Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities

Articles from the January 15, 2020 edition


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  • Imagination Library gift of reading for children

    Betty Williamson|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    When I was a little kid, our mailbox was perched on a wobbly wooden stand a little over a quarter mile from our house. Then (as now), our mail was delivered three times each week. Most days (sandstorms not included), it was a pleasant bicycle ride to retrieve the offerings. What I remember most vividly was that when summer arrived, our “Weekly Reader” newspapers came by mail, and it was always a thrill (I am not using that word lightly) to open the old mailbox and find tha...

  • MLK events set in communities

    Mathew Brock - Staff writer|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    The accomplishments of Martin Luther King Jr. have echoed throughout generations and every year groups in Clovis and Portales make sure to celebrate his legacy. This Saturday, the Clovis chapter of the Martin Luther King Jr. Commission starts the celebration early with its 28th Annual Scholarship Breakfast at the Clovis High School Cafeteria. Tickets are $10 a person or $100 for a table and the event will feature a speech by James B. Lewis from Albuquerque. Students and...

  • Stampede ends Melrose EPAC drought

    Peter Stein - Staff writer|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    PORTALES — Any night that ends with a big trophy, a plaque and medals is a pretty good night. Saturday night ended with all of the above hardware for the Melrose boys basketball team after a 66-37 rout of Tatum in the Eastern Plains Athletic Conference tournament championship game at Greyhound Arena. The blowout and the awards resulting from it signified the Buffaloes’ first EPAC title since 1993. A close game for most of the first quarter but a double-digit affair from late f...

  • Logan rallies, tops Melrose in 2OT

    Peter Stein - Staff writer|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    PORTALES — It was a matter of perspective. For the Logan girls basketball team, Saturday night’s Eastern Plains Athletic Conference championship game at Greyhound Arena was a stirring comeback, a double overtime victory, an achievement 44 years in the making. For Melrose it was a lost opportunity, a title that slipped away. Logan, down big for most of Saturday’s game, rallied to force overtime, then forced another one, and won its first EPAC championship since 1976 by defea...

  • Clovis tops Canyon

    Peter Stein - Staff writer|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    CLOVIS — Were you ready for some … basketball? In a rare Monday-nighter at Rock Staubus Gymnasium, the Clovis boys basketball team hosted a Texas visitor, this time from Canyon. And after a tight first quarter and a mostly-close second, the Wildcats breezed away for a 73-54 victory. The Monday-night scheduling gave Clovis less time to wait before trying to bounce back from Saturday night’s loss to 2019 state finalist Santa Fe in the capitol. And, playing a Texas team is alway...

  • ENMU hosting D-II champion Chaps

    The Staff of The News|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    PORTALES — The Eastern New Mexico women’s basketball program has faced some tall tasks this season. So far, none of them are quite as tall as a national champion. That will change Thursday, as the Greyhounds hope to score a huge upset in the Lone Star Conference and regional picture. As for the biggest concern ENMU coach Josh Prock has on the Chaps, who bring a 14-0 record into the 5:30 p.m. contest at Greyhound Arena, he’s not picky. “To be honest? All areas,” Prock said. “They do so many things well. They shoot well, they...

  • Clovis girls swimmers take third at Albuquerque

    The Staff of The News|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    ALBUQUERQUE — Clovis’ swim team stormed ahead in its season this past weekend, competing at the Albuquerque Invite, with solid results. Out of 26 teams, the Clovis girls were third, the boys ninth. And the girls showing came with head coach Gordy Westerberg switching around his relay lineups. “You never want them to swim the same events over and over and over because they start to get stale,” Westerberg said. So he mixed the girls 200 and 400 free relays. The results were positive, as the 200 free relay team of Bella Zamora,...

  • Lovington outlasts Portales in Shootout finale

    Dave Wagner - Staff writer|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    PORTALES — Portales High boys basketball coach Rickie McBroom knows his team is close to where it would hope to be; just not close enough at this time. The Rams went down for the third consecutive night in excruciating fashion — and the fourth time in five nights for the week — as they lost to District 4-4A rival Lovington 52-50 on Saturday night in the Portales Shootout at the Ram Athletic Center. PHS (5-9) lost a last-second 58-57 decision to Texico on Tuesday at the RAC,...

  • Portales drops Shootout finale against Carlsbad

    The Staff of The News|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    PORTALES — In basketball, things never look too good when the shots aren’t falling. The young Portales Lady Rams are still trying to figure some things out. They were unable to take advantage of a dreadful night by Carlsbad at the free throw line on Saturday and dropped their finale in the Portales Shootout to the Cavegirls 34-29 at the Ram Athletic Center. A season-ending knee injury to junior guard Mattison Blakey has made it a little more difficult. Now the Lady Rams have just two juniors and one senior on their ros...

  • Greyhounds pull split in Odessa

    The Staff of The News|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    ODESSA, Texas — Senior guard Devin Pullum capped off a 26-point outing by making two free throws with one second left on Saturday, sealing Eastern New Mexico University’s wild 100-97 Lone Star Conference men’s basketball victory over Texas-Permian Basin. The Greyhounds (5-8, 5-3 LSC), winning for the fifth time in seven games, used a 24-1 surge spanning halftime to turn a seven-point deficit into a 66-50 lead with 16 minutes left. Junior guards Brandon Meadows, Isaiah Murphy and Jose Serrano contributed 16, 14 and 13 point...

  • Clovis girls top Caprock on road

    The Staff of The News|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    AMARILLO — It was anything but easy, but Clovis High girls assistant coach Candace Jordan managed to even her record for the weekend while filling in for the ailing Jeff Reed. The Lady Wildcats shot a season-best 74 percent from the foul line (28-of-38), including 9-of-13 in overtime, to subdue Amarillo Caprock 55-48 on Saturday night. Jordan coached the Lady Cats (6-10) for the second consecutive night after Reed went into the hospital on Friday for an appendectomy. Clovis dropped a 59-54 decision that night to Lubbock Trini...

  • Kleyn-Kennedy: Esports draws wide cross-section

    Updated Jan 14, 2020

    Clovis Municipal Schools have joined the ranks of a whole new class of sporting events — esports. Despite its seeming recent arrival on the scene, esports have been around for some time. The “e” stands for electronic, and esports are commonly described as competitive tournaments of video games. One of the first esports competitions is often traced back to the early 1970s at Stamford University, where students officially competed in a video game, Spacewar. Esports have grown exponentially over the years, often driving signi...

  • Curry commission approves jail X-ray

    Mathew Brock - Staff writer|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    CLOVIS — The Curry County Commission broke in the new year by approving the purchase of new security equipment at the detention center during their first meeting Tuesday morning. Mark Gallegos said the jail is in need of an advanced system to help screen new detainees for contraband. The new system would replace searches by staff with an x-ray machine and drastically streamline the screening process for new entries. “The primary job of this will be able to reduce and minimize the amount of contraband that might make it int...

  • Pages Past - Jan. 15

    Updated Jan 14, 2020

    On this date ... 1975: Gideon Bender had been elected president of United Way’s board of directors in Clovis. Vice-president was J.A. McDaniel,while John Hager had been re-elected treasurer. Other officers were Ed Tatum, Col. Kenneth Kuhlmann and Dr. Gene Walker. Randy Nieves was outgoing president, having helped the non-profit group raise more than $100,000 for the first time, the Clovis News-Journal reported. United Way had held its annual banquet at the La Villa Steakhouse. Pages Past is compiled by David Stevens. C...

  • Jail logs - Jan. 15

    Updated Jan 14, 2020

    Booked The following were booked into local jails (Friday-Tuesday): Clovis • Abriana Gomez, 25, failure to appear on a felony charge • Misty Maldonado, 40, aggravated driving while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or any drug • Jeremy Cook, 37, failure to appear at time and place stated in citation • Amanda Castillo, 39, failure to appear on a felony charge • Daniel Rose, 26, theft of identity • Yuri Fierro, 26, battery against a household member • Manuel Beltran, 67, failure to appear on a felony charge • Michael V...

  • Ortega: Phase set for late March completion

    Kevin Wilson - Staff writer|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    CLOVIS — Though the final completion date has moved back about three months from original estimates, the Eastern New Mexico Water Utility Authority is satisfied with what’s been completed so far on its Finished Water 2 efforts. Authority Executive Director Orlando Ortega told Clovis Water Policy Advisory Committee members Tuesday morning that FW2 is at 81% completion. Remaining work for the approximate seven miles of pipeline to connect Clovis to Cannon Air Force Base includes vault construction, 13-inch welded pipe ins...

  • Portales could see extra grant money

    Kevin Wilson - Staff writer|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    PORTALES — Of all the New Mexico school districts receiving money from Striving Readers Comprehensive Literacy grants, Portales Municipal Schools is the only district in 100% compliance with the grant requirements. The benefit may be a bonus of more than 100%, Superintendent Johnnie Cain reported at Monday night’s school board meeting. The SRCL formula grants — normally referred to as the “circle” grants — provide Portales with $450,000 annually to spend on literacy initiatives. The grant is going away after this year, and gr...

  • Events calendar - Jan. 15

    Updated Jan 14, 2020

    Today • Reality Check Day at Portales High School — 8:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., Portales High School, 201 S. Knoxville, Portales. Experiential education program on for area ninth graders about adult financial responsibility. Volunteers needed to fill multiple roles in morning and/or afternoon sessions. Lunch is provided for those who help all day. To volunteer or learn more: http://www.volunteerenm.org/need/detail/?need_id=456418 or call 2-1-1 • Tiny Tots — 10 a.m., Clovis-Carver Public Library, 701 N. Main St., Clovis. Informa...

  • Meetings calendar - Jan. 15

    Updated Jan 14, 2020

    Today • City of Clovis Finance Committee — 2 p.m., Clovis City Hall small conference room, 321 N. Connelly, Clovis. Information: 575-763-9654 Thursday • Curry County Health Council — 12-1 p.m., Commission Room, Curry County Administration Complex, 417 Gidding St., Clovis. Information: 575-763-6009 • Ute Water Commission — 1:30 p.m., Eastern Plains Council of Governments, 418 N. Main St., Clovis. Information: 575-762-7714 Jan. 22 • City of Clovis Public Works Committee — 8:30 a.m., Clovis City Hall assembly room, 321 N. Co...

  • Don't scare kids with political fears

    Kent McManigal|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    I remember the panic I felt about tornado warnings as a child. It didn’t matter whether my family was in danger; I wasn’t informed enough to know whether we were. I didn’t understand that worry isn’t helpful, and I wasn’t able to change things. There was nothing meaningful I could do. In the past couple of weeks, I’ve heard of local children scared that World War III had begun. They’ve overheard adults talking about it and were worried. I did my best to explain things and ca...

  • A lot on plate for legislative session

    Tom McDonald|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    Here we are again, about to enter into the abyss of a 30-day legislative session. It’ll be one of the fun ones, when lawmakers will get to spend-spend-spend. It must be refreshing for legislators who, not so long ago, had to cut-cut-cut their way through hard times and a tax-averse governor. Nowadays, state coffers are flush with oil and gas revenues and there’s enough money for increases everywhere, to state agencies all over the place. In a press release from the governor’s office last week, a $7.68 billion budget propo...

  • Good news - cancer rates on the decline

    Updated Jan 14, 2020

    Cancer remains a dreaded diagnosis, but there’s heartening news. America is showing great progress against some of the most deadly forms of the disease, particularly lung cancer and the aggressive skin cancer melanoma. Researchers have reported the largest-ever one-year decline in the U.S. cancer death rate, a drop of 2.2% between 2016 and 2017, according to the American Cancer Society. The rate has fallen resoundingly — nearly 30% — from 1991 to 2017, affecting nearly 3 million lives. Anyone who lost a loved one to cance...

  • Growing more amazed with Father's power as we trust him

    Curtis Shelburne|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    Well, how are your New Year’s resolutions coming along? Oh? Sorry. I didn’t mean to touch a sore spot. I suppose nothing is a much sorer spot for humans than having to face the fact that we don’t measure up even to our own standards, much less to God’s. The spirit indeed is willing. We want to do better. Be better. But the flesh is ever so weak. Which is why I’m increasingly unimpressed with human resolutions and willpower and more and more amazed by our Father’s power as we...

  • I'll be performing in New York with a cowboy

    Carrie Classon|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    I want to start out by making it clear I have nothing against cowboys. One of the new developments in my life is that I recently got a manager, Bob, to book performances of my writing. I’ve never had a manager before, so I didn’t know what to expect. But Bob is a wonderful fellow. He says he thinks of the folks he represents as family — which is something a lot of people say, but I get the feeling Bob actually means it. So, I was eager to keep Bob happy. But then he suggested I perform with a cowboy. “Carrie, I know this is...

  • A look back when nearly the entire police force quit

    David Stevens - Staff|Updated Jan 14, 2020

    I collect historical tidbits that interest me from area newspapers. Here are a few from Januarys past: • Jan. 7, 1941: “Bales and bales of hay” had been moved into Clovis’ Armory for members of two National Guard units staying there. “The hay isn’t for horses, either — for there are no more since the old 111th Cavalry unit here was converted into an anti-aircraft unit of the 200th Coast Artillery,” the Clovis News-Journal reported. The hay was to “stuff the soldiers’ bed packs with,” CN-J reported. • Jan. 11, 1955: Seven gr...

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