Explore the Music of the Americas with Ceiba this Saturday

Ceiba performing at the El Paso Museum of Archaeology, 2010

The El Paso Museum of Archaeology Presents

Exploring the Music of the Americas

A Family Workshop by the musical group Ceiba

Saturday, August 13, 2011, 2:00 to 4:00 pm, Free Admission

4301 Transmountain Road

Families with children age six years and up are invited to participate in a creative, interactive exploration of live music and art inspired by ancient and modern Latin America from México to the Andes led by the El Paso musical group Ceiba.

Adults and children will listen and respond to live music and create together, speaking and writing in small groups and making art in response to the music they hear.

Ceiba musicians perform on a variety of instruments from indigenous cultures of Latin America. Information: Marilyn Guida, 915-755-4332, guidamr@elpasotexas.gov

Second Annual Park Olympics August 20th

Click on image to enlarge.

Get Ready for the Park Olympics

Get ready for the Second Annual Park Olympics! This year your Newman Park Neighborhood Association is sponsoring the Olympics at Newman Park on August 20^th beginning at 4 p.m.

Four other neighborhood associations will futilely take on the Fighting Chihuahuas of Newman Park. They are: Manhattan Heights, Rim Road, Mission Hills and Kern Place Neighborhood Associations.

There will be games for everyone. Points will be awarded to 1st, 2^nd and 3^rd place winners. The Neighborhood Association with the most points accumulated at the end of the evening will take home the traveling trophy. Games for points will include Volleyball, Tug-of-War, 3-Legged Race and a Sack Race for adults; and Tug-of-War, 3-Legged Race, Balloon Shave Cream, Sack Race and an Obstacle Course for children. There will also be plenty of games and activities just for fun including chalk art, hula hoop, piñata, Washa and Pétanque.

Plan now to participate or cheer your Fighting Chihuahuas to certain victory.

Hamburgers and hot dogs will be served at 7 p.m. Then, at 7:30 p.m., Radio La Chusma.

So make plans now. Mark your calendars. Put a big note up on the refrigerator door. Tag the Chihuahua.

In case you missed it, Newman Park surrealist sculptor, Ho Baron, was featured in an El Paso Times story about him and a lesser known artist, Hal Marcus, and their outdoor art. Really now. Can anyone even begin to compete with Ho’s yard art?

Finally, congratulations to Newmanista Willie Kucera who recently celebrated his 106^th birthday. Willie is the oldest member of the Military Order of the World Wars nationwide. The Fort Bliss Monitor Online published this story when Willie turned 105.

Vaya con Dios!

¡Hola Vecinos!© is an emailed newsletter for the people and businesses in the Newman Park neighborhood of El Paso, their friends and other interested persons. It is written and published by Jim Tolbert who takes sole responsibility for the content of the letter. To subscribe or unsubscribe, just reply to this letter or email jimhtolbert@elp.rr.com.

Please visit www.newmanpark.blogspot.com and www.elpasonaturally.blogspot.com.

The mission of the Newman Park Neighborhood Association is to improve the quality of life in the Newman Park neighborhood through care and attention to the park and surrounding areas, and to build a community network of care, watchfulness and concern for each other and our beautiful desert environment.

This is Volume 5 and Number 25 published on August 5, 2011

Newmanistas Elect New Board

Orlando Arriola looks on as Juan Villalobos grills the burgers.

At their Annual Meeting and Picnic this past Saturday, Newmanistas elected new board members for two and one year terms. The new Board consists of:

Orlando Arriola

Catherine Bachtold

Lee Byrd

Christina Estrada

Cindy Milazzo

Ana Reyes

Sally Sauli

Robert Taylor

Jim Tolbert

Juan Villalobos

Nearly 200 people attended this annual event and heard Newmanista Mike Torres and his band, the Big Easy, play.

Lee Byrd and granddaughter, Hannah Hollandbyrd

Annual Meeting, Picnic and Music This Saturday

The NEWMAN PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION’S

ANNUAL PICNIC, GENERAL MEETING & THE BIG EASY!

SATURDAY, July 9, 2011 at 7 p.m.@ Newman Park

At the meeting, you will get neighborhood news & have a chance to vote in new board members. Stay for a picnic & LIVE MUSIC (& dancing) from THE BIG EASY. Hot dogs, hamburgers and drinks are provided by your neighborhood association.

BRING A SIDE DISH TO SHARE WITH YOUR NEIGHBORS.

And bring your own chairs and blankets.

Newmanistas and friends gather for the 2010 Annual Meeting and Picnic.

General Services Department Gets Handle on Maintenance of Parks

Mr. Stuart Ed, Director of General Services, responds to a concern while Assistant Director, Joel McKnight takes notes for following up.

"We've gained a lot of efficiencies" was the message that City of El Paso General Services Director Stuart Ed brought to Representative Susie Byrd's monthly meeting this morning. For almost a year now, the General Services department has been tasked with maintaining all of the City of El Paso's parks and recreational facilities. Judging by the progress at Newman and many other parks, the decision to task General Services with maintenance rather than the Parks and Recreation Department has been successful and effective.

For example, Newman Park has seen better turf management, new memorial plaques and trash receptacles. Responsiveness and receptiveness to neighbors has been the keynote of General Services care of Newman Park.

To be sure there have been a number of challenges this past year for Mr. Ed and his Assistant, Joel McKnight and their staff. The prolonged late freeze in February and its effect on soil temperature meant the loss of turf at many parks. Because there is only one local sod farm in the El Paso region and they also experienced damaged and dead turf, there has been no available product for commercial use including replacing grass in many City parks. Additionally, the drought has made the situation more herculean.

Furthermore, the City of El Paso has been operating under severe budget restrictions for the last several years - restrictions which have set-back maintenance by the Parks and Recreation Department. Because of the limited budget, Parks and Recreation has been forced to spend resources on program rather than on maintenance. One example of the disadvantages of this budget shortage has been inadequate upkeep of irrigation at Grandview Park which has suffered from improperly-sized nozzles for one thing. Fortunately last year the City decided to do something about the upkeep of its parks and recreation facilities by moving maintenance to General Services so that more monetary resources could be directed toward upkeep and care.

Not only has the General Services budget begun to restore more optimal care of parks, this department already had in place a computer program to track work orders and manage and follow-up on problems in a more timely fashion. Moreover, their utilization of the outside, independent expertise of Texas Agrilife Extension Service under the direction of Dr. Ray Bader has really helped to key in on and solve plant problems.

Through good management, the Department has been able to come up with an additional $100,000 to hire 24 seasonal workers to clean-up litter and clear out dead foliage. Mr. Joel McKnight, Assistant Director, also added that 2 large aerifiers have been added to the inventory which now means that each of the 4 service areas has one. This additional equipment will help with ongoing turf management programs.

General Services has "gained a lot of efficiencies" which is great news for the City of El Paso and its parks and recreational facilities.

Green, green - how Newman Park looks under the care of the General Services Department of the City of El Paso

Flags Fly on Fourth!

Picture courtesy of Marty Martinez

Six flags flew along Alabama Street at Newman Park on the 4th of July thanks to generous donations from Linda Chew, Mandy Chew, Donna and Lee Stephens, Mando Castañeda, and Marty Martinez. It was Marty who suggested that the Neighborhood Association purchase enough flags to go eventually around the park on appropriate holidays.

Picture courtesy of Marty Martinez

Board member, Juan Villalobos, assisted by Board President Jim Tolbert set-up the flags on the 4th of July.