The Weekend--Lincoln

Part of our local "claim to fame" is involving the infamous Billy the Kid. About an hour from our house is the courthouse that held Billy the Kid for a short time. He eventually escaped and fled to another part of New Mexico. Lincoln is not an exciting place, but kind of interesting to walk around because it is reflective of an "old west" town. We kicked off our first weekend with the Deutsch walking around Lincoln. The kids learned the story of Billy the Kid, saw a bullet hole in the wall that is rumored to have been put there by Billy during the great escape, and well, yea--that's about the whole town.

This picture is some of Meganne's posse. L to R: (A)Shelby (A)Meganne (A)Sydney (D) Magdellena (A)Katie.

Here are the leaders of the group. L to R: (D)Frau Pikula (A)Frau Bell (D)Frau Schubert (D)Heir Volkmuth.

This is the whole group standing on the upper deck of the Lincoln Courthouse.

More on the Weekend--stay tuned.

Germany---At Last

Alright, happier times.
As mentioned earlier we had opportunity to hang out with some high school age kids from Germany and their 3 leaders. It was sooo much fun and such a learning experience. The Deutsch (German) group actually stayed in New York City for 3 days before coming to Roswell. I know, how can we compete; but they all seemed to have liked our little town. There were families around the community that offered to host the German kids, mostly the families that have students taking German in high school. They arrived here on Sunday night and met their families. Monday night there was a welcome dinner for them at a local restaurant. There wasn't enough room for extra people so we didn't get to participate in that one. Tuesday night was a picnic at a local park. We attended that one and the kids got a chance to start the mingling process. It was fun. The teachers had arranged an egg toss for them to do. The Ami (what the American kids were called) and the Deutsch (what the German kids are called) each formed a partnership to toss the egg between. It was all fun and games until someone ended up yolked. I think they all had fun though.
Wednesday bright and early we met at the school to make a trek to Carlsbad Caverns. From here it is about a 3 hour drive. There was a tour arranged for them but we arrived too late so we just made the main loop and called it good. This picture was taken outside of the caverns. The gentleman in the red jacket on the left hand side by the sign is Heir Volkmuth. The lady in the red shirt under the "V" is Frau Schubert and the blond lady to her right, under the "N" is Frau Pikula. The Ami and the Deutsch are innermixed.
For lunch the local Calsbad Subway arranged a "good deal" for the kids so that is where we ate. Afterward we went to The Living Desert which is like a nature walk/zoo type place. Unfortunately the camera didn't get pulled out much here, but the picture of the caverns gives you a good idea of how many attended.
Next adventure to follow:

Detour

Hi all.
So in my last post I promised pictures and adventures with German kids. I apologize for not getting that done as soon as I wanted but there is a good reason why. Life, and death got in the way. We got busy with doing a project for a young boy in Idaho..kind of connected to the German kids. While shopping for supplies for that I got the kind of phone call that one just does not want to get.
We have a friend here in Roswell. Her name is Angel Mayes. We actually got acquainted with her when we were in Las Cruces through the BLM. She accepted a position here in Roswell which for her was kind of coming home. At the BLM here there was a GIS position opening up and strongly suggested that Philip put in for it and she would do what she could to get him here. Well, as you know her and Philip were successful at getting us here and we have enjoyed being friends with her and her husband Don through the years.
Back to the phone call. While shopping in Hobby Lobby for the supplies for the project my phone rang and it was my sweetie. He had just received a phone call from his boss, Janell, informing him that Angel's son who is serving in Iraq was the victim of a roadside bomb and he had not survived. He was Angel's only child. So, she had to fly back east to meet his body coming back to the states and then had him flown here to Roswell where he will be laid to rest.
He arrived at our airport last Saturday, April 28th and was met by family and friends. The above picture is his casket being taken to the hearse. Once placed inside, the trip from the tarmack to the funeral home was a sight to behold. Along with about 8 police cars, 2 fire trucks, the BLM fire truck and the family, a group of bikers called "The Patriot Guard" amassed about 400 riders all with American flags displayed proudly on their bikes. They were followed by family and friends and more fire trucks and police bringing up the rear. We participated in the caravan that traveled down main street as a show of support and I must say that I was moved by all the people that came out and lined the streets with their hands over their hearts and some with tears in their eyes.
So our time has been spent helping her and spending time with her. There is a viewing tomorrow night and funeral Thursday with a full military burial. The "Adopt-A-Soldier" group here is then going to host an open house at the convention center for family and friends and the community.
And, that is one of the reasons I love Roswell. For all of its faults it comes together for one of their own.
For German kids visit highlights, stay tuned...promise.