Two sections, 73 pages 164th year, No. 24 Publication No. 596-440 Editor: Rob Dean, 986-3033, [email protected] Design and headlines: Brian Barker, [email protected] Main office: 983-3303 Late paper: 986-3010 Calendar A-2 Classifieds B-6 Comics B-12 Lotteries A-2 Opinion A-11 Police notes A-7 Sports B-1 Time Out A-8 Scoop A-9 Index Locally owned and independent Thursday, March 14, 2013 www.santafenewmexican.com 75¢ INSIDE u Public pension revamp clears Legislature. u Lawmakers approve budget despite governor’s veto threat. u Legislative roundup LEGISLATURE, A-4 Pasa pick Stuart Horwitz The author discusses and signs copies of Blueprint Your Bestseller: Organize and Revise Any Manuscript With the Book Architecture Method, 6 p.m., Collected Works Bookstore, 202 Galisteo St., 988-4226. Today Sunny and pleasant. High 69, low 38. PAGE A-12 Obituaries Laurence “Larry” Blea, 67, March 9 Kenneth (Keith) Gray, 60 March 9 David Clare Kingsbury, March 10 Anita Romero Jones, 82, Santa Fe, March 11 Edmundo P. Lopez, 55, Las Vegas, N.M., March 7 Edward D. Maestas, 66, Ranchitos, March 12 Jon Edward Molby, 52, Santa Fe, March 10 Charles Wheeler, 88, March 7 PAGE A-10 State tourney boys scoreboard St. Michael’s 49, Silver 37 Roswell 66, Española 49 Los Lunas 60, Capital 23 Mesilla Valley 56, Pecos 48 Sandia Prep 48, Pojoaque 39 Complete coverage of the tournament, PAGE B-1 POPE FOR THE NEW WORLD Raise means little to state workers In Santa Fe, Catholics rejoice: Clergy, parishioners say pontiff and his name are perfect fit for Church Museum custodian Sharon Christ would love to tell state lawmakers and Gov. Susana Martinez to take their proposed 8 cent-an-hour raise and shove it. But the Albuquerque woman, who is paid $8.32 an hour by the state Department of Cultural Affairs, really needs the money. The New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Sci- ence worker has been a state employee six years and has received just one pay increase — when she was taken off her initial probation period. And most years, due to insurance and pension increases, her take- home pay — about $490 every two weeks — has gone down. With overtime, Christ grossed $17,309 last year, according to the state’s online Sunshine Portal, less than Albuquerque’s new minimum wage. “My take-home pay is less than when I first started,” she said. “It used to be that working at a museum, working for the state, was prestigious. Now I can make more at McDonald’s.” As of Jan. 1, with the increase in Albuquerque’s minimum wage, most private-sector jobs in the city now pay at least $8.50 an hour. But the city ordi- nance doesn’t cover government workers. Christ would be among 25,000 state employees and teachers who would see their first salary increase since 2008 under a state Hike in retirement contributions could nullify 1% pay boost By Bruce Krasnow The New Mexican Please see RAISE, Page A-4 “ It used to be that working at a museum, working for the state, was prestigious. Now I can make more at McDonald’s.” Sharon Christ museum custodian who is paid $8.32 an hour Pope Francis waves to the crowd from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican on Wednesday. Francis is the first non-European pope since the Middle Ages. DMITRY LOVETSKY/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS V ATICAN CITY — From “the end of the Earth,” the Catholic Church found a surprising new leader Wednesday, a pioneer pope from Argentina who took the name Fran- cis, a pastor rather than a manager to resurrect a church and faith in crisis. He is the first pontiff from the New World and the first non-European since the Middle Ages. Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the archbishop of Buenos Aires who has spent nearly his entire career in Argentina, was a fast and fitting choice for the most unpredictable papal succession — start to finish — in at least six centuries. He is the first pope from the Americas, the first Jesuit and the first named Francis, after St. Francis of Assisi, the humble friar who dedi- cated his life to helping the poor. The last non-European pope was Syria’s Gregory III from 731-41. “You know that the work of the conclave is to give a bishop to Rome,” the new pontiff said as he waved shyly to the tens of thousands who braved a cold rain in St. Peter’s Square. “It seems as if my brother cardinals went to find him from the end of the Earth, but here we are. Thank you for the welcome.” The 76-year-old Bergoglio, said to Simple, conservative Argentine: 76-year-old devout Jesuit a fierce critic of socially progressive trends Santa Fe Catholics expressed joy Wednesday following the announce- ment that the papal conclave had selected a cardinal from Buenos Aires, Argentina, as the new pope — and that he had taken the name Francis. Local clergy and parishioners have a deep fondness for St. Francis, and they felt by selecting the name, Cardi- nal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was send- ing Catholics worldwide a message of humility and the need to rebuild a church discredited by scandals. Several Catholic leaders, including Monsignor Lambert Luna, archdioc- esan vicar general and pastor of St. Joseph on the Rio Grande, recalled the story from Bonaventure’s Life of Francis, which recounts how, in 1204, the wealthy merchant’s son went to pray at the crumbling church of San Damiano. Gazing at the cross, he heard a voice saying three times, By Nicole Winfield The Associated Press Pope Francis and cardinals pray from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican on Wednesday. Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio, who chose the name Francis, was named the 266th pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church. LUCA BRUNO/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Joy, hope in Santa Fe People gather to pray and celebrate the new pope at the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe on Wednesday. JANE PHILLIPS/THE NEW MEXICAN u For a video of the Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi bells ringing for the new pope, go to www.santafenewmexican.com By Anne Constable and Chris Quintana The New Mexican Please see POPE, Page A-5 Please see JOY, Page A-5