Crowds feel festive at Larry Brian Mitchell Recreation Center

The hustle and bustle of Christmas was certainly felt at the Larry Brian Mitchell Recreation Center Dec. 3-4 with the Holiday Arts and Crafts Fair.

A local holiday tradition in Gallup once again drew in the festive shoppers as they look for those unique whimsical homemade gifts just in time for Christmas. Behind the planning was Michelle Burrola, recreation manager for the City of Gallup. In an interview with the Sun, Burrola said this year’s event was yet another huge success with the numbers proving it.

“This event has been doing well the past [several] years and is only getting better and bigger,” Burrola said. “Just alone on Saturday we hit about 1,200 to 1,500 people coming through our doors, with another 700 to 800 people on Sunday.”

Burrola said the biggest draw is that vendors bring in items that customers want and need, as well as the timing of the event.

“When I came to this position, my goal was to attract tourists, so that was why I moved the fair closer to the Balloon Rally,” she explained. “That way we get all the people [here] and it actually panned out, even though there were other things taking place in the area.”

The fair accommodated over 58 vendors this year and had to turn away over 40 on the waiting list. The event drew vendors not only from McKinley County, but coming from as far as Sanders, Ariz., and Colorado.

The two-day event fee for the vendors was only $50, making it reasonable for more vendors to sell their items. Burrola says it’s a great event to come and buy those special Christmas gifts. Aside from perusing all the vendor tables, a door raffle is held every half-hour for both the customers and vendors themselves.

“We do two raffles for the patrons and the same for the vendors. And the vendors themselves donate items that somebody will win, a simple donation from their booth,” Burrola explained.

With so many vendors on hand, there was so much to see and smell at the arts and craft fair, such as delicious smelling Christmas baked goods, scented candles, stunning glass ornaments, unique jewelry, beautiful Christmas wreaths, and warm cozy winter scarfs.

One vendor that has always been a hit for the past 12 years, dubbed the Majeda of Gallup, sells designer purses. It’s her primary business, so Majeda does this all year round and works out of her house, but she always makes it a point to come out to the craft fair. Selling handbags and wallets of different colors/styles, she said she’s done well over the past years and has customers eagerly awaiting her arrival to the event.

When asked what keeps her coming back year after year  Majeda simply stated, it’s the people.

“The people, my customers, are what keeps me coming back,” she said. “I have long-time customers and always make new ones and friendships develop out of it.”

With various craft fairs throughout the county, Majeda says this is the only one that she attends to sell her items simply for the fact that it is the busiest and that the vendor fee is very fair.

Down each aisle, talented artisans with their arts and crafts made it hard to choose what gift to buy, such as the creative vendor, Mitzi Sanchez, of Gallup, also known as the “The Grinch Lady.” On hand she had hand-painted ornaments, candy jars, and wreaths all done in the traditional Grinch-style motif. Marketing them as stocking stuffers, Sanchez said everything is hand-painted and all homemade with a little help from her granddaughter.

“We really enjoy doing this and we do this every year, and it’s just great seeing everyone turn out for the event. It’s good for the community to be a part of it all and it’s good for Gallup,” Sanchez said.

Amidst all the chattering, ooh’s and aw’s, customers could be heard praising the fair and what will be coming next. Various vendors stated that it’s always good to shop at these events not only for the gifts but keeping the craftsmanship alive and well.

Burrola agreed that purchasing a gift from the event not only helps the local economy, but it also keeps that hometown spirit and Christmas spirit alive. She noted that plans are already in the works for the upcoming Spring 2023 arts and crafts fair with advertising being done in the latter part of February.

The fair will take place the last part of April, early May and gearing towards Mother’s Day and graduation.

By Dee Velasco
For the Sun

Man wants suspect who stabbed him with screwdriver to go to jail

A year ago, Leonard Ross Jr. was simply going about his day, running errands, when the next thing he knew, he was waking up on the ground covered in blood. Now, he’s seeking justice against the man who allegedly stabbed him with a screwdriver.

On July 31, 2023, Ross went out for what he thought would be a normal day of running errands around Tse Bonito in his wife’s car. Around 5 pm, as he was nearing the O’Reilly Auto Parts at 1572 State Road 264, a man reportedly swerved his vehicle toward Ross’ and made an obscene gesture in his direction. After this interaction, Ross pulled into the O’Reilly parking lot, but the man followed him.

Ross said he recognized the man as a fellow business owner. Ross owns a car detailing company, and the alleged suspect owns a tire company. Both businesses are on the Navajo Nation.

According to a Navajo Police Department report, the two men got out of their respective cars, and then suddenly, the suspect allegedly rushed at Ross with a screwdriver. Ross  reportedly tried to defend himself by pushing the man’s shoulder, but the next thing he remembers is waking up on the ground covered in his own blood.

Ross was allegedly knocked unconscious, and when he woke up a small group of  people were surrounding him, telling him to “get out” of the area.

“I thought I got jumped by that whole group of people, so in fear for my life I just started running, staggering, trying to get away from the scene,” Ross said. “No one helped me. No one tried to see if I was OK or if I was even alive.”

Ross said he was scared for his life in that moment, so he hopped into his wife’s car and drove back home.

The NPD was the law enforcement agency that responded to the scene. They reported that there was a surveillance video of the alleged attack, but the Sun was unable to attain the video before press time.

However, according to the police report, the suspect hit Ross hard enough in the temple for him to pass out. The suspect then repeatedly struck Ross’ face, focusing mostly in the area near his left eye.

On Aug. 2, 2023, Ross went to a hospital in Fort Defiance, Arizona, where a doctor told him that he’d been stabbed in the face 10 times with the screwdriver. According to a medical report, his left zygomatic arch bone, which is the cheekbone, was fractured and chipped.

A plastic surgeon located in Flagstaff, Arizona, told Ross that he may need surgery on his skull if the fragmented pieces don’t fuse back to his skull on their own. Now, Ross visits the doctor every 60 days to get MRIs and x-rays done of his skull to make sure there aren’t any changes to his health.

According to the medical report, the suspect allegedly brushed Ross’ eyeball twice during the attack, but the screwdriver never punctured his eye. The area around his eye was red for 30 days after the attack.

“Thank God the weapon didn’t pierce my eye or pierce my skull, otherwise I wouldn’t be here right now,” he said.

Ross said he truly believes the man was trying to kill him.

“Every stab wound was intentional, trying to kill me,” he said. “It was an attempt to kill me. He didn’t just do it once, he didn’t do it twice, he did it almost a dozen times, focused on one area while I was unconscious, defenseless on the ground.”

Now, it’s been over a year since the incident, and the case has almost run cold. Although the NPD were the ones who initially responded to the scene, it was later determined that the case was actually under the McKinley County Sheriff Office’s jurisdiction.

McKinley County is considered a checkerboard area where law enforcement agencies often spend a lot of time trying to determine whose jurisdiction a case falls under.

In an interview with the Sun, McKinley County Sheriff James Maiorano III explained how this case eventually landed under the McKinley County Sheriff’s Office’s jurisdiction.

“In November, the Navajo Police Department decided that it was not their case, and forwarded it to the FBI,” he explained. “The FBI said it’s not in their purview, because it would be a state-related charge, [and] they didn’t have jurisdiction over it.”

Maiorano was able to provide an update on the case.

“Our chief investigator assigned the case to one of our investigators, and that investigator is trying to go back to the FBI and the Navajo Nation and pull any information they have,” he said. “Most importantly, the video tape. That’s what we’re trying to track down. We’ve made several requests to the Navajo Nation Police Department, and they have not produced it yet.”

Once the lead investigator watches the video, he will determine whether a warrant can be issued for the suspect’s arrest. At press time, a warrant had not been signed by a judge.

Maiorano said the statute of limitations gives MCSO three years to file charges against the suspect. The suspect’s name will be published once the MCSO files an arrest warrant.

By Molly Ann Howel
Managing Editor

Local bodybuilder brings home medals

Chad Robinson won medals, belts, and axe awards for his classic physique and heavy bodybuilding skills at the NPC [National Physique Committee] Valley of the Sun competition in Phoenix, Ariz. May 1.

Robinson is fairly new to the Southwest. He moved from Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minn. about a year ago, so his wife, Tiffany, a Navajo who grew up in Sanders, Ariz., could be near her family. He now lives in Sanders and works in Gallup.

Robinson, who is in his fourth year of recovery from alcoholism, says his passions are bodybuilding, which he credits with saving his life, and helping other people.

The couple has been training clients out of Wowies Gym, 1500 S. Second St., Unit C, in Gallup since their arrival. Training offerings include help with weight loss, diabetes prevention, and helping clients to live a fit, healthy lifestyle.

In his May competitions, Robinson beat eight competitors to win the overall championship in bodybuilding. He also won first place in the classic physique category.

Robinson told the Sun that in addition to the trophy and getting a photo shoot in the online publication “Flex” magazine, he is now qualified to participate in the NPC  Universe competition in 2022.

“I am saving money for the national show, as it’s very expensive and bodybuilding is kinda similar to an artist,” he said. “There it’s a passion, and it’s a financial struggle each show I compete in.”

At present, he is saving up money for the NPC Universe competition in 2022, which he says he has every intention of winning.

By Beth Blakeman
Managing Editor