Roswell Daily Record THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Vol. 120, No. 303 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
NM ranks 45th in child homelessness
SATURDAY
www.rdrnews.com
JULIA BERGMAN RECORD STAFF WRITER
More than 16,000 New Mexico children are homeless over the course of a year. On Tuesday, the National Center on Family Homelessness released a report that ranked New Mexico 45 out of 50 states in terms of child homelessness.
STILL SELLING CHRISTMAS TREES AT 99
December 17, 2011
Tackett said he has dealt with cases of students and their families living in the back seat of their car, and sleeping in a tent at Bottomless Lakes.
The report updated a prior NCFH study and looked at trends in child homelessness from 2006 to 2010. Four factors determined how each state was ranked
in the report: the number of homeless children; the child’s well-being; the risk for child homelessness; and state policy and planning activities. Overall, the report found that children
Angels come through for CASA kids
experiencing homelessness in America suf fer from hunger, poor physical and emotional health, and limited academic proficiency in reading and math. Winter mute, Wendy advocacy director at Cuidando los Niños, said gathering accurate data on the number of homeless children and families in New Mexico is very difficult.
Lawyers argue pay-to-play
ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — When Tony Garcia started selling Christmas trees, most people were sitting in front of a radio instead of a TV, Disney’s “Snow White” was playing on the silver screen, and the country was in the grips of the Great Depression. - PAGE B4
TOP 5 WEB
For The Past 24 Hours
• Summit addresses water, drought issues • SENMEDD meets in Roswell • County chooses Plan D • USPS holds town hall on closure • Coyotes struggle from field in 52-32 loss
INSIDE SPORTS
Mark Wilson Photo
Members of the Roswell High School Charlie’s Angels Dance Team made a donation of holiday gifts to the CASA Kids Store Friday afternoon.
The beautiful thing about rivalry games is that until the game is officially over, the effort of both teams won’t wane. That was the case on Friday night when the Hagerman boys basketball team made the short trek to Dexter to take on the Demons. Dexter was in control for much of the game, but had to weather a furious Bobcat rally in a 41-38 Demon win. - PAGE B1
Youngsters per for med hip-hop routines, breakdanced and competed in an open style dance battle to give back to the Roswell Boys & Girls Club, Friday evening. The fundraiser, Hip Hop for Toys, was put on by Funny Bones Allstarz, Insurance Restoration Services and Premier Athletics and took place at the Roswell Mall.
Michael “Rawk1” Soza, a dance teacher at Premier and a Boys & Girls Club volunteer, approached the organization about collecting toys for its kids this year. Soza said the club was not receiving much support for its toy drive, so he decided to help out. The event featured a raffle, a dancing workshop, performances from several groups and dancers, and a dancing competition. It pro-
OBITUARIES
HIGH ...52˚ LOW ....33˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........B8 COMICS.................B5 FINANCIAL .............A8 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ......A10 LOTTERIES ............A2 NATION .................B4 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WASHINGTON .........A9 WEATHER ............A10
INDEX
LOS LUNAS (AP) — Part of a whistleblower lawsuit over pay-toplay allegations involving New Mexico investments should be dismissed so state prosecutors can pursue their own case against alleged misconduct, Assistant Attorney General Seth Cohen argued during a hearing Friday. The whistleblower’s attorney, Victor Marshall, argued that Attorney General Gary King and his staff have conflicts of interest and should not be responsible for prosecuting the case. The two sides laid out some of their arguments before state District Judge John Pope during a hearing Friday in Los Lunas. The hearing will be continued, but Pope has yet to set a date. See PAY-TO-PLAY, Page A7
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate leaders agreed on compromise legislation to extend Social Security payroll tax cuts and jobless benefits for two months while requiring President Barack Obama to accept Republican demands for a swift decision on the fate of an oil pipeline that promises thousands of jobs. A vote is expected today on the measure, the last AP Photo in a highly contentious House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, followed by House year of divided governAssistant Minority Leader James Clyburn and House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer arrive for a press conference See CONGRESS, Page A7 on Capitol Hill, Friday.
Comet Lovejoy defies death; brushes up to sun and lives See HIP-HOP, Page A7
TODAY’S • Elena Vasquez • Eleanor Jane Dunham - PAGE B4
See CHILD, Page A7
Hip Hop for Toys Senate leaders reach accord helps B & G Club JULIA BERGMAN RECORD STAFF WRITER
DEMONS DEFEAT BOBCATS
“The homeless are sometimes seen as an invisible part of the population. Parents try and stay under the radar and protect their children,” she said. Lisa Huval, policy and advocacy director for the New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness, listed housing as contributing
AP Photo
Comet Lovejoy leaves the sun's corona, Thursday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A small comet survived what astronomers figured would be a sure death when it danced uncomfortably close to the broiling sun. Comet Lovejoy, which was only discovered a couple of weeks ago, was supposed to melt Thursday night when it came close to where temperatures hit several million degrees. Astronomers had tracked 2,000 other sun-grazing comets that made the same suicidal trip. None had ever survived. But astronomers watching live with NASA telescopes first saw the sun’s corona wiggle as Lovejoy
went close to the sun. They were then shocked when a bright spot emerged on the sun’s other side. Lovejoy lived. “I was delighted when I saw it go into the sun and I was astounded when I saw something re-emerge,” said U.S. Navy solar researcher Karl Battams. Lovejoy didn’t exactly come out of its hellish adventure unscathed. Only 10 percent of the comet — which was probably millions of tons — survived the encounter, said W. Dean Pesnell, project scientist for NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, which tracked Love-
joy’s death-defying plunge. And the comet lost something pretty important: its tail. “It looks like the tail broke off and is stuck” in the sun’s magnetic field, Pesnell said. Comets circle the sun and sometimes get too close. Lovejoy came within 75,000 miles of the sun’s surface, Battams said. For a small object often described as a dirty snowball comprised of ice and dust, that brush with the sun should have been fatal. Astronomers say it probably did
Gloyd Trubey feels blessed; tells his story at The Salvation Army
See COMET, Page A7
JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
Gloyd Trubey says he is 83 going on 70. Several years ago, he had a stroke that left him with partial paralysis and unable to speak. However, one could hardly tell. He walks without trace of a limp and has a command of the language that a writer would find admirable. “I plan to live until I’m 100 years old.” He credits his good health to the Lord and has a story to tell that should give those facing life’s challenges hope. “I had a stroke, I was in a coma for four months and one week,” he said. While
still in a comatose state, T rubey says Jesus appeared to him. “He talked to me and asked me to walk with Him. Then he showed me all the people he had cured, and I knew I was going to be all right.” When Trubey came out of his coma, he felt blessed. “I couldn’t remember my mom or my dad or my children, but I felt on top of the world.” To deal with the aphasia, he said, “I wrote all the
words down I wanted to remember. Anytime I wanted to talk to someone, I’d use the list, and they (the words) stuck in my brain.” The stroke also affected the left side of his body. “My left leg didn’t work at all.” He spent six months in rehabilitation and then had a second stroke. “One night I tried to get out of bed and my leg was working. It was See SPOTLIGHT, Page A7
Jessica Palmer Photo
Gloyd Trubey volunteers with the Salvation Army.