SOCORRO – In the course of following up on a burglary investigation, Socorro police officers took five people into custody on child abuse and narcotics charges.
According to the criminal complaint, Anna Lee Baca, Amanda Padilla, Walter Robertson, Dustin Smith, and Stonee Williams were arrested Tuesday, Feb. 9,at 3:30 p.m. on one count of child abuse, possession of medication without a prescription, possession of marijuana, and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Sgt. Richard Lopez said in the report that he and Capt. Angel Garcia were attempting to locate Dustin Smith on a separate matter, who was reported to be visiting a residence at 112 B Street. The officers found a note on the front door directing people to go to the back door. The report said that the officers heard voices from inside the house referencing the smoking of marijuana, and the odor of marijuana smoke was coming from an open window. The officers waited “for some time” and then knocked on the door.
Upon entering, Lopez saw two women and three men in the room, and a minor child on a bed.
The complaint stated that Anna Lee Baca was sitting on the floor with an amount of marijuana on a VHS case, and Walter Robertson sitting next to a piece of board with lines of white powdery substance.
Also in the room was Amanda Padilla (owner of the residence), Stonee Williams, and Dustin Smith, the man they were originally looking for.
“In the room was the strong odor of marijuana, along with a cloud of smoke,” the complaint stated. “In plain view” were marijuana cigarettes, the board with white powdery substance, a gray box with several syringes and “other articles associated with marijuana and methamphetamine abuse.”
All of the items were well within reach of the minor child on the bed, Lopez said.
The report stated that Amanda Padilla told police that the powdery substance was hydrocodone (vicodin) pills crushed up.
All five suspects were placed into custody and incarcerated at the Socorro County Detention Center. Arraignments have not yet been scheduled.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Five Face Child Abuse, Drug Charges
The home of John and Barbara Foard of Magdalena still smolders Wednesday morning after catching fire late Tuesday. The fire is thought to have been caused by a problem with the electrical wiring. Magdalena Marshal Larry Cearley said the Foards were alerted by a smoke detector, and were able to get out safely, but were not able to save any of their possessions. Units from both the Magdalena Fire Dept. and Hop Canyon Fire Dept. responded. Cearley said that the home was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived, and crews kept the blaze from spreading until 7 a.m. “Everybody from both departments worked good together, and they did as good as they could, but the fire spread so rapidly the home couldn’t be saved,” Cearley said. “The smoke alarm saved their lives. Everybody should have one.”Harry Kroyer photo.
Electric Co-op Sets Dates For Member Meetings
SOCORRO – The Socorro Electric Cooperative will hold a member informational meeting on March 27 at 1 p.m. at the Finley Gym and will hold its general member meeting on April 17 at 7 p.m. at the same facility.
Registration for the informational meeting will begin at noon and registration for the general meeting will begin at 5 p.m.
The informational meeting was the hot topic at Tuesday night’s co-op meeting.
Informational meeting committee chairman Donald Wolberg presented to the board the issues they wanted to discuss with the members.
“It’s what we do from here on in that counts,” Wolberg told the board.
Wolberg handed out a four-page summary to the board detailing what the informational meeting wanted to accomplish during the meeting.
Trustee Charlie Wagner said, “I want to ask some questions before I vote on this.”
Wagner asked if there was going to be voting at the informational meeting.
Attorney Dennis Francish said: “There is nothing to vote on.”
Wolberg said: “There is nothing to vote on but we left it vague in case we do have something to vote on.”
After a lot of back and forth, the board decided just to set the time, date and place for the meeting and directed the attorney to look at the report to determine if there are any legal ramifications.
According to the summary, the program will include an introduction of the board, the introduction of division/department heads of the SEC and brief statements of department functions, recognition of SEC staff in the audience, presentation of an overview of the SEC, presentation of the scale and scope of SEC operations and a presentation of board functions required by bylaws, regulations and efficient oversight functions.
The meeting also will cover the required costs of a functioning board, the presentation of a board budget, questions from the floor and responses by appropriate trustees and SEC Staff and other business including any motions requiring a vote by members.
The informational meeting committee also discussed resolutions that would be brought forward at the special meeting.
The resolutions involved board compensation, medical insurance, per diems and quorums.
Wolberg suggested in the summary that the board consider adoption of the resolutions already approved by district meetings and that will be voted a t the annual meeting, but Ulibarri and Cordova disagreed and they left it up to the board to determine its position.
The committee did agree that the president or a trustee that he chooses should hold a press conference regarding the special meeting.
Wagner suggested the board go through and discuss each of the resolutions that the committee discussed.
“If we do that, we are going to be here all night,” Trustee president Paul Bustamante said.
That’s why the board determined just the time, date and place for the special meeting and tabled discussion of the resolutions for another meeting.
The board also awarded a two-year contract to CB Ray Incorporated to serve as the co-op contractor.
Wagner said the board should look at other bids from other contractors.
“Just as a matter of form, it looks better if we go out and get competitive bids,” Wagner said. “CB Ray would probably have the inside track. We just owe it to our members to get the best for their money.”
Pineda said that CB Ray was asking for a two-year contract with a 2.5 percent increase to cover its payroll obligations. Although CB Ray is based in Arizona, Pineda said, most of their crews are from here and their equipment is in the Socorro County area.
“If we have a big outage, their crews would come out and help us,” Pineda said.
Ulibarri added, “They hire local people.”
Wagner’s motion to open it up to competitive bids failed 7-3 and the motion to award the contract to CB Ray passed 9-1.
The meeting opened with an address from member Don Steinnerd of Socorro.
“I am here to ask for clarification of the by-laws and on a 1967 resolution and to inquire whether the current Trustee compensation is in compliance. Specifically, is the current health, dental and vision insurance compensation for Trustees and his/her family in compliance with the bylaws?”
Steinard cited Article 5, Section 7 of the bylaws that stated that trustee compensation shall be specifically authorized by a vote of the members. The 1967 resolution said that the sum of $15 plus insurance as compensation to be paid to each member of the board for each day or portion there of spent on Cooperative business. The resolution does not define the types of insurance compensation. He said this is in conflict with the current “annual” insurance policies.”
Bustamante directed Francish to look into the matter.
In other business:
•The board will send two co-op linemen to take part in utility underground traning in San Diego.
•Trustee Leo Cordova was not attendance because he was in a car accident, according to Pineda, who added that Cordova was unhurt.
Quemado Woman Earns British Military Award
QUEMADO – It was back in 1940.
And Elsie Candelaria of Quemado, who recently received a long awaited medal of honor from the British military for her service as a member of the Women’s Land Army in World War II.
She remembers like it was yesterday.
She was just 15 at the time but she was a land girl for the British military and her job entailed that she be in charge of field workers, who picked crops in the Worcester area of England.
Regulations stipulated that those who entered the military be 18 years of age, but Candelaria, who was born in Wales, enrolled anyway.
“I put my age up at 15 and my brother his age up at 15. He was in Africa and when he was 16 he was with (General Bernard Law) Montgomery’s troops,” Candelaria, who turns 85 in April, recalled at the Quemado Senior Center this week. “I needed to be home. My father was dying. He was gassed in World War I and my mom was a fragile woman and I needed to be there.”
It was a normal summer day and she made the one and one-half mile walk to work. “The Battle of Britain was going on and all everybody knew about was the bombing of London. But the Germans also made regular bombing runs over Birmingham, which was 60 miles away in Coventry.”
The Germans had not made their way to Worcester.
At least not yet.
On this particular day, Candelaria and the other workers were picking green beans at Tooby’s Farm in Powick, about three miles from Worcester, which happens to be the birthplace of Worcestershire sauce.
About midway through the day, Candelaria remembered hearing the sound of a plane.
“It would get louder and quieter,” Candelaria said. “The field was wide and about three acres long. I remember looking over my shoulder and I could see the plane hedgehopping. It was getting really close. I yelled that it was a Gerry, that’s what we called the Germans.
“I told everybody to hit the deck and we all dove into the beans. But I looked up and the barrel of a machine gun was pointing right toward us and I could see the swastika on the leather helmet of the gunner. The plane passed over and I was sure he was going to come back and finish us off.”
But the plane banked and headed toward a school.
The Nazi plane’s gunner unloaded his machine gun on a playground, injuring or killing 19 children. Then the plane headed to Worcester and the gunner took out all the storefronts on the main street.
“Worcester was a defenseless city,” Candelaria said. “Nobody had any guns.”
The Germans never made any more bombing runs at Worcester, but occasionally when they made their runs to Birmingham or Coventry, they had an extra bomb in their bomb rack so they would drop it on their way back.
On two occasions, the bombs fell by the Candelaria house and it took out their windows.
Candelaria served as a land girl in the military until 1941 when she contracted pneumonia.
Candelaria eventually recovered and she worked at Rotol Air Screws factory in a variety of jobs until 1945.
But it was in 1944 when she made her New Mexico connection.
Near the end of February 1944, Candelaria and her sister decided to go to a dance in Worcester.
“The good thing about the dance was that no Americans were allowed,” Candelaria laughed. “When they were on leave, they were quite obnoxious and we really didn’t want anything to do with them. I also was engaged.
“So we went to the dance and I was with my sister. My sister went to the other side of the room and this American showed up and he should stood there. He went over to my sister and started talking to her and she didn’t tell him that she was my sister.
Then he started walking over to me and I said ‘Oh no.’
“I remember I was really not very nice because I was already engaged. So I asked him are you from New York and do you own a skyscraper?
“No ma’am,” Roger replied.
“Are you from Texas and do you own a big ranch?,” Elsie countered.
“No ma’am,” Roger said.
“Are you from Hollywood and you think you can get me in the movies?” Elsie asked.
“He said no ma’am I’m from New Mexico and I don’t own a doggone thing,” Roger said.
That American turned out to be Roger Candelaria, who was from Quemado.
Roger Candelaria stayed for a day.
“My mother really liked him,” Elsie said.
And apparently so did Elsie, who broke off her engagement.
The dance was in February and he proposed on leave in May and “we were married Sept. 25, 1944.”
A month later, Roger was ordered off to France with his company. On June 6 was the D-Day invasion at Normandy and Roger was on the scene two days later in a tank.
The Candelarias saw each just two more times until 1946.
“In 1946, I was one of 2,500 British brides that came over to New York on the Queen Mary. I knew nothing about New Mexico.
“The plan was for Roger to meet me in New York and we would take a long honeymoon train ride from New York to New Mexico. That was the plan anyway. We were in Tidworth, England and that’s where the authorities checked us out and checked our papers and vaccination records. There were German POWs there to make the bed and I told them not to touch my bed and I would make my own bed.
“We sailed to New York and we got there on the Sunday the 21st.”
When the ship landed in New York, Elsie waited and waited and waited for Roger.
But there was no Roger.
Because of a cable mixup, Roger had been told that his bride would not be in New York until Wednesday.
So Elsie started west on a train with a lot of other war brides.
Before leaving, the brides were given a tour of New York. They headed down Broadway and everybody gawked at the skyscrapers.
“We left from Grand Central Station, went to Canada, went to Chicago and I eventually got off in Albuquerque,” Elsie said. “The porter was Mr. Jackson and he was the nicest man. He helped all the women with their babies getting them milk and whatever else they might want.
“He asked me where I was going and I said Quemado, New Mexico, Box 65. He came back with a sackful of guest soap that they had in hotels. He told me you are going to need this because where you are going all they have is lye soap.”
The train arrived in Albuquerque and there was still no Roger.
“Everybody was gone but I saw two Red Cross ladies and I told them I was a British bride and that I was looking for husband. They looked at me like that I probably had been dumped. But they took me to lunch at the Alvarado hotel.
“This man kept looking at me after lunch. I was really nervous and I kept hiding my face.
He came up to me and asked me if I was Junior’s wife? I had never heard that Roger had been referred to as Junior and I said no.
“He walked away but he came back and asked me if I was Roger Candelaria’s wife. And I said yes, where is he? Well he is in New York looking for you. His name was Mr. Saiz and he was a very nice man.”
Saiz took Elsie down to Socorro and took her to the old Park Hotel where the Socorro post office stands near the Plaza.
Roger, after hearing that Elsie was in New Mexico, hopped on a transcontinental flight from New York to Albuquerque.
“He told me to close the door and not let anybody in because Socorro was one wild place,” Elsie said. “I finally was able to take a bath after spending four and a half days on the train. It was impossible to get any privacy on that train because I was helping the other brides with their babies.”
At 3 a.m. Friday, there was a knock on the door.
But Elsie was not about to open the door.
“But then I heard Roger’s voice, I was so relieved.”
The newlyweds were reunited, “but one of the first things he told me was that we had to be in Albuquerque Friday night because on Saturday we had to see Roger’s younger brother Billy star in a track meet and his sister perform in a piano recital.”
The Candelarias’ cross-country adventure was chronicled in a 1946 edition of the Albuquerque Journal and apparently the newspaper is coming to Quemado next week to talk with Elsie.
Roger and Elsie did not leave each others’ side. Roger worked in Albuquerque for a while. They lived in Michigan for about three years.
But in 1955, they moved to Quemado for good.
They had three children. Steve is a pastor at the Pie Town Baptist Church, Rhys owns his own truck and drives for Walmart and Tricia works at the prison in Grants.
They own a small cattle ranch in Quemado and Roger, through the help of the GI Bill, became a gas plumber and he was in charge of a propane gas company.
“He put in almost all the systems around here,” Elsie said.
Roger died of a stroke in 1992.
“He had some other health problems, but one day, he walked through the garage and he just dropped dead,” Elsie said
Elsie still is in fine health, although she is blind. The opthamologist told her that she had a stroke in her eyes.
Her blindness does not stop her.
She keeps busy around her home and makes some occasional stops at the Quemado Senior Center.
For years, Elsie was the organist at the First Baptist Church in Quemado and she taught adult bible study for more than 40 years. She also helped Roger with his business as well.
“I have a computer and through the commission of the blind, I have a program that speaks.”
Last year with the help of one of her nieces, Elsie found out that the British government was recognizing those who served as Land Girls in the military.
Elsie’s niece sent in her information and three weeks ago, Elsie received a medal of honor from the British government with a commendation from Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
“I wish I could see it but people have told me that it is a very nice medal,” Elsie said.
It is indeed.
Principal Gets Clipped
San Antonio Elementary School principal John Ray Dennis gets his head shaved by two students after the student body raised a $1,849 donation to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Dennis said the money was raised through a school-wide Math-A-Thon, and that the top two students would have the privilege of cutting his hair. Pictured are the two top fundraisers in the Math-A-Thon (from left): Pre-K student Ashlynn Jones, and second grader Kasie Gallegos.
Illegal Aliens Flee
A Catron County sheriff deputy pulled over a vehicle and a number of undocumented aliens escaped on foot at 9:30 p.m., Jan. 31, on Highway 180 at mile marker 25.
“One of our deputies was in the process of a traffic stop and the vehicle failed to yield right away. A short time later the vehicle did stop and some undocumented aliens did run on foot,” Catron County undersheriff Ian Fletcher wrote in an email,. “There were other vehicles involved where the occupants who also were suspected of being undocumented aliens did flee as well. “The total number is unknown but estimated at around 30. Border Patrol did send agents and equipment to help with the effort. Since the incident, Border Patrol has been in the area more frequently than before,” he wrote.
Fletcher said the Border Patrol has taken over the case.
School Board Takes Action on Sarracino Parking Lot
The Socorro Consolidated Schools Board held an abbreviated meeting Tuesday night and board members took up the subject of the renovation of the Sarracino Middle School parking lot.
An estimate came from a contractor with a total of $79,138. Anton Salome asked the board for approval so the district could go ahead with pursuing the funding for the project. A motion to approve was made by Pauline Jaramillo and was seconded by James Chavez The action was then approved unaminously by the board.
On the next item on the agenda, the board decided to table discussion and action until a meeting in April because some members had not had enough time to review the Student/Personnel policies. Board member Robert Markwell voiced his concerns with some members not doing their homework and getting what has to be done for the district and the parents and students in a timely manner. Board Member Ann Leviner also voiced concern about putting the questions of the Student and Personnel policy off for two months. In the end, it was tabled until the meeting in April despite strong concerns voiced by Leviner and Markwell.
Socorro County Sheriff's Blotter
Dec. 31
A complainant in Socorro reported at 3 p.m. that neither she or other family members had not seen, or heard from, a relative who had been missing since August. She took the deputy into his home in Veguita, and found that it had been ransacked, as well as storage sheds and other buildings on the property. She stated that his vehicle had been seen in Belen driven by a female who apparently told others that she had purchased it from him. It is unknown when any property was removed. The missing man was entered into NCIC.
A man on Grant St. in Socorro reported at 7 p.m. that he received a harassing telephone call from a woman stating that if he did not pay money he owes, she would get her “homies” to take care of it.
Jan. 2
A woman on Abo Loop in Veguita reported at 10:30 a.m. the suspect pushed her after she met with him at an address on Highway 304. The officer met with the man, who stated that he was trying to get away from her but she would not let him leave. He said he pushed her out of the way. Neither party wanted to pursue the incident.
A car was stopped at a roadblock at mile marker 3 on Highway 380 at 2:02 p.m. A check showed the Carrizozo driver had a suspended/revoked license with an arrest clause. He was placed under arrest and taken to the Socorro County Detention Center.
OBITUARY: Marian Jojola
Marian Jojola
(Apr. 4, 1920 – Feb. 4, 2010)
Marian Jojola, 89, passed away on Thursday, Feb. 4, in Socorro. Marian was born in Socorro on Apr. 4, 1920 to Lucas and Catalina (Gallegos) Torres.
She is survived by sons, Lucas Jojola and wife, Sherry of Albuquerque; Henry Jojola Jr. of Socorro; Raymond Jojola of Georgetown,Tex.; Daughter, Toni Torres and husband, Willie of Socorro; daughter-in-law, Annie Jojola; sister, Josefita Jojola of Albuquerque; sisters-in-law, Frances Sarate of Socorro; Lena Silva of Albuquerque; Grandchildren, Raymond Torres; Kathy Torres; Michael Gallegos; Henry Jojola III; Chris Jojola; Laura Jojola; Christopher Jojola; Stephen Jojola; Elias Jojola; Carl Jojola; Jason Jojola; Loralei Gallegos; Nichole Gallegos; Great Grandchildren, Shannon Peralta; Alisa Torres; Sherree Torres; Amy Peralta; Kendra Peralta; Raymond Torres Jr.; Gabrielle Peralta; Candice Jojola; Chantilly Gallegos; Henry Jojola IV; Cody Howes; Justin Angel; Maray Angel; McKennah Jojola; Mathiew Jojola; Christian Jojola; Zyan Jojola; Cory Sanchez; Great Great Grandchildren, Gabriel Jojola; Christine Peralta; Amanda Torres; Jordan Torres; Isaac Gonzales; Nathaniel Gonzales; Ma'Leah Brown; Trinity Torres; Troy Torres; Jeremy Valenzuela; and a cherished niece, Margaret Torres.Marian is preceded in death by her husband, Henry Jojola Sr.; son, Eloy Jojola; daughter, Mary Gallegos; and daughter-in-law, Marie Jojola.
EDITORIAL: Time To Give Challengers A Fair, Equal Opportunity
Did they even think for one moment that the incumbent mayor and councilors would be hanging out within a few feet of the machine while people are voting and challengers were not allowed within 100 feet of that machine or the building it was sitting in?
It’s just another law that was either put in place to hurt potential challengers purposely, or the legislatures are just too simple to see the harm that something like this does to the voting process overall.
It leaves absolutely no doubt that the incumbents have a huge advantage at election time.
In Socorro’s case, the people waiting in line to vote get to see, hear and stand just about 8 feet from the Mayor while he sits at his desk “doing business.”
It’s laughable and really quite troubling. The excuse that the mayor and clerk must have the voting machine in close proximity so that they may also have access to their daily duties at the same time in city hall in ludicrous.
The machine should at the very least, be in the Council Chambers where the two very qualified young ladies who work for the city can do the business of running the election. It would still be a few feet from the mayor and clerk, but would remove any possibility of intimidation or campaigning by incumbents or challengers alike and would definitely be out of the line of sight for those standing in line waiting to vote.
Although the law currently in place does say that the voting machine can be in the clerk’s office during the city elections voting cycle, the mayor and clerk should remove all doubt and any questions concerning the election and the machine’s location, and take the steps to place the voting machine away from any elected officials’ office.
If the voting machine were placed in the Council Chambers, clerk Pat Salome would only have to walk another 20 feet should a problem arise.
No one should have to stand and wait to vote with one or more incumbents standing and talking in the immediate voting area.
It’s not only unnerving for some, but actually as unfair as it gets for the challengers who are made to stand outside and across the street – 100 feet away.
The clerk should do the right thing and move the early voting machine into the Council Chambers.
In doing so, he would be removing the concern about whether it is an unfair advantage to the incumbent mayor (Salome’s boss).
It would also be a great gesture by Salome to make a simple decision and place the early voting machine away from the mayor’s office so that people are not made to feel uncomfortable and placed in an awkward situation during their opportunity to vote in a city election.
No matter how you cut it, having any voting machine within a few feet of any incumbent who is able to see and converse with voters while they are waiting to vote is unfair to the challengers outside and across the street, and at the very least is unethical in very big way.
We wonder, would the incumbent candidates feel comfortable if the challenging candidates were able to sit in the clerk’s lobby while constituents voted?
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