Community News

Pictured from left to right: GCSO Captain Steven Gallegos, Sheriff Raul Villanueva, Grant County DWI Program Coordinator Daniel Graves, and GCSO Chief Deputy Anthony Bencomo.With DWIs being an ongoing issue throughout the state, reducing DWI events and the people impacted is important to the people here in Grant County.  To aide in this battle the Grant County DWI Program recently purchased new PAS IV Flashlights for the three law enforcement stations in our county, Silver City Police Department, The Grant County Sherriff's Department, and the Bayard Police Department.  These flashlights are able to detect alcohol that is present in the ambient air and can help aid in DWI arrests.

Dorrie Dennison was an understudy for the Mustang Edition of "The College Tour," which premiered on campus Thursday, March 21. The episode is available online and will be released by Amazon Prime in May. Article link at the bottom.

NM Opportunity Scholarship Sets Former Food Service Worker on Path to Become an Accountant

Dorrie Dennison had been working in food service for many years when she heard about the New Mexico Opportunity Scholarship, a scholarship that allows college students pursuing their first degree to attend tuition-free. "I wasn't sure I wanted to work in food service my whole life," she said, "I wanted something more."

So at the age of thirty-six, Dennison, who is originally from Austin, Texas, decided to enroll at Western New Mexico University. "I honestly never thought I would attend college," she said, "but then I learned about the Opportunity Scholarship . . . and decided that I was ready to have a professional career."

GRMC Thanks Providers for National Doctor's Day

March 30, 2024 ­– Happy National Doctors' Day from Gila Regional Medical Center. Thank you to all physicians for your selfless dedication in caring for our community!

WNMU President Dr. Joseph Shepard. Chala Werber and Raul TurrietaSILVER CITY, NM - Western New Mexico University hosted the premiere of a special, WNMU-focused episode of the Amazon Prime TV series "The College Tour" on Thursday, March 21, 2024. The episode was filmed entirely in southwestern New Mexico and showcases WNMU students, the campus, the town of Silver City, and the Gila National Forest. WNMU is the first university in New Mexico to be featured on the series.

The half-hour episode was the result of a months-long planning and production process that occurred last fall. It features the stories of ten WNMU students and alumni: Oscar Arteaga Romero, Stacey Bernstein, Megan Custer, Itzela Darkenwald, Natalee Drissell, Logan Eastman, Antonio Guerrero Ramos, Violeta "Blanca" Jaure, Brooke Rodgers and Ethan Sanchez. The episode also had three understudies: Dorrie Dennison, Keana Huerta and Ariana Medina.

Crooked Forest Institute is looking for land. This newer non-profit based in Silver City is on a mission to create affordable housing using sustainable, local materials, like compressed earth blocks. The key to affordability, they say, is the vocational education and community building program attached to their housing development plan.

"Student and volunteer labor can lower the labor cost of each build," Says Holly Noonan, the non-profit's founder. "Our main role model is Community Rebuilds in Moab, Utah. After ten years in operation, Community Rebuilds is now clocking 30,000 hours in volunteer labor annually, while they are completing sixteen houses a year."

Meet Iris Nolasco
New Executive Director

As I wrap up my first three weeks as the new Executive Director of The Commons, my heart is full of appreciation. The welcome I have received is incredible and indicative of what this community represents and the reason why I choose to help support it through the mission and the work of this organization.

Part of my journey started at The Volunteer Center (TVC) of Grant County as an AmeriCorps volunteer and then staff member from 2007-2009.

Cell and Molecular Biology major Stacey Bernstein is one of three people in her family attending WNMUStacey Bernstein is a featured student in the upcoming Amazon Prime TV episode of "The College Tour" that was filmed on campus in November. Link to article at end.

Attending WNMU is a family affair for first-year student Stacey Bernstein. Her mother is also a student at the university, earning her Master's of Social Work, and her younger sister, who is a senior in high school, is a dual-enrollment student at WNMU.

The family of six lives on 26 acres near Silver City with a bevy of animals: donkeys, a cow, chicken, geese, cats, a sugar glider and Saint Bernards, including a recent litter of puppies.

Whether surrounded by animals or humans, community is very important to Bernstein and one of the things she appreciates most about WNMU. "It is very community oriented," she said of the university campus, "Every day I see friends that I went to high school with. It is nice to see familiar faces."

Tour of the Gila applies grant award to highlight event's heritage and impact
while inviting others to the experience

$30,000 from New Mexico Outdoor Recreation Division supports marketing iconic bike race

 Silver City, NM — Recognizing the impact of Tour of the Gila and rewarding the longevity of this internationally renowned cycling event, the New Mexico Outdoor Recreation Division awarded $30,000 to the race's nonprofit, Gila Community and Tourism Development.