Time to Order Luminarias

It's time again to order luminarias from your Newman Park Neighborhood Association. While you are at it, make a donation to the Association online (yellow donate button in right side column) or by filling out the form and following the mailing instructions.

Order Form English

Order Form Spanish

Attend Public Meeting about EPISD Proposed School Closures

The Capital Facilities Master Plan meeting is on Monday, December 8 at 6 PM in the Austin High School Gym. We need our Central area folks to come out for this meeting and weigh in on the issues that matter to us. The Board of Managers commissioned a study of the facility needs and issues throughout the district, including the fact that we have too many classrooms for too few kids. Based on that analysis, they have developed several options for the public to weigh in on. Options including closing schools, improving schools, changing school boundaries...

The options document can be found at:
http://www.episd.org/file_mgr/facilities/master_plan/1.00%20EPISD_DRAFT_OPTIONS_REPORT_Nov_3rd_2014.pdf

Be forewarned that it is a lot of info to digest and it is put together by engineers who don't seem particularly concerned if the public understands the information. For our area, the options being presented can be found in the following sections.

Planning Area B.H.1: (High schools)
Planning Area B.M.1: (Middle schools)
Planning Area B.E.2. (Elementary schools)

One proposal is to close Alta Vista Elementary. It is not because there are too few students there but because the condition is not great, which in my opinion is more a function of decades of neglect rather than a poor quality building. 

I have served on the steering committee. The public process has been clunky at best but I think this is a good opportunity for us to weigh in about the following issues:
1. the condition of our historic schools and the need to maintain them,
2. any other facility needs that we think need to be addressed in our area,
3. the need to really work to make Austin High shine again, including improving their magnet program, and 
4. Anything else that we think should be a priority for the district as it pertains to our area.

Thank you.

Susie Byrd
EPISD Board Trustee in Waiting

Reawakening!

Time to order luminarias!

After almost a year of hibernation, the Newman Park Neighborhood Association is reawakening. 

A General Meeting was held at the Friesenhahn home on November 15 and new board members were elected: Lynn Coyle (NPNA's founding President), Orlando Arriola, Andy Baca, Becky Friesenhahn, Robert Taylor and Jim Tolbert. 

This past Tuesday the new Board met at the Tolbert home and officers for 2015 were elected: Andy Baca (Secretary), Robert Taylor (Treasurer), Becky Friesenhahn (Vice-President) and Jim Tolbert (President). 

The Board made plans for the annual luminarias fundraiser. Expect a sales flyer soon at your front door. Along with the information about the fundraiser, the flyer will ask for donations from members of the Newman Park Neighborhood Association. Who is a member? President Jim Tolbert said that all people in the Association boundaries should be considered members. There is no membership fee. Instead, there is a suggested donation of $20 per household. But less is okay and certainly more will be appreciated. So give what you can.

Of course, donations can be made online at any time. Just go to www.newmanpark.blogspot.com and click on the yellow donate button.

FREE Check Up Calls Helps Senior El Pasoans During Extreme Heat

City Offers FREE Check Up Calls For Seniors Calling All Seniors Program 

Aimed to do a welfare check – over the phone - for seniors living alone 

EL PASO, TEXAS – These past few days we have encountered SEVERE temperatures in the Sun City and we are urging the public to take action to protect themselves and others during these extreme weather conditions. The City of El Paso’s Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) – Calling All 
Seniors is available to assist in making sure the community’s seniors are safe. 

RSVP is a FREE program aimed at making sure a senior living alone is safe. Seniors (55 years and older) in the program will receive a friendly phone call from a volunteer to make sure they are safe. Each program volunteer is paired up with the senior based on similar interests – hobbies, education, background, etc. so that they may have things in common to talk about during the check-up call. The phone calls will be made at the senior’s convenience (mornings, afternoons, evenings, weekdays, weekends). The phone calls can be made daily or even once a week, whatever they prefer. 

This free phone call is a great way to ensure the safety of a senior living alone who is homebound, isolated and in need of a check-up call or somebody to talk to. 

Calling All Seniors depends on public awareness for its success. We hope that the public will identify and report seniors who need this service. Currently over 75 volunteers registered with the RSVP are calling over 75 seniors that have been referred by agencies and residents. The service is free of charge. It is essential that the community look out for one another, especially the seniors in our community – many of them do not have anybody to care for them and are in desperate need of assistance. A friendly telephone call, that will make sure they are safe, may be their life saver. 

If you are interested in this 
free service please call: 
(915) 212-1685

Park and Ride from 5 Points to the Chihuahuas Games

Learn How to Identify Stash Houses for Human Traffiing

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Time to Order Luminarias

It's that time again to order luminarias. Get those orders in before December 22nd. The order form is below and gives instructions for ordering your beautiful 2013 Christmas Holiday Luminarias from your Newman Park Neighborhood Association. You do not have to be a member of NPNA or even live in that neighborhood.

"Here we go a caroling at Gussie Tamales"

Also mark our Annual Christmas Story Telling and Caroling Party on your calendars: Sunday, December 22nd at Casa de Friesenhahn, 2405 Altura Avenue at 6:30 p.m. (Map)

2013 NPNA Christmas Holiday Luminarias Order Form

Luminarias Flyer 2013

Vote for Ho!

Newmanistas - in fact - ALL El Pasoans: Vote for Ho! The City/El Paso Magazine is taking a vote for Best in Culture. 

Here's the message from surrealist sculturist and Newmanista Ho Baron:

"Hi all! The City Magazine's nominated me, the Ho Show, for you guessed it, the Best in El Paso Culture. If ya gotta sec, vote for me ... pleeeeez!

"My show gets 1000s of passersby daily. It's a gallery without walls, open air at Piedras & Aurora featuring The Distortionists bronze sculpture, The Water God, The Kid, Chac Mol, Indignant, Mother and Child, The Classic Work, The Dysfunctional Family Tree, The Scarecrow Kids and many more.

"A Ho vote is a go vote so do it today ... and tomorrow ... and tomorrow ... and tomorrow (the City lets you vote daily). And I thank you." 

Go here to vote and remember that you can vote every 24 hours:


http://thecitymagazineelp.com/best-of-the-city-2013/best-in-el-paso-culture/

We are so lucky to have Ho Baron in the hood!

Affordable Downtown Office Space for Rent

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Little Free Library Suffers from Neglect

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It's so sad to see our Little Free Library at Newman Park in disrepair for so long. It has been about a year since the doors went missing. What was once so beautiful and so useful, is now a receptacle for French Fries. Although a promise was made to repair the box, time has passed. It's obviously not a priority nor should it be for any volunteer. Your Newman Park Neighborhood Association has over $2,500 in the bank according to Association Treasurer, Robert Taylor. It's time to hire a carpenter.

Brand new and happy in 2009

Click to enlarge to see effects of a year of neglect: graffiti and French Fries.

Fighting Chihuahuas: Time to Fight!

It must not stand. This plagiarism! This trademark infringement! El Paso's Triple A Baseball Team has taken the name of the Chihuahuas! Just hold on there! Everyone knows that the real Chihuahuas - the Fighting Chihuahuas - are the Newman Park Neighborhood Association Fighting Chihuahuas. That's our mascot. As proof here is a picture from a Park Olympics three years ago:

In the picture above team members are preparing to compete in the three-legged race. Note the T-Shirts. Here is the copy of the shirt sent to the screen printer:

Now look at the "trademark" logo for the El Paso Chihuahuas:

Do not take this infringement sitting down, Newmanistas. Here is what we must do:

• Sue! Contact Stephanie T.A. That call alone will strike terror in the corporate hearts of this baseball consortium.
• Call City Representative Lily Limon. Ask her to wait until there are enough absences on City Council so she can do to the Triple-A Chihuahuas what she did to Tripper Goodman. After all, it's not the name we object to but the way they went about picking the name.
• Make an Open Records Request. Find out how often Joyce Wilson even used the word "Chihuahua" in her private email.

Here's what the team must do for us to even come close to making things right:

• Have not one but many Newman Park Neighborhood Association Days at the park. There will be free beer and hot Chihuahuas - I mean - dogs for all Newmanistas.
• Publish our logo in each and every game program so that people around the world will not think that all Chihuahuas look like their mascot with blood shot eyes obviously after an all-night Tequila bender.
• Name the stadium after us: Newmanistas Baseball Stadium - Home of the "Other Chihuahuas".

Maybe after they do these three things, we will cut them some slack.

Yip! Yip!

Mesita Fall Carnival

Pumpkin Carving Time Again!

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Lost Boxer

June Hensley sent out this alert on Monday: "An adorable but emaciated young boxer appeared in my backyard and seems to want to stay.  He is brindle black and brown colored. His tail is undocked.  He has no collar or any form of identification.  He is very gentle and friendly.  I would appreciate it if you would pass this on, so we might find his owner."

If you are the owner or know the owner, please contact June at junehensley10@gmail.com or call me at 915-525-7364.

Pride Day Means Roll-Off at Newman Park

EPPD Neighborhood Relations Coordinator, Leslie Canada emailed: "We are having our annual Pride Day Clean up on Saturday, Oct 12th from 7AM to 12 Noon.  A roll-off will be placed at Newman Park at Louisiana and Altura for volunteers so it can be filled with trash and debris.  

"The day before (Friday, Oct. 11th at 5:30PM)  we will have our Pride Day Kick Off BBQ at Memorial Park for volunteers to meet and greet some of the staff involved in organizing this event. Environmental Services will also hand out trash bags to those that do not receive a roll off. Hope to see you there."

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Mark your calendars: Saturday, October 12th, 7AM to Noon there will be a roll-off at Newman Park for trash and debris.

Rain Brings Falls

The rains of two weeks ago were described as a 10 year flood by some and a 20 year flood by others. Whatever, our neighborhood got nearly 5" of rain as measured by the official NOAA CoCoRaHS rain gauge at 2701 Frankfort Avenue. 4.32" of that fell over 3 days - September 11, 12 and 13.

Nana Tibuni took the following video of the dam at Red Rock Canyon from her home at the end of Red Rock Canyon Drive:

She commented: "I wanted to share this video of the arroyo behind my house during the rains two weeks ago. Even though the rains caused so much damage the arroyo was beautiful!"

By the way, our Red Rock Canyon is a 1.126 billion year geological treasure. Read this fascinating online article: Piece of crust stolen from Texas found in Antarctica. Portions of that billion year old plus rift include the red bluff granite and Thunderbird formation on both sides of the Franklins. Celebration of Our Mountains has scheduled as hike up the canyon for September 28th to the July 1944 B-24 crash site. Take the hike: you will be going back in time over a billion years and you will see “pieces” of what scientists call the super-continent, Rodinia.

Additional Charges for Manhattan Heights Rapist

NEWS RELEASE

DATE:   August 30, 2013

Additional Charges for Manhattan Heights Rapist

Date/Time:        May 2013-June 2013

Location:             Various in Manhattan Heights Region

Subject:               Arturo Valtierra-Payan, 25 years of age of El Paso Texas                

        

El Paso, TX – The El Paso Police Department’s Crimes Against Person’s Unit has charged Arturo Valtierra-Payan, who is suspected of committing several sexual assaults in the Manhattan Heights subdivision, with six additional charges.  These charges include 3 Burglary of Habitation counts and 3 counts of Aggravated Sexual Assault.  This brings the local total to 7 charges, which includes the original Burglary of Habitation that he was booked on back on July 2, 2013.  Valtierra-Payan was re-booked on the new warrants on Thursday, August 29, 2013.  These cases involved four adult female victims who were attacked inside of their homes.  Detectives have advised that there are no other open cases against Valtierra-Payan at this time.

As this investigation unfolded, detectives were able to link Valtierra-Payan to a sexual assault case that was reported in the Fort Worth Texas region in September of 2012.  This link was established through DNA evidence that was recovered here in El Paso and entered into the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS).  That DNA sample ultimately linked Valtierra-Payan to the Fort Worth case.   El Paso Police Department Detectives have been working with Fort Worth authorities on that case as well.

As of this release Valtierra-Payan is being held on a total bond of 2.1 million dollars ($300,000.00 per case)

*** Due to the legal requirement to protect the identity of victims of sex crimes and the sensitive nature of these crimes, victim information and specific addresses are not being included ***

                                                                     ###

Officer H. Slack #2106, CPO

314 S. Leon

El Paso TX 79901

915-838-8013

4th Annual Park Olympics This Saturday

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Scenic Drive Video

Hector Montes has produced another great video:

Menudo y mas

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