Roswell Daily Record
Vol. 123, No. 252 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
October 19, 2014
Bond could bring improvements to ENMU-R BY RANDAL SEYLER RECORD CITY EDITOR
When voters go to the polls on Nov. 4, they probably won’t be thinking about leaky roofs or outdated boilers. But those are the very things officials at Eastern New Mexico UniversityRoswell are counting on, and whether or not they happen depends on New Mexico’s voters approving Bond C. Bond C is one of three
bonds that will be on the ballot and one that must be approved statewide by voters, said Donna Oracion, college development director for ENMU-R, on Thursday.
“Bonds are voted on by the public every two years ... this one replaces a current bond that is retiring, and that is why there is no tax increase,” said Oracion.
Bond A funds senior centers across the state, while Bond B funds the state’s public and school libraries,
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Oracion said. Bond C is for colleges and universities, and locally successful passage of Bond C will bring $3 million to ENMU-R and $4.8 million to New Mexico Military Academy.
The $7.8 million is expected to bring 78 new jobs to Chaves County, and voting in favor of the bonds does not increase anyone’s tax bill, Oracion said. Statewide, the passage of Bond C will provide $139 million for colleges and universities to perform needed
maintenance to facilities. ENMU-R has a population of about 4,000 students, while Eastern New Mexico University-Portales has about 5,600 students, Oracion said. The Portales campus also has an $11 million project on ballot. “It’s a way that we can continue to fund these maintenance projects. There used to be a fund called ‘building replacement and maintenance.’ It See BOND, Page A3
Pumpkin patchin’ Randal Seyler Photos
Right: St. Mark’s Lutheran Church opened its Pumpkin Patch on Saturday, offering Roswell-grown pumpkins for sale and ushering in the fall season. Funds raised will go to support Rivers of Life, CASA of Chaves County and Cub Scouts Pack 26. Below: Two-year-old Milania Buonaiuto knows the best way to choose a pumpkin is to play it like a conga drum. Her mother, Alexis Buonaiuto, of Roswell, stops to take a photo in the St. Mark’s Lutheran Church Pumpkin Patch on Saturday. The pumpkin patch will remain open until Oct. 31.
SUNDAY
Randal Seyler Photo
Donna Oracion, college development director for Eastern New Mexico University-Roswell, discusses campus improvements that are dependent upon Bond C being approved by voters on Nov. 4.
Gov. Martinez calls for an Ebola preparedness plan ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — Gov. Susana Martinez has directed the state Department of Health to coordinate an Ebola preparedness plan in case the disease is diagnosed in any New Mexico patients. Martinez’s office says the Health Department will work with other state agen-
cies, local governments and hospitals across New Mexico to ensure officials are prepared.
Martinez says that despite the low risk, she wants to reassure residents that the state would be able to respond quickly if an Ebola case emerges.
High court allows Texas voter ID law
Artesia city councilor to Miss New Mexico gets to discuss detention center know a little about Mars ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — A city councilor in southeastern New Mexico where 500 Central American immigrants are being detained is set to join a forum on the center’s conditions. Officials say Artesia City Councilor Jose Luis Aguilar is set to participate in a forum Sunday in Albuquerque that will also address how the immigrants are struggling to obtain legal representation.
Leticia Zamarripa, a spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, says since the Artesia detention center opened in June, more than 300 immigrants have been processed and deported from the facility.
But this week, Artesia Mayor Phillip Burch said ICE of ficials now report more detainees are getting released from the center than deported.
Sam Valdez has been the Spanish pastor at First Baptist Church for the past 35 years.
the rules so close to an election would be confusing.
Of the four states, only Wisconsin’s new rules were blocked, and in that case, absentee ballots already had been mailed without any notice about the need for identification.
Texas has conducted several low-turnout elections under the new rules — seven forms of approved photo ID, including concealed handgun licenses, See LAW, Page A3
Randal Seyler Photo
Dr. Larry Crumpler of the New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science in Albuquerque, discusses a meteor impact crater on Mars with Miss New Mexico Jessica Burson, of Roswell, on Saturday at the Convention and Civic Center during the “Space Trail Expo,” the secondday event of the celebration of Dr. Robert Goddard’s legacy in Roswell. Crumpler, a lead scientist with the Mars Exploration Rover Mission, discussed a decade of research on Mars on Friday during the Aiming for the Stars symposium.
Faith is what keeps him going: Pastor Valdez has touched many lives over his 50 years in the ministry
BY TIMOTHY P. HOWSARE RECORD EDITOR
Timothy P. Howsare Photo
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has allowed Texas to use its strict voter ID law in the November election even after a federal judge said the law was the equivalent of a poll tax and threatened to deprive many blacks and Latinos of the right to vote this year. Like earlier orders in North Carolina, Ohio and Wisconsin, the justices’ action before dawn on Saturday, two days before the start of early voting in Texas, appears to be based on their view that changing
For 35 years, Sam Valdez has been the Spanish pastor at First Baptist Church in Roswell. Both he and his wife, Toni, ran the Jireh Clothing Ministry, which provides free clothing and school supplies to needy families
HIGH 71 LOW 52
TODAY’S FORECAST
in the area. Since Toni’s passing in May, Valdez has been less involved with the ministry but still attends church faithfully and still holds the title of Spanish pastor. “He’s been a great asset over the years,” said Brandon Hutchison, children’s pastor. “He has been a faithful church member and attends services as his health allows. He has been a great minister, specifically to our Spanish speakers, and has translated documents for the church.” When asked his age, the nonagenarian quipped that he is “91 years and 7 months old.”
• MANUEL R. MATTA • DORSEY POSS • WYLIE DEAN BRIGGS SR.
Altogether, Valdez has been in the ministry for 50 years, including 14 years as the Spanish minister at the Baptist church in Dexter. In his pastoral career, Valdez has done a lot of marriage counseling and officiating at weddings and funerals. “That’s always been my favorite,” he said of officiating at weddings and funerals. Along with his impressive career in the ministry, Valdez has been a substitute teacher for 32 years, worked as a driver for the Chaves County J.O.Y. Centers and has worked at Lagrone
• MAUREEN GRAVELINE • MANUELA FLORES • NATHAN ANTHONY LUCERO
TODAY’S OBITUARIES PAGE B6
CLASSIFIEDS ..........D1
COMICS .................D7
ENTERTAINMENT .....D6
Funeral Home and Tobosa Development Services. He was bor n in Arlington, Texas, a city he said only had a population of around 12,000 before World War II. He met his wife in Brownsville, Texas. His youngest daughter, Pristinia Aragon, is his caretaker, while his oldest daughter, Diana Castro, is teacher at Del Norte Elementary. Asked what he likes most about First Baptist Church, Valdez answered, “They are very friendly and family-oriented. We have close relationships with each other and with God.”
INDEX GENERAL ...............A2
HOROSCOPES .........D6 LOTTERIES .............A2
OPINION .................A4
SPORTS .................B1
WEATHER ..............A8