One University of New Mexico student has been awarded one of the most highly competitive scholarships in the fields of environmental, Tribal public policy, and health care. UNM junior Barbara Gutierrez has been named a 2024 Udall Scholar, one of just 54.
Pueblo to host Isaiah Vialpando motorcycle run for local scholarship chieftain.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from chieftain.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Pastor Bobby J. Wilson was a quiet but mighty leader, servant to the people and a man who loved his community.
Wilson was born in Siloam Springs, Arkansas but found a home in Pueblo in 1968. He spent the next 45 years as the pastor of Praise Assembly of God church.
Wilson died Dec. 18, but the pastor, husband, father and friend is remembered fondly by those who knew him.
“First and foremost, he was a pastor,” eldest son Michael Wilson said. “He really focused on his congregation and building that, but what he was really interested in was having a place where people could come and discover Christ and Christianity. He knew that the church had to be involved in the community, not politically but in the form of service.”
The foundation hosted a modified version of its annual Bessemer Christmas Extravaganza.
The annual event, started by city councilman and Pueblo Poverty Foundation founder Ray Aguilera, took place as a drive-thru celebration.
For more than two decades, Aguilera has hosted the event to reward the hardworking young scholars of Carlile, Columbian and Minnequa elementary schools.
“It may seem like we just do this,” Aguilera said. “But there is an alternative motive.”
Aguilera has partnered with the three elementary schools to encourage the children to find joy in learning.
The Vocabulary Challenge tasks students with enhancing their lexicon with as many new words as possible over the course of a school year.
Although the coronavirus pandemic halted plans for a ceremony this year, three Pueblo County High School alumni have been named to the school’s Hall of Fame and will be honored during a formal induction banquet slated for October.
The recipients of the 2020 Golden Hornet Award are Sam Brown Jr., Constance (Genova) Miketa and the late John Musso.
Brown, a Pueblo native, was a member of Pueblo County’s first graduating class in 1955. He went on to operate several small businesses, including Mountain States Sheet Metal, which he founded at the age of 29 in 1966 with partner Art Gonzales.
Brown believed in giving back to the community and supported 4-H, Future Farmers of America and many other organizations.