Dear Editor, I feel compelled to share with our local citizens how much I enjoyed some recent community events and have a renewed perspective for Grants and Cibola County. My spouse and I attended the NMSU Grants Open House as well as the annual Health Fair this past week. I have supported these events many times. I was so excited to see the facility improvements at our local NMSU campus and they offer something for everyone. It truly is a gem for our County and provides great opportunities for so many. Not only for students pursuing a GED or Higher Education, but also for our community in general. I’ve always encouraged students and the community to explore and enjoy this place. Spaces and places are so important in our communities. Even my husband said he found several “places” he would enjoy meditating at. I could say so much more about NMSU Grants but want to link this to my next experience at the Health Fair.
After registering with CDEC, we enjoyed the Health Fair in the Grants High School gym. Beyond the lifesaving medical services provided by Cibola General Hospital and PHI, and information from vendors from many different aspects of personal and community health, what I enjoyed the most was seeing past students at NMSU Grants who are now serving our communities as professionals. They represented Public Health, Social Work, Nursing, Education, and so much more. These people chose to stay in or return to Cibola County after getting their degree and seeing parts of our great nation. It was a time of celebration, gratitude and homecoming.
One more day trip this past month was to the State Science Fair for our finalists from Middle and High School. Our students had wonderful, meaningful experiments and represented Cibola County so well. I returned to Grants and Milan with more respect and gratitude for the good and hard work that so many people are doing to make our rural area a great place to live. Yes, we continue to struggle and have many challenges. No place is perfect, which I’ve learned living in five states from the east, midwest, and even Colorado. Thank you to all who take pride in Cibola County, from our leaders, educators, employees, parents, students, and all citizens who call this place home.
Beth Armstead Retired NMSU Grants staff and current GCCS employee
Beautiful side of Humanity
Dear Editor, On April 27, (Sun) 2025 there was a fire not very from where I lived. I woke up from an afternoon nap to a policeman flying by my house. That is not unusual.
Then a second one went by, and I surprised myself I said a little prayer for what I imagined was they chasing someone. Then the fire truck went by, and I thought “Oh my God! What is going on?”
I ran to the window and saw a massively large bellowing black cloud in front of me and heading west. There were people walking around and, on their roofs, to see what was going on. Cars going by and growing in number to a steady flow – people were panicking and evacuating and in the middle of this people frequently stopping and dropping off cases of water for the team extinguishing this beast growing stronger with the gusty winds. In the middle of this chaos and traffic more and more people bring water. Cheering on and supporting the heroes.
The electricity went out. I am sitting and watching – a few things packed and ready to go. Ready to let go of my happy home to keep going like all these people. The smoke turns white.
The beast slowly goes back to its cave. And people keep coming.
The battle was not over. Truckloads of water brought one by one to the exhausted fire fighter team. If it were not for them, it would have been much more than eight poor families having to start again because of a brush fire(?) on a windy day? How many of us were horrified? How many of us were exhausted by the terror, the battle, the community support that touched me. And it continues. This strange mixture of experiences. Terror, relief, and the beautiful side of humanity. Danielle Lara Grants, NM