-= NMSU PANORAMA - Winter 2006 =- Aggie Whirl: 1950s

Aggie Whirl

This department contains multiple stories. Please make a selection:
› Gatherings
› In Memory
› Marriages and Births
› 1950s - 2000s
› Passion for Music Leads to Successful Career as a Tour Director
› Hitting It Big in Nashville
› Alumni Shine in the Classroom

1950s

Vince Budenholzer '52 '54 of Holbrook, Ariz., was inducted into the Arizona Coaches Association Hall of Fame. Budenholzer is a retired Holbrook High School teacher and coach.

Tom H. Card '59 and his wife Nancy of Belen, N.M., celebrated their 50th anniversary on July 24, 2005. Card has four children, four grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Jon Lindsay '59 of Houston, Texas, was honored in October 2005 at the Annual Joint Society Meeting of the American Society of Civil Engineers - Houston.

Wesley Niles '59 '61 of Las Vegas, Nev., a retired botany professor from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, was honored with the naming of the Wesley Niles Herbarium at UNLV.

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1960s

Dean I. Lawry '63 of Corrales, N.M., a civilian employee at the Air Force Research Laboratory Directed Energy Directorate, retired after 42 years of federal service and received an Outstanding Civilian Career Service Award.

Robert Ogas '68 of Las Cruces was honored for his achievements in the Las Cruces Public School system with induction into the New Mexico Activities Association Hall of Fame.

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1970s

Everett W. Crawford '70 of Mesilla Park, N.M., was nominated to serve a second term as an at-large director for the Independent Community Bankers of America, the nation's largest banking trade association.

Denise Chavez '71 of Las Cruces received the Luis Leal Award for Distinction in Chicano/Latino Literature, awarded by the University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara Book and Author Festival and Santa Barbara City College.

Dan Arvizu '73 of Lakewood, Colo., was appointed by President Bush as Director of the National Renewable Energy Lab in Colorado.

Walter R. Archuleta '74 of Santa Fe, N.M., was awarded the Matías L. Chacón Lifetime Achievement Award at the 33rd New Mexico Association for Bilingual Education Annual Conference.

Larry Matthews '74 '75 of Brewer, Maine, has been named a Fellow of ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers), the highest elected grade of membership in the society.

Fred L. Black '77 of Aztec, N.M., recently retired after 20 years of outstanding service in the U.S. Navy. Black received the Joint Meritorious Commendation and Naval Security Group Command Meritorious Service Award.

Edward Lujan '77 of Albuquerque was named chair emeritus for the National Hispanic Cultural Center Foundation. Lujan recently served as chairman of the board for the NHCC and a former chairman of the board for the NHCC Foundation.

Joseph Ortega '78 of Espanola, N.M., was named deputy office director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory Prime Contract Office.

Selma Sierra '79 of Arlington, Va., was named chief of staff for the U.S. Department of Interior, Bureau of Land Management. Sierra had been acting chief since May 2004.

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1980s

Herman Stevenson '80 of Albuquerque is on temporary assignment with NMSU's Black Programs office and is spearheading an effort in northern New Mexico to recruit African-American students to attend NMSU.

Cornel Pewewardy '81 of Lawrence, Kan., was named Distinguished Scholar by the American Educational Research Association in Montreal, Canada, and the 2005 Big 12 Outstanding American Indian Faculty Member of the Year.

Mary Jane Garcia '82 '86 of Doña Ana, N.M., received the New Mexico State Historic Preservation Office Lifetime Achievement Award at the 33rd Annual Heritage Preservation Awards ceremony in Santa Fe, N.M.

Paul Gray '82 of Bayard, N.M., was appointed district engineer of the New Mexico Department of Transportation District IV.

Richard E. Newton '83 of Tularosa, N.M., was named acting ranger for the Silver City Ranger District of the Gila National Forest. Newton previously worked for the Lincoln National Forest in Alamogordo, N.M.

Clifford Young '83 of Carlsbad, N.M., who teaches English at Carlsbad High School, made his debut at the Carlsbad Community Theatre with the play Camping with Henry and Tom.

Ruby Alexander '84 of Los Alamos, N.M., recently opened Ruby K's Bagel Café in downtown Los Alamos. Alexander is co-owner with a friend of 20 years, Kelly Parker.

Thomas Byrum '84 of Ocala, Fla., was the featured guest at a three-day alumni reunion at the New Mexico State University Golf Course, where 43 former members of the men's golf team were honored.

David Pruett '88 of Las Cruces was elected as 2005 president of the New Mexico Building Branch, Associated General Contractors, a statewide association of commercial building contractors.

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1990s

Jacklyn A. Rose '90 of Las Cruces was featured in the New Mexico State University Faculty Art Exhibition.

Padma Mott '92 of Las Cruces trains horses at the Desert Meadow Stables, in Mesilla, N.M., which she co-owns with Becki Graham '05.

Michael P. Young '92 of Las Cruces recently founded KidS VidZ, a company promoting the benefits of athletics and encouraging children to become and stay involved in athletics.

Valerie (Groth) Pickett '92 '01 of Las Cruces was recently appointed Enrollment Management Specialist at New Mexico State University's office of enrollment management.

Eric Garcia '94 of Jacksonville, N.C., recently received the Distinguished Flying Cross for lifesaving actions during Operation Iraqi Freedom I.

Robert S. Turner '94 of Taos, N.M., was named vice president and commercial lender at First National Bank for the Valencia County area.

Brian E. Bell '96 of Alamogordo, N.M., was nominated as favorite teacher at Alamogordo High School where he is a band director.

Maury Giles '96 of Driftwood, Texas, joined the advertising firm of GSD&M as Director of Analytic Solutions.

Lorrie Brunacini Goodwin '96 of Corrales, N.M., opened a specialty store in Rio Rancho, N.M., called Simply Home, which offers many European imported items.

R. Bryan Scott '96 of Liberty Hill, Texas, was appointed Business Banking Manager at the Jollyville Branch of Wells Fargo bank in Austin, Texas.

A. Manuel Encinias '97 of Clayton, N.M., was appointed beef cattle specialist at the NMSU Clayton Livestock Research Center.

Garth Scrivner '98 of Albuquerque, a supervising senior accountant at Meyners + Company LLC, earned his designation of Certified Valuation Analyst.

David N. Short '98 of El Paso, Texas, was hired by Varay Systems as the company's project manager for network and support services.

Bernadette Smyth '98 '02 of north-of-Dublin, Ireland, had three short stories accepted for publication by Puerto del Sol, the literary magazine published by the English department at NMSU.

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2000s

Della Bustamante '00 of Nashville, Tenn., sang at Arrey Elementary School in Arrey, N.M. Bustamente pursues a singing career in Nashville and has sung opera in New Mexico and Nashville.

Lee Yobbi '00 of Santa Fe, N.M., was selected sportswriter of the year for New Mexico by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association.

Sean Phillip Bloch '01 of Las Cruces departed in May 2005 for a 26-month assignment in Tanzania with the Peace Corps.

Stacey Sievert '02 of Tijeras, N.M., currently serving in Madagascar as a Peace Corps Volunteer, has been teaching English as a foreign language at a rural middle school.

Jody Lee Green Prell '03 of Carlsbad, N.M., celebrated with husband, David, their 25th anniversary June 14, 2005.

Jessica R. Haber '04, of Tijeras, N.M., assigned to aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk, made a port visit to Sydney, Australia, and forward deployed to Yokosuka, Japan.

Heather N. Adragna '04 of Albuquerque received the American Society for Horticultural Science Collegiate Scholars Award at NMSU.

Rosanna Cardona '04 of Albuquerque was hired by the Albuquerque office of Grant Thornton LLP as an associate in the assurance division.

Patrick M. Dixon '04 of San Rafael, N.M., has been selected by Occidental College in Eagle Rock, Calif., to participate in the Budapest Semester in Math in Hungary.

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