Santa Fe couple make culturally inspired jewelry Local Business, A-8
Locally owned and independent
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
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Blue Cross plans Lovelace takeover Deal involves acquisition of health plans, not facilities; smooth transition promised By Jeri Clausing
The Associated Press
ALBUQUERQUE — Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Mexico announced Monday that it is acquiring Lovelace Health Plan in a deal both companies said
should give Lovelace’s 108,000 members access to a larger network of providers. Health Care Services Corp., the nation’s largest nonprofit health insurance company, is buying Lovelace though its New Mexico Blue Cross division.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, and the sale is subject to regulatory approval. Kurt Shipley, president of Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Mexico, promised a smooth transition for Lovelace members, saying the rates and terms
in effect when the sale is finalized will remain through 2014. He expects it to be finalized by year’s end or early next year. Shipley said Lovelace members will have more flexibility
Please see PLANS, Page A-12
Suicide rate falls Military sees a 22 percent drop this year. Page A-12
Dogs find homes ‘Trailblazer’ dies
Most of animals seized in cruelty case adopted; owner faces charges. Page A-5
Plaintiff in gay marriage case dies just months after exchanging vows. Page A-5
Philippine typhoon
Desperate for aid
Survivors in critical need of food, water, medicine as relief groups struggle to reach them
Landscaper Paul Marcus recently found a rock on which he believes the face of Jesus Christ can be seen. Clyde Mueller/The New Mexican
The face of Christ? Landscaper sees holy countenance on stone from Rancho Viejo yard By Tom Sharpe The New Mexican
A Santa Fe landscaper is offering for sale a rock on which he believes he sees the face of Jesus Christ. Paul Marcus said he was finishing up a water feature in a yard at a Rancho Viejo home south of the city when he set up on its end a 40- to 50-pound stone — about 20 inches tall and 16 to 18 inches wide — that he intended to incorporate into the landscape. “I continued to work there a couple of days until I just happened to take a few steps back to see how everything was developing, and then it just popped out at me,” he said. “I just went, ‘Oh, my gosh, look at that!’ … “It’s not uncommon to see faces in rocks, and animal features. But to see the face of Jesus in a rock is unbelievable.” Indeed, the rock, which was found on the property, has the image of
Survivors look up at a military C-130 plane as it flies over the typhoon-ravaged city of Tacloban, central Philippines, on Monday. Stunned survivors of one of the most powerful typhoons ever to make landfall picked through the remains of their homes Monday and pleaded for food and medicine as the Philippines struggled to deal with what is likely its deadliest natural disaster. Aaron Favila/The Associated Press
By Jim Gomez and Todd Pitman The Associated Press
T
Please see FACE, Page A-12
Today Cooler with periods of sun. High 54, low 31. Page B-6
Obituaries
TACLOBAN, Philippines housands of typhoon survivors swarmed the airport here on Tuesday seeking a flight out, but only a few hundred made it, leaving behind a shattered, rain-lashed city short of food and water and littered with countless bodies. Four days after Typhoon Haiyan struck the eastern Philippines, assistance is only just beginning to arrive. Authorities estimated the storm killed 10,000 or more across a vast swath of the country, and displaced around 660,000 others. Tacloban, a city of about 220,000 people on Leyte island, bore the full force of the
A boy waits for fresh water along the side of a road strewn with debris Tuesday in Tacloban. Wally Santana/The Associated Press
Inside u How to contribute to relief efforts. u What made Typhoon Haiyan such a devastating storm? Page A-4
winds and the tsunami-like storm surges. Most of the city is in ruins, a tangled mess of destroyed houses, cars and trees. Malls, garages and shops have all been stripped of food and water by hungry residents. The United Nations said it had released $25 million in emergency funds and was launching an emergency appeal for money. Just after dawn Tuesday, two Philippine Air Force C-130s arrived at its destroyed air-
Please see DESPERATE, Page A-4
Mike Dennis, Nov. 5 Page A-9
Pasapick www.pasatiempomagazine.com
Science Café for Young Thinkers David Parsons of the Rewilding Institute discusses the essential role of gray wolves in our natural ecology, 6-7:30 p.m., Georgia O’Keefe Education Annex, 123 Grant Ave., no charge. More events in Calendar, A-2 and Fridays in Pasatiempo
Index
Sweeney Elementary School honors namesake, veterans By Robert Nott The New Mexican
Robert Sweeney still remembers how he reacted back in 1982 when he learned the Santa Fe school board planned to name an elementary school after him. “I almost fell out of my chair that night,” Sweeney recalled. “It’s usually a tradition to name a school after somebody who is dead. I said to myself, ‘My God, am I still alive?’ ” On Monday, the school’s staff and students joined friends and family in honor-
Calendar A-2 Classifieds B-7 Comics B-12 Lotteries A-2 Opinions A-11
ing Sweeney in a rededication ceremony that also paid homage to the nation’s military veterans. Sweeney, who was born in Santa Fe in 1927, served in the U.S. Army in the mid-1950s. His father, Raymond Patrick Sweeney, became superintendent of Santa Fe Public Schools in 1936. The elder Sweeney was the namesake of the old Santa Fe High School’s Sweeney Gymnasium, which was later remodeled into the Sweeney Convention
Please see SWEENEY, Page A-4
Police notes A-9 Sports B-1
Editor: Ray Rivera, 986-3033, rrivera@sfnewmexican.com Design and headlines: Kristina Dunham, kdunham@sfnewmexican.com
Time Out B-11
Robert Sweeney, right, and his wife, Lena Sweeney, attend the Sweeney Elementary School rededication ceremony Monday. Luis Sánchez Saturno/The New Mexican
Local Business A-8
Main office: 983-3303 Late paper: 986-3010
Two sections, 24 pages 164th year, No. 316 Publication No. 596-440