Illuminating Cloudcroft: Staying Up-to-Date with the Village
Village Christmas lights, the Fire Department's cool tech, Tee and Tea Times at the Lodge, Cloudcroft School news, and a Letter from the Editor
Village Business: Cool New Fire Tech, Christmas Lights Expenditure
Cloudcroft’s Volunteer Fire Department is excited about one new piece of technology coming their way—The Bridgehill Vehicle Fire Blanket.
After posting videos of the fire suppression blanket in action on social media, Fire Chief Erich Wuersching announced that it was “coming soon” to Cloudcroft. Wuersching says the blanket is “a necessity” due to the underground parking at the Grand Cloudcroft Hotel, as well as the challenges associated with vehicle fires.
Another boon for the department: Penny Hall recently won the New Mexico Fire and EMS Expo “EMS Provider of the Year” award.
Last year, the Chamber of Commerce and the village launched events for Cloudcroft as the “Christmas Capital of New Mexico,” followed by this summer’s Christmas in July Jamboree.
The pressure to fill the village with festivity is on—the council recently met over funding Christmas light purchases for the village, even the Mexican Canyon Trestle.
Illuminating: The Council Debates How to Best Shine a Light on the Christmas Capital of New Mexico
Catch up with these abbreviated talking points from the October 25th Special Meeting:
Mayor Turner opened the meeting by saying, “I just wanted to give a little context before Julie gives the bid on how we got here and why all the secrecy about the lighting of the Trestle.”
Turner continued, “Back in August, we started talking about it during our town hall…being the fact that we are the Christmas Capital of New Mexico.”
After ideas floated for decorating the village, including Burro Avenue and Zenith Park, Turner said, '“And it was going to get extremely expensive. So the thought came up: If we could get approval from the Forestry Department, let's light up the Trestle for Christmas. And so that's where this all progressed to. And we were trying to keep it quiet.”
After learning that volunteers couldn’t safely access the trestle and hang the lights, Turner said, “Well, that went south real quick. And we found out we couldn't; we didn't have the resources or means to do it.”
Village Clerk Julie Pinson said, “So I sent the invitation to bid out on October 15th, and I sent it out to 15 different candidates. They are all in the southeast area of New Mexico. And I looked for anybody in the electrical profession, anybody in Christmas lighting or lighting in general.”
Only one company responded, ERM Electric, with a quote of $68,500.
Trustee Gail McCoy said, “We have $40,000. Where would we pull the rest?”
Turner suggested, “So as of right now, just in salaries alone with the police department, we've saved $45,475 this year already, this fiscal year, July first through now. That would more than cover it would be a line item change, and we could take the money from there, with y’all’s approval.”
Trustee and Mayor Pro-tem Jim Maynard said, “Going from a volunteer thing of very small money to now something $60,000 more or less, we've got so many needs in the village. I think that’s a lot of money to spend on Christmas decorations.”
McCoy said, “I'm not going to go out to the trestle and go look at the lights all the time. But I would go out to the park.”
At the September Parks and Recreation meeting, Trustee Tim King proposed lights for Zenith Park to the tune of around $5,000. Similar concerns were raised in his proposal as were raised in the discussion of lighting the Trestle: animal and human safety, electric load and extension cords, dark sky zone compliance, and costs.
During the trestle discussion, King said, “This probably should have gone through Parks and Recreation. This shouldn’t have been so secretive from the council.”
Turner replied, “That wasn't being kept from you guys, the council, because we were just trying to make a surprise.”
Trustee Tabitha Foster said, “I just can't justify $51,000 in labor and incidentals here and there. I mean, I think the lights are a great idea, but the lights are $17,000 and some change. $51,000 is a lot for the other.”
Maynard mentioned the pickleball courts as potential structures with electricity at Zenith Park. The James Sewell Natural Ice Rink, Burro Avenue, and trees in Zenith Park were also mentioned as sites for lights.
After discussion, the Cloudcroft Village Council voted to use the previously approved funds of $20,000 each from the village budget and lodger’s tax to fund Christmas lighting for the village this year, totaling $40,000.
Golf Season Wraps Up: Reserve a “Tea” Time at the Lodge
The Lodge Golf Course typically closes on Halloween each year. However, due to warmer temps and a steady volume of golfers, they will remain open through the coming weekend, possibly beyond.
When the golf course closes up, you can still have “tea time” at Rebecca’s at the Lodge, trading in birdies for biscuits. Tea times are from 1:00-3:00 p.m. every Saturday.
The Lodge is accepting reservations for Thanksgiving Day, from 11:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m. on November 28th. The menu includes avocado toast, smoked salmon crostini, local fruit desserts, and classics like turkey, stuffing, gravy, and cranberry relish.
School News: Voting Location, New Principal, and More
School’s out for Election Day, Tuesday, November 5th—but you can head to the High School Gymnasium to vote from 7:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.
At the recent Cloudcroft School’s Board of Education meeting, new High School principal Cody Skinner spoke with Cloudcroft Reader. Skinner previously served as a teacher, coach, principal, and assistant superintendent in Artesia, NM, where he retired.
Skinner says, “Shortly after retiring, I was called about the open position. My wife is from Cloudcroft, she graduated from here in 1991. We’ve wanted to be here for years; we love the people of Cloudcroft.”
Science teacher Shawna Carter won a $2,000 Voya grant for her “Systems Go” course, which focuses on rocketry. Of the course, Carter said,
“Currently we offer three levels. We have an introduction to engineering class where the kids focus on the basics. We do robotics in there.”
“They build progressively difficult rockets. One rocket goes a mile high, takes a one-pound payload a mile high. And then, they make a rocket that breaks the sound barrier.”
“It's one of the only classes that we have where failure is always an option and is just as powerful as actually being successful. And they build, they grow their leadership, they grow themselves, their own engineering skills.”
School Nurse Mandy Ross presented the school’s new telehealth partner, Goodside Health, to the Board. The Texas-based company will provide services at no cost to the school, providing an iPad for online consultations and medical supplies like swabs, bandages, over-the-counter medicines, and tests for strep, flu, and COVID-19.
Ross spoke with Cloudcroft Reader:
“I’m so excited for what it will bring to our community. They offer telehealth visits for students and staff at the school. Parents will be able to register online and be a part of the visit. The provider can send prescribed medication to the local pharmacy of choice, make referrals, etc. They accept most insurance for their visits. This will increase access to health care and help decrease absences for students.”
Ross describes the Goodside Health process (which is billed to the parents’ insurance):
“And so if a student comes into my office and I'm on the fence, this kind of looks suspicious for strep, but we're not really sure.
Instead of saying, “You need to go.” Calling parents to come pick up your kid and take him to urgent care, the whole thing—If the parents have the consent form and are registered with this company, then I request a visit.
They said it takes a couple minutes, but not really generally more than five minutes to get a provider on the line. And they can order a strep swab at that time.
If the child's feverish, they can order the Tylenol, which I can give at that time. Should the strap test come back positive, they will send medication orders to the local pharmacy for the child.
So all the parent has to do is pick up your child, go to the pharmacy, get the medication. It starts them off so much earlier.”
Athletics and Activities Director Joni Watson announced several successes through the FFA program, including that her daughter, Jesi Watson, recently won the nationally-competitive American FFA Degree award at the 97th Annual FFA Convention & Expo in Indianapolis, IN.
Cloudcroft’s 4-H club has open enrollment from October through February and is open to kids from ages 5-19. For more info, contact cloudcroft4h@gmail.com.
Several energized teachers co-presented on their recent professional development trip to the Ron Clark Academy (RCA) in Atlanta, Georgia. Cloudcroft’s Elementary and Middle Schools recently adopted the RCA program, which assigns students to “houses” and encourages competition through a points system, similar to British boarding schools.
Enthused about the Ron Clark school atmosphere, fourth grader Michelle Morgan said that Cloudcroft is “trying to build up our parent support. (At RCA) it is 100% positive, 100% supportive.”
Third-grade teacher and math specialist Marion Parker illustrated for the Board how body language and eye contact cues are widely and effectively used at RCA, saying students and teachers held “high expectations” for the classroom through “engagement.”
The invigorated cast of teachers included PE Coach Tami Alexander, Middle School Science teacher Bryan Casinger, and Middle School Math teacher Heather Engle, who all delivered rave reviews for RCA’s methodology.
Casinger mentioned the RCA teachers’ continual movement and energy, even “walking on desks.” This image conjures Robin Williams’ role as the maverick teacher John Keating in Dead Poets Society—a far cry from any stale learning experience for teachers and students alike.
Witnessing these five teachers' verve and apparent renewed mission, ready to implement engagement strategies in their classroom and “celebrate learning” with their students, was an encouraging sight.
The Cloudcroft Reader has news to share
A note from editor Chris Hearne:
We recently celebrated our first anniversary and are proud to have become the most widely read publication serving the greater Cloudcroft community. With 1,586 active subscribers and another 1,695 followers on Facebook, our articles routinely receive more than 2,500 views, sometimes topping 4,000. We appreciate all the support and encouragement we’ve received. It fuels us.
On the business side of our operation, I am proud to announce that senior editor Hannah Dean has joined me as an owner of the Cloudcroft Reader. This past year, she has made tremendous contributions to the Reader, and I’m delighted to have her as a business partner helping to pilot our future for years to come. Hannah is the heart of what we do.
We’ve also asked local artist and writer Drew Gaines to join us as a contributing editor. He is a talented storyteller, as witnessed by his recent piece on the High Rolls community. He’s also highly creative with video, and you should expect to see his work featured on our social media in the coming months.
A final note: the Reader will push for pledges from individuals and businesses in December. We will receive two dollars from the Santa Fe-based New Mexico Local News Fund for every dollar pledged to us in December. That 2:1 matching grant program will be the key driver for our 2025 budget. 85% of all the money we receive goes to pay Hannah and Drew and a few other contributors. The rest covers insurance and the technology that powers our emails and website. I receive an annual salary of one dollar.
Please consider supporting us in December’s drive. We are doing the reporting no one else is, and we hope you agree that the Cloudcroft community is better for our efforts. We also offer business sponsorships that enable local businesses to reach our thousands of followers and readers and make their brand stand out among the people who make Cloudcroft such a special place.
Thank you.