Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Students and faculty at Eastern New Mexico University will gather at noon Thursday for a 20-minute ceremony to honor the heroes and victims of Sept. 11, 2001.
The memorial service, a product of the Multicultural Affairs Office, will be held at the ENMU campus fountain.
This is the second annual 9/11 memorial ceremony at ENMU.
“The ceremony is good to keep the issue alive in the students’ minds so they know something about it,” said Anthony Schroeder, a professor of communications at ENMU.
Schroeder will join five other ENMU professors from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday in the Becky Sharp Auditorium for a panel discussion on 9/11 and its impact on America, from its effect on the budget to privacy issues.
The communications professor will discuss how the nation’s security challenges clash with citizen privacy. For example, somebody who checks out a book on how to make a bomb at a public library may be monitored by organizations protecting and enforcing the nation’s security.
Furthermore, political science assistant professor Sue Strickler will discuss how President George Bush has spearheaded the war on terror and his recent $87 billion budget presented to Congress to fight terrorism.
“Part of the civic debate in the relationship between Congress and the president is he has to ask for that money, and Congress should not just rubber stamp that and give it to him — they need to ask some questions to be responsible in their appropriations process,” Strickler said.
About 500 people are expected to attend the noon memorial, said Nancy Varelas, senior student advisor for Multicultural Affairs.
Other events also are scheduled Thursday to honor heroes and victims of 9/11.
Clovis Furr’s Family Dining restaurant will serve free meals to police, fire, emergency medical technicians and active and reserve military personnel, according to a company news release.
“It will be in effect for all day as a day of thanks,” said Toni Romero, cashier at the Clovis restaurant. “All they have to have is a uniform or a badge or an I.D. The meal is free.”
“In these uncertain times, the Furr’s family would like to take this day of remembrance to recognize the local heroes who selflessly serve each of the communities we call home,” said Jill Laird, director of marketing at Furr’s Restaurant Group.
Also Thursday, the Clovis chapter of a national fraternal organization will welcome chapters from across New Mexico for a ceremony observing the second anniversary of the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
At 9:30 a.m., the Woodmen of the World Lodge 41 will conduct a flag presentation at the Pippin Youth Ranch, the organization’s statewide charity.
The organization has conducted more than 1,100 ceremonies at town halls, schools, parks, fire stations and other community buildings around the nation during the last two years, said chapter vice president Richard Barris.
“We will present a flagpole and a flag to go with it,” he said.
Barris said there are more than 100 local Woodmen chapters in New Mexico. The organization’s New Mexico chapters decided two years ago to adopt Pippin Youth Ranch as a statewide charitable project for its members.
Cannon Air Force Base will host a joint POW/MIA and 9/11 memorial service at 10 a.m. Thursday at the base chapel.
The event is open only to military members, retirees, dependents and those with access to the base.
