October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Commissioners presented the proclamation to El Refugio Inc. domestic violence shelter Director Rachel Sierra.

The Grant County Fair would take place Sept. 20-24 at the Cliff Fairgrounds. Commissioners presented the proclamation to a large group of fair board members, representatives of the County Extension Office and several fair youth participants.

Friends and family of former County Treasurer Rusilia "Rusie" Benavidez gathered to accept the proclamation naming September 2023 in honor of Rusie at the request of Treasurer Patrick Cohn.

The last proclamation declared Sept. 23, 2023 Buddy Walk Day. Organizer Vicki Galindo and helper Deborah Madrid accepted the proclamation from the commissioners.

[Editor's Note: This is part 5 of a series of articles on the Grant County Commission work session on Sept. 12, 2023 and the regular meeting on Sept. 14, 2023.. This article continues with the review of the regular meeting agenda at the work session. This article begins with proclamations.]

Photos and article by Mary Alice Murphy

Four proclamations were presented at the Grant County Commission regular meeting on Sept. 14, 2023.

They included proclaiming October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month, declaring Sept. 20-24 as Grant County Fair Days, naming September 2023 as Rusilia "Rusie" Benavidez Month and Sept. 23, 2023 as Buddy Walk Day.

Rachel Sierra, El Refugio Inc. director, the local domestic violence shelter, said: "Thank you again for supporting this proclamation. This past year, we thankfully had no deaths due to domestic violence. Thanks go to law enforcement who often intervene in time. Also thanks to our community agencies, who, too, intervene to help. The shelter has been really busy. We had maybe 15 to 16 kids at one time there for a long time. I always want to focus on the children. The Legislature did not not give us an increase in funding this year. We were cut by about $86,000 for the one emergency shelter in the county. That is a lot of money. Children are growing up and looking at the behavior that their own parents have. We're going to have a lot of issues. We already see it in the children we have in the shelter sometimes. Their behavior is already abusive. They are the kids that fall through the gaps of the education system, because they are the trouble-makers or they are not doing what they are supposed to be doing. They live in a war zone. As a voice I ask you to please talk to our legislators about domestic violence. It's not something people like to talk about, but it's a reality and it happens in our backyard. One out of four girls is a stat that will encounter domestic violence. Please be our voice. We are honored to have our sheriff on our board. Treasurer Cohn used to serve on our board. Thank you all for the hard work you do."

District 1 Commissioner and Chair Chris Ponce thanked Sierra and the shelter, as well as the other agencies for the work they do for the community.

Fair Board member Ty Bays thanked the commissioners for the Grant County Fair proclamation. "This year we will be celebrating our 75th year of this fair in Grant County. Seventy-five years ago, several individuals came together to hold a fair in Cliff. Mr. Jackson, Mr. Hooker, a former county commissioner, and some others formed a totally volunteer board that continues with no pay. This fair is all about our youth, all about agriculture and we certainly appreciate this proclamation. I want to express our special thanks to the county for giving the fair a whole new office, using a sea container. We want to thank Jason Lockett (county grounds and facilities superintendent) for heading it up. Mr. Lockett and his crew take a lot of pride in their work. We would like to invite all of you, because there's something for everyone. Last year we had 98 exhibitors, this year 96. That might be the biggest youth activity in Grant County that I know of. The youth are our whole mission."

Ponce said he would like to take his hat off to all the kids that put in all the hard work.

District 2 Eloy Medina said the promotional video was really good; whoever did that, "it was excellent."

Bays said to applause: "That was your extension agent, Jessica Swapp."

Treasurer Patrick Cohn read the next proclamation to name September 2023 as Treasurer Rusilia "Rusie" B. Benavidez month, as she served as treasurer or deputy treasurer from 1975 to 2004, 30 years.

Ponce said: "she was a great lady. I went to school with her kids. Thank you to her family for sharing her for 30 years."

Cohn said it was a great honor for him to present this to the the family and friends, as well as two of her staff, former treasurer and deputy treasurer Deborah Madrid and Melissa Sandoval. I enjoyed talking to her family.I always wondered about the vault in the treasurer's office. I heard a story about when the county moved out of the courthouse to this administration building. Rusie did not want to leave the office without her vault. So it was moved."

The last proclamation was for the Buddy Walk, which was developed by the National Down Syndrome Society in 1995 to bring together a range of individuals reaching out to family and friends, teachers, co-workers and other professionals to promote awareness and inclusion for people with Down Syndrome to raise money for advocacy and education. The Buddy Walk would take place Sept. 23, 2023 at Gough Park.

Ponce said: "This is great. I hope we can further educate the public on Down Syndrome so there is more money raised for research and education."

Vicky Galindo, organizer, said she wanted to clarify that this year is for awareness. "This year is a bit different. It is not a fundraiser. We wanted to do it for awareness, but Mayor Ken Ladner called me and asked me when the Buddy Walk would be held. I said we weren't having one. 'What?' he said. He made sure we would have one. We love to celebrate our kids with the extra chromosome. It will be all day in the park, with the Knights of Columbus doing a car show and cornhole tournament. We combined events because the park was already taken. A lot of my friends make the trek to Silver City for the Buddy Walk. They love to come to Silver City. We like to celebrate, and Silver City is one of only three Buddy Walks in the state. Raul Turrieta will be the emcee. The kids, I call them kids, but many are adults, love to dance, and Raul gets everyone dancing."

The next agenda item on the regular meeting agenda—the Gila Regional Medical Center report—will begin the next article.

For previous articles, please visit https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/80266-grant-county-commission-holds-work-session-0912223-part-1 ; https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/80291-grant-county-commission-work-session-091223-part-2 ; https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/80329-grant-county-commission-work-session-091223-and-regular-meeting-part-3 ; and https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/80357-grant-county-commission-work-session-091223-and-regular-meeting-091423-part-4 .
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