Compiled by Denise Ortega

CLASSIC REWIND FOR AUGUST 31, 2023

SEPTEMBER 6, 1973

Diana Shoemaker

DIANA SHOEMAKER, the first feminine member of the local FFA Chapter, won the Grand Champion Barrow trophy for her 234-pound pig. The barrow was bought by Mayor Gene Coulson for $300 and was donated to the hospital. Diana received $25 from First State Bank and $15 from Van Landingham Contractors. She is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. George Shoemaker. She is a senior at Socorro High School and plans to attend New Mexico State in order to major in Ag. Ed. Her trophy was presented by the B & M Feed Store.

Holm Bursum Jr

HOLM O. BURSUM JR., a Socorro rancher and businessman, has been appointed to the 25-member board of directors of the New Mexico State University Foundation. The foundation is a nonprofit tax-exempt corporation whose purpose is to encourage private gift contributions to NMSU. A Socorro native, Bursum is chairman of the board for First State Bank, Socorro. A University of New Mexico alumnus, he is a member of the New Mexico Banker’s Association and Cattle Growes.

SEPTEMBER 2, 1998

IT WAS AN ALL-VOLUNTEER landscaping party at Parkview Elementary School. Faculty members and parents gave up a good chunk of the day to remove weeds, rocks and assorted chunks of old junk for the area behind the new school that will eventually be the site of the final units of the school. The Public-School Critical School Outlay Council had awarded the Socorro Consolidated School District $1.4 million of the $3.1 million it needs to complete the new elementary school. Frank Jaramillo said the award was good news. The new school opened last month with first-through-third grade classrooms, cafeteria, administrative and nurse’s offices complete. Landscaping has been ongoing since, a lot of the work being accomplished by volunteers. Late last week the first playground equipment was put up and within a short time.

GEORGIA SEERY won the Club Championship of the Socorro Women’s Golf Association Aug. 21 and 22 at the New Mexico Tech Golf Course. She had a low gross of 194. This is the 12th time Seery has won the club championship, with her first win in 1969.

SEPTEMBER 5, 1998

YOUNG WOMEN went on the road to learn. From studying fish and worms and beagle puppies to watching brain surgery, the summer of ’98 was a summer of science for three young Socorro High School senior women. Aimee Armijo attended a leadership forum in medicine in Washington, D.C.; Danielle Dye took an introductory course in marine sciences in New Brunswick, Canada; and Fatima Gutierrez, shadowed researchers at the Lovelace Respiratory Research Center at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque. All three said they returned with a better understanding of the fields in which they have an interest while they continue to refine their future career goals.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2013

SOCORRO COUNTY FAIR and Rodeo Association board member Danny Monette presents the 2013 Socorro County Fair Grand Marshal plaque to Escondida farmers Linda and Mario Rosales.

Chuck and Charlotte Monette

The grand marshal award honors individuals or groups who have made contributions to the county fair and the community throughout the years. The Rosales couple, along with sons Cecil, Marty and Tommy, farm 300 acres in chile and alfalfa as well as operate produce stands in Escondida and Albuquerque.

FOOD, FESTIVITIES AND FAMILIES marked the 50th anniversary of Monette Ford Auto Dealership in Socorro. Owners Chuck and Charlotte Monette, and family, received a 50th anniversary plaque from Ford Motor Credit, and an engraved clock from the Socorro Chamber of Commerce. Danny Monette kicked off the presentation “family style”, requesting karaoke and spontaneous jokes from the audience. A young Chuck and Charlotte Monette purchased the dealership, then called S&M Ford in 1963. In the last 50 years, Chuck estimates that the dealership has sold over 20,000 vehicles. Monette Ford currently employs 32 people.

Chieftain Staff Report