary of $80,000. As interim city manager, Martinez’s salary had been the equivalent of about $76,000 a year. “We’re very pleased and happy to welcome Mark as our city manager,” Mayor Ruth Ann Litchfield said in introducing the contract for commission vo...
Two more confirmed cases of coronavirus were reported Sunday in Quay County. According to data from the New Mexico Department of Health, both of the new cases were age 50 to 59 and resided in the Tucumcari ZIP code. Four cases have been reported in Tucumcari in four days. The total number of cases in the county since the pandemic began rose to 71. That included 36 in Tucumcari, 33 in Logan and five in San Jon. A total of 44 people in the county have been deemed as recovered from the virus. A total of 1,811 COVID-19 tests have been performed in...
Quay County's coronavirus numbers improved during the first half of September, but not enough to expand in-person classes in the region's public schools next week. Also, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced during a Thursday briefing that overnight camping would be allowed for New Mexico residents in state parks starting Oct. 1 and that youth sports practices in groups of 10 athletes or fewer would be permitted. Quay County also reported one new case of COVID-19 on Thursday in the Tucumcari ZIP code. Regarding the school-reopening coronavirus...
A Tucumcari man held without bond on a murder charge told state police he shot his friend accidentally in his home and previously had pointed a firearm at the man. Those details and others emerged last week as Joshua Braziel, 30, was arraigned Thursday on counts of first-degree murder and felony possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine) after Bryan Youman, 19, of Tucumcari died of a gunshot wound to his head Sept. 4. District Judge Albert Mitchell on Monday afternoon ordered...
The Tucumcari Lodgers Tax Advisory Board on Wednesday expressed enthusiasm Wednesday to a marketing manager's formal proposal of music television series, "Bands of Enchantment," based primarily in Tucumcari that would be broadcast nationally. Vincent Chavez of La Tewa Media, based in Sapello, said eight to 10 30-minute episodes of "Bands of Enchantment" would air on New Mexico Public Broadcast Service stations and on cable channel RFD-TV. New Mexico PBS reaches 750,000 households; RFD-TV...
Quay County Commissioners on Monday discussed how to distribute more than $370,000 in federal coronavirus relief funds earmarked for local businesses. The county itself also received $152,550 from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act to cover expenses for disinfectant foggers, wipes, shields and other expenses due to the pandemic. He said that money also can be used for other COVID-19 expenses incurred through Dec. 31. County manager Richard Primrose said state officials recommended the county apply for the federal funds. He...
For my annual devotional plan, I alternate between reading through the Bible during the year and reading two or three devotional books. While this isn’t necessarily a recommendation of either book, this year I’m reading “The Best of the Bible — 365 Must-Read Bible Passages” (NLT, Tyndale House, 1996) and “365 Ways to Know God — Devotional Readings on the Names of God” (Elmer Towns, Regal Books, 2004). The passages used for Sept. 2 were Matthew 21:28-46 and 1 Peter 2:7-8 for the former and latter books, respectively, and presented a com...
On this date ... 1970: A truck trailer loaded with stuffed animals bound for the New Mexico State Fair went up in smoke when the axle bearing overheated and caught the trailer afire. The blaze occurred on U.S. 66 about 11 miles east of Tucumcari. The trailer’s owners from Illinois tried to salvage the remaining toys at the scene. • Tucumcari postmaster Julius Fitzner said the post office would move into its new building at 222 S. First St. over the weekend. Fitzner said the post office and its mail carriers would conduct “business as usual...
The Tucumcari Senior Center and Logan Senior Center remain closed to the public indefinitely but will deliver meals to those who qualify. Those interested in meal deliveries should call the Tucumcari facility at 461-2307 and the Logan facility at 487-2287 for more information. Area schools are using a hybrid model of online and/or in-person teaching. Tucumcari schools Wednesday — Breakfast: Grape-filled crescent rolls, fresh peach, apple juice, milk; Lunch: Walking beef tacos, shredded romaine lettuce, fresh tomatoes, salsa, roasted corn, a...
Note: Events subject to change due to the COVID-19 pandemic. • Sept. 26 — Altrusa International COVID Cash Drawing. This year’s reverse raffle will be conducted via a Facebook live event. Tickets are $100 for the chance to take home the grand prize of $15,000. Additional cash prizes will be awarded throughout the evening. Proceeds of the event benefit Altrusa’s community service projects. More information will be available soon. To buy tickets, contact any member of Altrusa International of Tucumcari or call ticket chair Sylvia Wampler 575-403...
New Mexico Secretary of Health Kathy Kunkel has issued a public health order establishing social distancing restrictions for polling places during the fall election season. “Election facilities must remain accessible to the public under the state’s election code, and as such we’ve got to ensure that everyone casting a ballot may do so safely,” Kunkel said. “There is still a risk of COVID-19 transmission no matter where we go. Our job is to make these facilities as safe as possible while strongly encouraging New Mexicans to take every precautio...
The New Mexico Early Childhood Education and Care Department announced last week that parent copayments for the Child Care Assistance program will be waived for the months of September and October. The department will cover the revenue child-care programs would have received from parent copayments and will include this amount in their regular monthly reimbursement checks. “The pandemic has created economic challenges for New Mexico families — and for child care providers. By waiving parents’ copayments, we’re making it easier for familie...
Earlier this year, South African-born comedian Trevor Noah hit at the heart of a serious problem hurting America right now. “Nuance doesn’t sell as well in America,” Noah said in an interview with CBS. “Nuance means you can’t just take a stand and fight the other person. Nuance means we have to talk a little bit more. And until the American political system can find a way to represent the nuance that exists within America, you are going to create this false impression that there is This or That.” In a nation sharply divided by ideology, i...
Last week, we began learning about what President Donald Trump knew about the coronavirus and when he knew it as Watergate journalist Bob Woodward previewed a new Trump book called “Rage.” On Feb. 7, Trump apparently told Woodward that COVID-19 is “more deadly than even your strenuous flus.” “This is deadly stuff,” he added. Woodward has been justly criticized for not revealing the facts of this interview much earlier, but Woodward isn’t the president of the United States. Trump is. Well, the president didn’t want to cause a panic, he told...
Am I in hell, or just L.A.? The other day it was 121 degrees here. There’s so much smoke in the air from all the wildfires the sun looks like the moon. Everything’s closed because of the coronavirus pandemic. People can’t go to work. School kids are struggling to learn on Zoom. Parents are going nuts. Some are hiring teachers, wannabe teachers or former teachers to come in and tutor their kids. And now the Los Angeles County Health Department has tried to wreck Halloween. At first the county announced a ban on trick-or-treaters going door-...
Three more confirmed cases of coronavirus were reported Friday in the Logan ZIP code by the New Mexico Department of Health. With that, Logan has exceeded the number of cases (33) since the pandemic began to Tucumcari's 32, despite the population of the Logan ZIP code being less than one-fifth of Tucumcari's. The San Jon ZIP code has five total cases. The total number of cases in Quay County by ZIP code is 70, which is a discrepancy from the DOH's overall reported total of 69. The latest cases were two people age 60 to 69 and one age 70 to 79,...
Flush with nearly $40,000 of money unused from the previous fiscal year or unspent from festivals canceled because of COVID-19, the Tucumcari Lodgers Tax Advisory Board used much of its meeting Wednesday discussing how to spend those funds for new billboards that would publicize the city. The board will hold a special meeting at 10 a.m. Sept. 24 to make final recommendations to the city commission. The board long had planned to send a revised budget to the city in September after the fiscal effects of the pandemic were more fully known. In...
One of Melrose's longest-standing buildings is no more. The Melrose train depot was demolished Sept. 9. The building, constructed in 1907, was owned by the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Co., which informed the village last year of its intent to clear the structure. "It was a year or two ago that they let us know they would be doing that, and we discussed it in several council meetings," Village Clerk Khira Whitehead said. "They told the village that they could buy the building for $1,...
The scholarship committee of Altrusa International of Tucumcari Inc. recently announced it has awarded $500 scholarships to several area students. The scholarship allows each student to apply it to the university, college or trade school of his or her choice. Winners and alternates are: • Paul Stringfellow, Logan High School; alternate is Mesa Modisette; • Jayden Johnson of San Jon High School; • Jasmine Jones, Tucumcari High School; alternate is Tianna Peterson; • Raegan Jones, Mesalands Community College; alternate is Albenita R. Rael. N...
These calls were made to the Tucumcari-Quay Regional Emergency Communications Center from Sept. 7 to Sept. 13: Monday • 1:03 a.m.: Disturbance in 200 block of South U.S. 54, Logan. • 1:19 a.m.: Domestic disturbance in 2600 block of South First Street, Tucumcari. • 7 a.m.: Threat in 600 block of East Elm Avenue, San Jon. • 7:57 a.m.: Shoplifting in 2300 block of South First Street, Tucumcari. • 2:03 p.m.: Accident with property damage in 32000 block of U.S. 54, Logan. • 3:57 p.m.: Disturbance in 600 block of South Rock Island Street, Tucumcari....
These individuals were booked into the Quay County Detention Center from Sept. 7 to Sept. 13: • Randolph Charles Morgan, 55, Phoenix, shoplifting ($100 or less). • Ana Romero, 37, Clovis, felony possession of a controlled substance (narcotic drug) and possession of drug paraphernalia. • Katherine Saraceni, 29, Gaston, South Carolina, receiving or transferring a stolen vehicle. • Jose Espinoza, 45, Rio Rancho, felony contempt of court. • Andrea Laura Garcia, 33, Tucumcari, intentional child abuse (no death or great bodily harm), negligent...