Roswell Daily Record THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Community weighs in on Yucca center Vol. 123, No. 204 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
BY BILL MOFFIT RECORD CORRESPONDENT
The first of five scheduled meetings was held at the Yucca Recreation Center, 500 S. Richardson Ave., Saturday, to begin the process of receiving public input as to what to do with the 102-year-old building. About 60 people attended the meeting, which began with a guided tour by Yucca custodian Clyde Usher. One of the biggest problems that Usher pointed out was the leaky roof that was causing damage to the rooms on the third floor. Rain would also force classes to move to one of the lower floors. A similar problem over the gym floor is causing the
steel girders in the roof to rust. Also, water running behind the north wall in the front lobby had created a mold problem that has since been addressed. “The floors in the south tower have asbestos in them,” Usher told the group. “It’s encapsulated — but on some of the pipes in the north tower, the asbestos is exposed.” Another major problem facing the center is that one elevator is not working and the other elevator does not meet the standards of the Americans with Disability Act (ADA). “We can’t get a wheelchair into this one,” Usher said, “and the other one is stuck on the third floor.” Another problem with the building are the wooden
Lots o’ guns and fun
August 24, 2014
www.rdrnews.com
SUNDAY
doors at the fire escapes that requires metal doors under today’s codes.
“These would run about $1,000 apiece,” Usher said. City Councilor for Ward 5, Tabitha Denny, began the discussion part of the meeting by saying that whatever is decided will take years to complete. “Right now we’re looking for your input,” Denny said. Retired Santa Fe Historic District planner Melanie Deason called the center a “sick building,” but told the Daily Record later that a lot could be fixed when the roof is repaired. “We do have some legislative monies that could take See YUCCA, Page A3
Bill Moffit Photo
UNM expands online courses
The 102-year-old building for the city’s Yucca Recreation Center looks beautiful on the outside, but the building’s interior and structure need extensive repairs.
Christina Stock Photo
One of Roswell’s most popular events for hunters, collectors and Second Amendment supporters is the annual Western Frontier Gun and Craft Show, which began Saturday, and continues today from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Roswell Convention and Civic Center. Items at the show include antique and modern rifles and pistols, custom knives, jewelry, scent products, homemade goat milk soaps, art, roasted nuts and more. Admission is $5, and children 10 and under get in free when accompanied by an adult. Chef Todzilla's food truck on the east side of the Civic Center will make sure no one has to leave hungry.
ALBUQUERQUE — The University of New Mexico is expanding its global presence in the online world in a massive way this fall. School officials say they are increasing the number of free massive open online courses, known as MOOCs, after one course last semester drew thousands of students from nearly 200 countries, the Albuquerque Journal reported. UNM will offer three more courses: Web application architecture, curanderismo — or the art of traditional healing — and a bilingual course on global business in English and Spanish. Enrollment has already reached more than 48,000 students in 192 countries, surpassing initial projections and exceeding the entire student body of the school, officials said. UNM Provost Chaouki Abdallah says it would normally take millions of dollars in marketing costs to reach that many people. However, of fering such courses remains an experiment for the university and it’s about more than num-
bers, Abdallah said. “We wanted to learn, to see if (the classes) would be disruptive or whether it might complement the work we already do,” Abdallah said. Professor Greg Heileman offered a Web application course last spring and said he taught more students that semester than he would have taught in a lifetime in a classroom. Students in the classes can become UNM enrollees. But class credit is not given for the courses that are considered separate from regular online for -credit classes of fered by UNM. Students who finish get a certificate of completion. Coursera, a private educational technology company based in Mountain View, California, has been partnering with UNM and other schools to offer free online coursework. Despite the initial influx of students, the company said most do not complete the courses and treat the program as an exploratory opportunity.
Obama faces the tug of Physician volunteers expertise in community military action in Syria
WASHINGTON (AP) — For three years, President Barack Obama has resisted the pull of potential U.S. military action in Syria. He has held firm even as the civil war’s death toll climbed toward 200,000, the Syrian gover nment used chemical weapons against civilians and Islamic State militants strengthened amid the chaos. Now Obama must decide whether the extremist group’s murder of American journalist James Foley, as well as the broader threat the group could pose to U.S. interests, should change his cautious calculus. Pressure is coming from his own military leaders to go after the Islamic State inside Syria. But he must weigh that against his aversion to the risks that could come with plunging the United States into a country tor n apart by an intractable internal conflict. White House of ficials have suggested that airstrikes in Syria are an
option, though the officials say specific military proposals has not yet been presented to the president. “We’re actively considering what’s going to be necessary to deal with that threat, and we’re not going to be restricted by borders,” said Ben Rhodes, Obama’s deputy national security adviser. “We’ve shown time and again that if there’s a counterterrorism threat, we’ll take direct action against that threat, if necessary.” Even before Foley’s murder, Obama found himself on far different footing in the Middle East than he probably expected in the sixth year of his presidency. After running for the White House on a pledge to end the Iraq war and then making good on that promise in late 2011, Obama thrust the U.S. military back into Iraq this month with a limited airstrike campaign against Islamic State targets. See OBAMA, Page A3
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TODAY’S FORECAST
BY MICHAEL FRANCIS RECORD CORRESPONDENT
It was a very fortunate day for the Roswell community in the year 2004 when Sujan Thyagaraj (pronounced Thie-a-garáge), a likeable, happy, healthy and friendly young man, completed his undergraduate medical education in India and decided to move to the United States to pursue advanced studies leading to a degree in medicine (M.D.) and a master’s degree in public health (MPH). What a twist of positive fate came when the renowned psychiatrist, now very well-known in professional circles for his respected clinical skills and generosity, chose to live in New Mexico and serve the community of Roswell. “I did a master’s degree in Public Health at Southern Illinois University, where I got a wider understanding and perspective of how the health care delivery system operates in the U.S.,” said Thyagara. “This experience also helped me to understand the challenges of accessing health care faced by the population in rural areas. “While involved with my training in psychiatry at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, I had the wonderful opportunity of participating in a one-year program of
Michael Francis Photo
Sujan Thyagaraj, M.D., MPH
rural psychiatry rotation as part of my UNM residency requirement. “In this last year of college, I became increasingly aware of the acute shortage of mental health
TODAY’S OBITUARIES PAGE B6 & B7 • BARBARA LOUISE KARCHER • ANNA R. LEE • DONNA LINNEY • RALPH L. COBOS • JACK FRANKLIN GOODNIGHT • AURORA JARAMILLO • MARY HELEN MONTOYA • ESTELLA G. ORTIZ • TERRY BROWN
care available in the southeastern part of the state. I chose Roswell in order to fill an important need and gain the most comprehensive experience possible in an under-served, rural setting.” He recognized that primary mental disorders such as depression, anxiety, bi-polar disorder and schizophrenia are definitely on the rise in the Roswell community, as well as substance abuse and drug dependence are approaching epidemic proportions. Thyagaraj said he has actually committed his life to fulfilling his personal dream of giving back to the community by sharing his talents with others to care for of caring about the wellness of his fellow man, especially when the individuals are underprivileged and cannot afford health care. He maintains his full-time professional psychiatry practice in Roswell at Eastern New Mexico Medical Center, 405 Country W. Club Road, yet somehow finds the time to work tirelessly as a volunteer, striving for the betterment of our community. In association with local mental health agencies, Thyagaraj is a dedicated volunteer who regularly donates his expertise. He routinely See THYAGARAJ, Page A3
INDEX CLASSIFIEDS ..........D1 OPINION .................A4 COMICS .................C4 SPORTS .................B1 HOROSCOPES .........A8 LOTTERIES .............A2 WEATHER ..............A8