Roswell Daily Record THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Vol. 123, No. 308 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
December 24, 2014
WEDNESDAY
www.rdrnews.com
New Mexico builders discuss immigration overhaul
SANTA FE (AP) â New Mexico construction companies are working with immigration rights advocates to discuss how a newly announced overhaul will affect their industry. It remains unclear how many immigrants will benefit from President Barack Obamaâs recently announced plan, which would grant temporary legal status to a new class of workers, but builders say the overhaul stands to have a huge impact.
âOur industry would not be viable in Santa Fe if not for the immigrant community,â said Kim Shanahan, executive director of the Santa Fe Area Home Builders Association. âWe toss out the number 75 percent as immigrants. How many of those are legal? Itâs anybodyâs guess.â Builders recently sponsored a lunch forum with Marcela Diaz, executive director of Somos Un Pueblo Unido, a Santa Febased immigrant rights
group, the New Mexican reports. Elsewhere around the state, immigration rights advocates are holding legal workshops to prepare immigrants who might be eligible for relief from Deferred Action for Parental Accountability. The program, which faces legislative obstacles, would allow those who qualify to get a three-year moratorium on deportation and a chance to legally work in the U.S. with a valid Social
Security number.
The application process for the new program starts in May. Those who might qualify will need to get paperwork together as soon as possible, Diaz said. That might include payroll stubs, utility bills, rental agreements and proof of school enrollment for a child. âWe donât want our workers deported,â Shanahan said. âThatâs the bottom line.â
Majority of migrants at Artesia center released AR TESIA (AP) â The majority of an estimated 1,200 Central American immigrants held at a southeastern New Mexico detention center over the last six months have been released, authorities said Monday.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement said more than two-thirds of the immigrants were released before the Artesia facility closed last week, the Albuquerque See CENTER, Page A3
Big toys for big boys
Roswell dealership manager collects cars that have appeared on reality show
BY TIMOTHY P. HOWSARE RECORD EDITOR
There are probably a lot of men â and a few ladies â who are thinking right now, âWouldnât it be great if someone would buy me a cool classic car for Christmas? A â64 Mustang? Or how âbout a â68 Pontiac GTO? That would be the best Christmas present ever.â While Roswell resident and car enthusiast Neal Leven isnât exactly getting a cool retro ride for Christmas, he does have a bright red 1974 Pontiac Trans Am with a 455-cubic-inch plant under the hood waiting for him to pick it up from a classic car dealership in Lubbock. But this is not just any run-of-the-mill used car dealership that sells old jalopies, this particular dealership is none other than Flat 12 Gallery â which may very well be the center of the universe for all that is cool and radical in the classic car
Timothy P. Howsare Photos
Above: Neal Leven, left, with his son, Bryan, show off two of their babies, a 1932 Ford roadster and a 1973 Camaro Z28. Leven, a Texas native who now works at Desert Sun Automotive, has been in the collectible car trade for 36 years. Right: You wonât find GPS, climate controls or satellite radio on the dash of this 1932 Ford roadster.
Two RPD officers among latest state academy graduates BY TODD WILDERMUTH SPECIAL TO THE RECORD
Two Roswell Police Department officers were among the 55 cadets who graduated last week from the New Mexico Department of Public Safety Law Enforcement Academy in Santa Fe. Graduation ceremonies were held on Dec. 19. The graduating cadets represented 27 different agencies throughout the state. The newest Roswell Police Department officers to receive their law-officer certification by completing the
academyâs 16-week course are Alex Barleen and Victor Maynes. âIt is a testament to your strength that you completed this academy,â Department of Public Safety Cabinet Secretary Greg Fouratt told the graduates, âand simply because you are a police officer, it comes with a special burden â embrace it.â New Mexico Court of Appeals Judge J. Miles Hanisee issued the oath to the graduating cadets who are now fully commissioned law officers in New Mexico. See GRADS, Page A2
Timothy P. Howsare Photo
You can almost hear strains of âFĂźr Eliseâ coming out of Schroederâs grand piano in this Christmas display of Peanuts characters in a front yard on North Washington Street. Charlie Brown usually wears a frown, but how can he not smile with all this warm weather weâve been having for the holiday season.
Tobosa teaches life skills to adults with developmental challenges
BY RANDAL SEYLER RECORD CITY EDITOR
Danny Davis receives a hug from Rosy Rubio, assistant director of Tobosa Developmental Services, during the 36th annual Tobosa Awards Ceremony, held on Sept. 12 at The Liberty in Roswell.
HIGH 51 LOW 27
TODAYâS FORECAST
See CARS, Page A3
A Charlie Brown Christmas
(Editorâs Note: This is the second article of a series on education and autism.)
File Photo
trade. The dealership and restoration shop is featured on the CNBCâs reality show âThe Car Chasers.â The Flat 12 Galleryâs owner, Jeff Allen, transverses the country in his quest for one-of-a-kind, unique classic cars. Along with buying and selling collectibles, Allenâs business restores many of their acquisitions. The showâs format is similar to other reality shows where the cast members buy and sell cool stuff like âPawn Starsâ and âAntique Road Show.â A camera follows Allen and his motley crew of techno-savvy grease monkeys as they haggle with sellers and buyers, restore project cars and cruise the flatlands of West Texas. Allenâs wife, Meggan Bailey, keeps track of the companyâs finances and is known to snap Allen back into reality when his eyes get too big for his bank account. Leven, who hails from Panhandle, Texas, a small, dusty town about a half hour northeast of
Teaching life skills to developmentally challenged adults is the goal of Tobosa Developmental Services. âI tell my new employees that if we are doing our
jobs right, we should teach ourselves out of a job,â says Jessica Dunn, incident management coordinator at Tobosa. Tobosa serves adults with a wide range of disabilities, including autism, although people with autism are a minority of the clients at Tobosa, said Dunn on Dec. 19. Autism Spectrum Disorder is a neurobiological disorder that interferes with the development of communication and social interaction skills. It is a lifelong
⢠ALVIN EUGENE SPARKS ⢠MARILYN M. NELSON ⢠EMILY JOANN FERGUSON
TODAYâS OBITUARIES PAGE A6
disorder that may result in impaired development of life skills. ASD can make learning difficult and may lead to challenging behaviors. Clients with autism often have difficulty with communication, and especially with sensory skills training, Dunn said. âIt can be a real challenge for people with autism.â The goal of the Tobosa staf f is to teach their clients, aged 22 and up, how to live independent lives, Dunn said.
CLASSIFIEDS ..........B6 COMICS .................B5 ENTERTAINMENT .....A8 FINANCIAL ..............B3
Ultimately, if the clients no longer need the staff, then Tobosa has succeeded in teaching its clients how to live independent lives. In reality, some of the clients of Tobosa will always need some assistance, but many of the clients go on to live on their own with little or no assistance, Dunn said. Tobosaâs mission statement says the goal of the organization is to assist and support individuals See TOBOSA, Page A3
INDEX GENERAL ...............A2
HOROSCOPES .........B6 LOTTERIES .............A2
OPINION .................A4
SPORTS .................B1
WEATHER ..............A8