Socorro ISD opens Loma Verde School - wtxcc. · PDF filerial was presented to the Socorro ISD board of trustees during the Nov. 19 meet-ing. A reflecting pool, block monuments, sequential

SERVING ANTHONY, VINTON, CANUTILLO, EAST MONTANA, HORIZON, SOCORRO, CLINT, FABENS, SAN ELIZARIO AND TORNILLO

NEWSBRIEFS

Language is the dress of thought; everytime you talk your mind is on parade

— Quips and Quotes

DECEMBER 5, 2002VOL. 29, No. 49

See BRIEFS, Page 4

Smuggler rams vehicleAgents from Santa Teresa, New Mexicoseized nearly a ton of marijuana on Dec. 2but not before the suspected smugglerrammed a patrol vehicle with his stolen1997 Ford Expedition in an attempt to es-cape back across the border. The suspect,identified as 20-year-old Saul DanielLopez of Juarez, was seen crossing intothe U.S. about two miles west of the SantaTeresa Port of Entry. When a vehicle stopwas attempted he fled, ramming a parkedvehicle, and requiring use of a tire-defla-tion device to stop his flight. The agent inthe vehicle was not injured. Following hisarrest, agents found 256 wrapped bundlesin his vehicle containing 1,865 pounds ofmarijuana, valued at about $1.5 million.

Memorial presentedThe design for the Freedom Flag Memo-rial was presented to the Socorro ISDboard of trustees during the Nov. 19 meet-ing. A reflecting pool, block monuments,sequential land forms and areas for con-templation and remembrance are all partof the design, to also include a garrison-sized U.S. flag and 10 smaller banners. ElPaso architect Guillermo Barajas’ pre-sented the drawings, and said the projectwill be built adjacent to the north end ofthe Student Activities Complex. Estimatedcost is $150,000. Barajas, a member of thearchitectural firm of Prestige, Smith,Razloznik, Bustamante and Barajas, saidthe design is available for viewing atwww.psrbb.com/sites/freedomflag. Dona-tions are still welcomed at SISD Commu-nications, 12300 Eastlake Drive, El Paso,Texas 79928.

Bring back the tubs“We are simply asking our customers toreturn our equipment,” said FernandoSepulveda, postmaster of the Clint PostOffice. “We are in the middle of our Fallmailing season and headed into our peakperiod with a shortage of plastic flat tubs.”The tubs are sometimes left behind whenpostal deliveries are made and the publichas found many uses for them. However,they were designed and purchased to trans-port USPS mail, Sepulveda said. “Theseflat tubs cost about $3.30 each and replace-ment costs directly impact our bottom lineand postage rates,” he said. Customersshould drop the tubs by the post office orsimply give them to their letter carrier.Information: 1-800-275-8777.

In other news■ The 2002 Outstanding Lobo StudentCouncil, in conjunction with United BloodServices, will host the Lobos Save Livesblood drive on Dec. 4 at Mountain ViewHigh School, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event isstudent planned and all donations comefrom students who are eligible. Informa-tion: Elva L. Chavez, 857-1011.

■ Socorro ISD trustees have approved atimeline for the selection of a new superin-tendent and have scheduled a Town Hallmeeting for Thursday, Dec. 12 at 7 p.m. toobtain input from the public regarding theprocess and qualifications of the new su-perintendent. The search will be conducted

CLINT — Students at W.D. Surratt Elemen-tary in Clint ISD held a Walk-a-Thon on Nov.26 to benefit their neighbors in Ft. Hancockwho recently lost their middle school to a fire.The Surratt students and their families joinedthe walk, raising over $600.

STEPPIN’ OUT — Mark Tegmeyer resembled the Pied Piper as he led a group of studentsduring a recent Walk-a-Thon to benefit Ft. Hancock students from neighboring HudspethCounty who recently lost their school in a fire. Tegmeyer is a 4th. grade teacher at Surratt.Walking back up from left is Lizbeth Ortiz, Angie Vargas, Vanessa Rivera, Raul Ponce,Manny Cano, Manuel Olivares, and Israel Salazar

SAN ELIZARIO — During the Thanks-giving season many think of reasons to bethankful and the students at Borrego El-ementary School in the San Elizario Inde-pendent School District can find a big rea-son. After experiencing first-year growingpains as a school, the students now have allthe resources and a beautiful building inwhich to learn their school lessons.

One of those lessons taught to the studentsby counselor Letty Otero is that of being a car-ing citizen. So when a 4th grade teacher ap-proached Otero about doing something to helpthe students at Ft. Hancock High School, whoseschool building in neighboring HudspethCounty was recently destroyed by fire, an ideawas formed.

“I thought, what a great opportunity both forthe students at Borrego and those at Ft.Hancock,” said Otero. “In helping and contrib-uting to the students of Ft. Hancock, we canshow our students how rewarding and honor-able it is to be good, caring citizens.”

The Borrego began to donate new school sup-ply items including paper, pens, and pencils.“When a student donates a school supply,” saidOtero “the students write their name on a paperhand made by our 5th graders. The hand thenbecome ‘feathers’ on our turkey decoration onthe front display board of the school.”

At first, Otero wondered if their turkey wouldbe left with few feathers. “But then I remem-bered what wonderful kids we have here andhow much they enjoy helping out,” said Otero.

She was right — at last count there were over100 “feathers” adorning the turkey and morestill coming in. “We should be thankful for ourschool,” said second grader, Denise Araujo.

Ft. Hancock High School Superintendent JoseFranco said, “The idea was a very nice thing forthe students to do for us.” He also added “thestudents at Ft. Hancock were heart broken aboutlosing their personal items in the fire.”

As it turns out, the turkey at Borrego Elemen-tary will be covered in feathers this Thanks-giving and the students at both schools willbenefit.

Second grade student Abigail Reyes said“The project will let them know we are friendlylike the pillars we learn in counseling (Citi-zenship, Caring, Fairness, Trustworthiness,Respect, and Responsibility.”

“I think we’ll keep the turkey and try andfeather him again next year.” said Otero. “Wecan always find a need and I know we can al-ways count on our students and staff.”

Clint and San Eli students pitch into help Hudspeth County neighbors

FEATHER THE NEST — Hands form thefeathers of this Thanksgiving bird. Eachhand represents a school supply donatedby a Borrego student.

The class with the most parent participationearned an additional reward. The walk alsohelped the students with another project: theyare learning to emphasize exercise and ahealthy lifestyle as part of their participationin a CATCH grant.

Surratt Elementary turns shoe leather to cash

Borrego Elementaryhands out supplies

EAST EL PASO COUNTY — More than720 Loma Verde Elementary School stu-dents walked into their new school buildingDec. 2, as Socorro’s newest operating cam-pus opened for business.

The new pre-k-5th grade expandable cam-pus, at 12150 Ted Houghton Drive, is justnorthwest of the Rojas Drive/Loop 375 in-tersection. It was designed by the architec-tural firm of Prestige, Smith, Razloznik,Barajas and Bustamante and built by UrbanGeneral Contractors for $5.8 million.

Principal Al Garcia says opening day wasthe “fruition of a year of planning. It’s veryexciting…at times, we’ve had a lot of timeto think and reflect, and make sure we madethe right decision.”

The school is divided into the world’s con-tinents, with the administration area beingdubbed “North America.”

“This is beautiful!” says Gracie Chavez,parent of a Loma Verde kindergartner. “Thearchitecture is really nice and the library is

NEW NEIGHBORS — Loma Verde students Jessie Barron, Valerie Terrazas, ClaireShu, Maria Ramond and Marisa Carmona made friends with each other on the newschool’s playground.

Socorro ISD opens Loma Verde Schoolreally special.” The interior walls of Europeare done in pale Prada green after the Euro-pean retailer, complemented by blues andtans throughout the rest of the building.

Kindergarten student Claire Shu likes theLoma Verde playground the best. And afterher first lunch at the new school, Claire’s palValerie Terrazas praised the cafeteria mealof chicken and potatoes. Opening day wentsmoothly, even as construction workers con-tinued to build a large rock retaining wall atthe western end of the campus.

Fifth-grade student Matthew Crouse saidhe felt like he was traveling the world. Hesays he likes the way the school is built. “It’svery close to my house. You just have onehall, and I like the idea that they constructedit around the seven continents. At first, I kindof got lost at lunch, I had to go get the lunchticket and I walked all the way down to SouthAmerica, all the way to the end, and Ithought, ‘Oh, my gosh!’ Then I came backto Africa.”

WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER December 5, 2002Page 2

One perspectiveBy Francis Shrum

★

Member Texas CommunityNewspaper Association

SERVING ANTHONY, VINTON, CANUTILLO, EAST MONTANA, HORIZON, SOCORRO, CLINT, FABENS, SAN ELIZARIO AND TORNILLO

News, Inc.

HomesteaderEst. 1973

PUBLISHED:Published each Thursday byHomesteader News, Inc. Appreciationto our many contributors. Office openMonday through Thursday.

COPYRIGHT:Entire contents © 2002 HomesteaderNews, Inc. Individual authors retain allrights. Pictures, drawings and writtenmaterial appearing in the West TexasCounty Courier may not be used orreproduced without written permissionof Homesteader News, Inc.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:Letter must not be more than 250words in length. They should bedated, must be signed and have anaddress and daytime phone number.Only the name and city will be printedwith the letter. The Courier reservesthe right not to print letters to theeditor or other submitted materials itconsiders inappropriate.

AD DEADLINE:Monday 4 p.m. for Thursdaypublication.

CLASSIFIED RATES$5 for 15 words, $10 for 35 words. Admust be in writing and pre-paid. TheCourier reserves the right not to printclassified advertising it considersinappropriate.

DISPLAY RATES:Open rate — $16 per column inch.Call for more information or to set anappointment. The Courier reservesthe right not to print advertising itconsiders inappropriate.

MAIL SUBSCRIPTIONS:52 issues for $30.Delivery via 1st class mail.

ADDRESS:15344 Werling CourtHorizon City, TX 79928

Phone: 852-3235Fax: 852-0123

E-mail:[email protected]

PublisherRick Shrum

Business ManagerFrancis D. Shrum

ContributorsDon WoodyardSteve EscajedaArleen Beard

Eye on D.C. By U.S. Rep. Henry Bonilla

The holiday season is upon us, and what a wonderfultime it is to spend with family and loved ones relivingold memories and making new ones. While we cherishthese special moments, we should not forget about thoseamong us who are not as fortunate.

All around our communities are hard working folkswho, because of unfortunate circumstances, cannotstretch their paychecks for enough food for themselvesor their families. Setting aside a portion of your after-noon or weekend to assist those less fortunate than uscould make a huge difference — especially in this holi-day season.

This country was built on individualism, which in-cludes an individual’s responsibility to his or her neigh-bors. Part of this responsibility is to lend a hand to aneighbor in their time of need. By giving a little of your-self, you not only empower your neighbor, but you alsomake your community stronger and more united.

There is perhaps no better example of people unitingand working for the common good of the communitythan in small towns in South and West Texas. In thesesmall Texas towns people are naturally charitable. Tex-ans haven’t forgotten to make it a priority to give some-thing back to our communities. And it’s not like you don’thave anything else to do. You lead busy lives. You work,take care of families, go to church, coach little league, and

Lend a helping hand to those in needyet still make the time to volunteer.

Many people think heroes arethe people who beat the odds andachieve the impossible. But thepeople who do succeed against theodds aren’t the only heroes.America is full of them. Heroes are the people who notonly recognize that the world is full of need, they dosomething about it. They get up in the morning and de-cide they are going to do something to make their com-munity a better place.

There is nothing more satisfying than helping an im-poverished child learn to read or delivering a good, hotmeal to an elderly grandmother. Not only do you bringsmiles to the faces of those you volunteer to help, butyou get a warm feeling in your heart that lasts a longtime.

The opportunities to help are boundless. If you’re notinvolved, get involved. Make the decision to just do it.Whether it’s stopping along the highway and picking uptrash, or organizing a fund-raiser to donate money tocharity. You can make a difference. And to those whoare already doing it, a hearty thank you. Giving to thosein need around us, helping our neighbors, and assistingthose with special needs — that is the true meaning ofthe holiday season.

There is an old saying that goes:“With friends like that, you don’tneed enemies.”

Unfortunately, we’ll have to reviseit to include “with family like that…”

We see enough horror on the newsabout people, particularly youngpeople, committing all kinds ofatrocities against their offspring andthough our minds reel at the prospect,we somehow come to the conclusionthey are either stunted in their emo-tional development or just plaincrazy.

But we don’t expect it out of older,more mature parents.

Maybe we should have.A new and terrible kind of child

abuse is surfacing among parentswith children of college age — youknow, that time when parents havetraditionally faced sacrificing theirretirement to pay for the kid’s edu-cation.

Well, the tables have turned and itis turning out ugly.

Identity theft and credit fraud isoccurring at epidemic levels in whichthe thieves are family members ofchildren who are unknowingly in-debted, sometimes even before theyhave reached the age at which theyqualify for credit.

We all invested in shredders tothwart the deadly “dumpster divers”we’ve been warned about. We shroudthe keypad as we punch in the num-bers on our calling card so they can’tbe stolen at a pay phone by an evilbinoculars-wielding spy person. Wedon’t put our social security numberson our kids’ soccer application’ any-more and we watch with eagle eyeand bated breath till our credit cardsare returned to our trembling fingers

With familylike that…

at the check-out counter. Buy on-line? Never!

But, turns out, the enemy was us.A credit expert in Florida says he

sees it happen all the time — peoplewho have messed up their own creditwith over-spending cannot resist tak-ing advantage of the snowy-whitepotential of their children’s unblem-ished credit — and they are messingthat up, too.

For a co-signing relative to indebta child all he or she needs is a birthdate and a Social Security number.

In short, bad habits are hard tobreak. Kids today may reach the ageof maturity to find they are the “re-sponsible party” for utility bills, cableTV and credit accounts, thanks totheir credit junkie parents.

The stories are as sad as they aredevastating, and the cases that getreported are likely just a tip of theiceberg, experts say — kids wouldrather suffer the consequences oftheir parents crime than report themto the authorities.

So what’s the experts’ answer?That’s the part that would almost befunny if it weren’t so tragic.

Financial experts are advisingyoung people to “check their creditreports often.”

At that age I didn’t even knowwhat a “credit report” was, let alonehow to check it, and with today’smish-mash of financial do’s anddon’ts, it still isn’t any piece of cakefor the average adult person.

Outside financial institutions havemuch easier access to review yourcredit than you do.

It is really a shame that our kidsare having to inherit the wind, so tospeak, of our financial system — a

system that makes it way too easy foryou to become indebted, then bleedsyou dry in interest so that you neverreally pay anything off, never reallyown anything, from cradle to grave.

Before this week is out I’ll have

ripped up at least a dozen new creditcard applications. Many of them areso simple that a third grader couldfill them out. Some of them virtuallyscream out to be accessed — justendorse and deposit the check, no

questions asked.But just because we’ve handled

our own finances badly is no excuseto burden our kids with such a legacy.

With all the enemies in the world,they don’t need families like that.

WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIERDecember 5, 2002 Page 3

Town of Horizon CityPUBLIC NOTICEA PUBLIC HEARING will be held at 6:30 p.m. onTuesday, December 10, 2002 during the Regular CityCouncil Meeting at City Hall, 14999 Darrington Road,Horizon City, Texas. Purpose of the public hearing is toallow any interested persons to appear and testifyregarding the following proposed ordinance(s):

1) Proposed Ordinance No. 0120 to codify Zon-ing Ordinance No. 0006 including AmendmentsNos. 001, 002, 003, 004, 005, part of 008, 010,011, 013, 015, 016, 018, 019, 020, 021, 022,023, 024, 025, 027, 028, and 029. for the Townof Horizon City, Texas.

Those who are unable to attend may submit their viewsin writing to the City Clerk of Horizon City. Ordinancesare too extensive to print. Ordinances are always availablefor viewing or copying upon request from the City Clerkat the above address.

Sandra SierraCity Clerk

WTCC: 12/05/02

For Sanity’s Sake By Taprina Milburn

I said goodbye to my son and hus-band, handing them sandwiches fortheir camping trip. My daughterhugged me and threw her bag in thecar so she could be dropped off at afriend’s house for a sleepover.

Poor Mom doesn’t have any plans,they said as they waved, asking if I’dbe OK.

I think I did a pretty good job oflooking pitiful, highlighting my per-formance with a speech about howterribly quiet the house would be.

“Woe is me. What will I do with-out my family here?” I looked at mywatch. “Don’t you need to be going?”

OK, between you and me, I’m notalways so eager to push my familyout the door. But it had been nearlythree years, five months, six days andtwo hours since I’d had the entirehouse to myself overnight — no kids,no husband, no dog (my son invitedher to go on the camping trip, too). Iwas ready for a little space.

I walked back in the house andpassed through the laundry room tosee a pile of clothes that needed tobe washed and a basketful thatneeded to be folded. There werebulbs I should plant in my gardenbefore the first frost, which would beany day now, and weeks ago I hadpromised to start remodeling myson’s room. I could strip wallpapertonight and be ready to paint tomor-row. Without anyone in the house, allit would take is an all-nighter andsome of these projects would be ontheir way to being completed.

Anne Morrow Lindbergh wrote,“If women were convinced that a dayoff or an hour of solitude was a rea-sonable ambition, they would find away of attaining it. As it is, they feelso unjustified in their demand thatthey rarely make the attempt.”

The gift of solitude had beenserved to me on a platter. I didn’t evenhave to ask for it. Why waste a per-fectly good evening alone on work?So I did what any other run-raggedmom — aka the resident plumber,maid, cook, vet, physician and driver— who wrestled with momentaryguilt and won would do.

SolitudeI indulged.There’s an art to indulging that I

want to share with you. You first be-gin by literally shutting the door onthe work that needs to be done. Inmy case, I shut the doors to my son’sbedroom and the laundry room,promising myself that I wouldn’t belike a moth drawn to light; I wouldn’tbe pulled in the direction of clothesthat needed to be laundered or wall-paper that needed to be stripped.

Second, you have to create a re-treat mood. I pulled out of my secrethiding places all those froufroucandles and bath products friendshave given me over the years. I litcandles and then I lathered, sprinkledand slathered myself until the housesmelled like a perfumery.

Third, I took time preparing mymeal. No, it wouldn’t be a night offish sticks or grilled-cheese sand-wiches. I was in the mood for a bigsalad, and not a bag salad, either. Iwasn’t in a hurry to get dinner on thetable for my brood. Luckily myfridge and pantry were stocked withall the ingredients I’d need — capers,baby spinach leaves, olives, almonds,feta cheese and balsamic vinegar. Isprinkled the almonds with a littlesugar and toasted them in the ovento top off my salad. Then I sat in myquiet, candle-lit house, ate my bigsalad and tasted every bite.

Finally, I finished the evening witha video I wanted to watch, a sappylove story with a lot of crying, kiss-ing and hugging — the kind of showthat requires Kleenex, and makes myhusband and kids gag.

The next day my family, who can’timagine how I endured an entirenight without them, returned, and Ihappily (after all I was refreshed andstill smelled pretty good, if I do sayso myself) resumed my role as mom.

When I described my evening tomy kids, they both laughed and saidsomething about how bored I musthave been.

Terribly. Can’t wait to be that boredagain.______________________________________________________(c) 2002 King Features Synd., Inc.

WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER December 5, 2002Page 4

Combined Public Notice Notice of Finding of No Significant Impacton the Environment and Request for Release of Funds

El Paso County, Texas West Texas County CourierOffice of the County Judge December 5, 2002500 East San AntonioEl Paso, Texas 79901(915) 546-2098

TO ALL INTERESTED AGENCIES, GROUPS AND PERSONS:Seventeen (17) days after publication, the above named County will request the Texas Department of Housing and Commu-nity Affairs (TDHCA) to release Federal funds under Title I of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (P.L.93-383) for the following project:

Project Name: El Paso County Self Help CenterTCDP Contract No.: 722003Purpose/Location of Project: To provide self help center services and training to residents of Agua Dulce and surrounding areas in El Paso County.Estimated Cost of Project: $1,208 M

FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACTIt has been determined that the request for release of funds for this project proposal will not constitute an action significantlyeffecting the quality of the human environment and accordingly the above-named County has decided not to prepare andEnvironmental Impact Statement under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (P.L. 91-190)

The reasons for such decision not to prepare such statement are as follow:1) Negative impacts to the environment as a result of the project are not anticipated.2) Disturbance (noise, dust) will be of a temporary nature and cease upon completion of the project.3) The project will not affect or be affected by the 100-year flood plain.4) No effect is expected on protected of endangered wildlife or vegetation.

An Environmental Review Record respecting the aforementioned project has been made by the above named County whichdocuments the environmental review of the project and more fully sets forth the reasons why such Statement is not required.This Environmental Review Record is on file at the above listed address and is also available for public examination andcopying upon request at the Community Development Office, 500 East San Antonio Street, Suite 313, El Paso, Texas 79901between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

PUBLIC COMMENTS ON FINDINGAll interested agencies, groups, and persons disagreeing with this decision are invited to submit written comments for consid-eration by the County to the Office of the County Judge as set forth above. Such written comments must be received at theaddress specified within sixteen (16) days after this publication. All such comments, so received, will be considered and theCounty will not request the release of Federal funds or take any administrative action on this project prior to the datespecified in the preceding sentence.

No objections received later than thirty-three (33) days after this publication will be considered by TDHCA.

RELEASE OF FUNDSThe County of El Paso, Texas will undertake the activities described above with Texas Community Development Programfunds under Title I from its Program Year 2002 under grant numbered TCDP # 722003 from the Housing and CommunityDevelopment Act of 1974, as amended. The County of El Paso is certifying to Texas Department of Housing and Commu-nity Affairs (TDHCA) that El Paso County and Judge Dolores Briones, in her official capacity as County Judge, consent toaccept the jurisdiction of the Federal Courts if an action is brought to enforce responsibilities in relation to environmentalassessments, decision making and action; and that these responsibilities have been satisfied. The legal effect of the certifica-tion is that upon its approval, El Paso County may use the Texas Community Development Program funds and it will havesatisfied its responsibilities under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. TDHCA will accept an objection to itsapproval only on one or more of the bases and the procedures described in 24 CFR Part 58.75. Objections are to beaddressed to the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs, P.O. Box 13941, Austin, Texas 78711.

OBJECTION TO THE RELEASE OF FUNDSTDHCA will accept an objection to its approval of the release of funds and acceptance of the certification only if it is on oneof the following bases: (a) that the certification was not in fact executed by the chief executive officer or other certifyingofficer of the Contractor approved by TDHCA; or (b) that the Contractor’s environmental review record for the projectindicates omission of a required decision, finding or step applicable to the project in the environmental review process.Objections must be prepared and submitted in accordance with the required procedure (34 CFR 58) and may be addressesto the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs, Texas Community Development Program, P.O. Box 13941,Austin, Texas 78711-3941.

Objections to the release of funds on bases other than those stated above will not be considered by the TDHCA. Noobjections received later than thirty-three (33) days after this publication will be considered by TDHCA.

Dolores Briones, County JudgeEl Paso County, Texas

by Ray and Associates, Inc. and acandidate is expected to be se-lected by March 31, 2003.

■ American Legion Post 36 andSocorro High School Junior NavyROTC have teamed up to provide50 Thanksgiving donation foodbaskets to needy families in thedistrict. The baskets, containingcanned goods and turkeys, werepresented to the families on thecampus of Escontrias ElementarySchool beginning Nov. 23 withhelp from the Migrant FamiliesProgram.

■ Canutillo and Jose H.Damian elementary schoolswere recognized recently by theTexas Education Agency (TEA)for successfully educating theirmigrant students. TEA’s Divi-sion of Migrant Education se-lected Canutillo ElementarySchool and Damian ElementarySchool as winners of the 2002Recognized Campus Awardgiven to school campuses thathad high TAAS passing ratesamong their migrant students.Statewide, 280 campuses re-ceived this recognition. The pur-pose of the award is to recognizecampuses that strive to meet theunique needs of migrant childrenand their families and that helpmigrant students meet high aca-demic standards. There are anestimated 132,000 migrant stu-dents in Texas. Campus awardrecipients were honored duringan awards luncheon program atthe 2002 Texas Migrant Educa-tion Conference, in November,at South Padre Island.

■ Applications for emergencyagricultural loans for damagesand losses attributed to droughtand excessive temperatures thatoccurred beginning Jan. 1, 2002,are being accepted by the FarmService Agency (FSA) office inFort Stockton. A 15-county area,including El Paso and HudspethCounties, has been named by theUSDA as being eligible for loansto cover part of actual produc-tion and physical losses. Produc-ers unable to obtain credit fromprivate sources will receive aninterest rate of 3.75. Applica-tions will be accepted throughJune 23, 2003 but applicants areencouraged to do so as soon aspossible, said WilliamMcAnally, loan manager. Forinformation call 915-336-5206,ext. 2 or visit http://www.fsa.usda.gov/tx.

■ About 4,500 elementary, highschool, college and universityscience teachers from Texas,New Mexico, Arizona andMexico converged upon El Pasoearlier this month for the annualConference for Advancement ofScience Teaching, or CAST.Hosted by the Science TeachersAssociation of Texas, or STAT,the conference was held at theJudson F. Williams ConventionCenter. In addition to keynotespeakers from the world of sci-ence education and workshopsfocusing on the advancement ofscience teaching, conferencegoers enjoyed “field trips” to ElPaso historical and cultural at-tractions. Field trips featuredInsights Science Museum, the ElPaso Museum of Art, HuecoTanks, the Magoffin Home, Mis-sion Trail, Wyler Aerial Tram-way, and many others.

BriefsFrom Page 1____________________

WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIERDecember 5, 2002 Page 5

Classified AdsLEGALS

PUBLIC NOTICEAs per Article V, Sec.5.05(a), all owners andlienholders have ten (10)days from this date to re-claim their vehicles atSouthwest Wrecker,1401 Darrington Rd.,855-1900, 851-2091-fax,or it will be sold at publicauction for charges:VIN -JHMBA5447GCO72I43,1986 Toyota, grayVIN -IC3BT66EOHC268142,1989 Dodge, brownVIN -2G3AJ5I30J2374888,1987 Oldsmobile, brownWTXCC-12/05/02________________________

HELP WANTED

PECAN BUSINESS onemile south of Fabensneeds full time employeethat is computer skilled,bilingual, and speaks flu-ent English with goodtelephone skills. Packag-ing and shipping in-cluded. Must be reliable,and references required(include all employmentpast five years). Fivedays per week, may re-quire some travel. Must

have drivers license.Starting salary $9.25 perhour. Send resume toSecretary, P.O. Box 777,Fabens, Texas 79838.11/28________________________

LOST/FOUND

FOUND: Child’s immuni-zation record found inHorizon City. Call to iden-tify. 852-4577.12/5________________________SERVICES

“Windshield Ding —Gimme a Ring”

JIFFY GLASS REPAIRWindshield Repair

SpecialistsBy appt. at your home

or office:R.V. Dick Harshberger

915-852-9082________________________

BERT’S

AUTOMOTIVEREPAIR

Domestic and Foreign852-3523

1558 Oxbow,Horizon City

________________________

HORIZON CITYPLUMBING852-1079

• Electric rooter servicefor sewers and drains• Appliance installation• Many other plumbingservicesLicensed, bonded and

insured for yourprotection.

________________________

AL’S PLACE, INC.Household or Commer-

cial Storageand Yard Space

Fenced and LightedSecurity System

No Deposit418 Kenazo, Horizon

City852-3949

E-MAIL YOUR ADS:[email protected]

SERVING ANTHONY, VINTON, CANUTILLO, EAST MONTANA, HORIZON, SOCORRO, CLINT, FABENS, SAN ELIZARIO AND TORNILLO

WEST TEXAS — The only Texas county with whichEl Paso County shares a border, Hudspeth County madehistory in the last election, choosing its first femalecounty judge.Becky DeanWalker swept theelection over twochallengers, car-rying all but oneprecinct in Ft.Hancock.

H u d s p e t hCounty has lessthan one personper square mile,but ranks near thetop in size amongTexas counties.With a land massof 4,572, it isn’tfar behind Texas’largest county,Brewster, with6,204 squaremiles of territory.

H u d s p e t hboasts a popula-tion of about3,344, accordingto the 2000 census. One of the 254 total counties in Texas,it was carved out shortly before 1921 when the lastcounty, Kenedy, was created. With a population that is75 percent Hispanic and a per capita income hoveringsomewhere just over the $12,000 mark, Hudspeth hasnever been considered a political powerhouse, though itdid manage to defeat the state of Texas’ attempt a fewyears ago to locate a three-state low-level nuclear wastedump just outside the city limits of Sierra Blanca, thecounty seat.

Presenting less than a united front, the community wasnot so fortunate to escape becoming a sludge depositoryfor New York for a time, a situation that has since cometo a standstill, apparently due to financial attrition.

Hudspeth County has only three “major” communi-ties with slightly more than 500 population each — DellCity, Ft. Hancock and the county seat of Sierra Blanca.The blink-your-eye-and-miss-it township of Cornudasout on 62-180, though privately-owned, claims the sta-tus of a community.

The county is dotted with used-to-be communities, likeAcala and McNary, which fell victim to a decrease inpopulation after the 1950s when Hudspeth hit its peakpopulation of 5,000-plus during a farming boom. Todaythe county boasts little other industry.

Walker was raised just over the county line in OteroCounty, New Mexico, the daughter of sheep-ranchingparents, Clifton and Millie Dean. Graduating from high

Hudspeth County swears in first woman county judgeschool in Dell City, she married Dennis Walker ofMalaga, New Mexico.

Now mother of two — son Kyle and daughter Whitney— Walker has ahistory of judi-cial service inH u d s p e t hCounty, havingbeen Justice ofthe Peace in Ft.Hancock for sev-eral years beforemoving to SierraBlanca. Thefamily ranchesand operates aheavy equip-ment construc-tion company.

She wassworn in early— her actualelected termwould have be-gun at 12:01 a.m.on Jan. 1 — dueto the ill healthof her predeces-sor, James

Peace, who chose to resign his office a month early.With the Hudspeth County Courthouse under renova-

tion, the swearing-in was conducted in the fellowshiphall behind the almost-century-old First United Meth-odist Church in Sierra Blanca by County Clerk PatBramblett.

The Texas Constitution gives broad judicial and ad-ministrative powers to the position of county judge.Walker will preside over a five-member commissionerscourt, with budgetary and administrative authority overcounty government operations.

Under Texas law, a county judge also handles suchwidely varying matters as hearings for beer and winelicense applications; admittance to state hospitals for thementally ill and mentally retarded; juvenile work per-mits and temporary guardianships for special purposes.

The judge is also responsible for calling and postingelection notices and for canvassing the election returns.The county judge may also perform marriages.

The Hudspeth county judge also has judicial respon-sibility for certain criminal, civil and probate mattersincluding appellate jurisdiction over matters arising fromthe justice courts.

The county judge is also head of civil defense anddisaster relief, county welfare and, because Hudspethis under 225,000 population, the judge also preparesthe county budget along with the county auditor orcounty clerk.

PLEDGING TO UPHOLD — Becky Dean Walker, right, promises to up-hold the law while being sworn in to office as Hudspeth County Judge onSunday, Dec. 1. Hudspeth County Clerk Pat Bramblett does the honors.

SAN ELIZARIO — “A lot of ex-cellent things are happening on thecampuses,” reported Mike Quatrini,superintendent of the San ElizarioISD at the Nov. 13 board of trusteesmeeting.

Quatrini outlined district activi-ties and achievements in hisprogress report to the trustees.“Overall, progress is very positive;morale is high.”

Report highlights:• Turnover is down from 50 per-

cent to seven percent. “Teacherscontinue to return,” according to hiswritten report. “This strengthensstudent success and achievementdue to consistency of highly trainedand qualified teachers.”

• “Based upon TAAS scores for2001-02, all campuses reported in-creases from the previous year.”

• Two TEA Recognized schools,Alarcon and Sambrano Elementary.

• “Extremely smooth” move-infor new administration building.

• Uniforms at middle school andAlarcon. Uniforms for Borrego andSambrano are in progress.

• Insurance and benefits upgradedfor staff.

On recommendation of SupportServices director Robert Longoria,the board approved low bidderSilverton Construction Co. for

By Don Woodyard�Courier Staff Writer

San Eli superintendent saysdistrict progress continues positive

wastewater improvements atAlarcon Elementary and the middleschool. The contract for $74,916calls for the construction of an eight-inch wastewater disposal lines fromthe schools to connect with LowerValley Water District. This will re-lieve the district of wastewater dis-posal responsibilities.

Longoria also reported that newsidewalks are under consideration toimprove safety for children walkingto school. He said the district is dis-cussing with the County PlanningDepartment the construction of newsidewalks from the middle school tothe Good Time Store and along theroad behind Borrego Elementary.

The board also approved SEISDjoining the TASB Buy Board. Thestatewide purchasing cooperativewill enable the district to buy cer-tain items at a cheaper price. “It iswell worth the investment ($200),”said Larry Worrell, district financialdirector.

A donation of $1,500 from theUniversity of Texas Pan Americanto Borrego Elementary was ap-proved by trustees. The money willgo to support the school’s wellnessprogram which educates students,parents and staff.

Joe Zavala, computer lab teacherat Borrego, was named Teacher ofthe Month.

Ruby Pataluna, cafeteria managerat the middle school, was namedEmployee of the Month.

WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER December 5, 2002Page 6

By Steve Escajeda�Special to the Courier

King Super CrosswordLETTER PERFECT

ACROSS 1 Exercise target 5 Actuate 10 Boston _ 14 DenzelWashington film 19 Kansas city 20 _ incognita 21 Comfort 22 “Middlemarch”author 23 Butcher-shop buy 25 ModernMesopotamia 26 Numerical wordform 27 Theater collection 28 Director Michael 30 Satyric trait 32 Vim 33 Bond rating 35 Neapolitan song 38 Work over? 39 Tarnish 44 PBS benefactor 45 Mrs. Nick Charles 47 ABA member 48 Shipshape 50 Standard 52 Court cry 56 Start of a Nashverse 60 Maestro Arturo 63 Opening remark? 64 To and _ 65 Rang 66 Rapper Tone _ 67 Rained and

snowed 70 Kruger of “HighNoon” 72 “_ vous plait” 73 To boot 74 Bach favorite 78 Hostage 81 New Deal agcy. 82 _ May Oliver 83 Most enthusiastic 87 Diminutive suffix 88 Make minestrone 90 Say please 92 Actress Zellweger 93 Connecticutcounty 95 It’s a guy thing 98 Perplexed 99 WWII site101 Kenwoodcompetitor102 Glowing103 No, to Nureyev106 Asian soldier107 Haphazard110 Disney dog113 George Peppardseries117 Korf or Sara118 What a fellerneeds119 Keeping120 Give in to gravity123 Walked126 Diacritical mark128 Author Ambler131 Famed disc jockey134 Irving’s “The _New Hampshire”

135 Amneris’ rival136 Messy Madison137 European country138 High-techmissives139 Expensive140 Uses a trepan141 TV’s “Ding _School”

DOWN 1 Trim 2 Sampras strokes 3 Soap additive 4 Chicken little? 5 “_ been ages!” 6 “Simple Simon -…” 7 Type of sch. 8 Thalia’s sister 9 Albert and Victoria 10 Mile High Centerarchitect 11 Boathouse item 12 Sacred song 13 Costume sparkler 14 Kid 15 Castilian cry 16 Hefty herbivore 17 Short messages 18 Stick ‘em in yourear 24 Actor Morales 29 Singer Summer 31 _ Canals 34 ComposerThomas 36 August one? 37 Big revolver?

38 Holstein’s home 39 Rome’s _ ofCaracalla 40 Lucy’s landlady 41 Marker 42 “Aladdin” frame 43 Grapefruit serving 46 Way 49 Deck of destiny 51 Dewy 53 Pickling herb 54 Baseball’sSlaughter 55 Puerto _ 57 City on theAllegheny 58 Reply to the LittleRed Hen 59 One who no’sbest? 61 Smug smile 62 “The Color Purple”character 65 Kirsch kin 68 Sgt. Bilko 69 Campus digs 71 Designer Lapidus 73 Bronte’s “_ Grey” 75 Tom, Dick, andHarry 76 Skater Cohen 77 Franco of“Camelot” 78 Cougar 79 Landed 80 Gets hitched 84 “_ Gay” 85 Big rigs 86 Choppers

88 Deal with a dragon 89 Newsboy’s shout 91 Kamm orKristofferson 94 Contradict 95 Harnessed theoxen 96 Bird of prey 97 Abbreviatedaddress100 Sodom escapee104 JFK abbr.105 Fine fiber108 Compassion109 Moved like 116Down110 Woodworking tool111 Postulate112 Nile feature114 Mysterious115 Iron clothes?116 Animal thatroared?119 Convent cubicle121 Namu or Willy122 Bloomsbury buggy124 Roy Rogers’birthplace125 Bruce or Laura127 “Agnus _”129 Journalist Tarbell130 Roller-coaster unit132 “_ longa, vitabrevis”133 Brew barrel

Answer Page 7

Serving Far East El PasoI-10 at Horizon Exit

• Low Rates• Insurance Replacements• Warranty Replacements• Free Pick-Up & Drop-Off• Rate Programs Available

1367 Horizon Blvd.(Premier Freightliner

Sales Building)

(915) 852-7171

Horizon City Community ChapelSunday School ........... 9:45 a.m.Sunday Service ........ 10:45 a.m.Sunday Yth. Group ..... 6:30 p.m.Wednesday NightAdult Bible Study ........ 6:30 p.m.

Mr. Dean Pinney, Pastor

Spanish ServicesEstudio Dominical ...... 9:45 a.m.Servicios en Español ... 10:45 a.m.Estudio en EspañolBiblico Jueves ............ 6:30 p.m.

Mr. Pablo Gonzalez, Assoc. Pastor

Sunday Morning Nursery Available

Non-Denominational14802 Duanesburg • 852-3154

NMSUAggies

vs

Monday, December 9At the Don Haskins Center

Don’t miss theI-10 RIVALRY!

For information call: 747-6150

Women’sTip-Off

5:05 PM

Men’sTip-Off

7:35 PM

I guess I was kind of disappointed,but not really.

I expected for a chair to be thrownor a neck to be choked or a head tobe butted…but not really.

I was kind of disappointed that Ididn’t see basketball’s type-A person-ality poster boy Bobby Knightgo…well…you know…BobbyKnight all over somebody during lastweek’s game against the Miners.

We can’t tell if new sensitive Bobby is the Black Knight or Sir GalahadBut not really.Not after I heard Knight talk so

glowingly about former UTEP coachDon Haskins after the game.

Knight was in total control, almostjovial after the contest. I mean, let’sface it, the Miners didn’t exactly giveKnight any reason to get even a littlepeeved let alone go totally ballistic.

Knight’s team came close to set-ting a record for causing UTEP turn-overs in a game, forcing 31 big mis-cues. The irony was the fact thatUTEP’s all-time record for turnoversis 33, also caused by a Bobby Knight

team, the 1979 Indiana Hoosiers.But it was still good to see the

much maligned Knight show hissofter, dare I say more sensitive, sideafter the game.

Yes, this newsflash just in…BobbyKnight does seem to have a sensitiveside.

Knight said that he’s always con-sidered Haskins a kind of big brother.In fact, Knight, with tongue firmlyplanted in cheek, called Haskins amuch older and much bigger bigbrother.

Knight said that he and Haskins

had gone out to eat the day beforehis Texas Tech Red Raiders routedUTEP 83-60. Knight said that he gota little worried because Haskinsdrove him around for a while beforethey finally stopped at a place.

But, Knight explained, that is justthe way it always is withHaskins…“he talks for the entire rideand I just sit and listen,” Knight said.And he said it with the body languageof a man expressing that the pleasurewas all his.

Bobby Knight received a standingovation when he walked onto theDon Haskins Center floor last Satur-day.

Many of the over-10,000 in atten-dance who were applauding weresaluting “The General,” but manymore were saluting the fact thatKnight loves our coach Haskins —and any friend of coach is a friend ofours.

Until the opening tap, anyway.

Blazing sameold course

They say the world is in a constantstate of change.

That things never remain the sameand that the only thing you can trulycount on is the fact that tomorrow isa new day, full of newpossibilities…unless of course, youroot for the Portland Trailblazers.

After hours of exhaustive researchI have learned that the city of Port-land is the only place on this planetwhere things never change…at leastwhen it comes to the basketball team.

You see, for years the Trailblazershave owned the most individual tal-ent of any other team in the NBA,but individual talent can only get youso far.

Players have got to believe in eachother and work together to become asuccessful team.

This is where Portland falls a littleshort, year after year. It’s not that theplayers don’t have the physical tal-ent to put it all together. The prob-lem is that all combined, the entireteam’s mental intellect can fit on topof one of those Native American dol-lar coins.

And to prove their inter-cranialdeficiency, the Portland Trailblazershad three of their players arrested inthe span of less than a week recently.Wow, we’re talking Mike Tyson andO.J. kind of stuff. Seems that DamonStoudamire and the ever-immatureRasheed Wallace were cited for mari-juana possession. Not only were theystopped in their vehicle with the stuffbut police officers claimed thatStoudamire and Wallace both admit-ted to smoking marijuana.

Hey, nobody said they weren’thonest.

If that weren’t enough, forwardRuben Patterson was charged withassaulting his wife less than a weeklater.

How the heck can the Trailblazerswin an NBA championship whenthere are no women in the league tobeat up on?

The Portland Trailblazers…the oneconstant…in an ever-changingworld.

WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIERDecember 5, 2002 Page 7

OUT ON A LIMB By Gary Kopervas

GOT A LIFE By Terri Davis

THE SPATS By Jeff Pickering

R.F.D. By Mike Marland

Comix

Put us towork for you.

852-3235

Newspapers work!

By Don FloodHere at the J. Lo Rumor Control Center, we’ve been

flooded with calls ever since the announcement of Jen-nifer Lopez’s engagement to Ben Affleck.

Most of the questions revolve around two key is-sues, the first one being: Does J. Lo know that BenAffleck is bald?

Rumors of Affleck’s baldness surfaced last summer,when Ben’s hair supposedly flew off as he and a friendwere “horsing around.”

“Don’t tell Jennifer,” Ben reportedly begged hisfriend.

As far as I know, Ben’s friend never has told Jenni-fer, and I never have either.

And while I know I can trust my readers not to tell,Affleck still has a problem here.

Lopez is the kind of woman who likes things upfrontand out in the open, as anybody who saw her in thatdress at the Grammy Awards can attest.

So Ben, if you really are bald, it’s time to be astandup guy and think of a convincing lie about whyshe has to be careful about touching your hair.

The second question men want answered is, doesthis mean I won’t be able to marry Jennifer Lopez?

Sorry, guys, but it’s time to face facts. Miss Lopezwill no longer be available — perhaps until late 2003,which is when Ben’s charm is likely to wear off. Maybea little earlier if his next movie tanks or she finds outhe’s bald or both.

Until then you’ll have to bide your time. To im-prove your chances of being Hubby No. 4 — the onetrue and everlasting love of J. Lo’s life — work onbecoming a movie or recording star.

If that doesn’t work out, seek gainful employmentas a multi-billionaire.

But there is something working in favor of thosewho want to become the next Mr. J. Lo: Miss Lopez’scurrent rate of man consumption.

Her first marriage, to Ojani Noa, lasted one year.(If you haven’t heard from Mr. Noa recently it’s be-

cause Miss Lopez is believed to have eaten him tocelebrate their one-year anniversary.)

Her second marriage, to Cris Judd, lasted just eightmonths — a drop of four months, or 33 percent! (Heis also believed to have been eaten by Miss Lopez, inhonor of their eight-month anniversary.)

If this trend continues, the next marriage — pre-sumably to Ben, unless she proceeds with a warm-upmarriage in between — will last just a little over fivemonths.

From there, the numbers start to get a little scary.Again, assuming this trend continues — and scien-

tifically speaking, that’s the best we can do — by thetime Miss Lopez weds Perfect Hubby No. 10 her mar-riage would be expected to last but one week.

At some point soon after that, Miss Lopez is ex-pected to enter what scientists call a state of“hyperspeed relationships,” forcing her to eventuallymarry upward of 10, 20, 30 men a day.

At that pace, warn scientists, Miss Lopez will soonrun out of men on both coasts, and she will be forcedto start looking to America’s Heartland for men todevour.

Run while you can.______________________________________________________

(c) 2002 King Features Synd., Inc.

Sorry guys, Jennifer Lopez is taken…again

FABENS — The El Paso CountyWater Control and Improvement Dis-trict No. 4 in Fabens scheduled a spe-cial meeting on Nov. 13 for 6 p.m.This was an important meeting —representatives from the NorthAmerican Development (NAD)Bank in San Antonio made a specialtrip to El Paso for the purpose of thismeeting.

The agenda item called for an up-date from Brown and Caldwell, thewater district’s engineer, regardingthe project for the Water and WasteWater Plan, which has been lengthyand moving at a slow pace.

Personnel from NAD Bank wereto present to the Board of Directorsand update regarding the loan for thenew project.

But the meeting was canceled.Only two members attended. In

order to hold a meeting, three mem-bers are required.

As board president of this waterdistrict, I would like to encourage allcommunity members to attend thesemeetings, but especially the directors.

I understand that there are timeswhen personal commitments keep usfrom attending meetings. As a mem-ber of the board, I’ve taken the ini-tiative, made the commitment, anddedicated my time to this community.I feel very strongly that as an elected

A message to Fabens

Directors need to attend meetingsofficial all efforts should be made tobe available and attend district meet-ings, especially when representativesfrom out of town are scheduled toattend.

All members of the board were in-formed and given ample time tomake arrangements to attend thisimportant meeting.

A message to the community:Please consult with your elected of-ficials and stress the importance ofthese meetings especially with thebig project that is ahead of us. Let’snot DELAY the improvements thatare greatly needed to improve ourdrinking water system.

Board members that were presentwere Mario Aguirre, president, andRafael Ramirez, vice-president.

Board members that were absentwere Macario Olmos Jr., board mem-ber; Ernesto Chavez, board member;and Aurora Alvillar, secretary. Ms.Alvillar was out of town all week.

Others present at the meeting werethe district’s Interim General andField Manager; Horacio Juarez fromBrown and Caldwell; Cesar Ramosfrom Border Environment Coopera-tion Commission (BECC); NADBank representatives Ms. VeroniqueM. Lawrence from Project Develop-ment and Jose Ruiz, Project Devel-opment Officer.

View from here By Mario Aguirre

AUSTIN — Despite the rhetoricand headlines, there is not a teachershortage and an across-the-board payraise will not address problems inTexas schools, according to a reportissued today by the Texas PublicPolicy Foundation.

“There is no teacher shortage, itis a myth,” said Chris Patterson, theFoundation’s director of educationpolicy. “A Texas A&M study foundthat school districts employed morethan the anticipated number of teach-ers needed in the 2001-02 schoolyear. There is, however, a shortage ofqualified teachers in certain subjectareas, but pay is not the problem.”

While it is true 60 percent ofteachers quit the profession after fiveyears, the pay issue is a myth, Mrs.Patterson said. According to theTexas Teachers Association, 60 per-cent of those who leave do so becauseof a lack of student discipline, 54percent because of working condi-tions, and 38 percent because of pa-perwork. Less than 25 percent saythey left the profession because ofpay.

“Let’s put aside the dire warningsand deal with the facts: an across-the-board pay raise will do nothing toensure kids have qualified teachers,”said Mrs. Patterson. “There are manyteachers who want to teach, but haveleft the profession because they are

fed-up with the working conditions.”Mrs. Patterson’s report shatters

many teacher pay myths. The surpris-ing facts, found in an American Fed-eration of Teachers study, include:

• Texas already pays starting teach-ers above the national average;

• Average Texas teacher pay ranksabove the nation when adjusted forcost-of-living;

• Texas teachers are paid betterthan their colleagues in neighboringstates;

• Texas has increased salaries 36.5percent since 1990 — the nationalincrease is 31.5 percent;

• Almost 41 percent of Texas’ totaleducation spending goes to teacherpay.

Among Mrs. Patterson’s recom-mendations for teacher pay include:

• Establish a special salary sched-ule and fund special pay stipends forthe specific areas where there is ashortage of qualified teachers;

• Establish performance-based paythat rewards performance and em-ployment longevity;

• Create benefit incentives forteachers who remain in a school dis-trict for 10, 20 and 30 years (such aslower health insurance fees and col-lege scholarships for children).

The full paper is available at theTexas Public Policy Foundationwebsite at www.tppf.org.

Teachers quit but not becauseof bad pay, report shows

WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER December 5, 2002Page 8

THE ORIGINAL WET/DRY VAC

®®

See the complete line of the #1 selling brand of wet/dry vacs, filters and accessories.

If It Doesn’t Say Shop•Vac, Keep Shopping!®www.shopvac.comShop-Vac® is a registered trademark of Shop-Vac Corporation.

www.lowes.comLowe’s® and the gable design are registered trademarks of LF, LLC.

©2002 Lowe’s® Home Centers, Inc.For the Lowe’s nearest you call 1-800-44-LOWES.

Prices may vary if there are market variations.

DARE TO COMPARE

✔ Genuine Shop-Vac Brand

✔ Low-Profile, Anti-Tip Design

✔ Quietest Wet/Dry Vac Available

✔ Extra-Large Tool Basket

✔ Convertible Blower Port

✔ High-Performance Cartridge Filter

✔ Lock-On Hose✔ 18-Foot Power Cord✔ Top & Side

Carry Handles✔ Big 2-1/2"

Accessories

No other wet/dry vachas all of these features.

Available Only AtAvailable Only At

$6988$6988 12 Gallon 5.0 Peak HPWet/Dry Vac#159648

Available Only At Lowe’s

Can’t Tip This!makes it virtually impossible to knock over!

Exclusive

THURSDAY

Sunshine and cool.

54°▲ ▼

THUR. NIGHT

Clear and cold.

FRIDAY

Sunny to partlycloudy and milder.

60°▲ 34°▼

SATURDAY

Partial sunshine.

62°▲ 36°▼

SUNDAY

Variable clouds;chance for a

shower.

54°▲ 32°▼

MONDAY

Partial sunshine.

56°▲ 32°▼

TUESDAY

Clouds, somesunshine; perhaps

a shower.

56°▲ 34°▼

WEDNESDAY

Partial sunshine.

60°▲ 32°▼

WEATHER AccuWeather .com

SEVEN-DAY FORECAST FOR EL PASO

TEXAS WEATHER TRAVELERS CITIESUV INDEX

REAL FEEL TEMP™

AGRICULTURE

Statistics for noon.

Thursday ............ 4 ....................LowFriday ................ 4 ....................LowSaturday ............ 4 ....................LowSunday .............. 3 ....................LowMonday .............. 4 ....................LowTuesday .............. 4 ....................LowWednesday ........ 4 ....................Low

The higher the UV Index, the greaterthe need for eye and skin protection.

Albuquerque 48/28/pc 51/30/s 48/28/pc 46/27/pc 46/21/sAtlanta 42/25/pc 44/28/s 50/37/s 50/39/r 49/25/cAtlantic City 36/24/sn 38/24/s 42/30/s 45/32/pc 45/20/rAustin/San Antonio 50/30/pc 57/38/s 62/46/pc 60/32/c 56/31/sBaltimore 34/21/sn 37/21/s 42/27/s 46/30/c 47/18/rBoston 32/22/sn 36/26/pc 40/28/pc 42/30/c 39/26/snChicago 26/14/pc 30/18/pc 34/20/sf 30/16/c 27/12/pcDallas/Ft. Worth 44/33/pc 51/42/s 59/42/pc 52/34/c 52/27/sDenver 42/22/pc 50/24/pc 41/22/pc 43/25/s 40/18/sFlagstaff 48/18/s 50/21/s 41/17/c 44/16/pc 44/13/sHouston 52/34/pc 58/40/s 64/50/pc 64/50/r 58/36/sKansas City 36/18/pc 40/26/s 42/24/pc 34/16/pc 40/22/sLas Vegas 64/38/s 60/40/pc 58/38/pc 58/37/s 60/39/sMiami 83/62/t 73/59/pc 77/67/pc 79/69/pc 79/67/shMinneapolis 24/12/pc 32/16/pc 28/12/sf 20/8/pc 26/16/cNew Orleans 50/34/pc 55/41/s 63/51/pc 62/44/r 53/35/sNew York City 36/28/sn 34/24/s 40/30/s 44/34/c 42/24/shPhiladelphia 34/24/sn 38/24/s 42/30/s 46/30/c 42/19/rPhoenix 72/48/s 70/46/s 66/46/pc 67/44/s 67/37/sPortland 48/34/pc 48/34/c 48/36/pc 47/40/c 48/44/shSan Francisco 62/50/pc 58/50/c 58/48/c 58/48/pc 59/40/shSeattle 48/36/pc 46/36/c 46/36/pc 46/38/c 48/44/rTucson 68/42/s 70/42/s 64/40/pc 66/39/s 65/35/sWashington, DC 36/26/sn 38/26/s 44/32/s 46/34/c 43/22/r

City Hi/Lo/W Hi/Lo/W Hi/Lo/W Hi/Lo/W Hi/Lo/WThur. Fri. Sat. Sun. Mon.

A weak upper-level ridge will promote 5-7 hours of sunshine Thursday and Friday with a day-to-day warming trend. Seasonable andremaining dry Saturday with sunshine and some clouds. A trough digging into the Rockies this weekend could bring a couple ofshowers to the area Saturday night or Sunday. Weather (W): s -sunny, pc -partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh -showers, t-thunderstorms,

r-rain, sf -snow flurries, sn -snow, i-ice.

Thursday .................................... 56°Friday .......................................... 48°Saturday ...................................... 47°Sunday ........................................ 41°Monday ........................................ 49°Tuesday ...................................... 49°Wednesday ................................ 58°

The exclusive AccuWeather composite of theeffects of temperature, wind, humidity, sunshine,precipitation, and elevation on the human body.

Shown is Thursday’sweather.Temperatures areThursday’s highs andThursday night’s lows.

All maps, forecasts and data provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2002

Anthony 54 30

Canutillo 55 31

Fabens 53 31

Clint 53 31

E. Montana 54 30

Socorro 53 29

Horizon 55 31

San Elizario 52 28

Tornillo 53 31

Vinton 55 31El Paso54/30

Santa Fe44/21

Albuquerque48/28

Alamogordo54/28

Las Cruces54/29

Deming56/28 Carlsbad

53/29

Amarillo40/25

Lubbock46/26

Alpine50/27

Odessa50/30

Lajitas53/30

Ruidoso47/29

Cloudcroft40/11

CiudadJuárez54/30

30°

Mexico

Social Security: Q & A By Ray Vigil

Q. If I decided to retire at age 55and take a part-time job, will earlyretirement reduce my benefits at age62, even though I paid the maximumamount of Social Security for manyyears?

A. If an individual stops workingbefore retirement age he/she cannotreduce their benefits, but they maynot receive as high amount as theywould had they continued workingup to retirement age.

The earnings of the worker are “in-

Early retirement won’t reduce SocialSecurity benefit but it could become higher

dexed,” that is, adjusted for inflation.We use this amount, not the actualearnings, to figure the retirement ben-efit. The numbers used to index theearnings are based on national aver-age earnings levels and vary with theperson’s age. If a person who retiredat age 62 in 1998, for example, hadearnings of $4,800 in 1960, these earn-ings would be indexed to $31,041.40.We use this amount, not the actualearnings of $4,800, to figure the re-tirement benefit. Social Security ben-efits are based on a worker’s earnings

over the number of years the personcould be expected to have worked un-der Social Security.

The number of years used to fig-ure the average earnings is usuallyfive years less than the number ofyears:

• after 1936 (when the programbegan);

• after 1950 (when the law wasamended to cover millions of addi-tional jobs) or;

• if later, after age 21 and up to theyear in which the worker reaches age62, becomes disabled, or dies.

The period used is the one that re-sults in the highest benefit.

To figure the benefit amount formost workers now reaching age 62,we consider all Social Security-cov-ered earnings after 1950 through the

year before retirement.For most people retiring now and

in the future, we consider 35 yearsof earnings to figure retirement ben-efits. We total the highest 35 yearsof earnings during the applicable pe-riod and divide by 420 (the numberof months in 35 years) to find theaverage monthly earnings.Once the average is figured, anotherformula is applied to figure the fullbenefit rate, referred to as the primaryinsurance amount. If a person wantsto receive benefits before full retire-ment age, this figure is reduced toaccount for the longer time benefitswill be received. For example, whena worker begins to receive retirementbenefits at age 62, the earliest monthfor which such benefits can be paid,and the primary insurance amount is

reduced 20 percent. If you were bornprior to 1938, maximum reductionwould be 5/9 of one percent (20 per-cent reduction for the first 36months.) For individuals born after1938, an additional reduction of 5/12 of one percent for each month ofreduction in excess of 36 months,equivalent to additional maximum 10percent for the next 24 months.______________________________________________________For more information log onto ourwebsite, http://www.ssa.gov, call ourtoll-free number at 1-800-772-1213or visit your local Social Securityoffice. If you have any questions thatyou would like to have answered,please mail them to the Social Secu-rity Office, 11111 Gateway West, Attn:Ray Vigil, Public Affairs Specialist,El Paso, Texas 79935.