Focus on Carlsbad Winter 2012

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Veterans Carlsbad Veterans Memorial Park | Lives Changed by War | Reflecting On Our Past & Future

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from the editor

A Special Tribute to

Our Nation’s Veterans Welcome to the Winter 2012 edition of Focus on Carlsbad!

Kyle Marksteiner Editorial Director FocusOnCarlsbad.com

It’s hard to believe it has already been a full year since our Centennial Edition of Focus on Carlsbad. One year down and 99 to go. It seems that when winter rolls around every year, we tend to get into a little bit of a historical state of mind.

The Carlsbad Veterans Memorial Park was the inspiration for our theme this edition. There is so much going on out there that we thought it might be nice to take a step back and take a detailed look at the entire park. If you haven’t been to the park recently, please check it out. Not only is it a wonderful collection of monuments to area veterans, but it is also a testament to the remarkable success of the Veterans Park Committee. It’s located off of James Street, next to the Bataan Dam. From there, it was only logical to include some of Carlsbad’s other veterans memorials and markers along the beach area and at the Carlsbad Museum.

There are many other stories out there, and many other groups of individuals such as the VFW and American Legion who focus on veterans, so this is only just a sampling of the many great ways Carlsbad honors its veterans.

Perhaps this edition can be used as a sort of guide for a tour of locations that honor veterans around Carlsbad.

If you can squeeze a few hours into your schedule somewhere before the holiday season kicks in, consider visiting the memorials around Carlsbad to reflect on the heroes who fought for our liberties, some of whom paid the ultimate sacrifice. Many of us have been to these memorials at the conclusion of parades or for associated dedications, but I submit that it is worth a day to just visit them. Bring the kids too.

After you visit the Carlsbad Veterans Memorial Park, stop at several other spots along the Carlsbad beach

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Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

that honor the state’s POWs/MIAs, the Bataan Death March and former Loving resident and Medal of Honor winner Alejandro Ruiz. Then head downtown to learn from the Carlsbad Museum’s wonderful exhibit on the Bataan Death March. I offer no special insight as to what I feel you should get out of such a tour – each person will take away something different from the experience.

Me, I thought of my grandfather, a World War II vet sent to the Egyptian theater. His fluency in German resulted in his deployment as an intelligence officer.

Papa Mike died two years ago, at around the same time Carlsbad lost the last of its Bataan survivors. I thought of my father, drafted during Vietnam but sent to guard the border in Germany. Many of his high school classmates who served in Vietnam did not make it home.

The Carlsbad Veterans Memorial Park starts with a monument to the Spanish-American War of 1898 and works its way up through history. It’s a work in progress, but when the project is finished, it will pay complete tribute to veteran efforts up through 2012.

Truly an enduring effort, and something I hope will provide the opportunity for reflection and appreciation for years to come.

About the editor:

Marksteiner is the Editorial Director of Focus On Carlsbad.

He can be reached at editor@ad-venturemarketing.com.

Don't forget to visit FocusOnCarlsbad.com for even more great stories, photos & events!

WINTER 2012

From the Editor Focus on veterans

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Focus on a carlsbad character

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Focus on veterans

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Focus on women in war

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Focus on history

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Focus on the korean war

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Focus on service

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Focus on volunteerism

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Focus on the national guard

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Focus on technology

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Focus on mainstreet

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Notes from the garden

35 36 38

A Memorable Visit The American Dream: Abe Van Luik Tour Along the River Women Warriors

Carlsbad Museum Bataan Exhibit

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About the cover: Korean War statues designed by Carlsbad artist Frank Westfall. The new addition to Carlsbad Veterans Memorial Park was dedicated on Memorial Day 2012. Photo by FM Photography: Fatima Montoya Kyle Marksteiner, Editorial Director - Alyx Duncan, Advertising Director Photography by Kyle Marksteiner - along with submitted photos Special Contributors: John Safin, Margaret Barry, Amy M. Barnhart, Sharon McIntire & Donna Birchell Focus on Carlsbad is published quarterly by Ad Venture Marketing.

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on veterans

Carlsbad Honors its Veterans

Our Memorials, Dedications & Honors

A Memorable Visit If everything goes according to plan, a local park will soon offer Spanish-American a detailed picture about the role Carlsbad residents played in the War Plaque The best place to start a tour nation’s military history.

1

The Veterans Memorial Park Committee was established late 2009 by Carlsbad city ordinance. The responsibility of the Committee is to plan and design a memorial park for Carlsbad veterans.

The goal is to provide a reflective way to honor all Carlsbad veterans who have served honorably in defense of the country over the years.

Members ultimately recommended a portion of the park previously known as the James Street Park, located on the east side of the point where Lea Street and James Street join together, and across the road from the Bataan Dam. Since then, committee members and other volunteers have accomplished quite a bit. Visiting the park today, you have to remind yourself that part of the area was overgrown with salt cedar a few years ago.

Committee head Joe Epstein gives a good tour while explaining everything the group has accomplished so far and talking about everything they have planned down the road.

“I was out of town,” he commented.

“When I got back, I found that the city council and mayor established this committee and appointed me leader.”

Epstein is a Naval Academy graduate, former submariner and was also formerly the general manager of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant’s management and operations contractor.

He and his wife, Barbara, ultimately decided to retire to Carlsbad.

He and other committee members have a lot of ideas. What’s really amazing

6

Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

is that so many of them have been implemented over the past two years.

“If we can recover a missile, we’re going to put it right over there,” he said, gesturing. “Every time we have something donated, we put a plaque identifying it.”

An arch to the park now welcomes visitors to the Carlsbad Veterans Memorial Park. Carlsbad Rotary paid to change the sign. Beyond the arch is a host of monuments, statues and plaques. A sidewalk zigzags down into a circular area close to the southeastern corner of the park. Many of the smaller monuments have been placed along the sidewalk, but the park’s three most noticeable landmarks, so far, all rest a few yards above the walkway.

is probably with the SpanishAmerican War plaque, located at the very end of the concrete walkway.

The plaque was donated by Sadler Monument.

Salt cedar was cleared out to make room for the walkway, which runs parallel with the Pecos River southeast of the Bataan dam.

Organizers felt the running water and view of a nearby bluff would make for a good area for reflection.

“We started with the Spanish-American

War because these four veterans are buried in Carlsbad,” Epstein said. “It was also the first thing in the park.”

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The Spanish-American War was an 1898 conflict between the United States and Spain. New Mexico wasn’t even a state at the time, but some of the war’s veterans were buried in Carlsbad.

13 11 10

Veteran’s Commemorative Bricks

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6

Perhaps the most inclusive of 2 the park’s features, the veterans commemorative bricks line the northern side of the concrete walkway. These are bricks sponsored by people who want to honor a family member’s service.

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8 2

1

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5

Image from Google Maps.

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“These bricks are for any veteran who has honorably served,” Epstein said.

“When we had our Korea dedication service, a lot of the veterans who turned out recognized the names of their friends who had been killed in Korea.”

Epstein said the committee gathers names and waits until they have enough names to fill one panel.

“This is one of the main things we’ve started,” he said. “We’re going to go up the hill and around.”

Iraq/Afghanistan/Gulf Commemorative Bricks

still in planning Members of Carlsbad’s Santana 3 family are leading an effort to have a similar feature specifically for veterans of more recent conflicts in the Middle East. The bricks are numbered to run together with the other veteran’s commemorative bricks.

“This is one of our big pushes right now,” Epstein said. “We want to honor all of the Iraq, Afghanistan and Gulf War veterans. These will just continue to grow. We may also have an organizational plaque over here that will say this is from the parents of Iraq, Afghanistan and Gulf Veterans.”

Organizational Plaques The organizational plaques

4 begin on the southern end of the

walkway, along the southwest corner.

The ultimate goal is to have the plaques lead, in staggered form, all the way to the Spanish-American War plaque.

“We want to get these to line the entire walkway because of the significance of the message of these,” Epstein said.

“We’ve probably got plans for about a dozen right now.”

For example, there’s a plaque sponsored by the Knights of Columbus and another honoring the role women have played in the military. Veterans Memorial Park organizer Sandia Joe Epstein points to one of the park’s new organizational plaques.

National Laboratories has a plaque, and another plaque is coming that will be sponsored by Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Carlsbad employees. There’s also a plaque to Medal of Honor winner Alejandro Ruiz.

“One of our other goals is to get something honoring the role our Cold War warriors played,” Epstein said.

Sapien Family Veterans Stone

Still in planning Members of Carlsbad’s Sapien 5 family plan to place a stone

honoring their family members along the curve of the walkway.

Vietnam Monument

The Vietnam Monument is the first

6 of the park’s big three monuments.

By design, the Vietnam Monument was dedicated on November 11, 2011, the same day as the park’s dedication.

Honoring Vietnam veterans was always a high priority.

“There was very little attention given to our Vietnam vets, and our Korean vets,” Epstein emphasized. “We went through old newspapers and the recognition was about zero.”

The memorial depicts the names and pictures of Carlsbad veterans who are listed on the Vietnam Memorial Wall. The information lines up with the data listed at www.virtualwall.org, which includes a photo and biography of each fallen soldier.

Story continues on page 8.

winter 2012 | A Community Magazine

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“We were probably the first city in the United States to complete gathering the photos and posting the information about local residents on the virtual wall. That was the inspiration for this monument,” Epstein shared.

Korean War Statues

Carlsbad artist Frank Westfall

7 designed the two Korean War

statues that are easily the most recognizable element of the park. The statues were dedicated on Memorial Day 2012, though the second statue was not in place until after the holiday.

U.S. Senator Tom Udall attended the Carlsbad Memorial Day celebration, as did a number of veterans who served during the Korean War.

Bataan Monument

The park’s monument to the Bataan

8 Death March was dedicated on

April 24, 2012, the 70th anniversary of the Bataan Death March. The monument depicts the path the soldiers followed during their terrible and deadly forced march.

Joanna Sieberg, historian and daughter of Bataan survivor Charlie James, served as one of the event’s keynote speakers.

Republican Senatorial Candidate Heather Wilson also spoke about her visit to the Philippines.

Sponsored Benches

Several sponsored benches offer

9 visitors a relaxing view of the

nearby river. A number of trees have also been planted in the vicinity.

Military Equipment

still in planning Epstein shared that another one of 10 the committee’s goals is to locate

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Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

a M42 “Duster” Armored Personnel Carrier, which was used by the New Mexico National Guard, to place in the middle of the park.

National, State and POW Flags

War Monuments and Service Flags

Mexico flag and the POW flag. Epstein said use of the flagpoles is based on the weather. The park has also put in lighting and has plans for additional security.

The war monuments were

11 previously located at the Eddy

County Courthouse, but they were moved due to popular demand. The monuments were sponsored by the county and the city.

“There was a sign in front of the courthouse lawn put up years ago that recognized our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan,” said County Commissioner Guy Lutman. “The sign was falling apart, so we spoke with Mario Salinas and other veterans about making improvements. The next thing you know, about 30 veterans were involved.”

The monuments, which include a quote describing each military conflict, were the final product. Now that they’ve been relocated to the park, Epstein said the next step is going to be to place five service flags behind the monuments.

Photo Right: Sponsored benches along the river in Carlsbad Veterans Memorial Park.

Photo Below: A large plaque honors Alejandro Ruiz, who received the Medal of Honor.

The far end of the park includes

12 poles for an American flag, a New

Missile and “Freedom Isn’t Free” Marker

still in planning It’s down the road, but Epstein said 13 the committee is also looking for a missile to add to the military theme of the park. They’ve also got the idea to turn two grills into an arch to add the park’s overall message – “Freedom Isn’t Free.”

The committee has plenty of plans even after that, including adding a blue and white welcome sign to give the park a distinct Carlsbad flavor. The Carlsbad Veterans Memorial Park will be a work in progress for some time, but it’s already come a very long way.

on a carlsbad character

Abe Van Luik

A

be Van Luik, an employee of the Department of Energy’s Carlsbad Field Office, appreciates having a dad who wasn’t afraid to take a stand, even if that sometimes made life more difficult.

Abe’s father, Jaap, was a brand new policeman, with a brand new family, when World War II literally rolled into the Netherlands. He was a trombone player and an amateur boxer and had a beautiful new wife named Adriana and one infant son at the war’s onset. Jaap would later change his name to Jack.

Their town of Nijmegen is right along the German border, and Hitler’s foray through the Low Countries was practically instantaneous. Jack and other police officers reported to work the next day with new instructions.

“It was like a new boss came in and said, ‘Here are the new rules; now help us get rid of the bad elements in our society,’” Abe related.

The Nazi’s “bad elements” included anyone Jewish and any perceived dissidents.

“The Nazis were using police to round people up, and my father wanted no part in that,” Abe said. “At the time, policemen and firemen trained in the same academy, so my father switched to the fire department.”

The loophole didn’t work, as the Nazis then ruled that Jack was now eligible for the draft because he was no longer a police officer. Jack was given three choices – join the Dutch unit of the German army, be sent off to a slave worker camp, or have his family shot and then be killed himself.

For many of Jack’s fellow firefighters, the only real choice was military conscription. Jack would not do it and surrendered himself to be sent to a work camp.

“My father decided he would become a ‘heroic voluntary worker’ in Germany,” Abe said.

Nazi Germany’s work camps were generally a step or two above its more notorious concentration camps, but they were far from humane. Jack was put on a construction crew in the middle of summer in Germany’s Saxony area.

“The Nazis said they were paying families back home, but my mother never saw a dime,” Abe shared.

Adriana fed her young family by doing housework in area homes.

Photo: Abe Van Luik’s parents, Jack and Adriana Van Luik on their wedding day.

For Jack, breakfast, lunch and dinner consisted of five-minute soup breaks.

The Nazis served scalding broth that couldn’t be eaten during the five-minute period without getting burned.

“People looked like skeletons,” Abe said.

Abe’s father said some of the nearby German villagers would attempt to throw bread to the forced laborers through the fence, but they would be chased off by the Nazi guards.

The camp was originally run by civilians, but it took a turn for the worse when the Nazi’s SS took over. It was the same sadistic group that ran the concentration camps, and the distinction between the two became more blurred.

“That’s when things took a turn for the worse and got really twisted,” Abe said. “There were lots and lots of people disappearing.”

Abe said his father didn’t speak much of his experiences at the work camp. “He did say that whenever he met a German about his age, he couldn’t help but wonder what they were doing during the war.”

After nine months in the work camp, Jack was given a week’s furlough and went home to visit his wife. Abe (called Bram in the Netherlands) would be born nine months later.

The Nazis took measures to make sure Jack would return to his assignment after the furlough.

“They said, ‘If you are not back on the train, we send a telegram, and the police winter 2012 | A Community Magazine

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shoot your family,’” Abe related. “When he was on the train, he said that he didn’t know if he’d ever see his family again.”

Another conscripted laborer on the train had an idea. He said he was going to have his boss send a telegram to Jack’s boss requesting Jack due to his special skills. The new boss, a carpenter, was sort of an “Oscar Schindler” type in that he conscripted hundreds of workers to basically keep them out of harm’s way. Jack took a chance on the transfer, and it worked. He was employed in a factory, making specialty furniture for the German high command and also worked doing home maintenance for local families.

“He’d hang barn doors and fix every piece of wood and then go to a neighboring farm,” Abe noted. For a time, Jack was received very kindly by a family of German farmers known as the Pantens.

One night near the end of the war, Jack was walking back to a farm near Hagen when an American bomber flew over

and dropped explosives on the village. He was hit in the back by several pieces of shrapnel, and the local doctor sent him back to his family in the Netherlands to die.

“My mother was not going to let him get off that easily,” Abe remarked. “She nursed him back to health.”

After the war, Jack found work as a factory guard, then a receptionist, then a bookkeeper. Two more Van Luik children came into the world.

Ten years after the end of World War II, a kid from the neighborhood came to the front door and said his family was moving to California. The child said his dad was an able-bodied noncombatant injured during the war by the Americans, which made his family eligible to move to the United States under a special program.

Jack was also eligible for the program, but he had mixed feelings on the matter.

Adriana really wanted to move to California.

She took the phone number from her husband and gave it to her oldest son, also named Jack, and instructed him to borrow a neighbor’s phone to call about the program. It turned out to be the last day of eligibility.

“Six months later, we were in Texas,” Abe said.

It took six months because American doctors were not sure Jack was ablebodied, due to the shrapnel dangerously close to his lung. Jack was required to prove that the shrapnel hadn’t moved

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Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

over the past decade.

To do that, he traveled back to Hagen.

The doctor who’d looked at him was deceased, and his office had been destroyed during the war. Villagers directed Jack to the town hall, where he managed to uncover the X-Ray from a decade earlier.

“The clerk said, ‘Take it!’” Abe recalled. “’We don’t need it. You do!’” He was then able to show that the shrapnel had not moved over the past ten years.

The departure from Europe had a sad note as well. The Van Luik family went to visit the Pantens, who had helped take care of Jack during the war. The Pantens said they wanted nothing to do

Photo Top: Members of the Van Luik family, shortly after their arrival in the United States.

Photo Left: A windmill near the Van Luik family’s house in the Netherlands.

Photo Bottom Left: Jack and Adriana Van Luik, pictured in the 1970s.

Photo Bottom Right: Abe Van Luik recently received an award from U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu for his international efforts.

with a family moving to the United States.

“They’d lost their son in the war, which they could understand,” Abe shared. “But their daughter was raped and killed by American soldiers, and that they could not forgive.”

Jack found work thanks to his furniture-making skills, and members of the Presbyterian Church helped get the family started. The Van Luiks lived in College Station, then Galveston, then Houston, then Louisiana.

“My mother just kept saying she’d heard wonderful things about California,” Abe said. “We saved our money, and, without a plan, we went west.”

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Adriana found work and eventually became a nurse.

Jack found work as well, but the couple ultimately retired to Ridgefield, Washington. Jack died of a heart attack in 1989, and Adriana passed away in 2005 in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the age of 88. She was survived by 10 grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren and 2 greatgreat-grandchildren.

Abe, the son born at the end of history’s greatest conflict, was expelled from high school in California and joined the Air Force in the midst of the Vietnam War. He was one of two members of his 22-person unit who was not sent to Vietnam.

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“I spent four years in Idaho fighting the Vietnam War,” Abe shared.

After his enlistment period ended, Abe took advantage of a military program allowing him to enroll in college despite being a high-school dropout. The gamble paid off, and Abe went from community college to UCLA and ultimately obtained his Ph.D. He spent much of his professional career working on the Yucca Mountain project in Nevada, but presently works on the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant project near Carlsbad. He also, as a private citizen, maintains the website thoughtsandplaces.org, which includes additional details about his family history.

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Abe’s father took a pretty big risk when he refused to serve the Nazis as a collaborating police officer during the start of the war.

“I am quite proud of him for doing that,” Abe stated. “I admire his pluck.”

It was a risk that ultimately paid off and gave Jack and Adriana Van Luik and their four children a unique opportunity to experience the American dream.

In a final thought Abe shared, “There are certain quirks, little turning points throughout life, and here I am.”

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NMSU Carlsbad - Building brighter futures together. winter 2012 | A Community Magazine

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on veterans

Carlsbad Honors its Veterans

Our Memorials, Dedications & Honors

Tour Along the River Charlie James, Carlsbad’s last Bataan Death March survivor, selected a spot along the Pecos River that reminded him of the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines.

and asked him about the bench.

We decided to help a little with the museum and then put the bulk of the organization’s remaining money toward a bench.”

That location is just to the south of the Pecos River Village Conference Center, and a bench there now honors the New Mexico National Guard Battery F, 200th and 515th Coast Artilleries AntiAircraft Unit, a unit associated with the Bataan Death March. The bench is one of a number of spots honoring veterans along the Pecos River.

Forrest told Sieberg to pick a spot, so she took her father for a walk.

Bataan Bench

It’s a bench set on a small peninsula just south of the Pecos River Village Conference Center. The James and Sieberg families also have a sponsored bench nearby.

Many of Carlsbad’s Bataan

1 survivors met regularly with

the survivors from other nearby communities, but as time passed the group’s numbers dwindled.

“There had been a Bataan veteran’s organization in Carlsbad since after the war,” said Joanna Sieberg, James’ daughter.

“They met through the years and even sponsored a convention here, but it got to the point where there were so few of them left they couldn’t meet any more.”

The organization had a small amount of funds left, and it was up to James and Sieberg to decide what to do with those funds.

“We called the museum, and Bob Stockwell said the exhibit there was pretty much set, but they might need some help with framing costs,” Sieberg said. “Then I called Mayor Bob Forrest

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Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

“We walked around and I told him, ‘You tell me where you would like it,’” Sieberg recalled. “We walked on both sides and dad saw this area and it reminded him of Bataan. He picked the place.”

Many of the Bataan Death March survivors did not speak much about the horrors they survived, but Sieberg said her father chose to talk about his experiences.

“He felt the need to tell the story because so many died who could not,” she shared. “He wanted to tell the story for them.”

Sieberg became especially interested in family history about 15 years ago, when she first participated in the Bataan Memorial March near Alamogordo. The Bataan Memorial Death March, held every spring, is a challenging march through the high desert terrain of White Sands Missile Range, conducted in honor of the heroic service members who defended the Philippine Islands during World War II. “My whole life I have been involved with Bataan,” she said. “As a little girl, I remember going to conventions with my mom and dad. When we moved

back here from Arizona, I really started doing family history. I just wanted to know more.”

Sieberg and her family remain involved with in the Bataan March to honor the memory of her father, who died in 2011.

Many of the nation’s remaining Bataan survivors still attend the event.

“Our son has done the march several times with a heavy pack,” Sieberg commented, recalling her first time to participate. “It really is a grueling march. When I finished, my daddy said, ‘That’s enough, don’t do it anymore.’”

She added, “I sure do miss him.”

Alejandro Ruiz Marker/ Jason Cunningham Bench

Two of Carlsbad’s most celebrated

2 war heroes receive special

recognition in an area between the Riverwalk Recreation Center and the Playground on the Pecos. An American flag flies nearby.

Alejandro Ruiz Park’s highlight is a flag pole and a monument to the Medal of Honor winner. Ruiz was born in Loving, New Mexico, and received the nation’s highest military honor for his efforts during an April 28, 1945, Battle of Okinawa. Ruiz’s unit was pinned down by machine-gun fire coming from a camouflaged Japanese pillbox and was unable to advance to its assigned objective. Ruiz, on his own initiative, charged the pillbox under a hail of machine-gun fire. On his second

attempt, he was able to neutralize the pillbox by killing all 12 of its occupants.

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Ruiz died in 2009 in California. There is a park named after him in Visalia, California, as well.

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A nearby bench is dedicated to the memory of Senior Airman Jason Cunningham, who died in 2002 saving the lives of 10 servicemen in Afghanistan. Cunningham was posthumously awarded the Air Force Cross.

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POW/MIA Grove

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Perhaps Carlsbad’s most serene 3 location to honor its heroes is the POW/MIA grove of trees, located on the island between Park and Riverside Drives on the western side of the Pecos River. The Park includes Freedom Trees planted in honor of soldiers who are Prisoners of War and Missing in Action.

Sapien holds a Purple Heart and serves as commander of the Eddy County Purple Heart Chapter 773.

Veterans volunteer Joe Epstein said members of the Atwood family were behind the creation of the POW/MIA grove, which includes monuments to POW and MIA soldiers from around New Mexico.

bridge’s lightposts remind Carlsbad visitors who enter by way of Highway 62-180 of the area’s World War II sacrifices. The memorial marker is posted on the northeastern corner of the bridge.

There’s also a monument to Lance Corporal Andy Garcia, who died during the 1975 Mayaguez Incident, generally considered to be the final conflict of the Vietnam War. Garcia’s remains were returned home for burial in 2000, 25 years after his death.

“It was originally renamed the Green Street Bridge,” Sieberg said. “It was renamed in the late 1940s, but for years it wasn’t formally dedicated.”

Purple Heart Monument A few years ago, Vietnam veteran

4 Domingo Sapien and his wife,

Rachel, led efforts to raise money for a Purple Heart Memorial at the southern end of the grassy island on Park Drive.

The memorial was dedicated on Veterans Day.

Image from Google Maps.

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Bataan Bridge

A new memorial marker and

5 special Bataan symbols on the

In 1982, the State Highway Department met with Carlsbad officials and decided the bridge needed an official marker.

“It was quite a big thing,” Sieberg commented. “The governor came down and the community got really involved.”

Bataan Dam

Many people still call it Lower

6 Tansil Dam, but the dam along the

southern end of Lea Street was renamed the Bataan Dam in 1992 to mark the 50th anniversary of the Death March. The plaque marking the event is now easily located – it’s just across the street from the new Carlsbad Veterans Memorial Park.

Charlie James did not live to attend the April 9, 2012, dedication of the Bataan Monument at the Carlsbad Veterans Memorial Park on the other side of the road, but Sieberg said he was excited about the park’s development.

The family members of Bataan survivors who did attend thought it was appropriate and meaningful that the park is off of James Street – so named in honor of Charlie’s grandfather.

Story continues on page 14.

winter 2012 | A Community Magazine

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A Way to Reflect

“There are some who didn’t talk about it, but that was not my dad,” Sieberg said, noting it was James’ way of coping with the horrors of the Death March.

“He would talk to anybody, and he had an excellent memory.”

Sieberg said she appreciates Carlsbad’s efforts to honor its Bataan survivors and other veterans.

“My dad was in a prison camp for 3 ½ years, and he was gone even before that,” she said. “Carlsbad was a small town at the beginning of the war, and a lot of people had relatives involved.

For example, my dad had two uncles who were also prisoners. I think it’s really wonderful that they haven’t been forgotten. I think they’ve been honored.”

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Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

Photos: The back of the Purple Heart Monument lists the names of Purple Heart recipients. Below are photos of various plaques on monuments around the river area.

1: Bert Madera, center , is presented with a plaque honoring his family’s pioneer efforts in Carlsbad during this year’s Heritage Days celebration. Also pictured are Bob Scholl (left) and Carlsbad Mayor Dale Janway. 2: A piñata was one of many popular activities at this year’s 16th of September celebration at San Jose Plaza. 3: Students at Jefferson Montessori Academy begin lining up to form a living flag. The flag was then photographed from the roof. 4: Larry Henderson and Phil Tozier deliver a turn of the century performance during Carlsbad’s Heritage Days celebration. 5: Children ride around the park during the 16th of September celebration at San Jose Plaza. 6: Two volunteers from Constructors Inc. stand outside of Wal-Mart during the United Way of Carlsbad & South Eddy County’s annual Stuff the Bus event. 7: Local businessman Joe Brininstool and Carlsbad Mayor Dale Janway chat during a demonstration of Rainbow Recycling’s new cleanup capabilities. 8: Members of a family watch a plane get ready to go during New Mexico Centennial Air Tour events at the Cavern City Air Terminal.

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WINTER 2012 | A Community Magazine

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on women in war

Women Warr by Donna Birchell

In ancient Celtic society, women were often leaders in war, preceding their predominately male forces into battle. Slowly over time, women fell away from this role and assumed more supportive roles - roles such as nurses, office clerks, and drivers.

Throughout the history of the United States, women have played an active, if not always official, function in the development of our country. During the

Revolutionary and Civil Wars, there are written accounts of women who fought valiantly to save their homes and towns from destruction. Some even went as far

as posing as men and joining the actual ranks, fighting alongside their male counterparts without their knowledge.

In a time of great strife, it is the images of men marching off to war which first come to mind. While the men are away at war, it falls on the women to “keep the home fires burning,” as the old saying goes, while the burdens of everyday life fall squarely on their shoulders.

Taking on the jobs vacated by the men who were fighting for freedom on foreign soils, the women were resilient, steadfast and strong in the face of adversity, which sometimes even came from their own coworkers, who did not always agree with women in the workplace.

Rosie the Riveter became an enduring symbol of the tenacity of the American woman -- arm defiantly thrust up in a fist to show her determination to the world.

The term was first used in a 1942 song written by Redd Evans and John Jacob Loeb: All the day long, Whether rain or shine She’s part of the Assembly Line She’s Making History Working for Victory Rosie the Riveter Petticoats, pumps and pearls were being replaced with overalls and bandanas as the women took on factory jobs, folded parachutes at bases like the Carlsbad Army Air Field, and tested and transported training planes as members of the Women’s Army Corps (WAC), who boasted being 150,000 strong in World War II.

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The Women’s Army Corps were the first women to serve, other than nurses, within the ranks of the United States Army.

These brave women paved the way for the multitude of other females who wanted to serve their country on a larger scale.

Adversity met women in the ranks as well, as it was difficult for Americans to visualize women in uniform. By enlisting and taking over the jobs otherwise relegated to men, the women felt they were “releasing a man for combat duty.”

Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

riors Strangely enough, one of the main concerns of the 1942 enlisted woman was the shorts and slacks which were standard issue and comprised the uniform. The women of that era just did not wear shorts and slacks in public, so many resorted to wearing skirts while performing their jobs.

Olveta Culp Hobby, Director for the Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps, explained the women’s role this way: “The gaps our women will fill are in those noncombatant jobs where women’s hands and women’s hearts fit naturally.

WAACs will do the same type of work which women do in civilian life. They will bear the same relation to men of the Army that they bear to the men of the civilian organizations in which they work.” In Hobby’s view, WAACs were to help the Army win the war, just as women had always helped their country achieve success.

Normal “female” military support jobs were eventually replaced with weapons repair, vehicle mechanics, teletype setting, and laboratory technicians, typically not jobs with the skill sets associated with women at that time.

Until recently, women were not allowed on the front lines in combat situations.

They were stationed at the MASH units

Photo Left: Helen Norfleet Montgomery (middle) packs parachutes at the Carlsbad Army Air Field alongside Mrs. Petersen and Mrs. Fitzpatrick in 1943.

Photo Right: In 1943, members of the USO entertained the troops at a branch part of the Carlsbad Army Air Field at Rattlesnake Springs, which was originally the Civilian Conservation Corps barracks.

in Korea and Vietnam, making heartwrenching life and death decisions as the mortally wounded were delivered to their doorstep. Put through the horrors of war, sometimes being only a few miles from the action, the women suffered posttraumatic stress disorder along with their male counterparts.

In the recent wars and conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, women have played a far more active role in defense. The government is closer to allowing women into combat situations, although they are already on the front lines as Fighter Jet and Helicopter Pilots, Special Operations Navigators, and new positions never before open to women such as Field Artillery Fire Finder, Multiple Launch Rocket System crewmember and Bradley Fighting Vehicle System Maintainers.

Photo Below: Women in War Monument, located at the Carlsbad Veterans Memorial Park.

who support the troops that have gone to war over the years to keep our country free while their hearts silently break.

It is their great strength at these times that is the true backbone of this country, although they can barely take a breath until their loved one has finished their deployment. It takes a special person to endure that kind of pain with grace.

Much is owed to all the women warriors at war and on the home front who have banded together in valor to help form the society in which we live. Your country thanks and salutes you for all the hardships and sacrifices you endured so that we can be free!

A deep respect is due to the special women “in the military” – not only the brave men and women who serve in the armed forces but the mothers, wives, girlfriends and sisters

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on history

Carlsbad Museum

Offers Unique Bataan Exhibit No understanding of Carlsbad’s role in military history is complete without a visit to the Carlsbad Museum. An entire wing of the museum is dedicated largely to the effort of Carlsbad residents in World War II, specifically focusing on the Bataan Death March. The display’s exhibit organizer and researcher is Bob Stockwell, a “volunteer historian,” who also provided a number of the items and photographs used.

Stockwell’s dad, Ira, was previously Carlsbad’s Fire Chief. Ira developed quite a collection of World War II items.

Bob initially wasn’t sure what to do with everything.

Japanese mobilization, the NM National Guard, 111th Cavalry Troop 1 was one of many units called up and shipped to El Paso for training. Many of them would never come back home.

“He had a private museum,” Stockwell said. “I was a special agent with the Justice Department at the time, and I didn’t want all that stuff. I boxed it up and brought it down to the museum.”

“Our government knew something was coming up,” Stockwell remarked, gesturing at a photo. “Here’s a picture of them leaving San Francisco for the Philippines.”

Bob retired as Eddy County Manager in 1993 and became more involved in putting his father’s collection on display.

Members of a museum committee were interested in getting several displays going, and Stockwell agreed to tackle the Bataan project.

“I’d been in the Phillipines from 1955 to 1957 and did some legwork over there,” he shared. “I read, I don’t know how many, books on it and did a lot of research. Then a lot of people volunteered items.”

A photo display to the right takes visitors on a time trip through the local National Guard journey before, during and after World War II. Decades before the war, local guardsmen assisted with border clashes to the south. They had a barracks downtown, with stables located where the current National Guard Armory is located. As time passed and needs changed, the unit switched from being a cavalry unit to being an anti-aircraft unit. The early part of the museum display captures photographs of these men and their National Guard facilities.

In 1939, with concern growing over

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Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

The photo display shifts to pictures of Carlsbad men in the Philippines preparing for the possibility of a Japanese attack and more generic photos of landmarks essential to the preparations. The 111th Troop later converted to the 200th, which was split into the 200th and 515th during the war.

At this point in the exhibit the museum’s collection shifts from war preparation to conflict.

The Japanese attacked the Philippines the same day they attacked Pearl Harbor. The historical date is different due to the International Date Line.

Story continues on page 20.

Photo: Exhibit organizer and researcher Bob Stockwell points to some of the World War II items on display at the Carlsbad Museum.

Exploring other tributes & markers

B AISH V E T E R AN S PAR K IN ART E SIA

The Carlsbad Veterans Memorial Park, the beach and the museum are only three of the locations around town with tributes to veterans. Here are a few more spots worth a visit:

Courthouse Lawn

Perhaps the most well-known landmark of all of Carlsbad’s military monuments, this 90 MM aircraft gun was used in the Pacific theater during World War II by members of the 200th Coast Artillery.

The gun was secured by the Veterans of Foreign Wars and installed by Eddy County as a tribute to all veterans.

Carlsbad Veterans Memorial Park Committee Member Joe Epstein said members of the public strongly supported keeping the gun at its current location, based on feedback given to elected officials.

Veterans of Foreign Wars Post

The Dwight Lee and P.R. Lucas Memorial VFW Post 8703 is located at 1916 San Jose Blvd.

American Legion Post (2311 Legion Street)

Carlsbad’s American Legion Post includes a display honoring Bryan Mudgett, a Carlsbad resident and World War I hero. Here’s the description of why Mudgett received the Distinguished Service Cross, according to www.militarytimes.com.

“The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Second Lieutenant (Infantry) Bryan Mudgett, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with 357th Infantry Regiment, 90th Division, A.E.F., near St. Mihiel, France, 12-13 September 1918. On several occasions during the advance of 12 September, Lieutenant Mudgett outmaneuvered enemy machine guns, capturing both guns and crew.

On the night of 12-13 September, he led a patrol of two squads through the German lines, advancing over 1,000 yards to the front of the line of resistance, captured a German battery, one noncommissioned officer, and seven men. He then fought his way back through the enemy’s lines, losing but one prisoner before meeting the advancing American troops.”

Air Base Display (Cavern City Air Terminal) Carlsbad’s role as an air base during World War II is celebrated in a display case at the Cavern City Air Terminal. The case features a few artifacts from the three-year period the base was used to train several thousand bombardiers to aid in the war effort.

Eddy County Administration Building

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The county administration building features a memorial flag and plaque at the intersection of Greene Street and Canyon Street.

Elks Lodge

The Carlsbad Elks Lodge has a plaque outside, listing the names of members who are veterans, along with national, state and POW flags. Joe Epstein shared that the Elks are also conducting research to put together a more comprehensive document.

Carlsbad City Hall

A monument to the heroics of Airman Jason Cunningham is located inside City Hall.

Carlsbad Cemetery/Sunset Gardens

Military markers are located at both Carlsbad cemeteries.

The Village of Loving

The Village of Loving has a monument to Medal of Honor recipient and Loving native Alejandro Ruiz. Another monument to Ruiz was damaged during a fire in the Loving City Hall several years ago. Loving also has a monument and park in memory of Ervell Madrid Guevara, a local Marine who died in Vietnam.

Guevara’s home of record is listed as being San Clemente, California on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

winter 2012 | A Community Magazine

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Carlsbad Museum

Offers Unique Bataan Exhibit Story continued from page 18.

One of the display’s most compelling images came partially by accident. A photographer captured the image of two National Guardsmen peeking out of a foxhole, but the photo was double exposed and the image overlaps with an explosion that took place moments later. The final result is a picture of two ghost-like images looking at the camera superimposed over a cloud of debris.

The U.S. soldiers and their allies fought in the Philippines for months and managed to delay Japan’s plans for conquest.

The Battle of Bataan finally ended on April 9, 1942, with U.S. troops ordered by their officers to surrender. The island of Corregidor fell a few days later.

Thousands of Filipino and U.S. soldiers fighting on the peninsula, including many from Carlsbad, were taken prisoner and subjected to the notorious Death March.

One of the museum’s photos shows several Carlsbad National Guardsmen as prisoners. One Japanese soldier stands over them holding two rifles while his counterpart walks among the prisoners to relieve them of their watches. Stockwell said the museum has a total of 2,000 photos, though many of them are in storage.

There’s another photo of the Billbit prison, where many Carlsbad residents were held.

“There were also lots of Carlsbad guys on the invasion team who went in and liberated them,” Stockwell explained.

“They knew each other from high school.”

The display continues to trace the horrors of the Bataan Death March.

There’s a replica of a wooden shoe carved by a Bataan survivor and a display about the “Hell Ships” that the Japanese used to bring prisoners back to their country. One of the Hell Ships was sunk by a U.S. submarine, and a handful of survivors managed to work their way through China.

While traveling through the museum display, the war then ends, and the display moves on to homecomings for the guardsmen who survived the Battle, Death March, Hell Ships and imprisonment. More would later

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Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

succumb to sickness caused by the ordeal. The photos on the museum wall now capture awards, celebrations and reunions.

And then the journey through life begins to wrap up. In 2001, somebody took a picture of Carlsbad’s remaining four Bataan survivors at the time. Below the photo is a copy of the 2011 obituary of Charlie James, Carlsbad’s last surviving Bataan veteran.

A display in the glass case in the middle of the room is more general to the entire Pacific theater conflict. There’s a katana and Japanese flag on display that were taken from the body of an attacking Japanese sergeant. There are dollar bills with messages written on them that the

U.S. soldiers dropped to their fellow Americans who were prisoners, letting them know they’d be free soon. Helmets and rifles show how much technology changed during the conflict.

Stockwell has also put together an extensive collection of notes into a book documenting Carlsbad’s involvement in Bataan. It’s not for publication, but it does organize the museum’s extensive resources on the subject.

The Carlsbad Museum & Art Center is located at 418 W. Fox Street. The museum is open from 10 am to 5 pm, Monday through Saturday. A walkthrough to learn more about our local Bataan heroes is just one of the unique reasons for paying a visit.

Photo Top: This photo was taken during the Japanese bombing of Clark Air Field in the Philippines. The picture was accidently doubly exposed, eerily capturing the horrors of the Battle of Bataan.

Photo Bottom: The members of the 200th, which included a number of Carlsbad residents, are lined up by their Japanese captors.

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on the korean war

Judged by What You Know

by Sharon McIntire

Life was tough for a young Hispanic man from Loving, New Mexico in 1949. Jobs were scarce, paid little, and there were few jobs available to men of “color.” Young Oscar Hernandez was used to that. His school was segregated as well, and when you walked in the front door in the morning, Hispanics turned left and “whites” turned right, and they didn’t see each other until the bell rang at the end of the day.

A generation later, that answer wasn’t enough reason for us to be in Vietnam, according to some, but it was reason enough for Hernandez and his fellow soldiers to defend a country that, in his words, was a hundred years behind the times and had only two roads – dirt roads at that – on the entire peninsula.

That left Oscar with few choices when he graduated, so on July 13, 1949, he joined the United States Army. On June 25, 1950, President Truman made a decision that committed him and the rest of our military to South Korea. So in December of 1951, at 21 years of age, Oscar Hernandez found himself on his way to war in Korea.

“They had one paved road between Seoul, which was the capital city, and Inchon. Everything else was dirt. The people lived in mud houses and farmed their fields with oxen. You almost never saw a car.”

Tucked between World War II and the Vietnam War, the Korean War tends to be glossed over by our history books.

What were we doing there, so far away on the other side of the world, involved in the future of a relatively small, insignificant country? Hernandez’ answer was very succinct -- “To keep South Korea from being taken over by North Korea.”

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Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

And while Hernandez liked the geography of his new home, “the winters were miserable, especially closer to China.” Though he wasn’t impressed with the infrastructure of South Korea, he was impressed by the people whom he described as “good people” – at least those of South Korea.

Not so the North Koreans, who he said “treated people bad.” But, “It was hard to know if you were in South Korea or North Korea. There was no boundary

Photo: Oscar Hernandez and his wife Otilia (Tillie) Navarrete.

Title Photo: With her brother on her back a war weary Korean girl tiredly trudges by a stalled tank, at Haengju, Korea. June 9, 1951. Public domain photo by Maj. R.V. Spencer, UAF. (Navy).

between the two countries, just, every once in a while, a little pile of rocks to mark the border.”

The duty of Hernandez’ unit was to guard the military planes going in and out of the airport at Kimpo, outside of Seoul. Like many war veterans, Hernandez declines to describe his battle experiences, intimating a

lonely life far from home with no chance for establishing friendships with the hundreds of soldiers who came and went like bees in a hive.

One of the memories that impressed this soldier the most was the aftermath of WWII in Japan where he spent his R&R. “Where they dropped the bomb,” he said, “there was nothing – just nothing: acres of land with those steel beams twisted like little pieces of candy. And the people’s faces that had been exposed to the contamination. They all had a layer of dark skin on their faces on top of their normal skin.”

He had some happier memories as well. Before moving to Korea, he was stationed in Ft. Lewis, Washington, and he and a friend went to see a movie in nearby Olympus. As they were waiting for the movie to start, two girls came up to them in amazement and asked them where they’d gotten their suntan. “Oh, this is my year-round color,” Hernandez said. “I’m half Spanish and half Indian, better known as Mexican. They couldn’t believe it,” he chuckled. “They thought I had a suntan!”

And doesn’t every soldier have a commanding officer story? While living in tents in Korea, an officer walked in unannounced. Hernandez shouted, “Attention!” because he saw the four buttons on each shoulder of the officer’s uniform.

The officer who, as it turned out, was just a captain, said, “Hey, you don’t have to holler “Attention.”

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Hernandez laughed. “I thought he was a full colonel or something.”

During the last part of his tour Hernandez worked as personnel officer for the 24th Infantry Division in charge of the records of the soldiers in his battalion. During that time he and his fellow soldiers were given what was called a “Truman Year” which, in effect, extended their enlistment for a year, ensuring there would be enough personnel in Korea. It didn’t affect Hernandez, who was due to be rotated back to the States, but he volunteered to stay an extra six months to get rank. “It takes too long in peacetime,” he said. So Sgt. Maj. Hernandez finally returned to Fort Sill, Oklahoma and civilian life on September 4, 1952.

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After returning home, he went to work at Wertheim Furniture making $28 a week and became reacquainted with his high school friend Otilia (Tillie) Navarrete, whom he married on March 26, 1955. He still works every day, as he has for 25 years, at Forrest Tire, and credits the military for some of his success in life.

“Young kids don’t want to work. If they had to serve in the military the first couple of years out of high school, they’d be a better person. They’d dress better, have more respect. A lot of parents don’t teach them that anymore.”

And ironically, what he feels finally opened his school’s classrooms to students of all ethnic backgrounds was education. “Now people are no longer judged by their color.

You’re judged by what you know; not by the color of your skin.”

Artesia • Carlsbad • Clovis • Hobbs • Lovington, NM El Paso • Lubbock • Odessa, TX winter 2012 | A Community Magazine

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on service

Thanks, Remembrance, & Celebration Many volunteered. Some were required. A great number held strong beliefs about what is right and put it all on the line. No matter the reason, millions of people served in the military to protect and uphold the interests of the United States and its people.

How do you thank a soldier who can no longer hear your words? What do you say to the surviving spouse, parent, and children of someone who fell in combat?

How about the veteran who enjoyed a long life and has no one surviving to visit his grave?

“Remember, Honor, Teach” is the motto of Wreaths Across America, a nonprofit organization that started in 2006 based on an idea by Morrill Worcester, owner of Worcester Wreath Company of Maine, over a decade earlier. Worcester had a large supply of wreaths as the end of the 1992 holiday season drew closer.

He decided to donate 5,000 wreaths to Arlington National Cemetery, where he had visited as a boy. Worcester’s idea has grown into a national movement

and tradition with over 750 locations participating in the national wreath-laying ceremony. Carlsbad is one of eight New Mexico areas joining in the Wreaths Across America program.

“I found out about Wreaths Across America from coworkers in Los Alamos and thought this was something we could do in Carlsbad,” said Jerri McTaggart, volunteer location leader. “I was so moved by this unique way to thank our veterans that I had to be involved.”

“It was November 2010 when I started Wreaths Across America in Carlsbad. By the time I finished the application, filing to become a nonprofit group with the State of New Mexico, and all the other paperwork, I had a week and a half to

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by John Safin sell the wreaths with a guarantee they would arrive in Carlsbad in time for the December ceremony.”

Jerri accomplished quite a bit in only ten days for the first ceremony held in Carlsbad. “We had 78 wreaths to place on veterans’ graves.

The American Legion Riders, Carlsbad Honor Guard, and my family and friends participated. Paula Bauer, from the Carlsbad Caverns National Park, volunteered to sing the national anthem. I was most surprised by how many Carlsbad residents participated. I didn’t have much time or money to advertise the event, but about 50 people were there. It was a humbling experience.”

Placing flowers as a tribute to military personnel has been a tradition in many cultures around the world and throughout time. The Arlington National Cemetery has dozens of ceremonies each day as another service man or woman is interred. Memorial Day and Veterans Day are two examples of the more formal wreath-laying ceremonies that take place at the Tomb of the Unknowns.

“Wreaths Across America is a year-long program, starting the campaign at the end of January, which leads to the December ceremony. Most of the wreath donations happen in October and November when

people are thinking about the holidays.

Once we place the order, trucking companies volunteer space on their rigs to deliver the wreaths all around the country and even around the world.

Not all our fallen veterans are buried on American soil.” Jerri noted that three volunteer truckers delivered about 40 boxes of wreaths for last year’s ceremony in Carlsbad.

Photos: Carlsbad residents participate in the Wreaths Across America event at the Carlsbad Cemetery.

Photo Left Page: Wreaths at Arlington National Cemetery. Placed by Wreaths Across America.

According to the official website, www. wreathsacrossamerica.org, there are several dozen companies with truck delivery services that offer any “void” space – areas where their main cargo won’t fit – to bring the boxes of wreaths to Carlsbad and other areas. Locally, UPS and Walmart have been part of Jerri’s initiative. “The American Legion Riders, Carlsbad Honor Guard, Guaranty Title, Walmart, and La Bella Boutique have been sponsors of the Carlsbad program. We’re all very grateful for the area businesses’ involvement.”

you” for donating their time and efforts.

New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez in 2011 and the U.S. Congress in 2008 proclaimed a “Wreaths Across America Day” as a way to show gratitude to everyone involved and recognize the importance of the program.

As special thanks to the Carlsbad corporate sponsors, Jerri includes a giant “Thank You!” sign with the company names on the Wreaths Across America display she puts together for Christmas on the Pecos. “I wanted to make sure

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everyone knows the companies that are helping us. The Wreaths Across America website has a page thanking sponsors who donate $1,000 or more. It was a special person who served our country, and it’s an equally special person who is willing to make an effort to thank them.”

The wreath isn’t only a thank you to our veterans. It’s also for their families.

“Military people gave up so much. They were deployed away from home for years.

Their families survived on military pay, which isn’t much. I just want them and their families to know they’re thanked. We simply have a long way to go.”

In case you were wondering, there isn’t a record of which grave sites belong to military personnel. Many are too worn from the weather to read the inscription.

Some of the grave markers in the old, old section of Carlsbad Cemetery are simple wooden crosses. One of the oldest headstones is from the late 1800s, possibly belonging to a Civil War veteran. This is one of the challenges Jerri faces. With all operational and advertising expenses coming out of her own pocket (NOTE: she really didn’t want anyone to know this; however it is an important fact), another challenge is building public awareness of the Wreaths Across America program.

Recently, a local Boy Scout volunteered to count all the military headstones at Carlsbad Cemetery, where the Wreaths Across America ceremony takes place.

After several hours, he discovered over 1,200 markers. Last year, there were only enough wreaths to lay on 250 grave sites.

Jerri’s goal for this year is to have 500 wreaths placed. “Ultimately, we want every military grave marker in Carlsbad Cemetery to have a wreath, then enough for all the cemeteries in and around the city, and finally expand throughout Eddy County.”

critical aspect, as all the ceremonies across the country will take place simultaneously with the wreath-laying at Arlington National Cemetery. The wreaths will adorn the veterans’ final resting place until mid-January when Jerri and her family will collect the wreaths for recycling.

The Carlsbad Wreaths Across America program does more than honoring a veteran no longer with us. Jerri set up the program where a portion of the donation for wreaths goes into a scholarship fund for the children of veterans, alive or deceased. “This scholarship is one of two sponsored by the Employees of Los Alamos National Laboratory Carlsbad.

Last year, our Wreaths Across America gave a $500 scholarship. It’s based on a percentage of donations, and I hope we’ll have a bigger fund available this year.”

“I encourage everyone to get involved with the Wreaths Across America program, as a sponsor or volunteer,” said Jerri. “And when you see a service man or woman, take a moment to thank them for their service.”

The 2012 Wreaths Across America ceremony will be held on Saturday, December 15, 2012, at 10am in Carlsbad Cemetery under the pavilion. The time is a

Yes, Carlsbad Wreaths Across America is a time for celebration. It’s a chance to remember our veterans, thank them and their families, and celebrate their accomplishments that allow all of us to have a wonderful life in the United States.

For more information about Wreaths Across America, call Jerri McTaggart at 575-706-0206.

About the author: John Safin has a background in business operations, marketing, event planning, and public relations. Originally from Upstate New York, John moved from Glendale, AZ, to Carlsbad, NM, which he now calls “home.” www.johnsafin.com

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on volunteerism

Calling All Patriots The Eddy County Patriotic Association is looking for a few good patriots. The

Association formed more than 25 years ago and has since been a primary driver behind Memorial and Veterans Day parades in Eddy County.

This year, the Patriotic Association has also received permission to visit local schools.

“We would like to explain to children what it means when we talk about Veterans Day and what Memorial Day really represents,” McIlwee said. “We want to talk to them about the American flag and have them fold it so we can explain exactly what each fold means.”

McIlwee said that local principals were supportive of the idea. “So far, we haven’t been invited into any of the schools, but we’ve received permission and everyone seemed excited about it.”

The Patriotic Association also recruits parade marshals and guest speakers for its parades.

“This year, we have Robert Diaz from Artesia,” McIlwee said. “He spent 30 years as a naval chief. When I asked him to be parade marshal, he was so thrilled that he went out and got himself a new uniform to wear. The keynote speaker is Bob Walker, who is the head of the American Legion Riders. He’s going to talk about what the Legion Riders do.”

The Eddy County Patriotic Association has traditionally been an organization for veterans, but the organization has

recently opened up to anyone interested in helping. McIlwee said that a number of people signed up as volunteers during a recent open house.

McIlwee served in the Korean War from 1950-1953. In addition to their affiliation with the Patriotic Association, Bill and his brother, Hugh, are also both members of the Carlsbad Honor Guard.

“I’ve been a member of that for seven years now,” McIlwee said about the honor guard. “I serve as the chaplain.”

The Honor Guard has 17 members.

Ideally, 12 are able to attend a given veteran event.

“That’s seven rifles, two buglers, two to fold the flag and me,” he said, but noted the Honor Guard usually gets by with a few people handling overlapping positions.

McIlwee would like to see the Honor Guard grow, and he and other members of the Eddy County Patriotic Association are also actively looking for new members. He’s been doing presentations in front of local civic groups to let them know about the organization.

“We’re trying to get in contact with the rest of the veterans for a database,” he said. “It’s sometimes impossible with the phone because people have changed their phone numbers over the years.”

McIlwee shared that the group is looking at doing something special for Vietnam veterans. “One of the things we’d like to do for those who joined

Main Photo: Members of the Carlsbad Honor Guard participate in funerals and military memorial events.

Inset Photo: Bill McIlwee - Member of the Eddy County Patriotic Assoc. and Carlsbad Honor Guard.

the service from 1960 through 1975 and were in either the military, reserve or National Guard is get a memorial built in the shape of the State of New Mexico with their names,” he said. “We want to do a big thing for the Vietnam veterans because of the reception they received when they got back.”

The Patriotic Association is presently applying for its status as a nonprofit so that it can hold fundraisers.

“Senator (Tom) Udall has also been very interested in helping us, as has Representative (Steve) Pearce,” McIlwee stated.

The current vice president of the Eddy County Patriotic Association is John Costilla-Gonzales, while Nancy McIlwee serves as treasurer and Geri Cunningham is secretary.

For more information on the Eddy County Patriotic Association, call Bill McIlwee at 885-6953. winter 2012 | A Community Magazine

27

on the national guard

On Guard:

Local National Guard Participants Upholding Legacy The Commissioned Officer assigned to the National Guard’s 920th Engineering Company in Carlsbad was recently honored for his outstanding service. In September, Second Lieutenant Ernest Carlson IV received the exclusive MG Herbert Taylor Award in recognition of exceptional service to the New Mexico National Guard.

“I was surprised because I don’t think I’m doing anything spectacular,” Carlson said. “I am in the business of making sure I take care of soldiers and making sure they get what they need.”

student) that it was the time to do it.”

Carlson said the 20 service men and women who make up Carlsbad’s Engineering platoon are all extremely dedicated to serving the citizens of New Mexico.

“My mentor there was the primary military science instructor, Lt. Col. Andrew Taylor,” he said. “He never gave us any breaks, but he was fair and he had a lot of knowledge to hand down.”

Carlsbad’s National Guard Armory has a storied history, documented earlier in this edition. After the tragedy of September 11, members of the Air Defense Artillery unit were sent to Washington D.C. to protect the White House. The Carlsbad office was later shifted from serving as an anti-aircraft unit to being part of an engineering company. In 2009, members of the 920th, who train in Carlsbad, Hobbs and Rio Rancho, were deployed to Afghanistan, where they assisted with road construction and other activities.

Carlson, a 2005 graduate of Carlsbad High School, was a student at New Mexico State University at the time of the deployment, but the Armory here would soon play a positive role in his life.

On May 14, 2008, Carlson stepped out of college for a time to join the Army Reserves. He spent the next 9 ½ weeks at Fort Sill in Oklahoma and another five weeks training in Missouri.

“When I was a kid, I’d watch military movies with my dad,” he recalled. “I remember taking all the kids on the street out to play Army and teach them how to low crawl. I decided (as a college

28

Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

Carlson returned to NMSU and enrolled in the university’s ROTC program while taking classes.

Financially, things weren’t easy for Carlson, wife Jessica and their newborn son, Ernest V, but Carlson finished college with an accounting degree.

“Nothing would have been possible without her continuous support,” Carlson said of his wife.

On December 10, 2010, Carlson was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant to the National Guard. Two months later, he received his detachment in Carlsbad. He’s the commanding officer of a platoon of 20 people and serves on what’s called Inactive-Duty Training status. The state’s engineering company has three platoons.

“I have the same responsibilities as every other platoon leader -- to maintain the armory and lead my soldiers,” he said. “My platoon sergeant and I work together to make sure our soldiers are taken care of, that our training is done and that we’re ready to deploy to any situation. That sergeant, Sgt. Nathan Eubank, is awesome and makes everything possible.”

Carlson also obtained local work as an accountant when he moved to Carlsbad,

but that job fell through two months later. That’s when his commission with the National Guard really paid off.

He was sent on an annual training mission to assist the Border Patrol near Deming with building a road.

“I wasn’t engineer-officer qualified yet, but I was engineer-enlisted and had worked for Constructors Inc. before, and I knew enough to get myself in trouble,” Carlson shared.

The Border Patrol agents were apparently impressed by Carlson’s high level of understanding, as they requested that he serve as the National Guard liaison officer to the project.

Carlson’s two-week trip turned into a six-week assignment.

“It held me over to support my family,” he said. “It was also a huge learning experience, and we accomplished a lot of good things out there.”

Carlson’s second son, Liam, was born in May 2011. Carlson worked on accounting jobs on the side in- between National Guard projects. National Guardsmen get paid for training and some other efforts, but they also frequently volunteer their services to the community. For example, last year, several members of the 920th helped build a running track near Santa Fe. “Once a month and two weeks a year, we have training,” Carlson explained.

“We’ve also done things like clean up the aquatic camp for the Boy Scouts and help take down canopies for the Department of Transportation.”

Carlson said the National Guard

also relies heavily on support from employers. “We have to have support to do what we need to do,” he emphasized.

“What’s the use of going around the state on active duty to help if you come back and have lost your job?”

In September of 2011, Carlson left Carlsbad again to attend an engineer’s basic officer leadership course in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.

“It was 12 hours a day of watching Powerpoints, and then sometimes we’d go outside and blow stuff up,” he added. He was gone through February, but completion of the course means he’s now a qualified officer and can receive promotions.

Carlson spent the early part of 2012 hunting for a civilian job in Carlsbad.

He decided to open his own accounting business on Mermod Street, with his

father also assisting the company.

He also continued his training as an officer by completing resiliency and advanced resiliency courses. “It’s basically learning how to teach soldiers and families to be able to handle issues at home, on the battlefield and at work,” he explained.

Recently, Carlson and other Guardsmen from across the state were sent to Ruidoso to assist with flood prevention.

It’s the kind of responsibility the members of the National Guard always find to be rewarding.

“It was hard work, but it was also a lot of fun,” he said. “The biggest thing about the National Guard is you’ll see us in uniform one weekend a month, but really we are doing a lot more work.

We don’t even get paid for a lot of it, but that doesn’t matter to us. It pays for itself in the long run.”

Recently, the National Guard honored local businesses that have been especially accommodating to employees who serve in the National Guard.

Businesses receiving this honor were:

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29

on technology

Local Love of Airfield

G o e s O n l i n e Everybody’s doing Facebook these days, even airfields.

There are usually several posts a day on the “Carlsbad Army Airfield” Facebook page. The posts typically consist of photos from the airfield’s magazine and a short narrative.

What’s the deal? The Facebook page began, in part, as an academic effort, but has since become an outlet for one of Carlsbad’s biggest history buffs.

Carlsbad educator Michael Barnhart said the World War II airfield was part of his master’s thesis. He completed all of his coursework, he shared, but still needed to come up with a topic. That’s when a newspaper article about an airfield reunion caught his attention.

The Carlsbad Army Airfield was established in 1943 near the present municipal airport. Over the next three years, thousands of bombardiers trained there for World War II, and the base also had a civilian workforce of 500 to 1,000.

Many other New Mexico communities also hosted air bases around the same time.

To help with his research, Barnhart spoke with local historian Tom Bemis, who has led tours to parts of the airfield, and Barnhart also read whatever he could find. He was especially impressed

by Jack Couffer’s book Bat Bomb: World War II’s Other Secret Weapon, which addressed what was likely the most unique military test in Carlsbad. (It was covered in last year’s Winter 2011 Focus.)

“I was able to find some fire marshal

Main Photo: This picture was taken in 1944 and shows the CAAF formal parade grounds during retreat with seventeen AT-11’s roaring overhead.

Inset Photo: This 1942 picture shows an AT-11, some CAAF personnel and several 100-pound practice bombs. Photos courtesy of Bobby Silliman.

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Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

reports that mentioned an unknown explosion,” Barnhart said of a blaze that caused the military to abandon, for a time, the idea of bat bombs.

Barnhart established a Facebook page about the airfield to encourage discussion. He also turned to the online marketplace of eBay and bid on several Carlsbad Army Airfield yearbooks. On several occasions, however, he was outbid.

The winning bidder turned out to be Bobby Lee Silliman, a Carlsbad native who had developed his own passionate interest in Carlsbad’s airfield. Silliman, an engineer who currently lives in Illinois, had

recently renewed his interest in the airfield.

“We exchanged a few messages,” Barnhart said about Silliman. “I made him an administrator on the Facebook page, and he’s taken it and run with it.”

Silliman said his interest in the Carlsbad Army Airfield really began around 1978,

when he was out looking for arrowheads and stumbled across the tail section of a test bomb.

“I didn’t have a clue that Carlsbad was a bombardier school,” he remarked. “I talked to people around town and then went the library and read up on it.”

As his research continued, he checked out a book featuring aerial photographs of Eddy County, which allowed him to locate and visit 22 bombing targets used by the base.

“I was able to put together one complete cement practice bomb from all the different parts I found,” he added.

The practice bombs were designed to release a plume of smoke that would be photographed and evaluated for accuracy.

“A buddy and I found one bombing target that had so many (parts of) bombs I stood them up on their noses next to our Blazer. We took a picture of them.

That was almost 30 years ago,” Silliman noted. He’s also found some practice bombs that apparently malfunctioned and remained mostly intact.

One of his most interesting discoveries, however, was made while exploring a bombing site near Roswell.

“Just south of Roswell, there was a giant swastika marked on the map,” he said. “My brother James and I went out looking for it, and we climbed up on a big berm 12-14 feet high. Then I looked down, and I could see cloth cords and

Photo: This 1981 photo shows Silliman’s Chevy Blazer and sixteen concrete practice bombs standing on their noses in the desert not far from a CAAF practice bomb target. Photo courtesy of Bobby Silliman.

porcelain light sockets. We’d been standing right on top of it, and it was a target designed to be illuminated at night.”

Silliman’s interest in aviation goes back to his childhood, as he and his brother spent a lot of time at Carlsbad’s airport, where his stepfather had a side job. “At

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winter 2012 | A Community Magazine

31

the time, the airport had a little military surplus hybrid, so we got to spend some time flying,” he shared. “My brother Jack was a member of the civil air patrol.”

Recently, Silliman and his family held a reunion in Carlsbad to visit a memorial at the Veterans Park that includes a mention of his brother, Jack Lloyd, who died in Vietnam. The reunion is captured on the Focus web page at: http://focusoncarlsbad.com/content/ featured/a-very-special-reunion/ The reunion also provided another opportunity for Silliman to conduct additional research on the airfield. He enjoyed speaking with Reid McCloskey, a Carlsbad resident who attended bombardier class here in 1944. Reid flew 35 missions in Europe and ultimately served as an instructor in Carlsbad.

Photo: Silliman kneeling beside a stenciled nose fragment of a practice bomb. Photo courtesy of Bobby Silliman.

He has also spoken with Bemis and Larry Pardue, who have both led tours to parts of the airfield.

Bombigator, a bimonthly publication put out in Carlsbad by the airbase.

Years ago, Silliman located a number of copies and recently received help from the Carlsbad Museum in copying many more. He’s trying to track down several more editions. The magazine photos provide a lot of the material Silliman posts on Facebook.

Another resource for Silliman is

Silliman enjoys not only posting

“He was telling me the other day that he was an instructor for the Chinese detachment,” Silliman shared.

information, but also reading the memories people share on the Facebook page from around the country. He would like to keep the conversation going, using today’s technology to honor the war-time sacrifices made by thousands right here in Carlsbad.

To find the Facebook page go to Facebook.com and search for Carlsbad Army Airfield.

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Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

.C

o m

"Success in life has nothing to do with what you gain in life or accomplish for yourself. It's what you do for others."

- Danny Thomas

Flag Facts and

Trivia Veterans day trivia

U.S. Flag Etiquette

How many veterans are there in the United States?

• The flag should be lighted at all times, either by sunlight or by an appropriate light source.

• The flag should be flown in fair weather, unless the flag is designed for inclement weather use.

• The flag should never be dipped to any person or thing.

It is flown upside down only as a distress signal.

• The flag should not be used for any decoration in general. Bunting of blue, white and red stripes is available for these purposes. The blue stripe of the bunting should be on the top.

• The flag should never be used for any advertising purpose. It should not be embroidered, printed or otherwise impressed on such articles as cushions, handkerchiefs, napkins, boxes, or anything intended to be discarded after temporary use. Advertising signs should not be attached to the staff or halyard.

• The flag should not be used as part of a costume or athletic uniform, except that a flag patch may be used on the uniforms of military personnel, firemen, policemen and members of patriotic organizations.

• The flag should never have any mark, insignia, letter, word, number, figure, or drawing of any kind placed on it, or attached to it.

• The flag should never be used for receiving, holding, carrying, or delivering anything.

• When the flag is lowered, no part of it should touch the ground or any other object; it should be received by waiting hands and arms. To store the flag, it should be folded neatly and ceremoniously.

• The flag should be cleaned and mended when necessary.

• When a flag is so worn it is no longer fit to serve as a symbol of our country, it should be destroyed by burning in a dignified manner.

About 22.2 million

Veterans Day was originally known as what?

Armistice Day. An armistice to cease fighting the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.”

Who first proposed that Armistice Day be renamed Veterans Day?

Alvin J. King made the suggestion in 1953 to recognize and honor American veterans of all wars and conflicts. His nephew, John Cooper, was killed during World War II fighting. The change was signed into law the following year.

What flower is a symbol of Veterans Day?

The poppy. In 1918, Moina Belle Michael, on reading McCrae’s poem “In Flanders Fields,” pledged to always wear a red poppy as a sign of remembrance. Her idea spread.

What patriotic song debuted in its current form on an Armistice Day broadcast in 1938?

“God Bless America” by Irving Berlin - In 1938, Irving Berlin dug out a song he’d written in 1918 for an army camp show, changed a few lyrics, and renamed it “God Bless America.” On November 10, 1938, Kate Smith sang it as the closing number on an Armistice Day edition of her immensely popular CBS Radio show.

Source: AARP.org

winter 2012 | A Community Magazine

33

on mainstreet

Asset-based

CommunityDevelopment

by Amy M. Barnhart

In early October,

Carlsbad MainStreet hosted the New Mexico MainStreet Fall Quarterly meeting. Representatives of local MainStreet organizations from all over the state descended upon Carlsbad over a three-day period to learn and share ideas. One of the topics discussed was asset-based community development.

Traditionally, nonprofits have been established as deficit-based Carlsbad MainStreet organizations – focusing on problems Executive Director that must be fixed, such as blight, disrepair, economic depression and shortages – and striving to effect change at the institutional level.

Amy M. Barnhart

On the other hand, asset-based organizations focus on building relationships and community. Assets are defined as buildings, history, culture, people, policymakers, groups, networks and more.

Moving from the deficit- to asset-based organization requires a shift in attitude. New attitudes include focusing on strengths; building assets intentionally and as a way to interact; and using people as resources and helping them build their assets, while holding them accountable for their actions. Additionally, the organization must stop blaming others for the past and focus on working together to improve the future.

The first step in shifting to an asset-based organization is to take an inventory of the available assets. The Carlsbad MainStreet organization and district currently have a remarkable number of assets.

Downtown Carlsbad possesses fantastic cultural and entertainment assets, from the Museum & Art Center and Public Library complex, to the recently purchased Cavern Theater. The historic Trinity Hotel & Restaurant, as well as the other fine dining establishments in the downtown area, are cultural and business assets to the downtown area and community as a whole. The great business mix in downtown is another asset – from a variety of retail to a wide array of service-based businesses.

The people of downtown – business owners, employees, elected officials and customers – are all assets as well, and some of the most important ones. The local municipalities and partner organizations of Carlsbad MainStreet are assets as well, such as the Chamber of Commerce, Department of Development, Small Business Development Center, Keep Carlsbad Beautiful, the Anti-Drug & Gang Coalition, the Mural Project and more.

34

Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

Many MainStreet organizations were formed as deficitbased organizations. Historic downtown districts all over the county were economically depressed, filled with vacant buildings and in disrepair. The MainStreet organization helps change this, and over time, the shift can be made to an asset-based organization. While there are still issues that must be addressed in Downtown Carlsbad, the district and community as a whole possess many diverse assets, making it possible to take an asset-based approach to the development of Downtown Carlsbad.

If you or your organization would like to volunteer to help with a Carlsbad MainStreet event or project, or would like more information on how to get involved, contact the Carlsbad MainStreet office at (575)628-3768 or carlsbadmainstreet@gmail. com. You can also visit our website carlsbadmainstreetnm.com for more information and visit Facebook.com/CarlsbadMainStreet for weekly updates.

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notes from the garden

GardenNotes The Importance of Good Record-Keeping

by Margaret Barry

For me, and a lot of other gardeners,

experimentation is the key to keeping life interesting. It’s fun to try new varieties of vegetables and to find out if they have any possibility of growing well in our desert environment. The seed catalogs introduce new varieties every year. For the most part, I prefer to stick with the old tried and true vegetables that perform well most years as a majority of the crops in my garden, but I also like to allocate space to something new.

Something new for me might be something that is actually an old variety that has been introduced from another country or region. There are many interesting fruits and vegetables that grow in other desert regions around the world and many hybrids that have been developed for heat and drought tolerance. Because GMOs (genetically modified organisms) do not need labeling as yet in this country, I try not to go too far up the hybridizing chain.

If a seed variety has a patent number, that’s a clue that it may be genetically modified to include a gene from something that might not be vegetable in origin, such as a bacteria that kills insects. If you are like me in wanting to stay away from GMOs, it may take a little investigation of the parent varieties to come up with appropriate seeds.

There are also considerations if you wish to save seeds, but that’s a topic for another day.

The main considerations for untried varieties are the limitations that must be considered for desert application, primarily sun exposure and watering requirements. Most seed catalogs give some indication of the plant’s needs.

This is where record-keeping becomes important. If you know that a certain variety needs full sun and moderate moisture, it would be best to meet those requirements in an appropriate location in your garden; however, the sun here can be brutal in midsummer, so I might try a few different locations with the possibility of some afternoon shade, or a little more water during real hot spells.

Let the condition of the plant be your guide, but make notes in your garden journal regularly so that you are able to track trends, especially if it’s a variety that you hope to add to your regular line-up of garden favorites.

I have had a variety of garden journals.

I’ve tried all kinds from elaborate three-ring binders with divisions for different months, to calendars with writing space for each day, to lowly spiral notebooks, and by now there is probably an app for your smartphone, but what seems to work best for me is a smallish waterproof-covered, blank paged journal. I may want to make pages worth of notes on one specific plant, or do a layout drawing of where I’ve placed things in the garden, so calendars with limited space won’t work. Spiral notebooks are good for space, but they fall apart eventually when banged around in the garden, and don’t do well in wet conditions; nor do phone screens do well covered in dust or mud. When the journal is full, I start another, but the old one is still available on the bookshelf for reference.

A good journal keeps track of the planting dates, the beginning of harvest dates, amount of harvest, bug infestations, etc. I also like to make note of rate of growth, fertility requirements, amount of foliage cover, if the fruit is susceptible to sun scald and so on.

Those are the potential considerations for how well a plant may do in the desert, and most importantly, in

drought conditions. I also like to have an idea of weather conditions, rainfall amounts and dates (as they are so few and far between). This is generally what makes a good garden journal, but it’s also good to make note of how gardening makes you feel – overworked, sweaty, and miserable in the extreme heat, or joyous with an abundant harvest, or overwhelmed by the exponential growth of weeds after a good rain. Those are features that make the journal personal.

Another important feature in a garden journal is the dates that have no entry.

The journal can be an important way to keep track of events in the garden, but gardening can be complicated enough without having to make daily entries and becoming a slave to it. I make an effort to keep track as much as possible, especially if it’s important that I know when to expect a good harvest, if a certain plant just always gets bugs, a variety of plant that does especially well and so on. Some days are just very routine, and everything is just happening as it should. A garden journal is meant to be as much fun as the gardening that inspires it.

About the author: Margaret and

her husband, John, both artists, moved to Carlsbad in January, 1999. Margaret is an Eddy County Master Gardener and has been gardening/farming most of her life. She is the Carlsbad Mainstreet Farmers’ Market Chair, and a vendor at the Farmer’s Market.

winter 2012 | A Community Magazine

35

tou r is m C o r n e r

on the chamber

Christmas

on the

pecos

celebrates its 21st anniversary season

Winter in Carlsbad isn’t about snow, ice, or cold - it’s about warmth; the warmth of the holiday season and families coming together. Carlsbad, New Mexico is alive with the ultimate celebration of the season – Christmas on the Pecos.

This magical vista is created by over 100 homeowners who spend hours decorating with care. Each house is unique – from the Christmas in the Desert southwest theme at one home to Santa’s Playland at another.

Carlsbad residents show their creativity as much as their community pride. Each year the Pecos riverfront shimmers with color, illuminated backyards, boat docks, islands, wise men and angels glow on sloping lawns, giant margarita glasses and bright stars reflect on the water.

Eve. The boats depart from the Pecos River Village located at 711 Muscatel. This turnof-the-century park is transformed into a wonderland of sparkling lights and delights.

Wander through a gallery of gifts created by local artists and enjoy holiday refreshments at the Village before and after your tour.

Tickets may be purchased from 8 am to 5 pm Monday through Friday at the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce, at the Christmas on the Pecos ticket office on days of departure, or on-line at www.christmasonthepecos.com.

Space is limited and advances purchases are strongly suggested. Be sure to wear warm clothing; layers are best as it is cooler on the river. Blankets are provided by Nuclear Waste Partnership LLC and are available prior to boarding.

The first Christmas on the Pecos boat tour took place in 1991 aboard the Princess, a pontoon boat that seated ten people. Today the Christmas on the Pecos fleet includes the 40 passenger Noelle, the 45 passenger Bella Sera, and the 18 passenger Bella Notte. All vessels depart nightly except for the George Washington which operates only on Friday and Saturday and is a half trip.

Ticket prices for the 2012 season are: Adults $17.50 per person on Friday and Saturday, $12.50 per person Sunday through Thursday.

Children ages 2 – 12 are $12.50 per person on Friday and Saturday, $7.50 per person Sunday through Thursday. Children under two are free if they do not occupy a seat. A lap pass must be obtained from the ticket office prior to boarding.

The 40-minute boat tours sail 12-15 times per night between 5:15 pm and 9:30 pm from Thanksgiving weekend to New Year’s

Christmas on the Pecos has been awarded one of the top 100 “must see” events in North America by the American Bus

Association for the last 14 years. For more information on the most spectacular show of Christmas lights in New Mexico, contact the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce.

Visit our website to book your reservation today www.christmasonthepecos.com.

We Salute all veterans!

If you have not done so, take a ride across the Bataan Bridge, turn right on South James Street and stop at the Veterans Memorial Park. There you will see the faces and names of citizens who gave of their time and many who gave their lives for us.

The credit for our freedom belongs to those who were actually in the arena, faces marred by dust, sweat and blood to keep us free.

To quote John F. Kennedy, “Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country.” This is exactly what veterans do for our country.

WE SALUTE ALL VETERANS!

HOW TO STAY YOUNG • Don’t worry about numbers – this includes age, weight and height.

• Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.

• Keep learning. Never let the brain idle.

“An idle mind is the devil’s workshop.” And the devil’s name is Alzheimer’s • Enjoy the simple things.

36

Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

- Author Unknown

• Tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. Be ALIVE while you are alive.

• Surround yourself with what you love – family, pets, music, hobbies, etc.

• Cherish your health. If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it.

• Don’t take guilt trips.

• Tell the people you love that you love them.

• Don’t sweat the petty things and don’t pet the sweaty things.

• Laugh often, long and loud.

Janell Whitlock, Director of Retirement, can be reached at 575-887-6516.

c h a m b e r news

Grand Openings ribbon cuttings ground breakings

Welcome!

New Members Across the Canal Shooting Sports Bradley School of Driving Breaking Chains Chapman’s Restaurant

Carlsbad celebrates one of several Carlsbad Murals.

This one is located at 1612 S Canal St. Others are located all around town.

Dave and Radene Bradley celebrated the opening of Bradley School of Driving located at 104 W Hagerman with friends and Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors.

Denny’s Gentle Birth Midwifery Graphmaster Media & Design Kathy Elmore One Stop Titles

Breaking Chains - located in Suite E4 of the Carlsbad Mall – celebrated their grand opening in late September.

The Chamber helped Rob and Martha Chapman break ground for Chapman’s Restaurant. The restaurant will be located at 106 W Bonbright (the corner of Main and Bonbright).

Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Southwest S & W Weddings and Receptions T’s Accessories The Pampered Chef The Village at Carlsbad ...............................................................

Local elected officials, members of the Carlsbad Municipal Schools, the Chamber of Commerce, students, and friend celebrated the grand re-opening of Eddy/Alternative School located at 700 W. Stevens St.

Rainbow Recycling Center hosted a ribbon cutting and grand opening of their new location at 5008 National Parks Highway on September 10, 2012.

Contact the Chamber at (575) 887-6516 www.carlsbadchamber.com

Your Chamber Staff Robert Defer, Chief Executive Officer director@carlsbadchamber.com

Donna Cass, Senior Administrative Assistant

Brenda Whiteaker, Director of Operations

Randy Baker, Director of Facility Maintenance

operations@carlsbadchamber.com

Lisa Boeke, Director of Marketing & Tourism

facility@carlsbadchamber.com

tourism@carlsbadchamber.com

Matt DeYonge, Facilities Maintenance

Janell Whitlock, Director of Retirement

Jesus Torres, Facilities Maintenance

retirement@carlsbadchamber.com

Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors assisted with the grand opening of Title Cash located in the Riverwalk Shopping Center at 908 W Pierce Street.

carlsbadnm@carlsbadchamber.com

winter 2012 | A Community Magazine

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Focus on Carlsbad | winter 2012

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The 30-Minutes-or-Less E.R. Service Pledge.

Our E.r. can hElp yOu gEt back tO yOur lifE fastEr. Emergency medicine is about three things: compassion, skilled care and speed. You’ll find these at Carlsbad Medical Center. The experienced E.R. physicians and the entire team are committed to working diligently to have you initially seen by a clinical professional* within 30 minutes of your arrival.

When minutes matter, choose the E.R. that doesn’t waste time. Choose Carlsbad Medical Center.

For more information and to view our current average wait time, visit CarlsbadMedicalCenter.com.

The 30-Minutes-or-Less E.R. Service Pledge.

CarlsbadMedicalCenter.com

*Clinical professional is defined as a physician, physician assistant or nurse practitioner. If you are experiencing a medical emergency, call 911.

Scan this code with your mobile device to view our current average wait time.