On Nov. 7, 2018, the Copper Cowbelles distributed beef to local schools.

The Grant County Cattlegrowers' Association each year buys a steer at the Grant County Fair. The Copper Cowbelles pay for the processing by Wilcox Processing. The meat then gets donated to various schools for their home economics departments. Beef was donated to Cliff School, Silver Schools, Calvary Christian Academy, El Grito Headstart and Cobre Schools. This year, 2018, is the first year that Silver Schools got meat, because they just started a home economics department.

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The November Kiwanis Students of the Month are as follows: From the left: Kylene Killough from Cliff High School; Daniel Burrola from Snell Middle School (October); Ruben Scott from La Plata Middle School; Adrian Melon from Silver Hogh School; Margaret Bailey from Aldo Leopold High School; Drew Fraser from Aldo Leopold Middle School; and Jaylynn Marquez from Snell Middle School (November). (Courtesy Photo)The Kiwanis Club of Silver City honored area students for the "November Student of the Month" during a special luncheon held at the Silver City Masonic Lodge building. School faculty, administrators, honored students, family members and Kiwanians enjoyed  a meal prepared by Silver City and Georgetown Order of the Eastern Star Chapter members while watching each student come up and be recognized for their achievements. The Kiwanis "Student of the Month" program is a cooperative endeavor between Kiwanis and local schools that shines a spotlight on youth in the community that have shown great improvement and continue to lead by example scholastically and in the community. 

Dan Otero, HMS Chief Executive Officer, speaks at the Silver City Grant County Chamber of Commerce’s monthly luncheon at WNMU on November 1, 2018. (Courtesy Photo)Silver City, NM (November 7, 2018) – Hidalgo Medical Services (HMS) Chief Executive Officer, Dan Otero, shared an informative presentation at last week’s Silver City Grant County Chamber of Commerce’s monthly luncheon with event attendees on Thursday, November 1, 2018 at the Western New Mexico University (WNMU) Student Cafeteria Sunset Room.

Otero highlighted HMS’ overall operational and clinical structures, industry associations, desire to partner with the community, and its current service lines, while reinforcing the fact that HMS is Hidalgo and Grant counties’ only Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC). He stated that the organization and its leadership are committed to their ongoing mission of improving the health, well-being, and quality of life for our communities within southwestern New Mexico.

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Gila Trout (Photo Courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)Gila trout, a threatened species, benefits from the science-based conservation work of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, and U.S. Forest Service. A team of biologists strive to recover this native trout found only the headwaters of the Gila River in the Southwest. Anglers rejoice as more streams are open to fishing for Gila trout. Their fishing tackle and license purchases fund conservation through the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program.

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Left to right is Emma Vega, Shavelle Ortiz, Annette Toney, Raygan Salcedo, Laylene Madrid, Trinity McBride, Aimerie Pena, Rylee Reyes, Kamera Ortiz, Nevaeh Cabrera, Ella Bertolani, Lucy Montenegro, Jamie Jaurequi and Makayla Jaurequi. (Courtesy Photo)Girl Scouts of the Desert Southwest from Grant County took advantage of the beautiful day on Sunday to hike to the Big Tree. Girls and parents were given pedometers to record how many steps it took to go the 3.4 mile roundtrip hike. Younger girls (with the short legs) got between 12,000-13,000 while older girls and adults had almost 10,000 steps.

"Our tree is nationally ranked the 2nd largest,” Membership Manager Annette Tony said. "The largest alligator juniper is in Arizona near Prescott - it was saved by firefighters during that terrible fire that took 19 lives. That one's bigger around but ours is actually taller at 63 ft.”

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Photo of quilt, photo credit Elli SorensenMany residents and visitors to Silver City may remember seeing the magnificent quilt depicting a landscape with fifty native plants of the Southwest displayed this year at the Seedboat Gallery, the Gila Symposium, the Native Plant Society of New Mexico Annual Conference and other venues. The quilt, painted on silk and hand-quilted by local artist Elli Sorensen, was generously donated to the Gila Native Plant Society for fund-raising. In fact, some of you may have purchased a raffle ticket and are wondering how the raffle turned out.

The raffle drawing was held at the meeting of the Gila Native Plant Society on October 19, 2018. The winner of the quilt was Kristin Haskins, plant ecologist and Director of Research at The Arboretum at Flagstaff. Disappointed as some of us may be that we didn’t win the quilt ourselves, we have to admit that Kristin is an eminently worthy recipient.

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The Girl Scouts of the Desert Southwest Celebrate Halloween (Courtesy Photo)At the Girl Scouts of the Desert Southwest Halloween Party, troops participated in sponsoring a game for the girls to play and received a prize and were also treated to snacks. Over 100 people attended, including family members. Part of the entrance fee was a bag of food to donate to the High Desert Humane Society. Girl Scouts discover the fun, friendship, and power of girls together. For more information on Girl Scouts Call Annette Toney Membership Manager 538-2481.

Photo and article by Mary Alice Murphy

Father Bartholomew Ezenwelem is the pastor at St. Francis Newman Center Parish in Silver City. He replaced Father Jarek Nowacki, who was assigned to a parish in Roswell, New Mexico.

Father Bartholomew, as most parishioners call him, comes originally from southeast Nigeria, where most residents are Christians. He said the Muslims who live in the southern part of the country are predominantly peaceful, as they come from a different sect from those in the northern part of Nigeria, where Boko Haram is prevalent. His native language is Igbo, but he has been studying English since elementary school.

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