Focus on Carlsbad Fall 2014

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FROM THE EDITORFOCUS ON LAW ENFORCEMENTTOP COPS OF CARLSBADFOCUS ON FAITHWOMEN OF THE CLOTHFOCUS ON SPORTSALL AMERICAN GIRLFOCUS ON THE GARDENLIFELONG PASSION FOR GARDENINGFOCUS ON HEALTH CAREALL IN THE FAMILY PEDIATRICS THREEFOCUS ON MAINSTREETWOMEN-OWNED BUSINESSES ON THE RISE

PHOTOS IN FOCUSFOCUS ON SENIOR CAREVETERANS OF SENIOR CAREFOCUS ON VOLUNTEERINGOVERCOMING THE ODDSAT GRACE HOUSEFOCUS ON EDUCATIONCARLSBAD’S FRENCH CONNECTIONFOCUS ON HONORTHE BATAAN MEMORIAL DEATH MARCHFOCUS ON FAMILYKEY TO RAISING TEN KIDS?FOCUS ON YOUTHLIFE IS PRETTY GOOD FOR OLIVIA QUINTANAFOCUS ON BUSINESSWOMEN IN BUSINESSOFFER EXPERTISE, COMPASSION

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Kyle Marksteiner, Editorial Director - Lilly Anaya, AdvertisingPhotography by Kyle Marksteiner, Brand Eye Photography, Jennifer Coats Photography & submitted.

Special Contributors: Margaret Barry, Amanda Melvin, Staci Guy,Mannie Bemis, Sharon McIntire & The Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce

F A L L 2 0 1 4

A B O U T T H E C O V E R Just a sampling of the many women leaders in Carlsbad.

Explore this issue to learn their stories and the stories of manymore amazing women that call Carlsbad home!

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MY DAUGHTER AMELIA, WHO JUST TURNED FIVE, RECENTLY INFORMED US THAT SHE IS A PRINCESS NINJA.I’m not really sure what that means. Does she sneak up on people and then wave at them? Or does she just come from a storied bloodline while also practicing the art of stealth?

Either way, I think it is pretty cool. In fact, it pretty much summarizes what I love about having a small child who has an open mind. She might be a barbarian stomping in a mud puddle one moment and then morph into a pinky-hoisting debutante inviting her stuffed animals over for a tea party the next. Because she can.

That’s kind of what we are celebrating in this edition of Focus on Carlsbad – options. Amelia has the option to pursue a career as an astronaut, a veterinarian, a mom, or as some combination of all three. So we interviewed some female leaders and entrepreneurs in a wide variety of fields to celebrate this freedom.

I was not able to find any princess ninjas to interview for this edition of Focus, perhaps because they were too stealthy. Instead, we focused on a healthy spectrum of options in which local women have pursued leadership roles. We included some fields where women are relative newcomers, such as law enforcement and ministry, and we also focused on some fields where women have been involved for a long time but have recently acquired leadership roles.

We didn’t get everyone. It’s an election season, so bringing in some of our political leaders seemed

like it might not end well. I really wanted to include a feature on our two female district judges, but they opted to avoid the limelight. Still, as I look over the list of amazing female leaders we did interview for this edition, I think we’re telling a pretty good story.

There are people out there who do not like options. As I’m writing this column, an update related to the kidnapping of hundreds of girls in Nigeria just appeared on the news wire. These guys feel so strongly about girls not having options that they are willing to devote their lives to absurd violence to prevent this freedom.

I am stating the obvious here, but they just don’t get it. They just don’t get that raising a mud stomper/debutante/veterinarian/astronaut/president/teacher/princess ninja is pretty much the coolest thing ever. And telling this little ball

of everything that every single one of those options is a possibility, no matter how unlikely, is just the right thing to do.

Whatever the princess ninja decides to do, her mom and dad have got her back.

ABOUT THE EDITORKyle Marksteiner is the Editorial Director of Focus on Carlsbad magazine. He can be reached by email [email protected]

F O C U S from the editor

KYLE MARKSTEINEREditorial DirectorFOCUS ON CARLSBAD

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F O C U S on law enforcement

HISTORY IS IN THE MAKING IN CARLSBAD LAW ENFORCEMENT RIGHT NOW.Carlsbad Police Department Lieutenant Jennifer Moyers is the highest ranking female certified officer in the department’s history. Eddy County Sheriff ’s Department Sergeant Carolyn Newman is the highest ranking female certified office in that department’s history. State Police Sergeant Investigator Monica Martinez-Jones is the highest ranking state police officer to serve in Carlsbad.

While there has been a slow trickle of female officers to serve in local law

enforcement for some time (at least with the Carlsbad Police Department), their number and rank has increased significantly over the past few years.

According to Jon Tully, former city administrator and police chief, the first female certified officer to serve with the Carlsbad Police Department was Marsha Phillips. She first served as a police dispatcher, then became a patrol officer in the 1970s before later moving to Roswell. “There were not a whole lot of women

patrol officers anywhere in 1975,” Tully recalled. “She was one of the best officers I ever worked with.”

Carlsbad Police Department Lieutenant Jennifer Moyers, a Carlsbad native, recalls several previous officers with the force, among them Kim Redman and Debbie Kupcak, but the numbers have typically been limited.

The police force currently has six certified female officers out of a total staff of 54. The number includes Moyers, two detectives and three patrol officers. Additionally, a number of women are employed on the non-certified side of the force, including Dispatch Commander Cathrynn Shelton.

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Carlsbad’s numbers are about average for New Mexico, said Moyers, who noted that three of the state law enforcement academy’s 30 recent graduates are women.

Moyers joined the police force in 2000, a year before her husband joined. He’d been working at a local potash mine while she had a minimum wage job, and the couple could not afford for both to switch jobs the same year.

“I’ve always wanted to do it,” Moyers said. “I think I just like the pace. It’s the adrenaline and the excitement of it.”

She said she wasn’t nervous about being a woman in law enforcement, and being outnumbered didn’t really bother her either.

On the sheriff ’s department side, Sergeant Carolyn Newman originally planned to pursue a medical career. She later decided to move to Arizona and become a National Park Service law enforcement officer at the Grand Canyon. She patrolled the park on horseback but got homesick and came back to Carlsbad. Newman (Smith at the time) applied for a job as a deputy with the Eddy County Sheriff ’s Department in 2009. Becoming a federal law enforcement officer actually required two different phases of training, Newman recalled, but she still had to attend New Mexico’s law enforcement academy for the job here.

Newman was not the first certified female officer to work for the sheriff ’s department, but having female sheriff ’s deputies in

Eddy County is a very recent development. Among Newman’s predecessors was former Carlsbad Police Officer Lisa Springer, who had transferred to the county department a year before Newman joined the force. Newman was the first woman to graduate from the state law enforcement academy as a sheriff ’s department employee and is the first woman with the Eddy County Sheriff ’s Department to be promoted to sergeant. The department currently has four female certified officers.

Being a sheriff ’s deputy can also be lonely work. When Newman first started, a single deputy on a graveyard shift might be responsible for patrolling half of Eddy County. “We joke that everything past the street light is ours,” she observed. “Your flashlight is the light, and your backup might be 15 to 30 minutes away.”

After college, State Police Sergeant Monica Martinez-Jones briefly worked for the CASA program. She saw a job in the Roswell newspaper about the state police

PHOTO: Pictured are the female members of the Carlsbad Police Department, Eddy County Sheriff’s Department and local New Mexico State Police, from left to right: Amy Salter, Anna Austin, Ashlee Dionne, Tina Dorado, Elizabeth Ferrales, Monica Jones, Tonia Tiller, Jennifer Moyers, Carolyn Newman. Not pictured are Lisa Springer and Daniela Rios, with the Eddy County Sheriff’s Department. Photo by Brand Eye Photography


hiring. She initially had mixed feelings. “I didn’t want to be a cop. I wanted to be an attorney, but I couldn’t afford law school,” she observed. “My mother told me she thought I would make a great cop. The rest is history, and now I can’t imagine myself doing anything else.”

Martinez-Jones began with the New Mexico State Police in 2001. She was one of eight women in her academy class, an especially high number. “It was a pretty intimidating paramilitary-type class,” she recalled. “I was 5’2”, the smallest in the academy, and I had to keep up with big guys running ten miles a day. Then there were pushups in between if we were bad.”

As the first female state police officer to be stationed in Eddy County, Martinez-Jones was promoted from patrol officer to detective in 2003 and transferred from Artesia to Carlsbad. She was promoted to sergeant in 2010 and transferred to Taos, where she served for eight months, then to Clovis, where she served for two months, and then back to Carlsbad as an investigator.

“My daughter and husband live in Carlsbad. My whole goal was to get back here reunited with my family,” she shared.

Martinez-Jones revealed there are 30 female state police officers in New Mexico, but there have only been a total of 65 since 1935. Her fellow offers were a bit overprotective when she first began her career.

“None of the guys had ever been around a female officer when I first got here,” she stated. “They all wanted me to be a good officer, but at the same time, they were really careful about what situation they got me into.”

“It’s big brother syndrome, completely,” agreed Newman when she heard about Martinez-Jones’ initial struggles. “You’ll be ready to jump in, and the next thing you know, your five brothers have jumped in for you!”

Newman even recalled a situation where she and Martinez-Jones both worked on the same traffic stop.

“The guy later called in and said, ‘Those two chicks were mean!’” she laughed. “I love working with women from other agencies, and I also love seeing our department getting more and more women involved.”

Martinez-Jones recalls a male supervisor welcoming a fellow male

officer to the force, but then telling her that she needed to watch herself because everyone was going to test her. “I told him that I didn’t just wake up and think it would be great to be a state police officer,” she recalled. “If I can’t deal with it, I’ll go do something else.”

She’s long since proven herself, and her gender is seldom an issue now.

“I grew up around brothers, and these guys are like brothers I’ve been around for 13 years,” she added. “They just treat me like one of the guys.”

“It’s really pretty accepting,” agreed Newman. “As long as you come in and work hard and back people up, you get respect. We all fight like brothers and sisters, but there isn’t much I wouldn’t do for these guys. It’s more like a family.”

Newman added that she loves working for the sheriff ’s department and is happy with the administration there.

Dealing with potential lawbreakers takes a certain commanding presence, Martinez-Jones noted.

“A guy may be 6’3’’ and have a gun, but I have to let him know I mean business,” she shared. “It’s verbal judo. You have to keep control of the situation.”

“I call it the ‘gift of gab,’” added Newman. “I think most women are excellent at it. I can talk myself into a situation, and I can talk myself out of a situation. That’s the most important thing for any officer – you have to have ‘the gift of gab.’”

Newman, a three sport varsity letterman in high school, agreed that physical training and combat training are important, but for every incident resolved through physical conflict, hundreds more are resolved through communication and an understanding of human nature. “We want to see compliance more than we want to see an altercation. That’s our main goal,” she noted. “You have to be able to talk to people in this job. If not, you are going to end up in 500 fights a day.”

Newman said she does not really run into situations where suspects ignore her because she’s a woman. “If nothing else, I get more compliance,” she admitted. “I think with men versus men, you sometimes get into the macho thing, but when a female comes in, they are generally treated with more compliance.”

As an inspector supervisor, Martinez-Jones has agents working throughout Southeastern New Mexico. “Wherever the crime happens, that’s where you are going to go,” she noted. “My job is usually to make sure everything is done properly.”

Martinez-Jones still shares police stories with her father, a retired Roswell police officer. “I think my mom is actually a little more supportive than my dad because my dad knew what it was like out on the streets, and so he worries a lot more than my mom,” she offered. “I can share some stories with my mom that I can’t with my dad.”

All three women have strong ties to law enforcement. In addition to her father, Monica Martinez-Jones is married to Eddy County Sheriff ’s Captain Arsenio Jones. Jennifer Moyers is married to Carlsbad Police Department Captain Jon Moyers, and Sergeant Carolyn Newman is married to former Sheriff ’s Department Captain Leon Newman.

“It seems to be a family profession, especially around here,” observed Moyers. “My husband’s brother is a police officer in Hobbs, and Jon’s stepbrother is about to graduate from the academy.”

And law enforcement discussions often do dominate the dinner table at home. “I wish we could leave it behind,” Moyers laughed. “I think it occupies the majority of our conversations.”

Having a spouse who is also involved in law enforcement does have its advantages, such as a mutual understanding that you are in a line of work where you might have to drop whatever you are doing − watching a Little League game, attending a dance recital or visiting a family member − to respond to an emergency. “I think in our situation, we both understand that,” Moyers acknowledged. “So it makes it easier to deal with.”

Moyers said she didn’t think about paving new trails for her daughter when she began a career in law enforcement. “I didn’t have her [until] many years later, but she can do anything she wants to do,” she contended, pausing, “but I’m not sure I would encourage a career in law enforcement for her. I know what is out there. I’m not sure I’d encourage a career in law enforcement for my son either.”

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Carlsbad is a strong community of faith with dozens of different Christian

denominations. While the titles and interpretations may vary, women have obtained leadership roles at many different places of worship. Here are a few:

REV. GERI CUNNINGHAMThe Reverend Geri Cunningham joined Carlsbad’s St. Peter Evangelical Lutheran Church in 2009, when she moved here with her husband, Earl. According to Rev. Cunningham, a fairly large number of mainline Protestant churches now ordain women. However, there are not very many ordained female ministers in Carlsbad or even Southeastern New Mexico.

“I get some odd looks,” she admitted. “In some of the previous churches where I had callings, it was not that unique.”

Rev. Cunningham is a second-career pastor, having entered professional ministry after retiring from 20 years of service in the Air Force as a Russian linguist. She studied at Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary in Berkeley, California, where she earned a Master of Divinity degree, and at Iliff School of Theology in Denver, earning a Master of Arts degree in Specialized Ministry.

“I come from a very traditional Roman Catholic background. Two of my aunts were nuns, and I think I was designated as the grandchild who was going to become a nun,” Rev. Cunningham added. “I decided that was not the path I was going to take.”

She became a Lutheran when she was in her 20s, and she ultimately found her niche in faith after her career in the military. Previously, she has served as youth minister at Tanque Verde Lutheran Church in

Tucson, Arizona; interim pastor at Christ the King Lutheran Church in Great Falls, Virginia; pastor at Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church in San Lorenzo, California; and associate pastor at Lutheran Church of the Holy Spirit in Centennial, Colorado.

St. Peter Evangelical Lutheran Church is a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), and Rev. Cunningham said many women are now pastoring ELCA churches at the national level. “I think about a third of pastors are women, and the average

seminary class is close to 50%,” she estimated.

She recognizes that many denominations do not have women ministers.

“There are women who are teachers mentioned in Acts, in Paul’s letter to the Romans,” she observed. “Despite the fact that it has not been the practice of the church for the past 1,500 to 1,600 years, there does appear to be a tradition of it.”

Additionally, there is the reality that there would be a shortage of pastors if women were not ordained.

Rev. Cunningham said the true challenge of being a female pastor is the fact that she can connect with some people but with others she simply can’t. “I think people tend to gravitate toward a pastor like them,” she speculated. “I feel like I’m doing a fairly good job of reaching out to some of the moms out there, but I don’t always feel like I’m reaching out to the younger males. We always look for who we can relate to. That’s true everywhere.” On the other hand, her military background helps her relate to men visiting the church who have had a similar experience.

EVA LOPEZEva Lopez is the director of religious education and youth minister for St. Edward Catholic Church in Carlsbad. She’s spent much of her life volunteering or working for the church in some capacity.

F O C U S on faith


Women

REV. GERI CUNNINGHAM

Clothof the


“My husband and I always loved working with youth and teaching them about faith,” Lopez stated. “I’d been volunteering in Loving for a long time, and the pastor here (St. Edward) told me about a job when it became available.”

Lopez oversees the church’s religious education program from kindergarten through 12th grade, and that includes a busy summer Vacation Bible School. She continues to receive training to work with youth on matters of faith.

“When social media became a big deal, I went to a workshop about it,” she recalled. “You need to be where kids are and learn how to do all these things so you can be connected with these kids.”

Lopez said there’s a mix of men and women youth ministers and volunteers, and that’s a positive. “When you are dealing with both young ladies and young men, it’s good to have men and women,” she cautioned.

Lopez’s job also involves keeping track of records of the children in the church, such as whether they’ve been baptized or received their first communion and how far along they are in their confirmation process.

One of her most important jobs, however, is to encourage

communication.

“As parents, I think we sometimes forget to let our children know how much we love and care for them,” she speculated. “We get caught up in day-to-day stuff.”

When Lopez takes her youth to a spiritual retreat, she’ll ask parents to write a letter.

“You’d be surprised,” she warned. “There are a lot of youth who think their parents don’t love them. It’s really touching when they read those letters and see how much they mean to their mom and dad.”

ANITA KRUEGER Anita Krueger and her husband Larry are both “active retirees,” and they were previously the dynamic duo at United Methodist Church in Carlsbad. He was an elder (he’s now helping Mt. Sinai Methodist Church in Carlsbad), and she was a deacon (she’s now a faith community nurse). Anita also previously served Landsun Hospice as a support chaplain.

Krueger’s professional background has blended faith and nursing, and it is a combination she still pursues. She has worked her share of 12-hour shifts as a rural nurse and has an associate’s degree in nursing. She also attended Phillips University in Enid, Oklahoma from 1964-1971, receiving a B.A. in Christian Ministries with special emphasis in Medical Missions. Part of her career in nursing included working a related job with a local county office.

As a preacher’s wife heavily involved in the church, she already knew how important having a faith community is to the healing process, but she was not always allowed to say that at work in the county job. “I was working with young mothers and pregnant women, and they desperately needed support,” she recalled. “I could not say, ‘Get a church connection!’ because I was a county employee.”

Krueger ended the county job in 1997 and began on the path that

would eventually see her working side by side with her husband. She said she received strong support when she began her candidacy program to become a deacon. She attended seminary at the Garrett Evangelical Theological Instutite in Evanston, Illinois, where she received a basic graduate degree in Theological Studies and a certification in Spiritual Formation.

She began parish nursing in 2000 and was ordained as a probationary deacon through the Methodist Church in 2005. She was fully ordained in 2008 and retired in 2012.

“I’d been a preacher’s wife since 1979,” she added. “My mother’s reaction (to her becoming a deacon) was ‘It’s about time!’ She’d seen that in me since high school.”

What’s a faith community nurse?

“My calling is to help people understand we are integrated, body, mind and spirit,” she said, in reference to her service as a faith community nurse. “We need to take care of all parts when we are in connection with God.”

Krueger stressed that what she’s doing right now is not home health nursing. “I can’t give you medication,” she offered. “I can teach your spouse or your neighbor how to give you medication. I can do health counseling, and I can accompany people to appointments so there is another ear to hear.”

Krueger admitted she was blessed to be in the right place at the right time when she had a conversation where she found out about parish nursing, which is now called faith community nursing. story continues on page 12 >>>

EVA LOPEZ

ANITA KRUEGER


Although she’s scaled back just a little bit since she retired, Krueger is still involved in faith community nursing. Krueger never really saw her careers in nursing and with the church as different entities. “The world sees them as different things, but they wove together for me,” she concluded.

MARTY SINGLETERRYMarty Singleterry’s career in ministry began when she served as a part-time, temporary, interim campus minister at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces.

Singleterry grew up in Oklahoma, but her parents later moved to Texas. She began college at Eastern New Mexico University, but transferred to NMSU after she got married and graduated there.

She said she would have become a minister even if the campus job had not opened up.

“I had made the decision. I had answered God’s call to go into ministry,” she noted. “But I wasn’t sure at first how that was going to work.”

She spent more than six years in Las Cruces, then later served at small churches in Arkansas and then West Texas.

“One church was in a town called Imperial,” she recalled. “The church isn’t even there anymore. There’s not even much of an Imperial anymore.”

She also enjoyed her time in Grandfalls, Texas, serving a historic church that is a partnership between Disciples of Christ, Presbyterians and Methodists. Singleterry then moved to Anthony, New Mexico, in 1990. Anthony is right on the border between Texas and New Mexico and is also very close to Mexico.

“While I was there, I started a service in Spanish,” Singleterry observed. “I was not very fluent, but one of the members of the congregation was fluent in both English and Spanish.”

She’d write a sermon for her Spanish members on Wednesday, write the English sermon on Thursday, get the Spanish sermon back from a church member on Friday and spend Saturday practicing so she could “preach it, not read it.”

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“I had some Spanish in college,” she confessed. “I could communicate a little bit. I just wasn’t fluent enough to put a whole sermon together.”

She received quite a bit of help from Francisco Escalero, who brought his family across the border from Mexico to attend her services. Escalero would later become a U.S. citizen and eventually an ordained minister.

Singleterry said most of her churches were fine with having a woman minister. “There were maybe a few people when I was first appointed in Arkansas who were not sure about it,” she reflected. “I’ve been the first female minister anywhere I’ve been. I’ve broken ground everywhere.” The key to being accepted, she remarked, was to focus on always being a pastor, not on being a woman minister.

After her calling in Anthony, Singleterry went to Albuquerque to serve as associate pastor with Central

United Methodist Church, the largest church in the conference. She spent seven years there.

“It was very different from a rural church,” she confessed, but then added, “It was actually somewhat like Anthony because there they came from two different states and didn’t all know each other.”

In 2002, Singleterry was appointed district superintendent of the Methodist Church’s Clovis district. As district superintendent, she worked directly for the bishop and supervised pastors and churches in a district of 56,000 square miles that includes 54 churches.

“I spent a lot of time in the car,” she recalled, noting that the hardest part of the job was having to let some pastors go.

“Those were the days I sat on the bed and cried,” she added. “When the

bishop appointed me, he reminded me that I had all the responsibility and no authority.”

Singleterry retired at noon on a Saturday in 2006. She went to work the following day as a part-time associate pastor at First United Methodist Church in Carlsbad. She retired from that job three years later.

These days, Singleterry, 75, volunteers weekly at the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens State Park. “But my real passion is volunteering for the International Justice Coalition, which works against human trafficking,” she emphasized.

She’s recently returned from a seminar in Washington, D.C., and she also met with members of the local congressional delegation to ask them for help eliminating slavery globally.

Carlsbad’s women of the cloth never really retire. They just find new ways to help.

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BECKY THOMPSON HAS HAD AN AWESOME LIFE.

There are so many different reasons why the above sentence is true, but one with a story attached to it is that Becky is probably the only Carlsbad resident who has had a pedicure done at the same time as NBA legend Charles Barkley.

Here’s the deal: from 1961 to 1962, Becky Thompson played women’s professional basketball for the All American Redheads. The Redheads began playing in 1936 and were one of the world’s most successful professional women’s basketball leagues. Their average season lasted 200 games and involved some 60,000 miles of travel. Thompson joined the

Redheads at age 18 after watching them play in Carlsbad.

Thompson, originally from Texarkana, Texas, was a multi-sport athlete. Over the years, she was inducted into the Amateur Softball Association’s National Softball Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.

“When you are young and doing all this stuff, you never think about being in halls of fame,” she shared. “It never even entered my mind!”

Last year, she and her former teammates were inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. That’s where she met Barkley.

“I went into the beauty shop, and there he was getting his toenails done,” she recalled. “I was wearing an All American Redheads shirt.” She asked Barkley for his name and then for his autograph. He agreed, but only if Becky gave him her autograph.

Later on, Becky and her twin sister, Rachael, walked through the lobby where the induction was being held. “Everyone was lined up to get autographs, but he brought us up to the front and hugged our necks,” she remembered. “I was in awe to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, and Charles Barkley and I became good friends.”

In addition to her sports career, Becky was locally known as the previous owner of Becky’s Drive-In Restaurant, the turnaround point for anyone who cruised Carlsbad for decades. She left her basketball career to manage A&W Root Beer, which later became Becky’s.

She sold Becky’s some time ago and recently also sold Sportscenter, the uniform shop next door to Becky’s. She said she retired to focus on golfing and visiting family, but quickly decided to get back to work.

These days, Becky can be found running the concession stand at the Carlsbad Bob Forrest Youth Sports Complex, just a couple hundred feet from the softball field named after her in a ceremony this spring. “I sat at home for three

F O C U S on sports

PHOTO LEFT: Carlsbad athlete Becky Thompson, during her time as an All American Redhead professional basketball player.

All American Girl


months and I thought I was going to lose my mind,” she confessed. “I’m here now, and I love it, and I hope to continue doing it.”

Becky has also devoted decades of her time toward helping area youth. She spent 15 plus years as a Carlsbad Community Youth Volunteer basketball coach. Becky was the first female coach with Shorthorn Little League, where she coached for six years, served as the vice president and served as a player agent. Through her businesses, she has sponsored countless summer and high school sports programs for over 35 years.

“Becky wasn’t just a great athlete, she was a great person who did so much for youth programs in Carlsbad,” Mayor Dale Janway recently pointed out at a ceremony honoring Thompson.

Thompson returned the compliment to the entire community. “I just can’t tell you how much I love Carlsbad and I love the people of Carlsbad,” she beamed.

PHOTO RIGHT: Becky Thompson, pictured at the Carlsbad Youth Sports Complex, where a softball field is named in her honor.PHOTO ABOVE TOP: Becky Thompson, pictured with her son, Jeff, and grandson, Tristan. Not pictured is granddaughter, Lexi Thompson.PHOTO ABOVE BOTTOM: Becky Thompson, her sister Rachael, and Charles Barkley.


Lifelong Passion for Gardening

For many women who garden, it is a lifelong passion and spiritual experience. I remember as a very young child going into my mother’s pantry and taking some small white beans, digging a little trench in some soil on the margins between the woods and the grass behind my house in Virginia, and planting those beans, watering them and watching them for days waiting for them to emerge. I had faith because my family gardened and I knew about seeds and nurturing living things so that they would grow. The beans did grow, and I have never looked back.

Every place I have lived there has been a garden of one sort or another. When there was only a small space, I grew in large pots before “container” gardening was popular, but mostly I’ve been lucky enough to be able to spread out into large spaces. I mostly enjoy growing vegetables to eat. I cannot buy in any store what I can pick at the height of flavor and ripeness and goodness right from my garden. The flowers in my garden are there to provide beauty and color, but also to

attract beneficial insects and bees and butterflies to pollinate everything.

I grow organically. I’ve never really been inclined to poison anything and sometimes that means sharing the fruits of my labor not only with people but also with bugs, birds, rodents and dogs. It’s always good to make sure there is plenty to go around. The primary reason I grow without chemicals is because I learned that all gardening prior

to World War II was organic. The introduction of agricultural chemicals was a byproduct of the chemicals used in warfare – bomb making, nerve gasses, etc. I have no desire to eat those, nor to feed them to my family and friends, so I steer clear and find other methods such as companion planting, picking off bugs with my hands and maintaining the health of the soil. Healthy plants have their own immunities to fight off invasive bugs and most diseases on their own. Rarely, I might lose some plants, but I offer those up to the gardening gods in sacrifice for learning something new about gardening.

In our society, it is the female gender that is considered to be the nurturer, the one who provides food and comfort. Of course there are exceptions to the rule, but for the majority of the present population of this country, the mother/female figure is the one who cares for the family, primarily the children, ideally by supplying the loving arms that surround us all, help with learning necessary life skills and food to sustain life. Nothing is more loving than growing healthy plants in healthy soil to feed your loved ones to make them healthy and happy, too.

Too much of what is available in our grocery stores today is really not food. A lot of it is processed to the point that it is no longer recognizable as having come from the earth and is likely to have components that come from a chemical lab. Unknown amounts of our food are genetically modified in ways that introduce genes that don’t even come from the plant kingdom

F O C U S on the garden

by Margaret Barry

GardenNotes


and in ways that would never occur in nature. There is minimal safety testing and no labeling of such products, so a consumer has no say in what is entering her body and the bodies of her loved ones. This is not right. I want to know what is in my food and I feel that it is certainly my right. My feeling is that if more women had more power and control in lawmaking this would be a kinder, more nurturing place, and knowing what is in food would be absolutely normal.

There are substantial issues with feeding a growing population. Many geographic areas of this country are considered to be “food deserts” where fresh, organically grown food is not available. Farmers’ Markets are a popular way of obtaining locally grown food; many smaller countries have their own versions of local markets that have existed for centuries. Our own Carlsbad Downtown Farmers’ Market struggles to provide produce in an area with no organic market gardens and very tough growing conditions. But, in my opinion, the increased use of more and more toxic pesticides and herbicides and genetically modified crops is just not the answer. It has not been proven that genetically modified crops are more productive. To the contrary, they require more and more applications of petroleum-based chemicals to stay ahead of the unwanted bugs and weeds, which keep adapting to the chemicals and therefore require even more potent poisons. Many of the agricultural methods employed in this country, namely the practice of covering hundreds of acres with the same crop, are killing our pollinators and our birds with either chemicals or a destroyed habitat. And these methods require more and more fuel and water. It’s not sustainable on this planet and it is not proven that it will eradicate poverty and hunger in the world. That is actually a matter of access and poverty.

From my perspective as a

gardener, what I see that works on my small scale is a combination of employing methods that are tried and true and experimenting with some new methods, as well. Long straight rows do make cultivation easier, but if I combine that with a covering of mulch, there is less need for traditional cultivation that exposes the soil to lost organic content, lost moisture and germination of weed seeds, which means another repeat of the process, or even worse, the need for numerous applications of herbicide. Permaculture methods that mimic natural environments can grow a lot of perennial fruits and berries in a small space and also leave room for wildlife to thrive. Green roofs, vertical gardening and community gardens that take over abandoned lots are methods that are being tried successfully in many cities. These methods provide fresh, locally grown produce, jobs and a place to learn to garden, and are able to limit the need for shipping produce long distances. Also, experimenting with shade coverings in the desert and bringing back ancient methods of desert cultivation all have their place in a well-thought-out agricultural system that would work in our area.

Food is really abundant in our world and more and more people are becoming aware of the importance of good, healthy food to overall health. All of my organic gardening students have been women, so I have great faith that the true nurturers of the world will see to it that there is food for all if they are given the opportunity to have a say in how the world is fed. Women gardeners unite!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:Margaret Barry has lived in Carlsbad since January, 1999, and is a fiber artist and avid, life-long gardener. She is an Eddy County Master Gardener and a vendor at the Carlsbad Downtown Farmers’ Market. She is currently Board President of Carlsbad MainStreet, which sponsors the Farmers’ Market. She also teaches Organic Gardening at NMSU-C for the Continuing Education program.

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THE MEMBERS OF THE RANEY FAMILY HAVE PATCHED UP QUITE A FEW OF CARLSBAD’S BOO-BOOS OVER THE YEARS.Together, Dr. Kent Raney, Dr. Jedd Raney and Nurse Practitioner Jane Raney account for a significant chunk of Carlsbad’s pediatric care. They run Raney Pediatrics and occupy three corners of a small office when they are not seeing patients.

Jane has a master’s degree from the University of Kansas and did her practitioner training at Texas Tech University in Lubbock. She’s been

a nurse for 32 years and a nurse practitioner for more than half of that time.

“I always wanted to be a nurse,” she recalled.

While working as a nurse in Peoria, Illinois, Jane met a medical student. Her future husband, the future Dr. Kent Raney, attended the University of Illinois and then spent his residency

in Kansas City. At the time, neither knew that Carlsbad wouldbecome such a big part of theirlives. They moved here in 1982.

Jane made the switch from nurseto nurse practitioner in 1995, partially due to a plea from her husband for help.

Their three children also picked careers related to the medical field. Jedd joined the family business two years ago as a doctor. Their daughter is a nurse who previously also worked at the family practice in Carlsbad.

F O C U S on health care

All in the Family: Pediatrics Three

PHOTO: Dr. Kent Raney, Nurse Practitioner Jane Raney and Dr. Jedd Raney in their office at Raney Pediatrics.


Their youngest son has a career in medical planning.

Jedd’s own kids, a seven-year-old, a five-year-old and two-year-old twins, have yet to express an interest in a medical career. Like many of Carlsbad’s youth, they do visit Raney Pediatrics when they are sick. They might go to grandpa for shots but will visit grandma whenever they need comforting.

Kent said he became a doctor for the usual reasons, such as a desire to help others. He has other doctors in his family, but he was the first to become a pediatrician, a specialty he chose partially due to the process of elimination. “Doctors pick what they end up doing because of what they don’t like,” he noted. “I also had some really good pediatric mentors when I was in medical school.”

Jedd grew up around medicine. He recalls people thanking his parents or asking them questions during family trips to the store. “I think it made me see that it is not a job where you never see what you accomplish,” he recalled. “It’s this awesome project that goes on indefinitely.”

With mom and dad already in the medical field, discussions about pink eye and other ailments at the dinner table were common, Jedd recalled. “We would come home and find patients waiting for us in our living room,” Jane observed. Jedd’s wife, who is not involved in the medical industry, will often try hard to change the subject to something more dinner-appropriate.

Jedd said he planned to avoid following in his father’s footsteps, but he ultimately wound up picking the same profession, same specialty and even the same residency location. He ultimately decided to go into pediatrics for similar reasons to his father. “It’s really difficult with adults, because people don’t want to

change. So you’ll have someone smoke two packs a day and you can’t fix that,” he reflected. “On the pediatric side, you feel like you can make an impact. Kids often don’t intentionally do things to themselves that hurt them.”

After medical school and his residency, Jedd was also recruited to help out with the family practice. “We were working really hard and we needed more doctors in town,” Kent remembered. “We said, ‘Why don’t you come and look at this place? We need someone here, too.’”

“I kept thinking that my original goal was to come back and help the community,” Jedd noted. “That’s how I ended up back here.”

Kent, Jedd and Jane all have similar styles, but they each have their own strengths and weaknesses. “Some patients only want to see mom or dad or just me, but most people don’t care,” Jedd added. “I’m sure we each have different strengths and communication styles.”

Jedd said the three don’t really get tired of working with each other, but he noted that he goes his separate way after the work day ends.

“Of course, I don’t know how they do it married,” he smiled.

One thing is for certain: a lot of healthy children can be thankful that Kent and Jane Raney decided to move to Carlsbad back in 1982.

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Aug—Sept Masters of the Night: The True Story of Bats

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Oct Carlsbad Area Art Association

Nov—Dec—Jan Underground of Enchantment

Feb To Be Determined

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F O C U S on mainstreet

AMANDAMELVINExecutive DirectorCARLSBAD MAINSTREET

Building and design elements can be visually assessed and changes to infrastructure easily

documented when considering the history of the Carlsbad Downtown Historic District. However, what is not so obvious is the change in downtown businesses and their ownership. As recently as the 1980’s, most downtown businesses were primarily owned by men. Today, the number of woman-owned businesses (WOB) has increased significantly. One need only to survey Canyon and Fox Streets to quantify the change.

WOBs, defined as privately held firms in which women own 51% or more of the businesses, are increasing at twice the rate of business today. 30% of businesses in the U.S. are owned by women, according to the National Women’s Business Council. Between 1997 and 2007, WOBs grew 44% and added roughly 500,000 jobs to the national economy. New Mexico is one of the top three states with the largest percentage of WOBs at 31.75%. Today, Eddy County boasts over 900 WOBs.

The growth of WOBs and their performance as job creators, even during economic downturns, demonstrates their importance as positive contributors to the economy. Economic and business development agencies, lending institutions and other organizations are working to identify and implement measures to support WOBs.

Multiple challenges face WOBs today. For example:• WOBs start off with less capital than businesses owned by men and are less likely than men-owned businesses to take on additional debt. Financial leveraging, or borrowing money to magnify profit potential, is one strategic element for growing business. It is unclear whether this disparity is

due to preferences or constraints. • The majority of women-owned firms are clustered in industries that have lower levels of revenue on average, which limits the economic impact they can make. • Despite the growing number of female business owners, finding fellow women entrepreneurs to connect with isn’t easy. Women-focused networking events are available at the national and state levels. However, at the local level, organizations and mentoring networks are less available or have a more general focus and may not provide the depth of knowledge and guidance specific to WOBs.

The progress that has been made to address the above challenges give WOBs reason to be optimistic. According to some analysts, the lending disparity is being reduced. A report issued by Biz2Credit shows that the average earnings for WOBs rose from $35,135 in 2012 to $54,114 in 2013, and that twice as many WOBs sought funding in 2013 as in 2012. Overall, they raised $55 million with an average loan size of $85,000. Rohit Arora, CEO of Biz2Credit, claims, “Companies do not borrow money unless they anticipate that they will have the ability to pay it back.” This growth in confidence signifies a desire for company expansion, which is good news for women, consumers and the economy.

Moreover, with academia giving attention and national priority to STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) disciplines, more females are majoring in studies that prepare them to innovate ideas in science and engineering and lead to entrepreneurship opportunities in high-earning industries. In addition, with the rapid increase in colleges and universities offering on-line platforms, business classes such as accounting, strategic planning and

human resources are readily available anywhere and at all times of the day. Finally, with technological advances in virtual meetings, women have greater access to vast mentoring networks.

One of my joys of working as the Executive Director of Carlsbad MainStreet is in getting to know the merchants and their patrons.

During one of my conversations, a woman shared with me a vision of the “old days.” She told me about her days as a child observing her father, a downtown merchant, meeting with district business owners. She recalled the meeting and described how her father and the other men would share their frustrations and create solutions over a drink of bourbon. Hearing her tell the story, I remembered a black and white picture I saw of men in a downtown shop sitting around a wood table. They were smiling and sat near a window that revealed the growing dusk outside. As we both reflected on the story, we came to realize that the “special” part of the meetings was not so much in the discussion or the bourbon but in the common dream they shared: a dream to make it in business.

This dream continues today and can be noted in the faces of those who operate businesses in the downtown district of Carlsbad.

For more information, contact Carlsbad MainStreet at (575)628-3768 or [email protected]. Visit their Facebook pages Facebook.com/CarlsbadMainStreet and Facebook.com/CarlsbadDowntownFarmersMarket.

Women-Owned Businesses on the Rise in Carlsbad


Women-Owned Businesses on the Rise in Carlsbad

RELAY FOR LIFE1 • This year’s Relay for Life Celebration included a parade organized by the City of Carlsbad. Long time organizer Linda Palma was also recognized for her contributions to the event.

FUN AT THE LIBRARY2 • Summer activities at the Carlsbad Municipal Library

CELEBRATING AT THE ZOO3 • Face painting at the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens State Park during Mescalero Apache Day

A DUCKIE AFFAIR4 • The winning duck at the annual Duckie Affair is presented to the crowd. More than 100 prizes were given away this year.

CINCO DE MAYO5 • Cinco de Mayo celebration at the Ray Anaya San Jose Plaza

FARMER’S MARKET KICKOFF6 • Children gather to watch a balloon animal demonstration at the Farmer’s Market kickoff.

SPECIAL OLYMPICSTORCH RUN7 • Carlsbad Police Department and Eddy County Sheriff ’s Department officers participate in a torch run for the Special Olympics.

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F O C U S on senior care

SENIOR CARE HAS ALWAYS BEEN A PROFESSION WITH A HIGH PERCENTAGE OF FEMALE EMPLOYEES, BUT UNTIL RECENTLY MOST OF THE TOP SPOTS STILL WENT TO MEN.Lakeview Christian Home and Landsun Homes, each with a staff of around 200, are two of Carlsbad’s largest employers, and the management teams at both facilities are largely women. Women also run the City of Carlsbad’s two senior care facilities.

One thing Lakeview and Landsun seem to have in common is that they are both good places to work your way up. For example, there’s Lakeview Chief Executive Officer Jody Knox, who has been with the facility for 38 years now.

“She started as a receptionist,” said Lakeview’s River Bend Project Director Kay Tigert. “Then she was administrative assistant, then comptroller, and at age 25 she was named the administrator of the Northgate unit.”

Knox became the chief executive officer of the entire company in 1993, and the first woman to hold the title. Lakeview facilities include the nursing home, assisted living and the River Bend Retirement Village. Lakeview’s other senior management, among them Tigert, Administrator Jessie Sarno and Marketing Director Susan Owen, have all worked there for a considerable amount of time as well.

“We were at an event last year, and I remember looking

around and realizing how many years of experience we have,” Tigert reflected. “I think it was more than 275 years!”

Landsun’s executive director is currently a man, Dudley Jones, but eight of the facility’s ten managers are women, according to Marsha Drapala, Landsun’s director of marketing and development. “As we’ve evolved into more of a continuing care facility, that’s created new management positions and more and more women had the opportunity to move up the ladder,” Drapala pointed out.

The list includes Mary Christopherson, Director of Health Services; Marsha Drapala, Director

of Development/Marketing; Dawn Estes, Director of Business Services; Barb Kouba, Director of Social Services; Linda Palma, Director of Business Services; Lisa Petska, Director of Resident Services; Estella Osborne, Director of Human Resources; Sabrina Smith, Director of Hospice; and Bessie Quintella, Director of Dietary Services.

“It is an honor to work with such intelligent, skilled and dedicated leaders,” Jones stated. “They demonstrate daily the passion and the ability to overcome tremendous challenges to deliver superior results that benefit our residents and their families as well as the whole Landsun organization.”

PHOTO: The Staff of Lakeview Christian Home (from left) Susan Owen, Independent Living Director; Jody Knox, CEO; Jessie Sarno, Skilled Nursing Facility Administrator; Cindy Defer, Hospice Director; Iris Wisnoski, Home Health Care Director.

Veterans of Senior CareTell Their Success Stories


Drapala added that the women on the management team have 104 combined years of service and pointed out that members are also highly involved in community organizations and civic groups. That list includes Palma, who recently retired after 28 years of service at Landsun and was one of the driving forces behind Carlsbad’s highly-successful Relay for Life.

Tigert, a veteran at her facility, said she first started with Lakeview in 1984.

“I’ve really enjoyed it. I have not had to be locked to a desk,” she affirmed. “Jody is really good about wanting her people to grow. She will stand behind you 100% if you want to get extra schooling.”

That’s also true at Landsun, noted Drapala. For example, Petska began as a certified nurse’s assistant and is now a licensed nurse practitioner and director. Kouba completed her master’s degree in social work; Drapala received her nursing home administrator’s license and Christopherson obtained her bachelor’s degree in nursing.

Lakeview’s total staff is about 90%

female, Tigert estimated. Two of the facility’s eight board members are also women. Although they are outnumbered, the list of former male Lakeview employees includes CARC, Inc. Director Mark Schinnerer and Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Robert Defer.

Drapala estimated that Landsun’s staff is about 85% female. That includes Landsun’s chaplain, Rev. Stephanie

PHOTO: The Staff of Landsun Homes (from left) Top row: Dawn Estes, Lisa Petska, Sabrina Smith, Bessie Quintela and Marsha Drapala. Bottom row: Barb Kouba, Mary Christopherson, Estella Osborne


Harmon, who was appointed by the bishop of the New Mexico Methodist Conference to provide spiritual support to residents, families and staff.

While Knox has the gender numbers on her side at the home office, she’s more likely to be outnumbered at Carlsbad Department of Development or Mayor’s Nuclear Task Force meetings, where she’s still one of a handful of women present. She was the second female president of the Chamber of Commerce and of the Department of Development.

“We like to support local organizations as a way of giving back,” she stated, explaining her involvement, “It’s our way of returning to the community.”

Knox said she doesn’t spend much time thinking about being outnumbered by men in the room, but she does believe that men and women operate differently. At state and national conventions, about half of the CEOs and administrators associated with senior care are men, as are most of the owners.

CITY OF CARLSBAD:SAN JOSE & NORTH MESA SENIOR CENTERS

Every day, hundreds of Carlsbad residents flock to Carlsbad’s two senior centers, arguably the two most popular social locations in town.

Amparo Vasquez runs the San Jose

Senior Center for the City of Carlsbad. She previously served as coordinator of the city’s retirement volunteer program. The Center’s previous director, Cecilia Franco, retired after 20 years running the program.

The San Jose Senior Center saw 3,617 visitors during the month of June, and the list of activities included exercise, crafts, ceramics, pool, bingo, line

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dancing and meals.

Vasquez previously worked for the City’s youth program. “We made sure they graduated. We had a lot of success stories with the youth program,” she emphasized. “But I always thought that one day I would be able to work here at the center.”

She loves the enthusiasm many of the

seniors feel for the Center. “When we close on Friday, people are ready to come back on Monday,” she observed. “This is where they gather. When we are not open, some people don’t have any place to go.”

“Whenever I know we’re doing something that makes them happy, that makes me happy,” she concluded. North Mesa Senior Center Director

Pat Beason is starting her fifth year as manager and has been with the Center for a total of 13 years. She previously ran Beason’s Arts and Crafts. “I retired, but I didn’t like being retired,” she recalled. “I first came over here to teach art classes.”

She worked part time for three years and then became a full time employee. She took over as director when Judy Lowe retired.

The North Mesa Senior Center was first built for a bridge group by Neil Wheels, who donated the building to the city in 1978. The City expanded quite a bit, and the building is now used for line dancing, bridge, billiards, weights, ceramic classes, yoga and everything else. The center sees more than 4,500 total visits a month.

Carlsbad’s senior care is a huge local industry, but a veteran cast is around to make sure everything runs smoothly.

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Eighteen years ago Melissa Roberts moved from Fort Worth, Texas, to Carlsbad,

having never even visited the state of New Mexico before. “I moved here sight unseen and I haven’t looked back,” she admitted. “I couldn’t find a place to rent, so I bought a house and I’ve been here ever since!”

Roberts’ journey to Carlsbad began when a church in Artesia and a church in Carlsbad collaborated on a joint venture called Grace House. The two churches, Grace Church in Carlsbad and St. Paul Episcopal Church in Artesia, decided in 1996 to band together to do something to help troubled youth. Working with a local magistrate judge, they decided to create a group home aimed at helping young men who have been troubled by years of abuse, neglect or poor decision making.

At the time, Roberts was working as an administrator in a psychiatric hospital in Fort Worth with ties to New Mexico. As fate would have it, someone thought Roberts would be a perfect fit for Grace House. It turns out they were right.

“I absolutely love it,” she

exclaimed of her job of 18 years.

But just because she loves it doesn’t mean it’s easy. “We have not had one minute of down time since we started in 1996,” she explained. “We are a 24-hour-a-day, 365-days-a-year operation. We don’t have off days or holidays, nothing like that. These boys live here, so there’s not a single minute of down time.”

Grace House is a non-profit home that provides residential treatment services to its residents – boys between the ages of 13 and 18, who have been referred to the program through the Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD). While at Grace House, residents work on acquiring skills, education, attitudes and values that can facilitate their re-entry into mainstream living.

“The kids live here, eat here; we have a school on site through the Carlsbad Municipal School District so they receive an education,” Roberts shared. “And we also provide therapy services and around the clock staff with a

licensed therapist and licensed clinical supervisor.”

Even the midnight staff has set duties and are not permitted to sleep. Those duties can range from washing sheets and doing laundry to providing counseling when nightmares strike and overactive brains refuse to shut down. “Only the kids live here, but someone is at the house 24 hours a day,” she said. “It’s so challenging and so intense that

it’s in everyone’s best interest to be able to go home and decompress each day. Some days are really painful and challenging.”

Roberts is quick to redirect the conversation back to Grace House when the limelight begins to shift toward her. “I guess this is my calling, but I didn’t know it until I came here,” she explained. “When I moved here, I had no idea how much this place would mean to me. I can just go on and on about these amazing kids and their potential.”

“The hardest thing you can do is grow

by Staci Guy

F O C U S on volunteering

PHOTO ABOVE: Melissa Roberts hasn’t looked back since serving the Grace House.

PHOTO RIGHT: The Boys at the Grace House, along with members of the staff. The Grace House is a nonprofit home that provides treatment services to its residents.

PHOTO BELOW LEFT: A garden grown by one of the Grace House residents.Photos by Jennifer Coats Photography

OVERCOMING THE ODDSat Grace House


and change yourself,” she continued. “It’s easier to be a failure and say, ‘I can’t do this,’ or ‘That’s just how I am,’ but after they spend time here and begin to trust us enough, I have the opportunity to see how they change and see the results. I get to hear about them moving on and getting married or joining the military or starting a business. I am so fortunate to be in this position.”

A trip to Grace House provides insight into the lifestyle Roberts has immersed herself in over the past 18 years. It’s a house full of 16 young men, all trying to find their way in life and co-exist with one another, while acquiring the skills they need to survive life in mainstream society. Some of the boys enjoy helping cook and prepare meals, others spend ample time on the basketball court, while others have taken up hobbies such as drawing and gardening.

Like a proud mother, Roberts is quick to brag on one boy’s garden, full of fresh vegetables. “[ John] came to me not long after he got here and wanted to know if he could put in a garden,”

she shared. “I told him he would have to take care of it and he said, ‘I know; it’s just like a baby. I have to take care of it and make sure it gets what it needs.’ I thought to myself, this kid ‘gets it.’ He has such a soft spirit and he is going to be just fine!”

When asked what keeps her at Grace House, Roberts again directed the attention toward the residents and the staff. “Everything!” she answered, “The wonderful kids, the wonderful staff and the wonderful community is what keeps me here.”

REGARDING THE BOYS“Talk about overcomers!” she beamed. “If anyone deserves opportunities, these boys deserve opportunities!” She added, “There are moments when your heart just breaks for them. It makes you angry at the cruelty and selfishness of their life before they come in; just hideous circumstances. But they are resilient. They are true survivors and all they really need is some support and teaching and an opportunity to apply what they have learned. That’s a chance they get at Grace House!”

REGARDING THE STAFF “We have 15 or so people who work at Grace House and each one is unique and brings something special to the table,” she stated. “Some are older and a little crabby and some are younger and more upbeat. All those personality types help the boys learn how to adjust to different types of people, just like they will have to deal with when they leave here. The people who work here are compassionate and sharing, generous people. They have a true passion for what they do because I can assure you, they don’t do it for the money.”

REGARDING THE COMMUNITY“We couldn’t do it without you!” she insisted of Carlsbad. “They have all been so generous and so kind to these boys. Everyone has treated them like gold without exception. It’s priceless and it changes everything. You can’t put a price tag on that!”

Grace House is a 501(c)(3) organization and all donations are greatly appreciated and tax deductible.


When Mark Driskell took over as Carlsbad High School Principal five years ago, he added one special recognition to the awards ceremony at the end of the school year: members of the faculty and staff all vote on a teacher of the year.Last spring, for the second time in five years, CHS French Teacher Truth LaClair was honored by her peers. Driskell said some nice things, LaClair recalled, but she was so excited that she does not remember the details

LaClair is starting her 32nd year as a teacher. She teaches all four levels of French at the high school, up through the advanced placement class. She works with more than 160 different students each year.

“I really feel learning isn’t about retention, it’s synthesizing and analyzing and evaluating connections of knowledge,” she revealed.

LaClair, a graduate of Mayfield High School, said she fell in love with French the moment she took her first class. She holds an undergraduate degree from New Mexico State University and a master’s degree in French Literature from the University of Northern Iowa. She’s spent three summers living in central France.

Up through 2007, LaClair led local students on trips to France. Other educators have since taken on that responsibility, she stated.

Carlsbad High School also has three Spanish teachers. She praised her principal and her fellow teachers. “We all work together, and that’s part of our success at Carlsbad High School and Carlsbad

Municipal Schools,” LaClair speculated. “It’s an incredible school district, and we have many committees that interact with educators from around the state and from other states.”

LaClair said her students have become more globally minded over the years. “These days, with internet access, you have kids more aware of the world in general,” she contended. “They are playing video games with people all over the world, and our primary goal is communication and acceptance of diversity.”

LaClair’s husband, Dan, retired from teaching government and economics in 2007 after a 28-year stint teaching. Twice a week, she also teaches French 111 at New Mexico State University - Carlsbad. She said she has seen several former

students go on to become French teachers in other communities.

“Mondays are my favorite day of the week,” she concluded. “Everything starts fresh.”

When Truth LaClair is suffering from a case of the Mondays, it’s a good thing.

F O C U S on education

CARLSBAD’SFrench Connection

TRUTH LACLAIR30 F O C U S O N C A R L S B A D | F A L L 2 0 1 4

1 You want to securely send a valuable object to a friend. You have a box which can be fitted with multiple locks, and you have several locks and their corresponding keys. However, your friend does not have any keys to your locks, and if you send a key in an unlocked box, the key could be copied en route. How can you and your friend send the

object securely?

2 You want to hire a temporary employee for one month. You offer him reasonable wages, but the employee suggests an alternative. For the first day of work, he will be paid a penny. For the second day, two pennies. For the third day, four pennies. The salary

for each subsequent day will be double the previous day’s, until the one month term is over. Ignoring the legalities of such a situation, would it be a good idea to accept the potential employee’s proposal?

3 You have three boxes of fruit. One contains just apples, one contains just oranges, and one contains a mixture of both. Each box is labeled; one says “apples,” one says “oranges,” and one says “apples and oranges.” However, it is known that none of

the boxes are labeled correctly. How can you label the boxes correctly if you are only allowed to look at just one piece of fruit from just one of the boxes?

4 A high school has a strange principal. On the first day, he has his students perform an odd opening day ceremony: There are one thousand lockers and one thousand students in the school. The principal asks the first student to go

to every locker and open it. Then he has the second student go to every second locker and close it. The third goes to every third locker and, if it is closed, he opens it, and if it is open, he closes it. The fourth student does this to every fourth locker, and so on. After the process is completed with the thousandth student, how many lockers are open?

5Two people are talking on the phone long distance. One is in an East Coast state of the U.S., the other is in a West Coast state. The first asks the other, “What time is it?” He hears the answer and says, “That’s funny. It’s the same time here!” Neither one of them

were mistaken about the time. How is this possible?

ANSWERS:1 • Put the valuable object into the box, secure it with one of your locks, and send the box to your friend. Your friend should then attach one of his own locks and return it. When you receive it again, remove your lock and send it back. Now your friend can unlock his own lock and retrieve the object. 2 • Not at all. He’ll earn $5,368,709.12 on the 30th day alone. 3 • Take a piece of fruit from the box marked “apples and oranges.” Suppose the fruit you take is an apple. Then that box must be the box containing just apples. Therefore, the box marked “oranges” can’t be the box containing just apples, and it can’t be the box containing just oranges either, so it must be the box containing apples and oranges. The remaining box is therefore the box containing just oranges.If the fruit you take out is an orange, the solution is derived in a similar fashion: the box marked “apples and oranges” is the box containing just oranges; the box marked “apples” is the box containing both apples and oranges; and the box marked “oranges” is the one containing just apples. 4 • The only lockers that remain open are perfect squares (1, 4, 9, 16, etc.) because they are the only numbers divisible by an odd number of whole numbers; every factor other than the number’s square root is paired up with another. Thus, these lockers will be “changed” an odd number of times, which means they will be left open. All the other numbers are divisible by an even number of factors and will consequently end up closed. So the number of open lockers is the number of perfect squares less than or equal to 1,000. These numbers are one squared, two squared, three squared, four squared, and so on, up to 31 squared. (32 squared is greater than 1,000, and therefore out of range.) So the answer is 31. 5 • One is in Eastern Oregon (Mountain time); the other in Western Florida (Central time), and the phone call takes place on Daylight Savings Time changeover day at 1:30 a.m.

Puzzles taken from www.rinkworks.com

BRAINBENDERS


F O C U S on honor

WHO KNEW THAT CREATING AN EXHIBIT AT CARLSBAD CAVERNS COULD BE A LIFE-CHANGING EVENT?Last year, to commemorate the Bataan Death March, I researched and produced an exhibit about seven men with close ties to the Caverns who had been in the Philippines when the Japanese attacked in the early days of World War II. What started as a mundane part of my job as an interpretive park ranger set in motion a series of events that included speaking engagements, the state premier of a top-drawer history documentary and participation in my first marathon—the Bataan Memorial Death March at White Sands Missile Range in March of this year.

APRIL 2013: The Boys of the Cave—Men of Bataan exhibit goes on display at Carlsbad Caverns National Park. Throughout the month,

visitors learn about the seven men from the Caverns who were on Bataan. One of the visitors is Joanna Sieberg, daughter of Charlie James, a Bataan survivor.

MAY 2013: I contact Jan Thompson, producer, writer and director of Never the Same—the Prisoner of War Experience to tell her about the exhibit and congratulate her on finishing her film. She responds positively, and a continuing dialogue begins.

OCTOBER 2013: I get it in my head to have a screening of Never the Same in Carlsbad. I contact Joanna Sieberg and Joe Epstein about the possibility and the wheels are set in motion to bring Jan and Loretta Swit, star of the TV series M*A*S*H, to Carlsbad. Joanna also persuades me to participate in the Bataan Memorial Death March, to be held at White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) in March.

OCTOBER 2013: I begin training with Joanna for the Bataan Memorial Death March. My experience as a trail ranger at the Caverns is a good start, but I’m pretty much limited to hikes from five to seven miles. I’ll need to lengthen it out gradually to get up to the 26.2 miles required for the full march. Joanna, who has done the march nine previous times, is planning to carry a

weighted pack of 35 pounds. I’ll go light as I’ve never tackled anything of this magnitude before. We start doing regular treks up the Ocotillo Trail.

JANUARY 2014: Joanna, Kate Ediger and I face gale force winds and freezing temperatures to climb Guadalupe Peak, a distance of 8.4 miles and an elevation gain of 3,000 feet. We feel pumped!

FEBRUARY 2014: New boots! I invest in lightweight hiking boots. Now I have to get 100 miles on them before the march.

FEBRUARY 27, 2014: I make my longest walk before the march—20.14 miles.


PHOTO ABOVE: Tom and Mannie Bemis, Jan Thompson, and Loretta Swit at the screening of Never the Same -The Prisoner of War Experience.

PHOTO RIGHT: Joanna Sieberg, Mannie Bemis and Kate Ediger at Guadalupe Peak.

The Bataan Memorial Death March

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MARCH 1-4, 2014: As we prepare for Jan Thompson and Loretta Swit to visit Carlsbad, storms gather across the Midwest. Airplane flights are cancelled across the country, including Jan’s and Loretta’s. My husband Tom and I drive across Texas to pick up Jan in Dallas. Loretta remains in New York, but joins us by Skype the next day for a public discussion. The New Mexico premier of Never the Same—the Prisoner of War Experience is a great success with people coming from around the state to learn more about the Bataan events of

World War II. A special guest is Mr. Oral Nichols of Carlsbad, a former prisoner of war (POW) of the Japanese. Unknown to me for a week, my 93-year-old father fell on March 1 and broke his back, an event that would end his life ten weeks later.

FRIDAY, MARCH 21:

Tom and I drive from Carlsbad to WSMR. Registration is rather low-key. Tables are set up and I make my way through the line, picking up packets at each place. I receive my bib, number 815, and the timing chip that will attach to my shoe. We drive into Las

Cruces to stay with my mother and visit my father who is now in a rehab center.

That night we attend the Guardians of Bataan, Defenders of Our Freedom annual dinner. We sit with Joanna and Jerry Sieberg. Don Rupe, the son of one of my Cave Boys, Jack Rupe, is also there to run the honorary march, a half marathon of 13.1 miles. I am the guest speaker for the evening, so I get to tell about my boys once again. Highlights of the evening are meeting Bataan survivor Bill Overmeier and Major General Gwen Bingham, commanding officer of WSMR.

SATURDAY, MARCH 23: Jan Thompson is in town for a screening of Never the Same in Las Cruces. We finally meet Loretta Swit. As president of American Defenders of Bataan, Jan will be at the opening of the Bataan March. My daughters, Stephanie Yocom and Melissa Madara, arrive. They’ll be doing the half marathon.

SUNDAY, MARCH 24: MARCH DAY!

3:30 a.m. – Up and at ‘em. Tom, Steph, Melissa and I eat a quick breakfast and hit the road. We have lots of discussion about everything: photo ID, parking permit, car registration and insurance, sunscreen, chapstick, jacket. While traveling, I apply moleskin to areas I know will blister.

4:15 a.m. – We arrive at the turn-off to WSMR. The cars are lined up for a mile but moving pretty quickly through the gate. We score a great parking place, just a short walk to the soccer field where the marchers will gather.

4:30 a.m. – People are gathering on the soccer field: Wounded Warriors, military, civilian, honorary. I’m glad I kept my sweatshirt as it’s pretty chilly. A huge flag has already been raised from a crane at the front of the field. Steph sees friends who are walking and goes to visit. It’s

all very festive as adrenalin pumps through the veins of thousands of people. Tom is shivering in his shirt sleeves and looking for Search and Rescue buddies. His plan is to work support as needed throughout the day.

6:30 a.m. – Things get started first with “Reveille,” then the national anthem, then greetings from Major General Bingham and Senator Martin Heinrich. The Bataan survivors in attendance are introduced. Then comes a sobering roll call—three living survivors’ names followed by the names of those who have died since the last march—followed by the playing of “Taps.” And then, with a gunshot, we’re off.

With more than 6,200 participants, it takes 25 minutes to get off the soccer field and another 15 to get to the starting line. Sitting by the starting line are the survivors, cheering us on and shaking our hands. Hundreds

of spectators line the path as well.

Mile 1 – There are many Wounded Warriors, some with only one leg, a few with none, but all walking well. Many walkers have tags on their backs to honor specific soldiers. I’m carrying a cloth banner with my Cave Boys’ pictures, along with some special mementos: John Moseley’s dog tag, Jack Rupe’s New Mexico Bataan medal, and Jimmie

Harrison’s Bataan button presented by the City of San Francisco. As we approach the one mile marker I hear a commotion—it’s a shirtless man with a cowbell, dancing like a crazed man. He cheers on the marchers as we file past. There are several men in kilts, including one playing a bagpipe as we march along. Will he play it the entire march?

Mile 2 – The first bathrooms. The lines seem to be a mile long. There’s a field just after the village of portable potties, and many men are foregoing the line and running for a bush. I decide to keep going.

Different groups sponsor regular

water stops along the way, all encouraging and friendly. They offer water or sports drinks along with quartered oranges and bananas. I grab a cup and an orange quarter and walk on.

Mile 3 – We hit the sand. Joanna later told me there was more sand this year. Before it had been on only the last quarter of the route, but we’re trudging through it now. It will continue for four miles before disappearing for a while.

Mile 7 – I take my first bathroom stop and refresh with oranges and water. This is the turn-out for the honorary marchers, and the trail is much less crowded after this.

Mile 9 – We cross the highway and walk on asphalt for several miles. The cowbell dancer shows up again. Surprisingly, the asphalt is harder on my feet than the sand had been. When we turn off the asphalt the trail takes us up and around a hill for about ten miles. By now, I’m traveling with the same group although I’m walking pretty much in solitude with only sparse conversation.

I have a few snacks with me, each with a story. Joanna’s father told how he carried a pebble in his mouth during the Death March to keep him from getting thirsty. I’m joining Joanna in carrying hard candies to remind me of this. Death March survivor Myrrl McBride told of sharing some parrot

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jerky with Cave Boy John Moseley, so I chew on jerky in his honor.

Mile 17 – I’m feeling blisters starting on my feet.

Mile 20 – We’re back at the highway after circling the hill. Blisters are hurting. Feet are hurting. Have to slow down my pace.

Mile 21 – The sand pit. This really does go on and on, and it’s deeper sand than we encountered at the beginning of the march. I’m moving slowly, thinking about my cave boys and praying for my father’s recovery. I’m surrounded by people but feel very much alone. Wish I’d brought more jerky and candy with me.

Mile 24 – They’re passing out trail mix! I sit down to rest for the first time. It feels so good to just sit and eat. There are marshmallows in the mix! Only two miles to go. I can do it.

Miles 25-26 – We walk around a l-o-n-g wall enclosing the base housing. The excitement is building. Just before the finish line I text Tom to tell him I’m almost done. Norbert Rempe catches up with me and goes across the line ahead of me.

Finish line – People are sitting along

the runway, clapping, encouraging. I take out my banner and hold it up as I cross. I don’t see Tom, but he’s there to snap my picture. As I stagger around looking for my family, Melissa comes to get me. We go to the food area for a meal—a burger, three sides (chips, crackers, etc.) and a soft drink or beer. It’s hard to sit down on the grass to eat and even harder to get up. After eating, we head back to the car and drive back to Las Cruces. I’m as tired as I’ve ever been.

I never saw Joanna or Kate on the march. They were behind me with their heavy packs. Joanna found out months later that she won first place in the heavy category for her age group.

My final time was eight hours, 43 minutes, 40 seconds. I came in 444th of 749 in the civilian female light category. There were 17 of us age 62 or older, and I finished tenth in that group.

Over the next few months I lost five toenails. I also lost my father, himself a World War II veteran.

March 2014 will remain an emotional time of my life. The success of the film screening, the despair after my father’s fall, the perseverance of training and enduring the march are all mixed together, creating a turbulence that I don’t really know how to handle. There is a sense of unbalance—life is not even—but I do believe that order can come from chaos. I continue to look for understanding in the confusion and hope that I can find it.

As the days grow shorter, I realize it’s time to start training again. A few days ago Joanna asked about walking with her. I don’t know that I’ll go for the full marathon in 2015, but the honorary march is sure doable. Time to hit the trails again.

PHOTO RIGHT: Melissa Madara, Mannie Bemis and Stephanie Yocom at end of the march.


F O C U S on family

Lela Bell Giddens was never invited to participate in the Campbell’s Soup “Mama’s Boy”

commercials, but she’d probably be the perfect candidate.

For decades, Giddens prepared healthy meals for the ten children she and her husband raised in Carlsbad.

Lela grew up in northeast Texas, and starvation was a serious concern throughout her childhood. “We’d go out in the woods and eat huckleberries or get walnuts,” she recalled.

She later moved to Lubbock where she worked and raised her first few children with her husband, Frank Sr. The Giddens family first came to Carlsbad to visit some family and wound up moving here in 1959.

Frank Sr. worked for the school district when they first arrived in Carlsbad, then Forrest Tire and

PHOTO RIGHT: Lela Bell Giddens, pictured at her home on Carver Street. PHOTO ABOVE: Lela Bell Giddens at a family reunion.

Key to RaisingTen Kids? GOOD HOME COOKING

& SOME STREET BALL


then one of the potash mines. Lela kept the kids in line. “I received a lot of help from the Lord,” she confessed. “He blessed me to take care of them. Most all of them went through school and the ones who wanted to go through college went through college.”

One day, a man at the door told Lela he felt sorry for her, she recalled, but she didn’t agree. “The Lord blessed me,” she stated.

Feeding a family of 12 was fairly simple, Giddens declared. “I cooked, just like I do now. And I didn’t feed them junk.”

It was also surprisingly affordable. “Hamburger meat was 19 cents a pound,” shared friend Julia Williams. “A can of tomato sauce cost six cents. You get some onions and bell peppers and that makes up a meat loaf.”

Cornbread and potatoes were cheap, Williams noted, and you could grow your own tomatoes. “It was a lot cheaper back then. These days, a cup of coffee for one person costs $2.”

It was harder to find sleeping room, and several kids would have to bunk up in each room.

The kids all spent their summers and evenings playing baseball and football and roller skating on the street corner outside of the family home on Carver Street. They had to keep off of Frank Sr.’s lawn, but the rest of the area was fair game.

Lela still keeps some sports equipment next to her dining room table for the 29 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren who visit.

“When they come visit me, they’ll borrow the ball to go outside and play,” she observed.

When you have ten kids, you tend to attract even more. “When my kids were coming up, other people would drop theirs off at our house,” Giddens recalled. “They’d all play out there, too.”

“Wherever there was a big family, that’s where kids would gather,” Williams agreed.

Lela’s meals and the competitive street games on Carver Street were apparently a pretty powerful combination, as they gave rise to one

of Carlsbad’s greatest athletes.

“Big Frank” Giddens, Jr. was a state champion wrestler, basketball star and football standout in high school. He graduated from Carlsbad High School in 1977 and attended the University of New Mexico from 1977 through 1981, where he played tackle for the Lobos. His professional career included two years in the NFL as an offensive lineman for the Philadelphia Eagles and a year in the United States Football League with the Arizona Wranglers.

Lela didn’t get to attend too many of Big Frank’s games because she was usually home with the younger children. Big Frank had six brothers--Claude, Billy, Gary, Osby, Robert and Ron--and three sisters--Lela M., Faye and Tracy. “But, if it wasn’t church time, I was watching him,” she said, recalling one trip to Albuquerque to watch him play college ball.

The former Carlsbad football star was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes at the age of 27. He later moved back to Carlsbad, where he served as a deacon

at Mount Zion Church of God in Christ. In 2004, at age 43, Big Frank died from an infection he’d picked up at a dialysis center.

Lela’s husband passed away in 2002. Claude and Billy passed away in 2008 and 2006, respectively.

Many of her children have moved away from Carlsbad, but they still live nearby, as do her siblings and many friends.

Lela worked for Carlsbad’s Head Start program for a time. She also moved to Odessa, Texas, to help take care of a sick child, but has been back in Carlsbad for a year. The Giddens children range in age from 34 to 62.

The family meets for a reunion once every two years. Lela didn’t attend the previous reunion but had plans to attend the one scheduled for the summer of 2014. She may not be asked to cook for the entire family, but if it comes up, Lela’s still the right lady for the job.


She was president of the student council at Riverside Elementary last year. She landed the coveted spot of Hermione Granger during a summer school play. Oh, and the Cartoon Network recently selected her as “User of the Week” for designing a book cover based on a hero’s guide in the television show Adventure Time.“We at Cartoon Network absolutely LOVED the incredibly cool idea of recreating the Enchiridion from Adventure Time,” read the June 19 web update. “Even better, Infinite Olivia Mystery (the name she uses online) gave detailed step-by-step instructions

on how to make that idea a reality AND she encouraged fellow interested users to come to her for any questions they may have on the crafting process.”

In Adventure Time mythos, the Enchiridion is an ancient book with

codes of conduct, guidelines and other helpful information for heroes. The show, acclaimed for its creativity, follows the adventures of Finn, a human boy, and Jake, a dog with the magical power to change shape at will. Finn and Jake live in the post-apocalyptic Land of Ooo.

“The thing is, you can’t submit

F O C U S on youth

Life is pretty good

for Olivia Quintana

right now!

PHOTO: In a class by herself - Olivia Quintana, pictured at New Mexico State University-Carlsbad, after summer theater practice. ABOVE: Characters Jake & Finn from Cartoon Network’s Adventure Time show. © Cartoon Network


pictures,” noted Olivia, 11. “So I put up a thread explaining how to make

it and giving out some other ideas. They

(the network) saw that and said,

‘Nobody’s ever put up how to make something before.’”

Olivia said she’s watched the television show since it began four years ago.

She had some cardboard around after one episode and was inspired to create the cover. She’s also recently posted a do-it-yourself tip for

making a stuffed “Gunter,” a penguin on the show.

Being selected was “kind of shocking,” Olivia confessed, especially since she had not been posting in the forum for very long.

The lifelong Carlsbad resident is

artistic in more serious endeavors as well. A panel of judges recently selected her essay about giving as Riverside Elementary’s top submission, and she read her piece at this year’s United Way banquet. “It was about being a good citizen and what you can do to give back to your community,” she explained.

Student council politics at Riverside involved meetings every other Wednesday to prepare new activities and help with student fundraisers. She’s interested in running for office again this fall as a sixth grader at Alta Vista. “I definitely want to run again, but I don’t know if my mom wants to be my campaign manager again,” she joked. “I don’t know if it will work out, but if you don’t try for what you really want, you never know if you are going to get it.”

Olivia said she’s very happy that Alta Vista and P.R. Leyva have been

merged into one program, and she’s excited about being in the first class at the new 6th grade academy. She’s also an avid basketball player.

She’s not totally sure what she wants to be when she grows up. “Right now, I think I want to go into sales or be an advertising executive,” she stated. “But that may change. When I was little, I wanted to be a mermaid.”

To view Olivia’sCartoon Network award, visithttp://www.cartoonnetwork.com/blog/post/youre-famous-infinite-olivia-mystery

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F O C U S on business

ANGELA JOHNSTON PRESIDENT, CARLSBAD, NM DIVISION OF HUB INTERNATIONAL INSURANCE SERVICE

Some people just love to work. Angela Johnston, who was raised in Carlsbad, recalls visiting a country store on Old Cavern Highway when she was 12 and thinking it would be fun to work there. The owners were a bit surprised when she asked for a job, but it turned out to be a good match and Angela worked there happily for several years during the long summer months. Then she progressed to a couple of video rental places and the Peanut Shack at the Carlsbad Mall, which she said were all fun, exciting places to be.

The summer of her senior year, she was ready for a break and decided to take the summer off. Mrs. Loafman, her Business Professionals of America teacher, had other ideas however, and in April sent her to interview with Oran Means at Carlsbad Insurance Agency (CIA).

“I remember driving to the interview,” she confessed. “I had a bad attitude about it. I didn’t want to work, and it all sounded very boring.” But, attitude or not, she got the job, working from 1:00-5:00 p.m. doing “boring” things like filing [and] making copies.

May came, and so did graduation, but instead of leaving that job, Angela approached her boss. There was a customer service representative who

was leaving and she asked if she could have her job doing home and auto insurance.

“I absolutely loved it,” she recalls. “I still love it. I love the people, I love the energy, I love helping clients, and I love learning. I made this my education. I had an exceptional mentor in Oran. He taught me so much, answered all my questions, put up with my youth. For 15 years, I worked through every single division I could work through.”

She left for eight months to work at Mac Energy Corporation in Artesia, but although she enjoyed it, she missed her work at CIA. When Means retired and Chase Ventures purchased CIA, she was happy to return as president of the new company. “Then Chase asked me if I wanted to buy or co-direct. I decided to buy and bought the company on December 31, 2012.”But nothing remains the same for long

in her life. Randal Perkins, president of HUB International Insurance Services in New Mexico, approached her in the middle of last year and asked if she’d be interested in joining their corporation. She protested that she’d just bought the place, but saw the advantage of being able to offer her clients more services through the larger corporate setting. She talked it over with her staff, decided it would be a fun change and a challenge, and took the plunge.

“People think that because we’re a small town we can’t offer the same services as a large town. Now we can, but we’re still a home town agency.”

“There’s a lot to be said for small town living,” she boasted. “We have shared values, and there’s a personal connection in a small town that you don’t have in a large community.”

She admits that she has no idea what her business or her life will be like a year from now, but she is obviously ready to embrace those challenges.

And the advice she has for her graduating daughter is wise advice for us all: “Be true to yourself. Embrace the things you find best in yourself. If you spend all your time working on your faults, the world won’t see the best parts of you. Find yourself in your home or your workplace where you’re happy.”

HUB International Insurance Services313 N Canyon St • (575) 887-1181

Women in BusinessOffer Expertise, Compassion

by Sharon McIntire


KARENPERRYSKIN OASIS WELLNESS SPA

To be in business, you have to be willing to learn and try new things. Karen Perry, owner of Skin Oasis Wellness Spa, has definitely done that. Her list of licenses, certificates and work experience is mind-boggling. But her interests include much more than skin care. She was a jouster and chariot racer for four years, for instance, and she operated a relocation/rehabilitation center for abused and/or confiscated large cats for the USDA until she got married. She considers herself a life-long learner, which she feels is essential to being successful in business.

Karen maintains that her 32 years of experience in professional skin care was a natural progression. “When I was two years old, I loved playing in my mom’s makeup,” she recalled. Now she has 5,000 hours in advanced continuing education in skin care in addition to 15 years of experience working with doctors in advanced Medical Aesthetics. “I don’t look on skin care as a luxury,” she proclaimed. “It’s a healthy necessity.”

Moving to Carlsbad was a natural choice for her since one of her other passions is caves. She had already spent five years here working as a restoration and impact study specialist at Carlsbad Caverns. During that time she also worked at Valerie Branson’s day spa. So, five years ago when the opportunity presented itself, she moved to Carlsbad and “on a triple-dog dare from a girlfriend” opened her small, intimate spa where customers can step out of the frenetic chaos of everyday life into her oasis of quiet calm.

“We can choose how we age,” she stressed, adding that a growing number of her clients are men, mainly farmers. They don’t come to her to get beautiful, but they are concerned about the danger of sun exposure. “One out of three people get skin

cancer,” she pointed out, “and a third of those become terminal before they’re 50. It’s a tragedy because it can be 100% preventable.”

Her work is tiring, not because she spends a lot of time running around like most of us, but because her business is “very caring, very nurturing. I want the experience to be pleasant, enjoyable, relaxing. I’ve had many clients with bad acne; I help heal them–not just their skin, but their self-confidence.”

“That’s tiring,” she declared, “but I go home on a psychological high because I know I make people feel good, feel happy. “ And evidently she does. She has clients who make the trip from all over New Mexico and from Texas and Arizona to put themselves into her hands, and her business was voted Best of Carlsbad in 2013.

Skin Oasis Wellness Spa602 N. Canal Ste. C • (575) 499-9839

CHARLOTTE ELMOREOWNER, L&M PIZZA

L&M Pizza was the fulfillment of a dream for owner Charlotte Elmore. Not her dream, really, but her father’s. He was a good cook, she acknowledged, and when she developed the talent as well, he would tell her, “We should open a restaurant

together.”

But it didn’t happen until she moved here with her mother from Mississippi in October 1997. By then her father had passed away, but she still decided it was time to fulfill his dream and open a restaurant.

It wasn’t an easy adjustment for her. She found the climate much too hot and dry, her work background was in insurance rather than food, and she didn’t get much encouragement from the local business community. When trying to secure an SBA loan, she got so irritated with the condescending attitude that she got up and walked out. Charlotte Elmore is not one to be easily discouraged, however, and she soon obtained private financing and started the restaurant with a partner. They leased the building for a year, and then bought it. Ten years later when her partner retired, Charlotte bought her part of the business.

It’s hard to do well in the restaurant business, but Charlotte has a definite recipe for success: offer consistency in your product. L&M Pizza doesn’t vary its menu much. “Carlsbad doesn’t like change,” she admitted, “but they appreciate quality.”

“Get to know the thought process of the community,” she added. “Carlsbad is a laidback community. Don’t overprice your product. We’re a family-oriented business. We want families to be able to bring their children here after work and know

PHOTO: Jennifer and Colby Haschets enjoy a meal at L&M Pizza.


they can eat a good meal in a nice atmosphere at a good price.”

She has seven employees at the moment, as well as her son who helps out when he’s needed. Most of her employees have been with her for several years. “Treat them fair and pay them a good competitive wage,” she advised. “If you pay them good, you can keep good help.” One of those employees started working when she was 19. She’s now 35 and still works at the restaurant.

Also, “Get to know your customers. We have a mom and pop business where I know my customers by name and I know what they want.” She would never consider expanding the business. “Why would I?” she asked. “It’s just twice the headache.”

Plan to work hard. “It’s not a 40-hour-a-week job,” she warned. “I work between 65 and 70 hours a week. There’s no one thing that’s hard about it. The hard part is incorporating all the different tasks involved.”

Don’t plan to start a business if you have little children at home. “Long hours and small children don’t mix. It’s hard to drop everything and go.”

Her dad, by the way, is still around. There’s hardly a day that goes by when she doesn’t pause, look up at the ceiling, and say, “See what you’re missing, Dad?”

JAMIVAN WINKLEARTIST EXTRAORDINAIRE

L&M Pizza customers are well acquainted with Jami Van Winkle. At least they think they are.

But most of them don’t know that the restaurant’s longest-working employee also has two college degrees and a business of her own.

Jami Van Winkle is an artist. She grew up with an insatiable itch to create – with anything, on anything. After high school she went to work at the restaurant while she completed a degree in Accounting. That degree was a lousy fit for her creative bent and left her feeling stifled.

So, while working at the restaurant, she took classes in Portales. Getting up at 4:30 a.m., she would arrive in time for class (or classes, if more than one was available) and drive back home, grab a couple of hours of sleep and go to work. She wasn’t looking for a degree, she just wanted to explore her love of art in as many venues as she could. It satisfied her creative itch, and eventually earned a second degree in Media Design.

She fulfills her creative passion in various ways. Combining photography, video, graphic arts and web design, she focuses her talents on helping new or struggling businesses

develop an efficient internet presence. She found her niche when, after graduating from ENMU, she did some work for several bands, creating promotional posters and CD covers, and helping them to build and maintain websites that would promote their work and publish their concert schedules.

She loves working with bands. “Their passion for music is the same as my passion for art,” she reasoned. “I find combining the two art forms to be very gratifying.”

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L&M Pizza610 W Church Street • (575) 885-6426


F O C U S on the chamber

WE HAVE HADA GREAT SPRING AND SUMMER!We recognized the 2014 Class of Carlsbad 40 Under 40 in mid-April. The banquet honored 40 young leaders for both their occupational and community leadership. We congratulate these young leaders. Carlsbad 40 Under 40 Chairman Jeff Campbell is already making plans for the Class of 2015.

The Chamber’s Special Events Council, chaired by Susan Crockett, brought the first Microbrew Festival on the Pecos to Carlsbad on May 10. Close to 800 people enjoyed Carlsbad’s outstanding weather, the brews from six New Mexico microbreweries, specialty food vendors, food for purchase and live music. A special thank you goes to Intrepid Potash – New Mexico and Madron Service, Inc. for their sponsorship of this event. Mark your calendars now for the 2nd Annual Microbrew Festival on the Pecos to be held Saturday, May 9, 2015, at the Pecos River Village Conference Center.

Twenty-four teams competed in the Chamber’s annual golf tournament on Saturday, June 13 at the Lake Carlsbad Municipal Golf Course. The teams endured the heat and enjoyed their time on the greens.

The Chamber’s Annual Banquet and Meeting was held in July. Todd Hyden thanked the members of the Chamber for allowing him to serve as Chairman of the Board this last year. Hyden said, “It was truly self-fulfilling. We have accomplished a lot but we still have more to do. I graciously turn the gavel over to Jack Volpato knowing that the Chamber is in very capable hands.”

The Chamber’s 2014-2015 Chairman of the Board, Jack Volpato, said that he is looking forward to promoting housing projects as well as new businesses to Carlsbad.

Retiring Board members Dr. Russell Hardy, Judi Waters and Bob Yeager were thanked for their years of service to the Chamber.

Hyden presented the Jack E. Knittel Presidential Award to Robert Baldridge of Intrepid Potash – New Mexico.

The Pete Panagopoulos Ambassador of the Year Award went to Wanda Durham, while Carlsbad National Bank was named the 2014 Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year.

New Mexico Economic Development Department Cabinet Secretary Jon Barela was the keynote speaker for the evening. Secretary Barela shared economic statistics for New Mexico and complimented Carlsbad and southeastern New Mexico for setting the standard for economic

development and performance. He stated that 98% of the county would love to have the housing and employment issues currently seen here.

Cooler fall weather will accompany the 2nd Annual Business Expo and Job Fair on Thursday, October 16, the 4th Annual Winter Wine Festival on Friday and Saturday, December 5 and 6, and our showcase event, Christmas on the Pecos, begins Friday, November 28 and ends December 31.

Please contact us at 575-887-6516 or visit www.carlsbadchamber.com for additional events and announcements.

PHOTO TOP: Todd Hyden passes the gavel to incoming Chamber Chairman Jack Volpato.PHOTO INSET LEFT: Cabinet Secretary Jon Barela speaks to Carlsbad residents during the annual Chamber banquet.PHOTO INSET RIGHT: Carlsbad National Bank was named the 2014 Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year.


The old stories about “the golden years” of resting in rocking chairs, putting up

“gone fishing” signs and drawing social security or retirement income need to be put to rest. Today, older Americans are an economic force that needs to be utilized. While many are looking for a leisurely retirement, others want to remain or return to the work force. According to the Council for Community Economic Research, some older Americans will re-tool for a new job, proving that you can teach an old dog new tricks.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says that today’s seniors are the healthiest in the nation’s history.

The environment of Carlsbad (in the early years) was one of pure survival for women. Take for example Josephine Cox “Grandma” Anderson, later called the “Angel of the Pecos.”

During the terrible “la grippe” flu epidemic of 1918, Grandma fearlessly led other women in nursing and feeding the sick in tents and shacks along the banks of the Pecos River. She did not lose a single patient. Later she and her husband opened a sanitarium.

Carlsbad has female unsung heroes of all ages. We have seen many women pave the way for improving our city.

Here is a list of some firsts:Olive Clark (Mrs. Francis G. Tracy) Spearheaded the developmentof the hospital and library

Cesarine GravesDonated the land along the riverknown as “the beach”

Ida WoodwardFirst piano teacher in Eddy

Edith OhlFirst paid schoolteacher in Eddy

Flora RyanFirst elected librarian

Dr. Myrtle HarkeyFirst female chiropractor

Dr. Catherine ArmstrongFirst pediatrician

Virginia FawcettOrganized the Neighborhood House

Lynn PitcaithleyVaudeville actress

Nancy BeardFirst female Magistrate Judgein Eddy County

Darlene MoutrayFirst female executive director of the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce

Ann WoodFirst Program Coordinatorfor the Literacy Program

Nancy BrantleyFirst female elected to theEddy County Commission

Joan TyeFirst female appointed to theCarlsbad City Council

Bernice PerryFirst woman elected to theCarlsbad City Council

Gray labor (workers age 55 and beyond) will account for 90% of the increase in the labor market between now and 2018. Forget winding down in retirement. People are living longer and redefining traditional notions of aging.

The future is bright for a generation that’s going to remain vital for many years.

Janell Whitlock, Director of Retirement,can be reached at 575-887-6516.


THE GOLDEN YEARS TEACHING AN OLD DOG NEW TRICKS



WELCOME NEW CHAMBER MEMBERS!Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce is proud to welcome the following businesses as new members.

ALLIED HEALTH AND WELLNESS, LLC

AMERICAN RENOVATION CORP.

BIG WHITE TENT

BOOKKEEPER RESCUE, LLC

BRUGMAN OUTFITTING SERVICE

CARLSBAD GEMAND MINERAL SOCIETY

CARLSBAD LITERACY PROGRAM

CONSOLIDATED MECHANICAL SERVICES, INC.

DAYS INN

EDGEWATER TECHNICAL ASSOCIATES, LLC

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES COMPANY, INC.

HAMPTON INN

HOLIDAY INN EXPRESS

J & B HOMES

MCALISTER’S DELI

MINE PRO SAFETY TRAINING

ONE STOP REALTYCARLSBAD HOME CENTER

SIRMAN DRILLING AND CONSTRUCTION, LLC

STELLAR, INCORPORATED

THE BEAUTY COLLEGEOF EDDY COUNTY

TOWNPLACE SUITES BY MARRIOTT

For more information or to join the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce call 575-887-6516 or visit carlsbadchamber.com.

YOUR CHAMBER STAFFROBERT DEFER, Chief Executive [email protected]

BRENDA WHITEAKER, Director of [email protected]

LISA BOEKE, Director of Tourism & Marketing [email protected]

JANELL WHITLOCK, Director of [email protected]

DONNA CASS, Senior Admin. [email protected]

DOROTHY RIDGEWAY, Admin. [email protected]

RANDY BAKER, Director of Facility [email protected]

JESUS TORRES, Facility MaintenanceJOE MARTINEZ, Facility Maintenance

THE BEAUTY COLLEGEOF EDDY COUNTYThe Beauty College of Eddy County, located at 107 W. Mermod, celebratedthe grand opening of their new facilityon May 15.

THE BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB’SNEW COMMERICAL KITCHENMembers of the 2012 Class of Leadership Carlsbad and members of the Boys and Girls Club celebrated the completion of their new commercial kitchen. The Class of 2012 was instrumental in the fundraising for this project. The Boys and Girls Club is located at 1602 W. Fox Street.

REPTILE EXHIBITAT LIVING DESERT ZOOMay 26 marked the official opening of the new Reptile Exhibit at Living Desert Zoo and Gardens State Park. The Park is located at 1504 Miehls Drive on the top of “C” Hill.

TOWNEPLACE SUITESBY MARRIOTTGroundbreaking ceremonies were held on February 22 for the TownePlace Suites by Marriott. The new hotel will be located at 901 S. Canal Street.


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Annual EventsMain Event Car Show & Cruise

Last Weekend in March

Gus Macker 3-on-3 Basketball1st Weekend in June

Smokin’ On the Pecos BBQ ChampionshipLast Weekend in June

Fourth of July CelebrationClays Crusher Fun Shoot

3rd Weekend in September

Balloons & Bluegrass FestivalFirst Weekend in November

FOCUS ON CARLSBAD

FOCUS ON ARTESIA

FOCUS SPECIAL EDITIONS

One of the top in the nation.Three years in a row.

By focusing on quality care for patients and doing what’s right,

we have received national recognition. The Joint Commission

recognizes Carlsbad Medical Center* with the distinction of

2012 Top Performer on Key Quality Measures® for attaining and

sustaining excellence in the following measure sets: Heart Failure,

Pneumonia and Surgical Care. Carlsbad Medical Center is one

of only 182 hospitals to achieve the distinction of being

recognized as a Top Performer for the third year.

So what does this recognition in using evidence-based care mean

for you? Peace of mind in knowing that our local care is among the

top in the nation.

Find out more at CarlsbadMedicalCenter.com.

*Carlsbad Medical Center, LLC d/b/a Carlsbad Medical Center

®

• Heart Failure• Pneumonia• Surgical Care

The Joint CommissionTop Performer onKey QualityMeasures®

2012

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Focus on Carlsbad Fall 2014