Extension agent to address Rotary

Andrew “Drew” Garnett, Chaves County agricultural extension agent, will be speaker at this week’s Roswell Rotary Club meeting.

Drew was raised in Dexter, where he fell in love with entomology through Future Farmers of America.

He received his BS and MS degrees in Agricultural Biology, with an emphasis on Entomology, from New Mexico State University.

Drew moved to Florida, where he taught high school science but returned to his love of entomology by working for Walt Disney World Horticulture for the past five years.

He moved back to Chaves County in the winter of 2021 as the NMSU agricultural extension agent. 

Honoring Vietnam War veteran

Pecos Valley Quilters Dietta Hitchcock (bottom left) and Carolyn Mitchell show the patriotic-themed quilt presented to Marlin Wells, a Vietnam War combat veteran, at last week’s Roswell Rotary Club meeting. Dietta is the wife of Rotarian Jon Hitchcock; Carolyn and Marlin are Roswell Rotarians.

Club highway cleanup Oct. 8

Patton

The Roswell Rotary Club has scheduled cleaning up its mile along U.S. 285 starting at 8 a.m. on Oct. 8, a Saturday. 

Rotarian Gordon Patton, highway cleanup chair, said club volunteers will meet just before 8 a.m. for coffee and snacks at Mile Marker 116.3, about one mile north of the overpass on U.S. 285.

“It takes an ideal group of 12 minimum about 1.5 hours the walk out our mile on both sides of the highway,” Patton said. “Your participation is encouraged to help keep our Rotary Mile from being trashy!”

Gloves, trash bags and safety vests will be provided.

Yehls head United Way campaign

Roswell Rotary Club member Warren Yehl and his wife Barbara will chair the 2022 United Way of Chaves County fund-raising campaign. The goal of this year's campaign is $400,000.

Rotarians help monarch tracking

Bianca Cheney at release

Rotarians and family members helped with the release of 200 tagged monarch butterflies during the 19th annual Dragonfly Festival at Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge east of Roswell.

This year’s festival was held Sept. 10 at the refuge, 4200 E. Pine Lodge Road.

Rotarian Warren Yehl and club president Bianca Cheney led the Roswell Rotary Club effort to release the butterflies

The club contributed to the purchase of the butterflies this year from a 2022-23 District 5520 grant.

“We will be asked to work on the butterfly trail at a later date,” Cheney added. “The monarchs are marked with a special tag so when they are caught, locations and distance traveled can be documented.”

The wildlife refuge reported each butterfly had a special numbered light sticker affixed to its wing. This sticker, which does not hinder the butterfly’s flight, helps scientists keep track of the monarchs’ migration routes.

Volunteers in Mexico locate the monarchs in their overwintering sites and on their spring migration back through North America.

Information collected also helps conservationists set aside migration corridors for the butterflies and promote planting milkweed along the way. Monarch caterpillars require milkweed to survive, the refuge reported.

The Warren Yehl family and Bianca Cheney help a Bitter Lake Wildlife Refuge ranger with the release of monarch butterflies.

Paul Long newest member

Paul Long is officially welcomed into the Roswell Rotary Club on Sept. 8. Long, who holds a Banking classification, is senior vice president of J.P. Stone Community Bank.

Barbara Gomez this week's speaker

Gomez

Barbara Gomez, the new executive director of MainStreet Roswell, will speak to the Roswell Rotary Club this Thursday about the program.

Gomez has served as MainStreet Roswell executive director since Aug. 1.

“This organization is vital to not only the community of Roswell, but most especially the downtown Roswell district,” she said. “MainStreet Roswell is considered an arm of economic development and is charged with providing economic vitality, organization, promotion and design to the downtown district.

“We apply for grants to provide revitalization of facades and to build new outdoor areas to bring economic vitality. We have submitted a grant to help construct the upcoming Great Blocks area ‘Market Place walk’ and should know soon if we were approved for a substantial grant for this project,” Gomez said.  

She said the downtown corridor “encompasses Main Street from Eighth Street to McGaffey, going north and south; Richardson Avenue and Virginia going east and west.

“Events on MainStreet provide promotions to shop on Main Street and tourism — events such as UFO Events in July, the Chile Cheese Festival in September and Christmas events in December. We also provide decorations on Main Street — flags for 4th of July weekend, flowers in the pots in spring, Christmas lights in the trees, and Christmas decorations on the light poles,” Gomez said.  

Prior to being selected as MainStreet Roswell director, Gomez worked for Frontier Medical Home Care for 12 years.

“Many of you may already know me or have attended one of the many events I have coordinated, such as the Baby Boomer Health & Business Expo, the BRAVE 5k (Bringing Remembrance to All Veterans Everywhere), Roswell Mud, Sweat & Tears, and many more,” she added. 

Concert on courthouse lawn

Roswell Rotary Exchange student Sakurako “Sakura” Kamitani and host mother Maria Bleth attend the Roswell Symphony Orchestra brass band concert Sept. 2 on the lawn of the Chaves County Courthouse.

District governor's Roswell visit

John Drusedum, Rotary District 5520 governor, presents a banner to Roswell Rotary Club president Bianca Cheney during his visit to his home club on Sept. 1. After addressing Roswell Rotary Club members and meeting with board members, Drusedum was guest of honor at a reception in the home of Rotarian Mark Bleth and his wife Maria.

John Drusedum, Rotary District 5520 governor, addresses Roswell Rotary Club and Pecos Valley Rotary Club members during a reception at the home of Roswell Rotarian Mark Bleth.