Holton named Citizen of Year
Future Family Foundation is selected as countys' Organization of the Year

By Jim Maniaci
Cibola County Bureau

GRANTS — Jamie Holton who said that for one of the few times in her life she was speechless was named the Citizen of the Year and the Future Family Foundation as the Organization of the Year during the annual Grants-Cibola County Chamber of Commerce installation.

The honors, installation, scholarship fund-raising silent auction, two inspirational speeches and a dinner-dance took place Saturday at the Best Western Inn and Suites in Gallup.

Candy Rodgers of Rodgers Electronics-Radio Shack succeeded Ray Renon of La Ventana Steak House as president, moving up from vice president. Renon remains on the board of directors as the past president. The new vice president is Donald Jaramillo of Wick Communications, moving up from secretary. He will be succeeded by Derek Underhill of KD Radio. Installed as new board members were Don Kennedy of Acoma Business Enterprises and Felicia Casados, chief executive officer of the Grants campus of New Mexico State University.

Returning board members include Lawrence Sanchez of State Farm Insurance, Reuben Thomas of the First United Methodist Church and the Food Pantry, Terry Fletcher of Rio Algom Mining and Angela Baca of El Cafecito, with Marcella Sandoval of Grants State Bank retiring from the board.

Each of the 28 items in the silent auction drew at least the minimum bid, ranging from $30 to $160, with many having plenty of people putting their names and larger amounts down. The total was not immediately available as the chamber staff had to add up everything from the almost 235 people who attended.

The chamber received a total of five nominations for the two yearly awards, with Holton present among lots of her family, to come to the front of the hall. Former mayor Bill Snodgrass accepted the foundation's honor since director Laura Milaj could not be present.

Holton has been active in the community for some 40 years, the audience was told.

She is an officer at Grants State Bank's headquarters and a principal of the Grants Rodeo Association plus an ardent support of the junior rodeo movement in Cibola County. She also is the backbone and point person for the local beautification committee, a member of the city's charter revision committee, chairs the no-nonsense Grants City Planning-Zoning Commission, strongly supports the 4-H programs and the Bi-County Fair.

The youngest speaker was the Denis Molares Scholarship winner from two years ago, Stephen Archibald, now a student at NMSU-G and a part-time chamber staff member at the downtown New Mexico Mining Museum. He told what the valuable scholarship has meant to his education and offered profuse thanks to everyone involved.

NFL Hall-of-Famer Dave Wilcox also spoke. His appearance was arranged by Don Kennedy of Acoma Business Enterprises since Wilcox was appearing at ABE's Sky City Casino the next day for a pre-Super Bowl program. In 2000 he became one of the 224 men in the National Football League's Hall of Fame. Wilcox played 11 seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, on defense.

Wilcox concluded his talk by pointing out, "The citizenship of some of the players (today) is not acceptable," adding that modern pro football is really part of the entertainment world.

In his heyday in the 1970s, Wilcox said that if players didn't like each other they could "still handle it" and get along. "The best people were the best players," he commented.

He added, "Playing (sports) builds friendships and buddies. It was the best experience of my life, and I miss the camaraderie and the spirit of competing."

He concluded that his message is, "Whatever it is (you seek) you've got to work for it and get along with people."

Wilcox praised the dryness and beauty of the area, since he almost missed his airline flight connections from Eugene, Ore., due to fog at the San Francisco International Airport. He lives in Junction City, Ore., and said it has rained every day since Dec. 31.

Chamber manager Star Gonzales served as the emcee. Steve Thomas, the NMSU-G librarian, provided pre-dinner music on the electronic keyboard.

— To contact reporter Jim Maniaci in Grants, telephone 285-6184 or (505) 870-7775 (cellular)