An unthinkable tragedy happened on Tuesday night. According to news reports, a van carrying members of the University of the Southwest’s golf team collided with a pickup truck near the city of Andrews, Texas. The team was on its way back from a golf tournament. Nine people were killed, including six members of the college’s golf team and their coach. Two passengers are in critical condition.
Please keep everyone with the University of the Southwest in your prayers. Our community has strong ties to this Lea County college, and this heartbreaking tragedy is devastating in every sense of the word.
Our athletes, band members, cheerleaders, BPA competitors and many others travel across the state and West Texas to attend competitions every week. These are positive activities, for the competitors, and for all of us as a community. We all share in grieving such a terrible loss.
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Members of the community in Artesia are also grieving the loss of pharmacist Lowell Irby, who passed away earlier this week. Irby founded Lowell’s Pharmacy in Artesia, and he was the longest serving school board member in New Mexico. He was a great friend and a great person. A special ceremony was held in front of Artesia General Hospital on Wednesday in memory of Lowell. We offer our condolences to Irby’s many family members and friends.
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We had some positive news on Tuesday at our local Arbor Day celebration. A record number of people attended this year’s celebration of Carlsbad receiving a “Tree City” designation. We gave out 49 trees- Afghan Pines- and have a waiting list to give out more when they become available.
We’ve seen a huge amount of interest in community activities that celebrate our outdoors and nature – events such as Riverblitz and the Arbor Day celebration. A planned nature walk to Rattlesnake Springs started to fill up almost as soon as reservations were being taken. It’s great to see this much pride in this community, and we will certainly look to find more opportunities to add to this interest.
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We’ve also received reports that some of our residents have set up “library boxes” in their front yards, where people can take or leave a book. There’s one on the 1100 block of N. Canal Street, for example. This is a great idea and we appreciate everyone who is helping to spread their love for books.
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Carlsbad native and world Shakespeare expert John Andrews has a talk with actor/director Clive Francis taking place at 11 a.m. (MST) this Friday, March 18. Francis had roles in “A Clockwork Orange” and “The Crown,” and he’s also a very talented artist. You can register to watch this interview at
Sincerely, Carlsbad Mayor Dale Janway