Teach adults basic reading or English as a Second Language

—SUSAN RYERSON, READWEST
ReadWest, a nonprofit center helping adults and their families learn to read, write, and speak English as a Second Language in Rio Rancho and surrounding areas, needs volunteers to tutor adults. There are twenty-five adult students waiting for a tutor and more students coming in our doors every week. We will offer a free training class for both types of tutoring in March. You do not have to be bi-lingual or have previous teaching experience, just a desire to help change an adult's life. After the training is completed, the commitment is just one two-hour session, once a week in a public place. ReadWest supports you throughout the entire process, and it is very rewarding.

• Orientation: Wednesday, March 14, 10-11:30 a.m. (or) 5:30- 7 p.m. (This will be the last opportunity to sign up for the March trainings.)
• Basic Reading Tutor Training: Attend two Saturday sessions on March 17 and 24 (8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.).
• English as a Second Language Tutor Training: Attend two Saturday sessions on March 17 and 24 (8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.)
Both Tutor Trainings certify the individual for adult tutoring and are taught by a certified trainer from the New Mexico Coalition for Literacy. Please contact ReadWest by e-mail at readwest@earthlink.net, or phone at 892-1131 to register. Class size is limited and will fill up quickly.

ReadWest is located at 2009 Grande Boulevard, in Rio Rancho, in the back of the Rio Rancho Jewish Center. You are welcome to bring a brown bag lunch.

Representative Udall seeks summer interns for DC and district offices

US Representative Tom Udall, D-NM, welcomes interested college students to apply for the unpaid summer internship programs in his Capitol Hill and New Mexico district offices.
Each year, selected students gain a unique perspective of the US House of Representatives while working in Udall's Capitol Hill office. Additionally, Representative Udall offers internships in his district offices.

"Participating in my internship program provides valuable insight into the legislative branch of government," Udall said. "I am proud to say that many former interns have built on their experience in my office tocomplete their education and lead successful careers."

To apply for an internship, candidates must send a cover letter and resume to: Jeanette.Lyman@mail.house.gov, or fax the materials to (202) 226-1331 by March 16, 2007. Applicants should indicate the city in which they prefer to intern.
Interviews and selections will take place during the second half of March, and notifications will be made by April 1. For more information, please visit Udall's web site at www.tomudall.house.gov.

Udall was recently appointed to the House Appropriations Committee. He previously served on the House Natural Resources, Small Business and Veterans' Affairs Committees.

Mini basketball tourney in Rio Rancho

The Cultural Enrichment Department of Rio Rancho will be holding a "March Madness" three-on-three basketball tournament for fifth and sixth graders on Saturday, March 24 at the Star Heights Recreation Center basketball courts.
This exciting event will feature a double-elimination tournament, a slam dunk contest, a 3-point shootout, a free-throw contest, and other skill events. Activities will run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The registration deadline for this tournament is March 6. A $35 registration fee per team will be required. For more information, please call 891-7230.

Written Spelling Bee benefits library

Rio Rancho Public Library and the Friends of the Library will host an Adult Spelling Bee at 1:00 p.m., on Saturday, March 3, at the new Loma Colorado Library. It will be a written, not an oral, spelling bee, and is open to individuals who are 18 or older. The entry free is $5 in advance, $10 at the door, and all proceeds go to the Friends of the Library. Sign up for the Bee in the library bookstore, or send a check, along with your name and telephone number, to Friends of the Library, PO Box 15143, Rio Rancho, NM 87174. You may call 891-5013 for further information.

Rio Rancho library opens online databases to public

The Rio Rancho Public Library now offers access to many databases from your home computer, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. You can search for magazine and newspaper articles on just about any topic, conduct extensive genealogical research, do research in a Spanish encyclopedia, or even practice for your GED, nursing, or ASVAB exam.

To use the library's databases, log on to the web site at www.ci.rio-rancho.nm.us/library.htm and click on the link to “Search Databases.”

You will need a valid Rio Rancho library card to access some of the databases, and you will need the New Mexico State Library database password, which is "cactus." For help, you can call the library at 891-5013 during regular library hours, or e-mail anytime by clicking on the web site link “Ask a Librarian.”

CASA benefits children

The Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) for children will be hosting a fundraising event on Sunday, March 18, from noon until 3:00 p.m. at Scalo Northern Italian Grill in Nob Hill, located at Central Avenue and Carlisle in Albuquerque.

This sumptuous Italian buffet will include dessert, beverage, and much more. Silent auction items will include a one-night stay with dinner for two at the St. Francis Hotel in Santa Fe, Mark Pardo gift certificates, an exquisite customized leather belt designed by Alan Scott, a week's worth of lunches for two at Scalo, and two $100 gift certificates, also from Scalo.

Tickets are priced at $20 each and may be purchased from the Rio Rancho Regional Chamber of Commerce, which is located at 4001 Southern Blvd. Tickets may also be purchased by calling 203-7179 or 220-2968.

CASA's mission is to support effective volunteer advocacy for the best interests of abused and neglected children involved in the court system. CASA may be contacted via mail at Sandoval County CASA Inc., PO Box 44184, Rio Rancho, NM 87174; by telephone at (505) 720-7030; or by e-mail at sandcasa@netzero.net.

Library hosts first dinner, auction

The Friends of the Placitas Community Library are hosting their first Annual Dinner and Auction on Saturday, May 19, at the Santa Ana Star Bosque Ballroom. The evening will start with a silent auction that includes works donated by many Placitas artists and local businesses. A live auction will feature exciting prizes and will be emceed by Sheriff John Paul Trujillo. All proceeds from the event will fund the operating expenses of the library.

Tickets are $60 per person and can be purchased at the library, or by calling Tina at 771-1299.

Placitas Community Library answers your questions

—ANNE FROST, DIRECTOR, PLACITAS COMMUNITY LIBRARY
Thank you, thank you to those who have responded to the Placitas Community Library questionnaire. If you have not yet done so, there is still time to complete it and send it in or drop it by the library. Can’t find your survey? We have extras at the library for you.

Following are the answers to some of the questions and issues that have come up in your responses.

Yes, we already have free high-speed internet access on our three public access computers. These are available to you anytime the library is open. You must sign our Internet Policy Agreement before using these computers, but it is just that easy. These computers also provide access to most of the databases available at other libraries. They are too numerous to list, so please come in and take a look.

The library’s catalog will be online through our web site sometime in the next two months. We did not realize how much of a priority it was for you, so thanks to your responses, we have moved this to the top of our ‘currently doable’ priority list.

Yes, we work with the Martha Liebert Library in Bernalillo. We share many patrons, and we support and advertise each other’s events. Though our collections overlap, each library has different materials as well. The Bernalillo Library is supported by taxes from the residents of Bernalillo, as well as Sandoval County Bonds, so the two libraries must remain separate and, appropriately, primarily serve their own communities. In much the same way, we cannot be part of the Albuquerque Library system as we are not part of that city. Any resident of New Mexico can use the Albuquerque system, but libraries outside of the city cannot serve as book drops for them.

The PCL has several hundred videos and DVDs to check out, as well as quite a selection of audio books, many of which are unabridged. We have recently rearranged many areas in the library, making the audio/video material and our great large-print selection more accessible.

A big “Thank You” to everyone who has donated books to the library. Your donations have allowed us to put together an impressive collection available to all our patrons. We hope you’ll continue to pass on the new books you have finished reading so they can be shared with everyone in our community. As you do your spring cleaning, please put those already-read treasures aside and send them along to the library.

The Placitas Community Library invites all runners and walkers to join in the Third Annual: “Forever Young” 10K Run and Two-Mile Walk on April 1. Sponsored by the Albuquerque Road Runners in memory of Charlie Young, the event will begin at 9 a.m. just east of the Homesteads Village on Highway 165 at the entrance to the Cibola National Forest. Library volunteers help to facilitate this run and the great folks in the Albuquerque Road Runners give some of the proceeds to support the library. For more information, contact their web site: www.aroadrun.org.

We now have a “Bookmobile.” Since the Village Academy Charter School has no library of its own, the PCL has started a pilot program to enable their students to broaden their reading choices. The library takes books to Village Academy every three weeks for students to check out. Eventually, we hope to arrange field trips for the students to come to the library and take advantage of the whole collection. Another group already taking “field trips” to the library comes from the Senior Center in Placitas. The seniors come for coffee and cookies and the opportunity to pick out some new reading material. Their choices run the gamut from current event non-fiction to romance novels.

Our Lunar New Year celebration was a great success, thanks in large part to the volunteer efforts of Doris Fields and Judy Gajkowski. Over fifty people joined the fun with storytelling, crafts, and games for both adults and children. Special thanks go to Choon Fritch for her calligraphy of our names in Korean on beautiful New Year cards.

Watch for information on the upcoming PCL Benefit Silent Auction and Dinner on May 19. Save the date, as you will not want to miss this great party!

Library Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday: 10-4; Thursday: 10-1
• Friday, March 2 at 9:30 a.m.: Children’s story time
• Monday, March 5 at 4 p.m.: Library book group will discuss Moonstone, by Wilky Collins
• Tuesday, March 20 at 3 p.m.: Spanish/English story time