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By ROSIE FLORES
Staff Writer
PECOS, May 23, 1997 - A couple is searching for answers to the
disappearance of their son after his car was found in this area.
"We're just here trying to find answers as to why this happened," said
Lydia Chabarria.
Lydia and her husband, Manuel Chabarria, Sr. were in Pecos Wednesday
visiting the site where their son's car was found abandoned and taking a
look at the car itself in an effort to solve the puzzle.
Manuel Chabarria, Jr. has been missing since April 1, following a
meeting held at his place of employment.
"All we know is that they had a meeting at Harrigan's where he works, at
6 p.m. and that's the last time anybody has seen him," said Chabarria.
The family currently resides in the Fort Worth area, but the elder
Chabarria was raised in Pecos.
"He doesn't live with us, but he has a roommate," said Mrs. Chabarria.
According to Chabarria, the roommate had not noticed his disappearance
until his employers called to check on him.
"They (he and his roommate) had such totally different schedules, that
he hadn't even noticed anything until two days later when they called
from where he works," said Mrs. Chabarria.
"At this point we don't suspect foul play, but we just want to know
where he is, if he's all right and why he didn't contact us," said Mr.
Chabarria.
The car was found in Culberson County, off of Farm Road 2119 on private
property. The property owner found the car and reported it to the
sheriff's department.
"The car was found on a ranch, hidden in some bushes, like someone drove
it in there and just parked it," said Mrs. Chabarria.
"One of our deputies went out to investigate and since it was in
Culberson County contacted them," said Sheriff's Department Chief Deputy
Fred Lujan.
Reeves County Sheriff's Department Deputy Gilbert Rayos did the initial
investigation, but later involved officers from Culberson County. "He
and deputy Blackwell did the initial investigation," said Lujan.
"We don't suspect theft either since nothing was missing," said Mrs.
Chabarria. "No toiletries, no clothes, nothing was missing," she said.
"I was from Pecos originally and at first we thought maybe he came to
look for my parent's home, which nobody is living in at this time," said
Mr. Chabarria.
However, when Chabarria contacted his sister who still lives in Pecos,
she had not seen or heard from the young man. "I had her go check out my
parents home as soon as we found out the car had been found here," said
Mr. Chabarria.
"Up until Sunday we had no idea in which direction he had gone to, or
where to even begin looking for him," said Mrs. Chabarria.
The family is asking the public to help in their search for their son.
Manuel Chabarria, Jr. is a 25-year-old Hispanic male, born Feb. 24,
1972. He is a 5'6" tall and weighs about 125-130 pounds. Manuel has
curly dark brown hair and brown eyes.
He was last seen April 1 in Arlington, after leaving work.
Mrs. Chabarria stated that she can't think of any reason the young man
would leave so abruptly.
"I don't know if he was depressed or sad or if anything was going on
with him, he just didn't share that with us," she said.
"I feel sad if he was actually trying to find his grandparents' home,"
said Mrs. Chabarria.
The older Chabarria's family home is located on Farm Road 1216.
The car their son was driving is a 1987 Honda Civic, which is partially
primed, with some red stripes.
"He had just gotten that car and I had just seen it once," said Mr.
Chabarria. "We want help from the public, maybe somebody saw him in it
or saw somebody else with him or something," he said.
Both sheriff's department personnel were out at the scene Tuesday and
sent out a helicopter within a 10-mile radius, according to Mr.
Chabarria.
"They thought maybe he took off on foot or something," he said.
"At this point, we don't want to think the worst," said Mrs. Chabarria.
The Chabarrias are hoping their son just needed some time to himself and
is doing fine.
"We just want to know that he's alright," said Mrs. Chabarria. "I'm
clinging to the hope that he is fine and will contact us soon, because
we love him," she said.
The couple urge their son or anybody who might be in contact with him to
contact them and let them know of his whereabouts.
If anybody has any information they can contact the Texas Department of
Public Safety, Missing Persons Clearinghouse at 1-800-346-3243.
"The state police was here Thursday, but they haven't given us their
report yet," said Pecos Police Chief Troy Moore.
The agency sent out two men and a lady to lift prints off the car, do forensic work and check for clues, according to Moore.
By CARA ALLIGOOD
Staff Writer
PECOS, May 23, 1997 - The sky outside was turning a bit gray and the
television weatherman said it just might rain, but the mood inside the
Pecos High School auditorium was anything but gloomy.
Last night, students, school faculty, proud parents and members of the
community gathered to honor the graduating class of 1997 and p0resent
awards and scholarships to some of its highest achievers.
The P.H.S. band opened the ceremony followed immediately by the pledge
of allegiance, led by Senior Class President Stephanie Armstrong, then
welcomeing remarks from Armstrong and P.H.S. Principal Alice Duerksen.
Athletic awards were presented first, beginning with the Dorothy Curfman
Award, going to track star Marisol Arenivas. The Bill Dean Memorial
Award went to Jeff Brownlee and the Letha Prewit Basketball Memorial
Award went to Jennifer Barrera. There were three awards presented by the
U.S. Marine Corps and one from the U.S. Army Reserve. The U.S. Marine
Corps Scholastic Excellence Award went to both Didio Martinez and Ivy
Thorp, the Distinguished Athlete Award went to Chris Reyes and the
Marine Corps recognized Annabell Ramirez with their Distinguished
Musician Award. The U.S. Army Reserve National Scholar/Athlete Award was
given to both Denise Camerena and Didio Martinez.
The scholarships were announced next, and many thousands of dollars were
awarded to help local scholars achieve the next level of their
educations. The occasional recognition award or trophy presentation
peppered this segment of the ceremony.
Two Aladin Beauty College scholarships werre awarded last night, in the
amount of $500 each, to Donna Tarin and Marisa Levario.
The Aquatic club Scholarship for $500 was given to Leslie Armbruster.
The Earl Bell Alumni Scholarship Award had two recipients, Jonnie
Fuentes and David Zuniga.
The Business and Professionals of America award also went to two
students, Cheryl Acosta and James Alvarez.
The Carr Academic Scholarship from San Angelo State University, worth
$8,000, went to Elizabeth matta.
The Career Colleges and Schools of Texas scholarships, worth $1,000
each, were awarded to Monica Carrasco and Veronica Sauceda.
Classic Cable awarded thier scholarship to Lindley Workman.
The Colorado School of Mines Minority Engineering Program Scholarship,
in the amount of $2,000 a year for four years, totaling $8,000 in all,
went to David Zuniga.
Six students received scholarships from Committee 88. They were Eric
Abila, Arnulfo Florez, Elena Hinojos, Marisa Levario, Cynthia Ramirez
and Lindley Workman.
The Delta Kappa Gamma Scholarship went to Haydee Garcia.
The Downtown Lions Frank Kelly Mfemorial Scholarship went to two
students, David Zuniga and Carriz Carrasco.
The Evelyn Turpin Dowling Endowment Scholarship was awarded to Nestor
Mendoza.
The Evening Opotimist Club Scholarship had seven different awardees.
they were John Paul Venegas, Erika Gonzales, Jason Chabarria, Elizabeth
Matta, Lindley Workman, Jessi Ortiz and Marissa Levario.
The 4-H Gold Star Award Scholarship, of $500 and a gold watch, had two
winners, Stephanie Armstrong and Kristin Stewart.
The Freeport-McMoran Scholarship of $1,250 was awarded to Elizabeth
Montgomery.
The Golden Girl Scholarship went to last year's Golden Girl of the Old
West, Lindley Workman. $500 went to last year's runner-up, Marisa
Levario, and the $250 Advertising Scholarship went to Kristin Stewart.
The Herrera Scholarship, in memory of Elsa and Jonathan Herrera, victims
of the Saragosa Tornado which occurred exactly 10 years ago last night,
was awarded to Denise Camarena.
The Knights of Columbus Scholarship also went to Denise Camarena, in the
amount of $1,000, and to Elizabeth Matta in the amount of $500 .
The Ladies Golf Association Scholarship went to Lindley Workman.
Mc Donald's awarded four scholarships, worth $250 each, to David Zuniga,
Daniel Tarin, Didio Martinez and Denise Camerena.
The Macy Minorities in Medicine Program award went to Daniel Tarin.
The Modern Study Club awarded $500 to Olivia Valenzuela, and the Alma
Van Sickle Scholarship went to Elizabeth Montgomery.
Odessa College awarded $1,200 to Jessi Ortiz.
The Ollie Springfield Nunn Scholarship was awarded to Denise Camarena.
Our Lady of the Lake University awarded Diana Prieto $3,500.
Pecos Business & Professional Women's Club awarded $750 each to Denise
Camarena, Jessi Ortiz and Olivia Valenzuela.
The Pecos High School Student Council Scholarship was awarded to two
students, Leslie Armbruster and Sarah Lam, who each received $500.
The recipient of the P-B-T I.S.D. Educational Secretaries chose Cynthia
Dominguez as their awardee.
The Rotary Club Citizenship Award Scholarship of $500 went to Bryan
Brownlee. The Camp RYLA Award went to Penny Armstrong and Jesus
Hernandez. The Exchange Student recognition went to Yuka Hashimoto, who
has been attending PHS this year and will return to her native Japan in
early July.
The Sam Walton Community Scholarship went to Elizabeth Montgomery.
The Sheriffs' Posse Scholarship had two recipients, Daniel Tarin and
Jennifer Barrera.
The Texas A & M University President's Achievement Scholarship of
$10,000 each went to Elizabeth Montgomery, Mikel Parent and Didio
Martinez.
The Texas-New Mexico Power Company Scholarship went to David Zuniga.
The Texas State Teachers Association Local Scholarship went to Cynthia
Ramirez and Mikel Parent.
Texas Tech University Agricultural Science and Natural Resources award
of $400 went to Stephanie Armstrong.
The Texas Tech University Superior Scholastic Achievement award went to
Albert Lee.
The Twentieth Century Club Scholarship went to Cynthia Dominguez.
The University of Arilzona awarded Didio Martinez a $25,000 scholarship.
The University of Rochester in New York State awarded Mikel Parent
$12,200.
The University of Texas at Austin President's Achievement Scholarship
Tier II was awarded to Mikel Parent and Diana Prieto.
The University of Texas of the Permian Basin Freshman Merit Scholarship
of $1,600 went to Haydee Garcia and Jason Chabarria.
The University of Texas of the Permian Basin President's Achievement
Scholarship went to Diana Prieto.
The University of Texas of the Permian Basin Presidtntial Plus
Scholarship of $13,300 went to Defnise Camarena.
Western Texas College Scholarships went to Matt Metler and Sean Russell.
The Robert G. Worsham Memorial Endowment went to Stephanie Armstrong.
At the end of the ceremony, there were awards of Recognition for
Leadership and Excellent Performance. Unfortunately, some of the lists
of awardees were to lengthy to print in the spaces we have available,
but the Pecos Enterprise
wishes to congratulate all awardees on their accomplishments.
Band Awards were given in four categories. The Beverly Fabrygel Musical
Achievement Award was given to Elizabeth dMontgomery.
The John Philip Sousa Band Award was given to Dennis Harris.
The Pecos High School Band Booster Scholarship was given to Annabell
Ramirez, Diana Prieto, Annabel Pena and Marisa Levario.
The Bill Carrico Band Scholarship was awarded to Amanda Valdez.
The DeKalb Agricultural Accomplishment Award was given to Stephanie
Armstrong.
The Journalism Awards for Newspaper Editors were given to Corina
Carrillo and Efrain Rodriguez, with two sophomores being recognized for
the help they gave stepping in as yearbook editors when the original
editors left.
The Speech Award went to Corina Carrillo.
The Tandy Technology Scholar Awards went to Albert Lee, Elizabeth
Montgomery and Daniel Tarin.
The Tandy Outstanding Student Award went to Albert Lee.
The Presidential Award for Educational Excellence, the Principal's
Leadership Award, and The U.I.L. Scholar Awards each had many recipients.
Closing remarks were given by PHS 1996-97 Student Council President, Leslie Armbruster.
By JON FULBRIGHT
Staff Writer
PECOS, May 23, 1997 - What's next for Pecos Eagles' coach Nora Geron?
Gardening, she says.
"I'm going to go home and take care of my garden. I never have had time
to do that in the past," Geron said Wednesday, as she nears her final
week before retirement. But she added she's already got other summer
work to keep her busy.
"I'm already working at three camps this summer," she said, adding that
here in Pecos, "I'm working JTPA (student job training) right now. I'll
be doing that until the middle of July."
Geron officially turned in her resignation as Pecos Eagles' volleyball
coach last week, after 17 seasons that included six district titles, and
11 playoff appearances, capped by the 1987 state championship team that
went 34-0, the last Class 4A team to go through a season undefeated.
Pecos also ran off 76 consecutive victories in district play between
1985 and 1991, when their streak was ended by Monahans, coached by
Geron's daughter, Val Hernandez. The Eagles took back the district title
the following year, but missed the playoffs three straight times until
this past fall, when they advanced to the second round of the Class 4A
playoffs. A bi-district victory over El Paso Burges turned out to be
Geron's 618th and final victory.
She said she has seen several of her former players in the weeks leading
up to her retirement. "I had one in here yesterday (Anna Ozuna) I hadn't
seen in 10 years since we shipped her off to Cook County (Junior
College). She played volleyball at ALR (Arkansas-Little Rock) after
that, and now works for Southwest Airlines in Little Rock."
Geron listed Ozuna's 1986 team as one of her favorites in her 17 years
with the Eagles. "That was the first one to win a district title, and
they won it by going undefeated in district," she said. A controversal
regional finals loss to then-district rival Lamesa allowed the Tornadoes
to take the Class 4A championship, but the Eagles came back the
following team to beat Lamesa at regionals on the way to their 34-0
championship year.
Geron also listed the 1982 team, "Renee (Shorter)'s bunch that got to
the regional finals the third year I was here. That was the first year
we got to the playoffs."
The Eagles handed Monahans their only loss that season, but fell to the
Loboettes in the Region I-4A title game.
"I think all those groups played up to their potential, It's just that
we had so much more talent on the 1987 team," Geron said. Led by senior
hitter Lisa Mierhoff, the Eagles were taken to three games only four
times during the entire season, and placed Mierhoff, Yvonne Acosta,
Norma Mata and Pam Juarez on the all-state team in Austin.
That team also featured freshman hitter Sophia Terry, who Geron said was
"the best athlete that I coached in terms of natural ability in my whole
career.
"There are three that stand out in my mind, but Sophia is the only
natural one. The others made themselves," she said, citing Nancy Bell
and Sherry Kough, who Geron coached in volleyball and basketball at
Fabens and in Florida during her first 20 years before moving to Pecos
in 1980.
The Eagles were 58-0 in district during Terry's four seasons on the
varsity, but Proposition 48 problems kept her from going to Arizona on a
volleyball scholarship. "I don't think Sophia ever realized how good she
was. She always wanted to learn more, and that made her better."
For most fans looking back now, her most impressive game might have been
an early season matchup against Brownfield in 1989, where Terry and her
Eagle teammates dominated Sheryl Swoops, despite a five inch height
disadvantage.
"She was scared of Swoopes, but I told her there was no way she could
block you, and once she got that first ball past her she went to town.
If she relized how good she was, she wouldn't have feared anybody."
Even with Terry, the Ealges lost three straight times to Dumas, though
Geron said an ankle sprain that she suffered in the playoffs her
sophomore year did make a difference.
"On that `88 team, if she hadn't busted her ankle, we would have gone to
Austin. The other two years (1989-90) we just didn't have enough
talent," Geron said. "On the '88 team we had Pam, Norma and Yvonne, who
pushed everybody to the limit. Renee Shorter was like that on our '82
team, but we haven't had anybody like that for a long time."
Pecos also didn't have much height in recent years, though that
situation improved last season. But the Eagles were able to make the
playoffs in 1984 and win their last district title in 1992 despite that
problem.
"That team (1984) didn't have any natual talent, but they just played
above their heads," Geron said. "It was just like Monica (Navarette)'s
year. When you've got a team witha 5-foot-3 middle hitter that leads you
to a district title, that says a lot about the team."
Navarette was district MVP in 1992, while the 1984 Eagles, led by 5-4
hitter Rosario Mata, the Eagles won a playoff for second over a Snyder
team that went on to win the state title the following season, when a
sprained ankle suffered by Kim Calhoun kept Pecos out of postseason play.
Monahans won the '`84 title, while Snyder also took the 4A championship
in Geron's first two seasons in Pecos.
"This area has always been predominantly volleyball. We played it even
when I was in high school in Alpine, but didn't play basketball," she
said. "I this district basketball didn't start until Patty (Hall, the
Eagles varsity girls' coach and Geron's niece) was a seventh grader.
"That's why this area dominated the state titles for so many years. For
a long time just about anybody who came out of this district you could
guarantee would win state," Geron said.
But Pecos' 1987 win was the last title District 4-4A teams have earned,
after 17 over the previous 20 seasons. The Eagles lost the next three
years to Dumas, which went on to take the title, and since then
Panhandle teams have dominated Region I-4A.
Geron says the increased popularity of club volleyball has helped
schools in larger areas.
"Your metro area have got an advantage, and also your areas where
economics are better get an advantage. I know the (San Angelo) Lake View
kids have got a club team, and almost all their volleyball players don't
play basketball. That helps them, but it's not what I advocate.
"Club ball starts on December 1 and runs through July 30, so if you play
every Saturday during those months you're way ahead of everybody. But
that takes dollars, and it means the parents have to travel with those
kids," she said, later citing as an example one of her post-retirement
job offers.
"A couple of ladies in Odessa contacted me to see if we could get ahold
of a gym to give private lessons. They said they could round up enough
kids to make it worth my while," she said.
"Talking about private lessons is getting more and more like tennis and
golf. But we've got a lot of interest here. There are a lot of kids
playing in Pecos."
Pecos had a club team this spring, but Geron said they only managed to
get in two tournaments. "Competition-wise, they would have been better
off running track. They would have had more opportunities to compete."
Along with the `rural' distavantage, Geron said the Eagles "really
haven't had any real tough players the last few years. I think Lori
(Marquez) comes closest to being an Anna Ozuna or a Kim Calhun than
anybody we've had in a long time. That's why we did so much better last
season. Plue we had a lot more talent that we've had in a while."
"It's going to be up to the kids. They're going to be picked to win
district, because we have more returning starters than anybody else, but
it's going to be up to them whether or not they want to work for it or not."
By ROSIE FLORES
Staff Writer
PECOS, May 23, 1997 - Economic development is on the minds of several
individuals in Pecos and Reeves County and goals have been set out to
achieve it, according to Economic Development Chairperson Pauline Moore.
"We don't seem to be moving as fast as we'd like to," said Moore.
Moore outlined the goals the committee has set out for themselves and
everyone concerned. "We would like to see more people become involved,
we realize that some just don't have time, but this is really
important," she said.
Some of the goals include, changing the local environment to make us
more conducive to eocnomic development. Becoming a pro-business
community and developing a one-stop shop for business information and
permits.
"We want to identify the primary responsible entity for economic
development, fund the economic development effort and hire a full-time
economic development individual," said Moore.
This individual would not only serve as a grant-writer, which is
something that is really needed in order to promote economic
development, but would also include other aspects as well.
City council members were very enthused about working on this project
and promised to help in any way possible.
Advertising for bids on the 1997 street seal coat was approved with
several streets targeted for renovation. The 1997 Street Seal Coat
Project will consist of about 90,523 square yards of street seal coat.
"We target so many streets a year and try to complete all those on the
list," said water superintendent Octavio Garcia. "Those on the list we
don't get to are put on the list the following year," he said.
The streets that show the need for more improvement are put at the top
of the list and according to funds are accomodated, according to Garcia.
A chart showing the targeted streets is located on another section of
the Pecos Enterprise.
A proposal to lease a building located at 1104 S. Cedar, by Tammy and
James Marquez was tabled until more information can be gathered. The two
proposed to use the property as a training facility for boxers.
An ordinance to initiate sewer inflow-infiltration abatement program
regarding private sector was approved and council members listed to the
second reading.
An offer to purchase property located at 310 South Mesquite, by Salvador
Carrera was approved for $1,490. The property is in very bad shape and
the council opted to sell it and put it back on the tax roll.
Council members listened to a report from the landfill committee,
however no action was taken. Committee members had a proposal ready for
WesTex Waste, it was not approved by those representing the entity.Any further action on the matter was tabled until the next meeting.
By CARA ALLIGOOD
Staff Writer
PECOS, May 23, 1997 - A group of truly gifted and talented young artists
held an art show yesterday afternoon to display some of their projects
and show everyone what they've been working on.
Alonzo Garcia is a fourth grade bilingual teacher at Bessie Haynes
Elementary who also teaches a Gifted and Talented Art and Creativity
class to gifted and talented children in grades kindergarten through six
after school in the Pecos High School art room with the help of Walter
Holland, PHS art teacher. The students work in many different types of
media, Gonzales said, and they created some works of art which impressed
the show's attendees and made their parents very proud.
Joe Rudy Rodrigues, a nine-year-old, loves to draw landscapes. "I
started drawing them when I was four or five," said the third-grader.
"I like drawing waterfalls. I draw places where I want to be," Rudy said.
Justin Owen, a seven-year-old first grader, really enjoys working in
clay. Most of the other children had built ceramic boxes, but Justin
made a figurine of a deer laying down, resting. "I like animals the
most; I just can't get the pictures of them out of my mind, he said.
Rosanna Granado, 12 and in the sixth grade, says that painting is her
favorite form of artistic expression. "It's something you can get close up to, it's really interesting and fun," she said.
PECOS, May 23, 1997 - Bernard D. Jares, 73, died Thursday, May 22 at
Permian General Hospital in Andrews.
Services are set for 4 p.m., Saturday, May 24 at Pecos Funeral Home
Chapel with Rev. Mike Henson officiating. Burial will be in Greenwood
Cemetery.
He was born Feb. 16, 1924 in Dickenson, N.D., was a retired test track
driver, and was a World War II Navy Veteran.
Survivors include three sons, Tony Jares of Temple, Jerry Jares of
Dayton, Tx., Gilbert Ortega of Mildand; three daughters, Debbie Gomez of
Andrews, Yolanda Fuentez of Midland, Candy Martinez of Midland; one
brother, Ed Jares of Kingman, Ariz.; seven sisters, Katherine Wetsch of
West Virginia, Georgia Zuselt of Utah, Dorothy Ingwerson and Louise
Mewcomb of Oregon, Maryetta Pond of Wyoming, Ann Burns of Wyoming,
Florence Smith of Utah; 19 grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren.Pecos Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
PECOS, May 23, 1997 - High Thursday, 85, low this morning, 59. There is
a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms today. Lows tonight will be
in the 50s and 60s. Highs Saturday will be in the 80s and 90s.
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_
Copyright 1997 by Pecos Enterprise
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
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