Although writing an article for local newspapers or online publications doesn't pay anything, I want to do a good job. So it can be kind of a tough task to do each week. You might believe with all the things that go on in Grant County and all the things the Chamber of Commerce works on through-out the week... I shouldn't have a hard time coming up with material to write about. But I do!

I want to make certain I don't write something that will cause lots of people to stop buying the newspaper. No, actually my ego isn't large enough to think that will happen.

Though I'm not very politically correct, I still need to be careful about writing something that will possibly make half the population mad. For instance, right now I would like to write something about the local judicial system letting the Dollar Store robber get off with a slap on the wrist... and it wasn't even a hard slap. I would like to share my thoughts dealing with responsibility and consequences. Sure I'm kind of old-fashioned, and I believe that if you are old enough to plan a robbery... you should be old enough to face the penalty for your illegal action. However, I probably shouldn't write anything about what I believe should happen to this local criminal.

So, I better write about other things that aren't quite as controversial.

Fort Bayard Armory: There will be a ceremony celebrating the transfer of the Santa Clara National Guard Armory to the Village of Santa Clara. The event begins at 11:30 on Thursday - June 15, 2017.

Tranquil Skies Community Mental Health Center: We will help with a ribbon cutting ceremony celebrating the opening of this HMS Facility located at 1318 East 32nd Street, across from the Gila Regional Medical Center. The ceremony will begin June 15 at 5:30 p.m.

Surgical Office of Dr. Okay Harold Odocha: You are invited to come meet the staff and visit the new office building housing the surgical offices of Dr. Odocha. The office is located at 1302-A 32nd Street in Silver City, across the street from the Gila Regional Medical Center. The ceremony and open house begins Friday, June 16, at 10:00 a.m.

ACE Hardware: This Saturday, June 17, your local ACE hardware Store is planning a big celebration for their 10 Year Anniversary. We'll help with a ribbon cutting ceremony at 10:00 a.m. There will be a Farmers Market and Car Show. There will be hamburgers and hot dogs to enjoy. One of the cars that will be at is the original Batmobile. I've been told the Batmobile even shoots flames out of the back of the car, just like it did in the old Batman television shows. For those of you who are old enough... BAM! POW! TAKE THAT PENGUIN!

Dog Park: No, we're not doing a ribbon cutting at the dog park; however a group of people with dogs have a pretty good idea. Cornali Field, on West Street off of 12th Street is the location of the current Silver City Dog Park. This park is currently one large fenced in area where all dogs are welcome every day. The group of dog owners now has the objective to fence off 1/3 of the park for dogs 25 lbs. and under to play, safely separated from the larger dogs. The cost will be $1500. All donations are tax deductible and folks will receive a "gift receipt" from the WNMU Foundation for all donations. Donations should be in the form of a check made out to WNMU Foundation, and in the memo section of the check, state that the donation is for the Dog Park Fencing. Checks can be mailed to WNMU Foundation at PO Box 1158, Silver City, NM, or dropped off at the Foundation office at Hunter Hall downstairs off 10th street below Miller Library. They may also drop checks off at Silver City RV Park office at 1304 N. Bennett Street. From there the checks will be delivered to the University.

Fourth of July sponsored by the Town of Silver City and PNM: I know this may sound sarcastic, but we have decided to celebrate the Fourth of July on July 4. When people ask me "why"? Well, I guess it was because I thought July 4 was better than July 9 or July 11. The theme for this year's event, if the event is approved by the Town of Silver City who helps sponsor the event, will be "HEROES: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow". The Grand Marshals of the Independence Day Parade will be World War II veterans from Grant County. You can find more information about the Fourth of July Celebration on the Chamber of Commerce website at www.silvercity.org. Click on the events calendar and then go to July 4. Applications for Gough Park Vendors and Parade Entries are on this page. Just click and print. And yes, we will have a great fireworks show again this year. First American Bank is the fireworks sponsor. This will be the first year for our fireworks show to use electronic firing. If all goes well, we hope the fireworks show next year will be set to music. You will be able to turn on your radios to a certain station and the fireworks will be shot in sequence with the patriotic music.

As I started out, writing this article can be frustrating. So let's go ahead and get some of the phone calls out of the way. Go ahead and call me now to say that the fireworks scared your dog or that your cow quit giving milk because of the explosions. You don't have to wait until July 5th. Go ahead and call me now to ask why there isn't a park exclusively for cats. You can call me before this weekend to ask if there will be any fire extinguishers available near the Batmobile. And while you're at it, you can call the Chamber of Commerce office to ask us why there is no movie playing at Light Hall Theater this weekend. We will be happy to tell you about the Fiesta Latina being held on the WNMU campus. Our phone number is (575) 538-3785. Or better yet, so that you can see how I react personally from the frustration, come by the Silver City Grant County Chamber of Commerce office located in the Grant County Conference Center at 3031 Highway 180 East in Silver City, next to ACE Hardware... weekend home of the Batmobile. On second thought, you may simply want to make the phone call... GADZOOKS!