Photos and Article by Charlie McKee
At 5:15 pm on Saturday, Dec. 14, 2013, a PNM switch turned on the 3,200 lights of the giant Christmas tree in Gough Park. It was a dream come true for Billie Jean Behrens and the local members of the Preceptor Tau Chapter of the Beta Sigma Phi sorority. (See GCB article here.)
Thanks to volunteers from PNM who supplied the truck and labor to install the lights, Gough Park is now resplendent in multi-colored lighting from the Christmas tree, as well as the recently lit white icicle lights of the Gazebo. The project literally and figuratively reignites an old tradition dating back to the 1960s, instigated by erstwhile members of the Silver City Lions Club: Howard Ball, Moose White, Ken Havens, Doc Griffin, and Donald "Smitty" Smith. They found the tree in the forest, planted it in Gough Park, and brought into being a tradition that may now be rekindled with this "Light Up Your Life" holiday event.
2013 Tree Lighting
2013 Light Up Your Life
The holiday lights draping Gough Park's huge pine go on!
2013 Light Up Your Life
Bonni Jo Rogers (right) explains to Billie Jean Behrens (left) how her father, Howard Ball, proprietor of the Farmers' Market Feed and Supply store on Yankie Street, and his cohorts originally found and planted the Christmas Tree in Gough Park.
2013 Light Up Your Life
Preceptor Tau Chapter of Beta Sigma Phi members engineered the lighting of the Gough Park tree. Front (l to r): Letitia Obar, Molly Healy, Estella Alvarez, Billie Jean Behrens, and Angie Garcia. Back (l to r): Shelley Topmiller, Kathy Terry, Rosalie Saiz, Lorraine Marquez, Jayme Schwantes, and Maria Elena Sanchez.
2013 Light Up Your Life
As darkness falls, the 3200 lights on the giant Christmas Tree bring holiday cheer, with the recently lit Gough Park Gazebo lights sparkling in the background.
