Unclaimed vet honored in Gallup

GALLUP - The cremated remains of a U.S. Army veteran who was unclaimed by family members after his death will be interred at the Gallup State Veterans Cemetery at 333 National Cemetery Dr. on Nov. 15 at 11 am.

Former Staff Sgt. Timothy John Clark will be laid to rest with military honors – a privilege accorded to all honorably discharged veterans. Mr. Clark, who served from 1965 to 1973, passed away in the Four Corners area of New Mexico in September 2016.

The urn will be provided by woodshop class students of Mr. Geno Perez at Valley High School in Albuquerque – the same class which provided urns used in a Forgotten Heroes Funeral for 22 unclaimed deceased veterans on Sept. 26 at the Santa Fe National Cemetery.

Department of Veterans Services Public Information Officer Ray Seva says Clark’s remains were at the cemetery already, when he learned about them from Veterans Helping Veterans, a local area group. Efforts to locate people who knew Clark were unsuccessful.

Jess Butler, of Rockin J Reawakenings Ranch, says at least two veterans from the ranch will attend the ceremony to honor former Staff Sgt. Clark.

Members of the public are encouraged to attend.

The Gallup State Veterans Cemetery is located on the north side of westbound Interstate 40 at 333 National Cemetery Dr. It became the state’s second state veterans cemetery when it opened on Memorial Day, and is managed by the New Mexico Department of Veterans Services.

Staff Reports

DNC hopeful Pia Gallegos on her priorities

With 2020 around the corner, the country has a pivotal election year ahead. And many candidates and hopefuls know it, which is why many of them have already hit the campaign trail and begun holding meetings and rallies.

The Democratic Party of New Mexico recently got together in Gallup for their State Central Committee meeting. Campaign staffers for numerous candidates assembled at the Lions Club Oct. 18 and again Oct. 19 at the Fire Rock Casino to exchange information about the upcoming elections and encourage guests to support their candidates.

One of the candidates, Pia Gallegos, running for a seat on the Democratic National Committee, spoke with the Sun about the issue she is most focused on.

“If the [Democratic National Committee] wants a debate on climate change, then they should have one,” Gallegos said. “This is an existential crisis that we are undergoing right now. The International Panel on Climate Change has said we have about 10 years to renovate the economic system to lessen our reliance on oil and gas.”

Winning a seat on the DNC will allow Gallegos to address these concerns on a national level, she said.

Gallegos’ previous positions include serving as a State Central Committee member for two terms, First Chair of the Adelante Progressive Caucus, and Democratic Party of New Mexico Rules Committee Member.

“Devoting a single debate to climate change will be a great service to this country,” Gallegos continued. “These are decisions made by the DNC. I’d like to be on the DNC, so I can represent New Mexico and what is good for New Mexicans [on a national level].”

The DNC is charged with facilitating the Democratic presidential nominating process, governing the party, and coordinating strategies with party candidates.

Gallegos said more information and more accountability from elected officials is good for the country. Her vision for the DNC is to hold a fair, even-handed, inclusive primary and achieve greater voter participation and representation.

“The New Mexico Democratic Party needs to know what is happening on the national level because you’re not going to get that from local publications,” Gallegos said. “You’re only going to get that from the DNC representatives.”

By Cody Begaye
Sun Correspondent

Meet Camille's Teacher of the Month: Deidre Gruber

Each month, Camille’s Sidewalk Cafe in Gallup chooses and recognizes one local teacher within the Gallup area for the Teacher of the Month award. Teachers are nominated for their efforts and determination to help local students rise beyond their expectations. This month, Camille's Sidewalk Cafe recognizes pre-kindergarten teacher Deidre Gruber, of Grants.

Gruber received the news from her boss after school let out at Grants Head Start, where she has been teaching pre-K for the past two years. Gruber felt honored and excited upon hearing the news. She has been teaching more than seven years overall. Originally from Crownpoint, Gruber is Diné. She received her bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from the University of New Mexico in 2016.

“I’ve never been recognized, so it’s an honor and exciting at the same time," she said.

A teacher named Mrs. Glass became one of the role models who sparked Gruber’s interest in becoming a teacher herself.  Gruber said she had some “really cool” teachers at an early age.

Then, in high school, she had some inspirational instructors who fed that dream she had as a girl.  She said, “As I watched these teachers, they made teaching fun and helped encourage other kids to do their best." Gruber took those memories and replicated them in her classroom with the 16 students she teaches.

Gruber said the biggest thrill she gets from her job comes when the children enter her classroom every day. The smiles on their faces give her a jolt of joy as they express the delight of learning how to spell their names, recognizing the letters of the alphabet, and practicing other life skills.

“Having that smile on their faces when they come into the class is the best part," Gruber said.

Like any other job, Gruber faces challenges. She points to the lack of recognition for teachers. She says there are a lot of great teachers, but also some who aren’t that enthused about the career, giving a bad name to those who love their teaching jobs. She says that makes it difficult to highlight how many truly great teachers there are.

Another challenge she faces is testing.

Gruber believes test-taking takes the focus off the students. Gruber says you have to train young children to succeed at tests, and that can be overwhelming and hard on some teachers. The pre-K curriculum consists of social and emotional benchmarks that her class must hit every month. Gruber says it’s easy to lose focus on the kids and having fun while still encouraging them reach those standards.

“There are some great teachers who get ding[ed] by the low scores because some kids didn’t do well on test days, but well on other days. That’s not taken into consideration and that hurts most teachers especially at the end of the year," she said.

Despite the challenges, Gruber says she sees herself still teaching down the road, pursuing her education, and hopefully owning her own daycare center.

When she’s not teaching, she tries to spend more time with her family, but she says teaching is a never-ending job. “A teacher’s job is never done," she jokingly says. “I’m always looking for things to make learning more interesting.”

On weekends, she prepares things for the classroom.  On outings with her family, she may spot things she can use in her classroom. Her husband jokes that they have 18 children including her own two kids.

The future for Gruber is teaching first grade.

She also shared words of inspiration to those who want to teach.

“Do it.  It’s the most rewarding job ever. You do make a difference in a kid’s life, giving them ideas for the day - just showing them that there are people that love them and care for them.”

If you’re interested in nominating your favorite teacher for Teacher of the Month, contact Camille’s Sidewalk Café at (505) 722-5017 or stop by at 306 S. 2nd St.

By Dee Velasco
For the Sun

Parents, citizens demand answers to Tohatchi High lockdown

The lockdown and evacuation of Tohatchi High School on Sept. 23 remains fresh in the minds of some parents whose children attend the school.

But, for a select group of parents, the answers they have received from the school and Gallup-McKinley County Schools, the district, fell short of their expectations.

So, a group of concerned citizens attended the Oct. 7 Board of Education meeting in Gallup looking for more answers, as what many Tohatchi High students heard Sept. 23 doesn’t match up with law enforcement reports.

The FBI Albuquerque field office reported that one shot was fired at a vehicle crossing through a perimeter set up outside of the high school. The perimeter and lockdown was set in motion by Navajo Police Department in response to a call to the school from a man intending to go onto the Tohatchi High campus and harm himself.

But, despite parents expectations, the Tohatchi lockdown was not on the board’s sparse agenda for Oct. 7, and no comments on the matter were made by board members or Superintendent Mike Hyatt.

Tensions increased when it was discovered that none of the parents and/or concerned citizens in attendance at the meeting had prior permission to speak on the matter during the public comment portion of the meeting.

But they persisted, so board Vice President Christopher Mortensen suggested they officially adjourn the meeting and take the discussion of the Tohatchi incident offline, without the district’s video stream.

Mortensen’s motion was not received well. Some people in attendance claimed the board did not want the discussion made public.

“It has nothing to do with that,” Mortensen said. “We have rules about when you can submit for public comment, and you are past that.”

Despite the pleas of parents at the meeting, the board made the decision to adjourn.

Messages for further comment on the meeting aftermath from district officials were not received by press time.

Meanwhile, when social media swirled with reports of an active shooter on the Tohatchi High campus, people commented, and said students reported hearing multiple shots fired. They expressed anger on Gallup Sun’s Facebook page of its initial Sept. 23 report, which stated there was no active shooter on campus, and students weren’t in any danger.

The Sun later relayed a report from law enforcement, which indicated there was only one shot fired, which also didn’t set well with folks on social media.

Ophelia Anthony, contacted the Sun and described what her nephew reportedly went through during the incident.

“[My nephew] was told to go to the elementary school,” Anthony said. “He heard two shots fired around the corner of where he was. He said 300 kids stampeded to get back into the high school through two doors.”

Anthony’s account lines up with what another parent, Marv Chavez, told the Sun.

“My daughter said the principal said over the intercom to run to the elementary school,” Chavez said. “She was at the high school. Her classmate heard popping sounds echo from the courtyard.”

Parents and students described a chaotic scene, which hasn’t been confirmed by GMCS officials.

“Kids were crying and trampled on,” Anthony said. “[My nephew] went to a classroom and him and some students barricaded the door.”

As for parents and family members of Tohatchi High students, they will get another chance to have their voices heard. The next GMCS Board of Education meeting is set for Oct. 28 at Tohatchi Elementary School.

By Cody Begaye
Sun Correspondent