Pueblo of Isleta website: www.isletapueblo.com (2021)

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Volume 16 Issue 1

Isleta Pueblo News

Pueblo of Isleta website: www.isletapueblo.com

January 2021

Governor’s Report

Ma-Gu-Wam,

By the time you receive this news article you

will have unwrapped your gifts, eaten your

holiday ham. It has been an eye opening

year for us in dealing with the COVID-19

pandemic. Please continue to exercise safe

practices such as wearing your masks, social

distancing, washing your hands frequently

and only leaving your home for essential

needs. Your cooperation and patience will

keep you and our community safe. With this

pandemic, the New Year brings feelings of

uncertainty with our customs, our health

and our everyday way of life. Stay strong

and hopeful.

Congratulations to the new Administration,

Governor Vernon Abeita, 1st Lt. Virgil

Lucero, 2nd Lt. Blaine Sanchez and their

Sheriffs. I wish patience and strength to

meet the needs of our community members.

Hope that you all have a blessed year.

We have faced so many challenges this past

year but we are blessed to have some pretty

amazing people that have stood by our sides

through it all, you know who you are. All

I can say is thank you, from the bottom of

my heart. I am extremely thankful for your

support throughout the years.

From Governor Max Zuni, 1st Lt Governor

Eugene Jiron, 2nd Lt Governor Richard

Jaramillo, Sheriff Eugene Jojola, and

Sheriff Eugene Lucero. We thank you tribal

members for their support you have given

us. We especially thank our employees for

their commitment to our community and

providing services within this difficult time.

I wish you all good health and ask for your

support of the new administration.

Ha-wuu,

Governor Max Zuni

COVID-19: Why is Testing So Important?

Isleta Health Center, Stephanie Barela, 869-4479

TESTING IS THE BEST WAY TO HELP PREVENT THE SPREAD OF COVID-19

•

Testing lets you know your status of COVID-19 at the time of testing although

results may take longer.

•

It identifies positive COVID-19 cases quickly. This allows people to get treatment

early and inform the person they must stay away from others and isolate in order to

reduce the risk of spreading the virus.

•

It helps investigators determine who might be a close contact of the infected

person so that those people can quarantine and get tested to potentially prevent the

spread.

PLEASE ANSWER ALL CONTACT TRACER PHONE CALLS AND ANSWER

QUESTIONS HONESTLY.

20% OF CORONAVIRUS INFECTIONS ARE ASYMPTOMATIC,

BUT ARE STILL CONTAGIOUS.

• That is, 1 in 5 people with COVID19 have no symptoms at all, but can infect others.

So, even though you might feel completely fine, you could still be getting others sick,

which is why it is important to get tested even if you feel normal.

• You could also spread the virus if you are pre-symptomatic, meaning that you might

feel fine right now, but you could be COVID19 positive and still spread the virus

before you start to feel any symptoms. Because of this, it is very important to always

wear a mask when around others, wash your hands often, not touch your eyes, nose,

or mouth, and stay at least 6 feet away from others. Simply being near someone who

is COVID19 positive can infect you with the virus, even if the person feels normal!

Help Keep Isleta Healthy, get tested for COVID19!

Health Beat

Telemedicine

Now Available at the Isleta

Health Center

Health Educator:

Stephanie Barela, BS CHES CSST

Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic the Isleta

Health Center is working hard at keeping the

Isleta community healthy and safe by offering

Telemedicine. Telemedicine is a pre-scheduled

appointment that allows patients and healthcare

providers to communicate via phone call. These

appointments will allow you to speak with your

provider and ask basic medical questions. Based

on your medical needs your provider may schedule

an in office appointment. Patients are still being

required to schedule an in office visit for Well Child

Visits and Sports Physicals. The Diabetes program

will continue to offer Patients A1C screens by

drive-thru testing. The provider will follow up by a

Telemedicine appointment to discuss your condition.

With this new technology and in the interest of

keeping our patients safe, the Isleta Health Center

is working towards offering video visits that will allow

Providers to see the patient over a cell phone, tablet

or computer.

Please contact the Isleta Health Center at

(505) 869-3200 to find out more.

Page 2

Isleta Pueblo News

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

DEADLINE for December Newsletter articles is set

for Wednesday, January 20, 2021, at 4:30 pm. Articles

may be dropped off at the Library or emailed to Nathaniel.

Lujan@isletapueblo.com. Should you email your article,

expect a confirmation email. If you do not receive a

confirmation email, odds are it never made it to me and

then it’s time to panic, so call Nate at 505.869.9808.

People who wish to submit an article or flyer are responsible

for generating their own article or flyer. Should you need

help, please call the Library at 505.869.9808 and set up a

date and time to sit down with a Library staff member who

will help you throughout the process. The Library will NOT

accept notes dropped off at the Library or information over

the phone to generate your article.

PROBATES need to be published in the Newsletter for

two consecutive months. Probates are considered court

documents, therefore, all submitters must provide: 1)

Name of Deceased, 2) Date of Deceased 3) Court Case #

and 4) Date of Court Date. A Probate form can be found on

the Newsletter Archive page at http://www.isletapueblo.

com/newsletters.html .

CLASSIFIED ADS: The new administration has requested

that the Newsletter start a Classified Ad section for Tribal

members selling land, houses, mobile homes, vehicles, and

farm equipment. Leasing of houses and mobile homes will

be accepted. Smaller items which can be sold at the local

flea markets or weekly yard sales will NOT be accepted.

Currently, this service is FREE to Tribal members. Land,

houses, and mobile homes must be within the reservation

boundaries. Ads must meet the 160 character limit. Ads

that exceed the 160 characters will NOT be submitted into

the Newsletter. A single picture may be submitted with

the ad. Submitters of classified ads are responsible for

generating their own ads as this is a FREE service.

As a reminder, Tribal business owners may submit a small

flyer at no charge. Like the classified ads, business owners

are responsible for generating their own flyers as this is a

FREE service.

Classified ads and business flyers will be posted no

more than two consecutive months. In the event where

the Newsletter may exceed the 24-page limit, classified

ads and business flyers will be “bumped” for newsletter

articles. Again, this is a FREE service for Tribal members.

January 2021

Grief, what is it?

Grief is the natural reaction to loss. While everyone experiences some form

of grief and loss, it is also an intensely personal experience. It is the emotional

suffering we feel when we lose something or someone we love. The pain of

the loss can feel overwhelming and we may suddenly experience unexpected

emotions from shock or anger to disbelief, guilt, and deep sadness. The

pain of grief is not limited to our emotional suffering but our physical health

can also suffer, making it difficult to sleep, eat, or even think straight. These

are common reactions to loss—and the more significant the loss, the more

intense our grief will be.

Many are enduring losses during this challenging time of the Pandemic.

While we usually associate grief with the death of a loved one, any loss can

cause grief, including:

10.

Death of a pet

Serious illness of a loved one

Divorce or relationship breakup

Loss of health

Loss of a job

Loss of financial stability

A miscarriage

Retirement

Loss of a cherished dream

Loss of a friendship

Loss of safety after a trauma

Selling or moving away from the family home

Whatever the cause of the grief, there are healthy ways to cope with the

pain that, in time, can ease our sadness and help us come to terms with our

loss, find new meaning, and eventually move on with our lives.

Seek help if you have feelings associated with the following:

1. Feel like life isn’t worth living or wish you had died with your loved one,

2. Feel angry or want to blame yourself or others – perhaps even the person

who has died. Or situations that have happened to us,

3. Feel helpless or anxious because you suddenly have less control over

your feelings – tears may spill out at any time.

4. Feel numb and disconnected from others for more than a few weeks,

5. Are having difficulty trusting others since your loss,

6. Are unable to perform your regular daily activities.

If you are having these experiences,

call Isleta Behavioral Health Clinic at 869-5475 for help.

The Isleta Newsletter is owned and operated by the Pueblo

of Isleta. Therefore, the Governor of the Pueblo of Isleta

has the final say of all articles and contents within the

Isleta Newsletter.

For additional questions, you may call the Library and

speak with Nate or Diane at 505.869.9808.

Thank you,

Nathaniel Lujan

Newsletters may be found at the fifteen distribution

locations listed below. Remember, Digital copies of the

Newsletter may be obtained from the Newsletter archive

at http://www.isletapueblo.com/newsletters.html

The fifteen Newsletter distribution locations are:

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

TR 2 & TR 22 - Chical SE of Community Hall

TR 10 - Behind the old 47 Sales

TR 1 & TR 5 – Ranchitos / Bosque Farms

Reservations Line

Ranchitos Park

Post Office - Big Tree

TR 82 & TR 84 - Teller Road

TR 78 & TR 82 - Carlos Trujillo Sr.

TR 90 @ Y - CF Padilla

Mouse Town Park –

Health Center – South end of Health

Center Parking lot

Library Sunlight & Moonlight Intersection

TR 6 - 47 Intersection

TR 12 - 47 & 147 intersection (Old Smoke & Save)

TR 71 & TR 54 @ Y - Holiday Robot / Paved Road /

Railroad Tracks

TR 45 & TR 40 @ Y - Tata Mel (POI Signage)

looking to purchase a home located on the reservation in Isleta, New Mexico

Serious sellers please contact me at orjiron@yahoo.com

January 2021

Isleta Pueblo News

Page 3

Pueblo of Isleta Career Opportunities

Position Posting

ACCOUNTANT

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT I DIABETES

ANIMAL CONTROL OFFICER

ANIMAL CRUELTY INVESTIGATOR

ASSISTANT CRIME VICTIM ADVOCATE

ASSOCIATE GENERAL COUNSEL I

BOSQUE & RIVERINE RESTORATION MANAGER

BOSQUE RESTORATION TECHNICIAN

BUS DRIVER

BUS DRIVER- PART TIME

BUSINESS MANAGER

CAREGIVER I

CHILD CARE PROVIDER

CHR VAN DRIVER (Part Time)

CLINICAL THERAPIST

COOK I

COVID-19 MEDICAL ASSISTANT

COVID-19 TEST COLLECTOR

DIRECTOR, PROCUREMENT

ELEMENTARY SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHER

EMT-INTERMEDIATE

EXPERIENTIAL EDUCATOR I

FAMILY SOCIAL WORKER

FEDERAL PROJECT MANAGER

HAVC TECHNICIAN

GROUNDS MAINTENANCE WORKER

HELP DESK TECHNICIAN

HOME CARE ATTENDANT-PART TIME

HOMEOWNERSHIP COUNSELOR

HR WIOA WORKER ADULT ( 2 Positions )

IRRIGATION & LANDSCAPE TECHNICIAN

LABORATORY ASSISTANT

LANGUAGE TEACHER

MAINTENANCE TECHNICIAN

PERSONAL CARE SERVICE AIDE (2 Positions)

PHARMACIST (Part Time 2 Days a Week)

PHYSICIAN-AMENDED

PHYSICIAN/PEDIATRICIAN

PLUMBER

PAINTER

POLICE OFFICER-CERTIFIED

PRINCIPAL / EPA

RECORDS CLERK/RECEPTIONIST

REGISTERED NURSE

RECEPTIONIST

RESIDENTIAL PROJECT MANAGER

SALES ASSOCIATE-REPOSTED

SCHOOL COUNSELOR

SHIFT LEAD

SHOP-MOTOR POOL CREW SUPERVISOR

SYSTEMS TECHNICIAN

Isleta Health Center

Program Cancellations

Health Educator: Stephanie Barela, BS CHES CSST, 8694479

The Isleta Health Center (IHC) is doing our part to

encourage social distancing, by continuing to cancel all of

our programs until further notice:

The IHC Programs below are canceled:

► All IBHC Prevention activities

► ICAP Sewing Class on Thursday evenings

► ICAP Moccasin Making Class on Tuesday evenings

► Isleta Diabetes Prevention Exercise lasses (Eagle

HIIT) held Mondays and Wednesdays

► Isleta Diabetes Weight Training held Tuesdays and

Thursdays

► Isleta Health Support Group, 2nd Tuesday of the

month, 12/8/20 CANCELED

Office Location

Health Center

Police Department-Open Space

Prosecutor

Legal Department

Water Resources

Isleta Elementary School

Head Start

Isleta Elementary School

Assisted Living

Head Start

Health Center

Within Only

Health Services

Elder Center

Health Center

Procurement

Isleta Elementary School

Health Services

Health Center

Social Services

Isleta Pueblo Housing Authority

Public Works

Treasury-MIS

Elder Center

Within Only

Isleta Pueblo Housing Authority

Human Resources

Public Works

Health Center

Language Directory

Public Works

Elder Center

Within Only

Health Center

Housing Authority

Police Department

Isleta Elementary School

Elder Center

Within Only

Health Center

Gaming Regulatory

House Authority

C-Stores

Elementary School

C-Stores

Transportation Department

Isleta Elementary School

Closing Date

Open Until Filled

12/30/2020

Open Until Filled

12/10/2020

Open Until Filled

12/28/2020

Open Until Filled

Page 4

Isleta Pueblo News

January 2021

Parks & Recreation Department

HAPPY NEW YEAR ISLETA not be able to open the pool until around FITNESS PROGRAMS

PUEBLO from the Parks & Recreation late February or March. I appreciate your We know during these challenging times we

Department, we finally made it to 2021! I

think all of us are excited about the new

year and hoping that this year turns out to

be better than last year. Last year wasn’t

very kind to many of us and our families

and if any of you are like me, I am sure you

want to put last year as far behind you as

possible and move forward to 2021! I for one

am looking forward to this new year with

much anticipation and positivity, I believe

that things are only going to get better for

all of us this year.

We are hoping that this year will be a

much better year for all of us around the

world, the United States, New Mexico and

especially for us here in the pueblo. As a

department (Parks & Recreation), we are

also looking forward to a better year. We

are hoping to see all of you return to our

swimming pool, fitness facilities and parks

on a normal basis. We also want to start

planning and offering our events to the

community as well, that is provided things

start to get better here in the pueblo and

around the state.

If all goes as planned, we will be expanding

our hours of operation at the start of the new

year (Monday, January 4th, 2020) for both

of our facilities (Main Recreation Center

and Old Recreation Fitness Facility). Our

expanded hours will be as follows:

•

Main Recreation Center – 6am to

7pm (Monday – Thursday) and

6am to 6pm (Friday)

•

Old Recreation Fitness Facility –

5am to 6pm (Monday – Friday)

As things continue to progress and get better

for us we here at the Parks & Recreation

Department will also continue to expand

our hours, we hope that one day we will be

back to our normal operating hours we had

prior to this pandemic.

Please keep your eyes and ears open for

other things that will be happening this

coming year. We are looking forward to a

great year!

SWIMMING POOL/AQUATICS

CENTER

Our swimming pool has been closed for

approximately two and a half years now

unfortunately, but things are starting to

happen in our aquatics finally. If any of

you have stopped by lately you might have

noticed that there is a plastic covering over

our swimming pool. The covering is there

to try to keep the dust down from the work

that is being done to our pool. Currently

our swimming pool is being re-plastered

and there is some bead blasting being done

to the tile around the pool. We have also

interviewed for the Aquatics Coordinator/

Pool Manager position and if all goes as

planned we should have that position

filled pretty quickly. Once the pool is done

being worked on, we will be re-painting the

swimming pool deck and trim in the Aquatics

center. Once we finish with everything in

our Aquatics center we are hoping to have a

grand re-opening and invite the community

to come by and see what has been done and

to meet the Aquatics staff. I was hoping that

we would be able to do that in January but

the re-plaster is going to take longer than I

had originally thought it would, so we may

patience and we should have the use of our

pool again very soon.

YOUTH RECREATION PROGRAM

Our youth recreation program is still

plugging away, but with minimal

participation unfortunately.

For those

of you that don’t know we had to limit

that program because of the COVID-19

virus. Limiting the participation numbers

was necessary for the safety of all the

participants that are attending. We are

hoping that things continue to get better

so that we are able to expand our limits in

this program. The program participants

are given the opportunity to get their school

work/time done daily and after they have

finished their school work they are able to

participate in various activities until their

parents/grandparents/ legal guardians

come to pick them up. This program has

really helped those parents that were

struggling to find adequate care for their

children so that they could go back to work.

My staff does an outstanding job with

the participants, every time I go in their

classroom to check on the children I find my

staff sitting with different children helping

them and making sure they are doing their

school work. I want to thank my staff for

doing a great job with the children. We are

also hoping that this year will be better, so

that we can once again have our summer

youth program as well. It will be very

nice to see all the children here during the

summer once again.

all have been affected one way or another,

either gaining that unwanted weight or

losing that hard-earned muscle. January

2021 will be here before you know it and

we all know what that means, New Year’s

Resolutions. Both fitness facilities, Fitness

West (Old Rec) and Isleta Recreation Center

(New Rec) are open for your fitness goals

and needs. Health and Wellness has never

been more important in these challenging

days of COVID-19. We continue to follow

state guidelines of a maximum capacity of

25 percent at both facilities for your health

and safety reasons, but we also clean

our facilities thoroughly throughout the

day. We have a staff that is continuously

working on their fitness knowledge and will

all be certified with the American Council

on Exercise to ensure you met your fitness

goals safely. We hope you take advantage

of the great equipment that we have free of

charge to you all. Unlike places where you

have to pay a membership of 10 dollars a

month or more and a sign-up fee. Our job

is to help you reach your goals, your job is

to get here and get moving. We hope to see

you soon, stay safe and stay healthy.

PARKS MANAGEMENT/

MAINTENANCE

We are hoping to re-open our parks at

the start of the new year, as many of you

know our parks have been closed for safety

reasons in hopes that by doing so we would

be able to help prevent the spread of the

January 2021

COVID-19 virus. Re-opening our parks

will give our community members an

opportunity to get out and enjoy the fresh

air, get some exercise and just enjoy our

beautiful parks once again. The Parks

v=crew has been staying busy with making

sure our parks are clean and manicured.

The crew has also been working on our

little league fields, in case you have not

noticed there are shade structures over the

fans seating area at both fields. This is a

project they started last year and they are

almost done with it. When the little league

season starts back up, our fans will have a

nice shaded area to watch the games from.

This has been a long time coming and I’m

glad that it is finally almost finished.

On behalf of the Parks and Recreation

Department, we offer our sincere

condolences to the family and friends of

Isleta Pueblo News

Robert “Big Bob” Lujan. He was definitely

a friend of ours as well. In 2006 the Pueblo

of Isleta Parks and Recreation Department,

Parks Management/Maintenance Division

was created.

Robert was the new

superintendent of the division and he was

essential in the vision and creation of the

Parks and Athletic Fields that we have

here in the pueblo and enjoy even today.

His kindness and humor will always be

remembered by everyone that knew him.

He will definitely be missed.

SPORTS PROGRAM

We hope everyone is doing well and staying

safe. Just wanted to let you know what’s

going on in the gym right now. We will

be having sign-ups for an old fashion

H.O.R.S.E. (Basketball) Challenge at the

Page 5

Main Rec Center. Sign-ups will be from

Dec 14th, 2020 thru Jan 6th, 2021. We will

start the challenge Jan 11th, 2021. It will

be a single elimination tournament. You

can call the Main Rec Center at 505-8699777 or email george.waquie@isletapueblo.

com. You will need to wear your mask

during the challenge. This will be for Youth

and Adults, so let’s start the New Year on

the right foot. I would like to see some of

our youth come in and get some training for

any sport they are interested in, they will

have to set up an appointment to do this is

because of the COVID-19 virus. Thank you

and please stay safe and wear your mask

from Coach George Waquie.

Feel free to contact us at 869-9777 for more

information about any of our programs or

just to say hello.

Isleta Pueblo News

Page 6

January 2021

Pueblo of Isleta Public Library

We hope you had a wonderful Christmas break and enjoyed the holiday season. Welcome to 2021!

New Year and a fresh new start. Which also means new library programs; we are excited to start

planning programs for the New Year. We still don’t know what the year will bring but will continue

to develop programs that will serve our community. The Pueblo of Isleta Public Library services

and programs are FREE and open to the public. Visit our Website, Facebook, Instagram, and

Snapchat for upcoming programs.

News

With the New Year upon us, we will be

planning programs for Adults, Teens and

Children. With current circumstances most

programs will be virtually. We hope in the

near future this will change and we can

start doing in person programs once again.

We will also be reviewing the 2020 year

programming and services to see where we

can improve.

Library Closures: The library will be

closed on January 1st in observance of New

Year’s Day. The library staff would like to

wish you good health, happiness and new

accomplishments for 2021.

The library will be closed on Monday,

January 18th in observance of Martin

Luther King Jr. Day. All library media

checked out on Thursday, January 14th

and Friday, January 15th will be due on

Tuesday, January 19th.

Our Summer Reading Program Planning

meeting will be taking place on January 6th

& 7th from 8am-12pm each day, therefore

we will be closed during that time. Once

our planning meeting has concluded we

will resume regular business hours. Our

Junior and Youth group curriculums will

be developed and turned into a 6-week

program during the summer. We will be

addressing concerns and recommendations

that our participants have shared with us.

Please give us a call at 505-869-9808 and

a library staff member will be happy to

answer any questions or concerns you may

have about our Summer Reading Program.

With the weather quickly changing and New

Mexico’s unpredictable weather patterns,

please keep in mind that unexpected

closures may occur. Notices will be posted

throughout the library and up to the minute

notices will be posted on the Pueblo of Isleta

Library’s social media outlets.

Come join our team, the library currently

has an open position for Library Aide l.

This position is part-time (20hrs), Monday

through Friday and will be from 2:30pm6:30pm. Applications must be submitted

to the Isleta Human Resources located

at the Tribal Complex, please make sure

and check with them on their COVID-19

protocol before going. Also applications can

be found at isletapueblo.com or you may

pick one up here at the library using our

curbside service. If you have any questions

about the Library Aide l position please call

the library at 505-869-9808.

If you still have any library material checked

out you can return any items to our Drop

Box, located in front of the library complex

by the bike racks. At this time there will

be not late fees for your checked out items

so let’s start off the year with a clean slate

and bring back any library material in good

condition and there will be no fines applied

to your account. There are three ways to

check your library account.

•

Visit our online library catalog at

https://isletapueblo.booksys.net/opac/

pipl/index.html and log on with your

library card and pin number.

•

Download our FREE Librista app

(Found in the Google Play Store and App

Store) on your mobile device or tablet and

log on with your library card and pin.

•

Give us a call at 505-869-9808.

You will need a pin number to access your

library account online. Speak with a library

staff member about setting up a password

or password reset. For more information

give us a call at 505-869-9808.

With the recent rise of COVID cases the

library once again will have to make

adjustments to the Library’s business hours

of operation. Please continue reading for

the updated business hours for the library.

Recent changes will be made permanent

for the rest of the calendar year. We have

also had to make changes to library staff

schedules that include teleworking from

home.

Join us for our Virtual Family Story Time

every Wednesday at 10:30 am. Story time

will take place over Zoom and is open for

ages 16 months- 5 years old. For each

month a calendar will be available with the

schedule of books and crafts. For the month

of January crafts will include Colorful

Mittens, Winter Sensory Bottle, and a

Polar Bear craft. Supplies for the crafts will

have to be picked up prior to the Story time

through our curbside service. If you would

like to sign up please call the library at 505869-9808 or email Cheyenne at Cheyenne.

Castillo@isletapueblo.com.

Library information is posted at the front of

the library with COVID-19 business Hours

of Operation, library Wi-Fi and Library

Mobile Apps.

The Library is offering a

contactless curbside service

as well as computer use

by appointment only for

essential

use.

Curbside

services will be MondayThursday from 10am to 5pm

and Friday 10am to 4pm. To check out

material please download our mobile app

Librista.

To make a computer appointment please

call the library to set up a time, as space

is limited. Appointments will be based

on one-hour increments so please come

prepared. When visiting the library please

remember to wear a mask at all times,

patrons temperature will be taken before

entering the library.

January 2021

Sanitation stations have been set up

throughout the library, and computer

workstations must be disinfected before

and after use. Patrons will enter at the

front entrance of the library and will exit

on the north side of the library. We greatly

appreciate your patience at this time as

we are adjusting to a new normal. If you

have any questions or concerns feel free to

contact the library at 505-869-9808.

To drop off any library materials please

use our drop off box, which is located in the

front of the library. Drop off material will

be quarantined for three days, disinfected

and then checked in.

With things changing daily library staff

is closely monitoring the COVID-19

situation and as a result library programs

and services are being impacted. We will

continue to keep you updated and informed

about upcoming programs and services as

more information comes along. Below is a

list of our new hours of operation.

Library Temporary Covid-19

Hours of Operation

Monday –Friday: 8am-4:30 pm

Saturday: CLOSED

Curbside Hours

Elderly: 10am-11am

General: 11am-5pm

Library staff members are on site to answer

any questions or address any concerns you

may have and we are always open to any

suggestions you might have to helps us

better serve the community. Please don’t

hesitate to give us a call at 505-869-9808.

Library Access from Home

Isleta Pueblo News

The library now has Lynda.com, which is

FREE online training on various computer

software’s and programs. The Lynda.com

Online Training Library is a massive online

training resource. Using their thousands of

videos, members are able to learn – selfpaced and on-demand – topics ranging from

Google, Zoom and so much more. Members

must have a Library card in order to utilize

the Lynda.com site. The link to Lynda.com

may be found on our Library website at

http://isletapueblo.com/library.html. Just

click on the “Start Learning Click Here”

button to start your digital continuing

education.

Download the mobile app Libby to start

borrowing and reading ebooks and

audiobooks for FREE. Put your library in

your pocket with Libby to access this app

you will need your library barcode and

password.

Free Music! Take advantage of our Freegal

Music service. Log on with your library

card number and pin to start downloading

and streaming music. Library patrons

receive 3 free downloads each week and

UNLIMITED streaming of music with NO

AD interruptions. Log on to freegalmusic.

com or download the Freegal Music app. If

you have any questions about this service

or would like to set up a password please

give the library a call at 505-869-9808.

The library online services will ask you to

enter your library barcode number which is

located on the back of your library card and

a pin or password. If you do not have a pin

or password set up with us you can call the

library during business hours and a staff

member can help you set that up over the

phone.

After School Program student showing his

Christmas Snowman!

For additional help and information library

staff members have made YouTube videos

featuring the library’s digital services

and how to utilize them. Check them out

by visiting the library’s YouTube page at

www.youtube.com/user/poilibrary.

During this time we encourage the use

of our digital services. If you ever have

questions or need help accessing our online

services. Please call us at the library at

869-9808 during regular business hours or

message us on social media (FB, Snapchat,

& Instagram).

The Library’s digital services give

cardholders 24/7 free access to eBooks,

audiobooks, music, and periodicals (NY

Times). So you can maximize your reading,

and listening experience at home. We’ve

got you covered.

Page 7

After School Program student showing her

Grinch Chimney!

Family Virtual Story time participant

enjoying the Christmas story.

Below is a list of the digital services the

library has to offer.

To search our library collection and view

your account you can download the Librista

app on your iPhone, Android and Kindle

devices. This feature will let you see what

library material is available, let you search

our library collection and view your account.

New York Times online is now available

to our library patrons for FREE. Find

breaking news, multimedia, reviews &

opinions on Washington, business, sports,

movies, travel and so much more. New

York Times will be available on library

computers, library Wi-Fi or if you are at

home you can access through the library

website and click on the icon located on the

general library section.

Family Virtual Story time participant

Working on the Christmas craft.

Upcoming

The library will be hosting a high school

and college-geared program for the month

of January. Join us on January 14th at

5:30 pm via zoom. Learn how to utilize your

tablet for the upcoming semester. What note

apps to use and how to organize your notes.

This program is open to all college students

After School Program students showing

their Reindeer ornaments!

and the first five students who sign up and

attend the program will receive a Starbucks

gift card. Participants will also be entered

to win a gift card for a notes app from the

Apple store or Google store. Sign-ups will

begin January 4th. If you have questions or

would like to sign up please contact Bekah

or Shaypof at 505-869-9808 or by email at

( Continued Next Page )

Page 8

( Library, Continued )

Rebekah.Lovato@isletapueblo.com or Shaypof.

Ybarra@isletapueblo.com.

Recap

Paint Night with the Library took place

on December 17th. Library staff member

Cheyenne led this program over Zoom showing

10 participants how to paint a Winter Bear

Drinking Hot Chocolate. Everyone enjoyed hot

chocolate with marshmallows along with good

conversation. Participants enjoyed the night

out releasing some holiday stress. Keep a look

out for more themed paint nights at the library.

Our second Podcast Club concluded in the

month of December. Last month’s selection was

on Conspiracy Theories. Participants listen

to a variety of conspiracy theories like the

Simulation Hypothesis, Vaccines, and Roswell.

The Podcast Club met every Wednesday over

zoom and discussed that week’s episode. We

would like to thank everyone who participated

and we look forward to having another Podcast

Club student soon.

The Afterschool Program has been staying busy

with homework, activities and crafts. For the

month of December students made a Grinch

Chimney, Snow Globes, Ginger Bread Houses,

Candy Cane Sleigh and so much more. We look

forward to planning the upcoming year and we

hope that we can meet in person soon.

Infection Prevention

Infection prevention and control has

always been an important part of public

health and safety. But as the global

fight against COVID-19 rages on, the

world’s communities are reminded just

how important. Help us celebrate all the

infections prevented and lives saved by

our IPs this year!

Clean Hands

Stop the spread of germs

Isleta Pueblo News

January 2021

Isleta Pueblo News

January 2021

Page 9

NEWSLETTER

ISLETA POLICE DEPARTMENT

A SAD FAREWELL TO

I would venture to say not. Another year

gone and probably everyone is not sad to

see 2020 come to a close. Though there

are still struggles across the nation and

within the Pueblo with COVID-19, we are

all hopeful and optimistic for a much better

and brighter

2021

which will begin rather tentatively with

continuing concerns with COVID-19. A

virus which has haunted us for the past

year and will still be of concern in 2021.

With more cases in the Pueblo last month,

we must remind all of safety concerns for

others. If you are COVID-19 positive you

must quarantine and stay home and away

from others.

We have had cases where

COVID positive cases are not staying at

home and traveling about through the

Pueblo and nearby communities. Therefore,

we must continue to inform and remind

everyone to continue all safety precautions

to stay safe.

STAY HOME, MASK UP, WASH HANDS

FREQUENTLY,

AND AVOID GATHERINGS.

BE MINDFUL OF HOW THIS VIRUS

SPREADS AND EVEN THOUGH YOU

MAY FEEL FINE, YOU MAY BE AN

ASYMPTOMATIC CARRIER.

THERE IS HOPE ON THE HORIZON

AS VACCINES ARE BECOMING

AVAILABLE BUT RECEIVING AN

INOCULATION DOES NOT MEAN

WE CAN DISCONTINUE THE ABOVE

PRECAUTIONS.

NO SHAVE NOVEMBER

In the spirit of fun and forgetting the

stressors of COVID-19 a few members tried

the “No Shave November Challenge”. We

believe the winner to be, for the second year

– Detective Silas Thornton. What do you

think?

COMMUNITY RESOURCE

OFFICER/D.A.R.E. PROGRAM

Though challenging, Officer H.S. Powers

was able to complete virtual training of

the D.A.R.E. program on Mondays and

Thursdays with the last class taught on

December 17, 2020. He enjoyed teaching

the children in his classes and looks forward

to the next semester of teaching.

IHSP

The Traffic Division conducted their final

mobilization of the year “Don’t Shatter the

Dream” from December 14, 2020 through

January 1, 2021. This mobilization patrols

for drivers operating a motor vehicle while

under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs

with the priority of keeping innocent

motorists safe on the roadways during the

holiday season.

The mobilization may have come to an end

but we implore drivers:

DON’T DRINK AND DRIVE!

Left to right: Ofcr. Colby Hardy, Sgt. Val

Panteah, Traffic Ofcr. J.P Abeita, Det. Silas

Thornton

Each were presented with a coffee mug.

We at the Isleta Police Department

wish all a happy and

prosperous 2021!

Isleta Pueblo News

Page 10

January 2021

Isleta Historical Society

Protect the Land · Preserve the Culture · Honor The Ancestors

This continues a monthly series of articles about historic Isletans and significant happenings at Isleta.

The Isleta Historical Society is an independent, inclusive group looking to broaden understanding through

vigorous research, interviews, visits to museums and other historical sites etc. We are interested in your

reaction to these stories and encourage you to contact us with ideas for future publications. Visit us on

Facebook and Instagram @isletahistoricalsociety or email us at isletahistoricalsociety@gmail.com. We

will not use any information without your permission. Thank you!

Members: Randy Jiron, Kateri Jojola, Malcolm Ebright, Valentino Jaramillo, Rick Hendricks, and Ted Jojola

Sports and Games at Isleta - Part 1

The First Pueblo Baseball Team

In the early 1900s Pablo Abeita organized

and coached the first pueblo baseball team

at Isleta Pueblo. Led by John T. Jojola, the

Isleta team beat the Los Lunas Tigers 24

to 4 in one notorious game in July 1911.

Jojola hit two home runs and “carried off

the fielding honors by making a sensational

one-handed catch over second base.” Thus

began a long tradition of great Isleta

baseball teams for the next four decades.

The pueblos embraced the team sport

of baseball since they had traditionally

played shinny (like hockey), a celebratory

game marking the end of irrigation ditch

cleaning.

Pablo Abeita undoubtedly read about

the great major league Native American

baseball players of his day working as a

typesetter at the Albuquerque Journal

around 1905. Indian players of the time

included Louis Sockalexis, a Penobscot

Indian, who played for the Cleveland

Indians in 1897; Charles Albert Bender,

Ojibwe, who played for the Philadelphia

Athletics in 1903; and Moses Yellowhorse,

Pawnee, who played for the Pittsburgh

Pirates a few decades later. Then there

was the incomparable Jim Thorpe, a Sac

and Fox Indian, who excelled at all sports

and led Carlisle Indian School’s team to a

national collegiate football championship

in 1911. Pablo Abeita was inspired by their

example and became a lifelong baseball fan.

Two of his sons, Andres “Andy” Abeita, and

Ambrosio “Buster” Abeita became stars in

their own right in the 1930s and 1940s.

Jim Thorpe,

as a member of the New York Giants

The first Isleta baseball team included

Felipe Padilla, Domingo Jojola, Paul

Shattuck, Frank Anzara, Tony Abeita,

Lazaro Abeita, John T. Jojola, Marcelino

Abeita, and Juan Rey Abeita. Marcelino was

Pablo’s brother, Juan Rey was his oldest

son; none of the other Abeitas were related

to Pablo, however. After that famous game

in 1911 when Isleta trounced Los Lunas,

coach Pablo Abeita told a reporter that he

was “well pleased with the showing.” After

this typical understatement, very little

was reported about the Isleta baseball

team until the 1930s and 1940s. But in

the waning years of his life in the 1930s,

Pablo Abeita would have every reason to be

well pleased with the showing of the Isleta

team, first called the Isleta Indians and the

Isleta Braves, and with the performance of

his sons, Andy, and Buster Abeita.

Group Portrait of Albuquerque Indian

School Baseball Team

Isleta Baseball Team, 1911

Standing left to right: Felipe Padilla,

Doming Jojola, Manager Pablo Abeita,

Paul Shattuck, and Frank Anzara.

Seated left to right: Tony Abeita,

Lazaro Abeita, John T. Jojola,

Marcelino Abeita, and

Juan Rey Abeita

By the 1930s, the Isleta baseball team

had reached its pinnacle; some of its stars

were Mariano Jojola, Sam Jojola, and Joe

M. Abeita. Joe Abeita played catcher until

he was hit in the head with a hardball. He

was a silversmith and a cultural leader at

Isleta all his life. He played against some

of the best teams in the Albuquerque area;

he even played against Pete Domenici, who

later became a US Senator. In 1935 Laguna

Pueblo hosted the first All-Indian baseball

tournament in the U.S. It coincided

with their annual September Feast Day

honoring its patron saint, San José. The

tournament started with only three teams,

including Isleta and Laguna, but grew to an

enormous southwestern tradition, bringing

teams from as far away as California. The

Isleta Indians, as they were then called,

won consecutive championships in 1935

and 1936. By 1936 Isleta’s star, Joe M.

Abeita was able to focus exclusively on

pitching while Buster Abeita took over as

manager. Buster led the Isleta Braves to

their second All-Indian championship when

they defeated Laguna. In 1937 Isleta again

won the championship, winning fourteen of

their nineteen games with Buster Abeita

even pinch-hitting in the sixth inning of

one game with the bases loaded. In the

1938 season the players of Isleta’s sandlot

team were about the same with Sam Jojola

and Joe M. Abeita still masterful; Joe M.

Abeita struck out eleven and gave up only

seven hits in the opener against Laguna.

Sam Jojola became manager of the Isleta

team when Buster quit to form a new

semi-pro team, the Albuquerque Indian

All-Stars. The All-Stars included Marcell

Littlehorse, a Potawatomie Indian who

had played at Haskell and Nelson Hendrix,

a Cherokee who also attended Haskell.

By the end of July, Andy Abeita, Buster’s

brother, led the All-Stars in batting at 438.

By the end of August, the All-Stars were

battling Santa Fe for second place behind

the Madrid Miners in first, even though Joe

M. Abeita was out with a broken rib. Buster

Abeita returned to Isleta to coach the Isleta

Braves to a third consecutive championship

in the annual Laguna tournament.

When the Central New Mexico league

folded after the 1939 season, Sam Jojola,

Joe M. Abeita, and Andy Abeita returned to

play for the Isleta Braves. In April 1940, the

Isleta team entered the Coronado league,

made up of diverse teams — Hispano,

Anglo and Native. In 1940, both Isleta

and Laguna made it to the semi-finals in

the Coronado league, where dancers from

Laguna performed the haunting Eagle

Dance before the game.

Eagle Dance, Laguna Pueblo, 1962,

Lee Marmon, photographer

According to Jimmy Abeita, former

ballplayer, Isleta felt they were born to

play baseball and felt like they were more

skilled at it than any other pueblo. But

Laguna was equally good, if not better in

some years, which heated up the intensity,

often leading to fights.

January 2021

Isleta developed a reputation for being the

orneriest players around and were notorious

for fighting. Isleta was once banned from

the Laguna tournament for starting a fight.

Nevertheless, Isletan ballplayers claimed

that playing in the Laguna tournament

was like going to the World Series and to

win the tournament was the crowning glory

of every baseball team’s dreams.

In 1961, a new league was formed which

included the eight Northern Pueblos

and sometimes the Jicarilla Apaches.

Sportswriter Bill Bailey wrote of the

Native players, “keen eyesight, powerful

wrists and shoulders enable the Indians

to whack a baseball with authority and for

distance … Few of them ever tighten up

at a critical moment and they move with

an easy grace after grounders and fly balls

in the field.” Isleta baseball continued into

the 1960s and 1970s with the Isleta Pollys,

a team sponsored by Pollys restaurant in

Albuquerque. Pollys, named after a pet

macaw, was a favorite place of many from

the pueblos and beyond. According to

Emil Jojola, son of Sam Jojola, the Pollys

won several championships with the help

of the young Pablo Abeita as catcher and

Emil as pitcher. The Isleta Pollys carried

on the tradition of superior baseball teams

that started with the first Pablo Abeita and

his 1911 championship team. Today young

Isletans play ball on their school team and

on recreational leagues.

Playing Shinny, circa 1930-1940

Shinny

As mentioned, shinny was a traditional

game Isletan men played annually after the

spring cleaning of the acequia. If the ditch

work took several days, then the laborers

played after the work for each day was

done. There may have been close to eighty

players as that many Isletans cleaned the

ditch. The players divided into sides or

teams such as the North side against the

South. Each player had his own shinny

stick usually made of willow. Both the

outer cover and the interior of the shinny

ball was made of deer skin. In Taos, they

stuffed the ball with seeds and played with

it until it burst. At Isleta during the 1930s

and 1940s, Baustista Benavides made the

best shinny balls. He would bring the ball

to the beginning of the game, and if play

got too rough and fights erupted, Bautista

might get angry and take the ball home.

That was the end of the game.

The game of shinny is similar to field hockey

where the players try to hit the ball through

a goal. In this case, the goal might have

been the opening or road next to the church.

Although Bautista Benavides frowned on

overt violence, players sometimes wielded

Isleta Pueblo News

their shinny sticks as clubs. As if losing

was not bad enough, the losing team had

to suffer a further indignity at the hands

of the winners, unlike the relay races (to

be discussed in part 2) where the losers

received gifts from the winners and their

families. After a game of shinny, the losers

lined up to take their punishment. The

victors paraded by them and flicked the

foreheads of the losers, lightly or not so

lightly. One imagines that one or two flicks

probably did not cause too much pain, but

after the fortieth flick, the losers’ foreheads

were probably aching and covered with

welts. It could very well be that the losing

player who had been the most aggressive

with his shinny stick, using it as a weapon,

would have the sorest forehead.

Another Isletan custom, similar to the

Rooster Pull (also discussed in part 2), was

that the women would throw water at the

men as they passed by the houses before

the shinny game. This may have been

connected to the opening of the acequias,

letting the water flow for the first time

after the ditch-cleaning. Shinny was a

popular game at Isleta in which both boys

and girls participated but not against each

other. Most pueblos and many other tribal

nations across the country played the game

of shinny.

Page 11

Our thanks to genealogist Richard “Dikki”

Garcia for his assistance.

For more information see: L.M. Sutter, New

Mexico Baseball and Stewart Culin, 2 vols.,

Games of North American Indians

●●●

Again, we want to thank everyone who

has been reading these articles. We invest

a great deal of time and energy into

these articles and we do so because we

are interested and passionate about the

topics we cover. We believe that by sharing

these stories with the community it may

instill a sense of confidence in who we are

as Isletans. We are grateful for all of our

readers and have been receiving feedback

from the community. Some of you have

even reached out with ideas about what

topics to cover next or areas of interest for

the Historical Society to dig deeper into. We

thank you for your interest in the stories we

are telling about the Pueblo and the people

and encourage you to reach out to us with

any information, ideas, or comments that

you feel would be helpful to us. We will soon

be publishing on our social media platforms

so be on the lookout for that content. Again,

any information is greatly appreciated and

will not be used without your permission.

Thank you!

Page 12

Isleta Pueblo News

January 2021

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

The year 2020 has been challenging

for everyone, especially in the realm of

education. This past year you may have

learned many new skills, from learning how

to use ZOOM on an IPAD, Chromebook or

phone, to creating calendars and designing

positive learning environments in your

home. You may have also found that

quality internet is essential to navigate

distance learning. 2020 has been a year of

technological growth for many.

As we move into 2021, we look forward

to some normalcy in the near future.

The Department of Education (DOE)

staff is working hard to ensure that

the continuation of quality services are

provided to our community.

INFORMATION FROM THE HIGHER

EDUCATION PROGRAM:

If you are a new student in need of financial

assistance for post-secondary education

or if you are full-year continuing student,

we ask that you use the online form to

submit an application or to upload your

supplemental documents. If you require a

paper application, please contact our office

at 505-869-9790.

The online form can be found on our

website:

https://www.isletapueblo.com/

tribal-programs/educational-services/

The direct link to access the online form:

https://isletapueblo.formstack.com/

forms/scholarship

Submit official transcripts to:

poischolarships@isletapueblo.com

REMINDER: If you haven’t filled out the

Free Application for Federal Student Aid

(FAFSA) for SY 2020-2021 please do so

now. Should you require assistance with

this, contact our offices.

Other scholarship opportunities include:

●

Multiple scholarship opportunities

are available through the Cobell

Scholarship Program and can be accessed

by visiting: www.Cobellscholar.org

●

The

Cobell

Scholarship

Vocational Opportunity is for any

student who has not yet earned

a college degree, is enrolled or

will be enrolling in a vocational

credential, vocational certificate

or occupational license program.

Vocational degrees typically are one year

or less in duration, certify competency in

a specific trade, or provide a license to

perform certain occupations. If you are

uncertain, check with your institution or

review the “What is a Credential” Fact

Sheet at www.acteonline.org. Current

deadline is April 30, 2021.

●

The American Indian Science and

Engineering Society will soon post

multiple scholarships on the website

ranging from Agricultural Science,

Computer Science to various areas of

Engineering. Typically the priority

deadline is March 31 annually. Look

at the prior scholarships they have

announced to gain an idea of the

requirements and expectations. For more

information visit: https://www.aises.org/

students/scholarships

●

The American Indian Graduate

Center offers more than 20 scholarships

and fellowships that fund undergraduate,

graduate and professional degrees. For

more information visit: https://www.

aigcs.org/scholarships-fellowships/

INFORMATION FOR FAMILIES PreK –

12:

Now is the time to start thinking about

your child’s education for the 2020-2021

school year. Today, there are many options

for education in PreK-12 ranging from local

schools, public schools, charter schools and

private schools. Think about what you

want for your child, research the school to

make sure the school has programs that

fits your student(s) needs and/or interests.

Education is important, make sure you are

making an educated decision when you are

selecting a school for your student!

The Department of Education also has an

Educational Assistance Fund that provides

assistance to families and students in the

following areas: a) students who are in

need of academic support, b) students with

disabilities, c) students attending private

institutions, d) students involved in extracurricular school activities, e) group trips

and, f) adult education. Please visit our

website for more information on the policies

and application.

If you have questions or would like some

guidance, the DOE staff is available daily

from 8:30 – 4:30. You can reach us by calling

505-869-9790. School supplies are still

available to JOM eligible students and

students who have received support from

the Educational Assistance Fund. Contact

our office to pick up supplies.

Lastly, we would like to congratulate all

students who graduated at the end of the

Fall semester and let you know that we are

very proud of your major accomplishments.

In addition we encourage all students,

especially those in High School to do your

best! Remember, credits count. We are

happy to assist you in your educational

endeavors!

Best wishes for a bright New Year!

PreK-12 Support Staff: Tish, AuDrena, and

Brandon

Adult/Higher Education Support Staff:

Fran and Val

DOE Administrative Staff: Charlene &

Kristle

Pueblo of Isleta Vocational

Program News

Greetings Students and Community

members, Happy Holidays! Thank you

to all of the Commercial Drivers License

(CDL) students for making the first CDL

class a success. We are so proud of all the

students that completed the training and

passed their CDL exam. Congratulations

Students!

Submitted by Fran Mershon

January 2021

Isleta Pueblo News

Page 13

Dental Tips for the New

Year

Hello to all!

IHC’s Dental Team has a brief message

to bring in the New Year!

We are all anticipating a

New Year where we can

begin to feel that “new

normal” shaping up. We

can all do our part to make

healthy habits a permanent

New Year’s resolution.

It is probably safe to say

that none of us has ever washed our hands as

often as we have learned to do in 2020! However,

with everyone home most of the time, there is

also an increase in snacking on sweets and other

foods that can cause tooth decay and toothaches.

Until more elective dental care and cleanings are

back on the table, it is more important than ever

to have good home care to maintain your dental

health in between cleanings, to prevent having

dental emergencies like toothaches. We would like

to recommend electric toothbrushes, and regular

flossing or water flossing.

If you have questions, we are here to help, please

call us at 869-4499. The dental clinic staff is happy

to answer questions on how to get the most out of

your oral health habits.

Sincerely

The Isleta Dental Clinic

Page 14

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Isleta Resort & Casino & Pueblo of

Isleta to distribute more than 3,200

boxes of food for the Holidays!

(ISLETA PUEBLO, NM) Team Members

from Isleta Resort and Casino’s Facilities

and Food & Beverage Departments

teamed up with the Pueblo of Isleta

Procurement Department to pack and

distribute turkeys with boxes of food to

more than 1,600 Isleta Pueblo families

for Thanksgiving. Roberta Sarracino

from the Pueblo of Isleta Procurement

Department said, “We were happy for

the help. Getting ready and distributing

food for so many families during this

pandemic.” A volunteer from the Resort

Casino who wished to remain anonymous

stated they enjoyed giving back to the

tribe since they feel they received so much

from the tribe in this challenging time.

Sarracino went on to say, “Just a few

days ago we worked with the Resort &

Casino staff once again to pack another

1,600 bags so more Isleta Tribal members

will have a great Christmas holiday.”

The food distribution will include a ham

for the holiday. Holiday bags will be

available for pick up Thursday, December

17 starting at 9 am at Pueblo of Isleta

Chical Reception Hall.

“We are offering drive thru pick up for

the food distribution this year as an extra

precautionary measure so we all can

remain safe thru this holiday season”’

said Sarracino.

Tribal members will be able to receive

their Holiday bag of goodies at the Chical

Reception Hall parking lot. Supplies are

limited and distributed to the first 1,600

tribal members living within a 50 mile

radius of Isleta Pueblo.

Isleta Resort & Casino received

certification by the State of NM in CovidSafe practices and all team members/

volunteers have been trained in CovidSafe procedures.

Isleta Pueblo News

January 2021

Isleta Pueblo News

Page 15

JOURNALING, IS MORE THAN JUST ‘WRITING’

What is Journaling, and how can I make

it more beneficial for those around me,

including myself? It can help you, your

family, your work, or friendships, to

meet daily goals and improve quality of

life, overall. For one, it can help us with

Mindfulness. Which is it, MindFULLness or

Mindfulness? When we look at our normal

daily stressors, think of this image and how

well can we separate the two. (Figure 1).

Journaling could help us clear our head,

make important connections between

thoughts, feelings, and behaviors associated

with our everyday stressors with family,

relationships, work, children, house chores,

etc.! Journaling allows us to take more

control over our lives (to an extent) and puts

things in perspective. Further, it can help

us shift from a negative mindset to a more

positive one, especially about ourselves.

If we can shift our mindset from negative

to a positive, what improvements would

you begin to see? Would you see improved

communication with relationships among

family, friends, co-workers, or people in

general? Would you be able to feel selfconfident? These are some improvements

on how this one thing, Journaling, can help

shape our lives for the better and improve

our overall quality of life.

Let us start off with everyday stressors

that we all have, as mentioned above,

how can journaling help? Journaling is an

excellent method for anyone who simply

wants to manage their stress, perhaps

to keep it from pushing them into more

serious mental health illnesses like Anxiety

and Depression. Although Anxiety and

Depressive symptoms may be relevant to

general society, it does not mean you have

Anxiety or Depression, as diagnosed by a

Mental Health Specialist. By keeping a

journal, this can help us fully explore our

emotions, feelings, and triggers that may

evoke those emotions or feelings, release

of tension, and fully understand our

experiences as they happen to us. We can

work on reducing specific sources of stress

(triggers) or aid you in reaching important

goals. This too could be the overall goal,

to reduce stress, period. When applying

journaling, more improvement has come

with the following: Improving cognitive

functioning,

Strengthening

immune

system, Examining thoughts and shifting

perspectives, Promotes action, and planning

for multiple options and considering

multiple outcomes of a situation.

Next, looking at how journaling helps to

calm and clearing of our mind, release of

everyday stressors, letting go of negativitythoughts, behaviors, exploring experiences

with anxiety and/or stress, capturing

your struggles through writing (also

successes and gratitude), and improving

self-awareness and teaching you about

your triggers. The illustration helps us

understand this (Figure 2).

Lastly, how do we start (if we do not already)

Journaling? What do we write, what should

I write, what is important, are all relevant

questions for some. For starters, choosing

what to write and how to write it, is

dependent on you. Ask the question, do I see

areas in your life that are more stressful?

Why is it happening? Is there something

I can do about it? This helps identify the

areas in our lives that need to assess and

addressed, identifying what is happening

with your body and looking at solutions

for improvement. When we can get to this

point, we can help our family, our work, our

friendships, to meet daily goals and improve

quality of life, overall and ourselves.

8 Things to Know about the U.S. COVID-19 Vaccination Program

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/8-things.html

1. The safety of COVID-19 vaccines is a top priority.

The U.S. vaccine safety system ensures that all vaccines are as

safe as possible. CDC has developed a new tool, v-safe, as an

additional layer of safety monitoring to increase our ability to

rapidly detect any safety issues with COVID-19 vaccines. V-safe

is a new smartphone-based, after-vaccination health checker for

people who receive COVID-19 vaccines.

2. COVID-19 vaccination will help protect you from getting

COVID-19. Two doses are needed.

You need 2 doses of the currently available COVID-19 vaccine. A

second shot 3 weeks after your first shot is needed to get the most

protection the vaccine has to offer against this serious disease.

3. Right now, CDC recommends COVID-19 vaccine be

offered to healthcare personnel and residents of long-term

care facilities.

Because the current supply of COVID-19 vaccine in the United

States is limited, CDC recommends that initial supplies of

COVID-19 vaccine be offered to healthcare personnel and longterm care facility residents.

4. There is currently a limited supply of COVID-19 vaccine

in the United States, but supply will increase in the weeks

and months to come.

The goal is for everyone to be able to easily get vaccinated against

COVID-19 as soon as large enough quantities are available. Once

vaccine is widely available, the plan is to have several thousand

vaccination providers offering COVID-19 vaccines in doctors’

offices, retail pharmacies, hospitals, and federally qualified health

centers.

5. After COVID-19 vaccination, you may have some side

effects. This is a normal sign that your body is building

protection.

The side effects from COVID-19 vaccination may feel like flu and

might even affect your ability to do daily activities, but they should

go away in a few days.

6. Cost is not an obstacle to getting vaccinated against

COVID-19.

Vaccine doses purchased with U.S. taxpayer dollars will be given

to the American people at no cost. However, vaccination providers

may be able to charge administration fees for giving the shot.

Vaccination providers can get this fee reimbursed by the patient’s

public or private insurance company or, for uninsured patients,

by the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Provider

Relief Fund.

7. The first COVID-19 vaccine is being used under an

Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food

and Drug Administration (FDA). Many other vaccines are

still being developed and tested.

If more COVID-19 vaccines are authorized or approved by FDA,

the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) will

quickly hold public meetings to review all available data about

each vaccine and make recommendations for their use in the

United States.

All ACIP-recommended vaccines will be included in the U.S.

COVID-19 Vaccination Program. CDC continues to work at all

levels with partners, including healthcare associations, on a flexible

COVID-19 vaccination program that can accommodate different

vaccines and adapt to different scenarios. State, tribal, local, and

territorial health departments have developed distribution plans

to make sure all recommended vaccines are available to their

communities.

8. COVID-19 vaccines are one of many important tools to

help us stop this pandemic.

It’s important for everyone to continue using all the tools available

to help stop this pandemic as we learn more about how COVID-19

vaccines work in real-world conditions. Cover your mouth and nose

with a mask when around others, stay at least 6 feet away from

others,avoid crowds, and wash your hands.

Page 16

Isleta Pueblo News

January 2021

OLD NEWS BUT GOOD NEWS - ELDER CENTER!

THANK YOU TO THE FAMILY THAT ACKNOWLEDGED Based on funding, staffing, food delivery equipment and transportation

THE WORK OF THE ISLETA ELDER CENTER IN THE the maximum number of food boxes we can provide is 250.

ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL ON

♦ We are reserving 25 Food Box slots for emergencies

THANKSGIVING DAY!

This Isleta Pueblo family did not miss a thing about the amount of

work that goes into the preparation of the Food Box deliveries every

two weeks. We want our elders to understand the State and Federal

Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) that the Elder Center must

follow. This forces us to develop a menu to meet the dietary allowance

in the meals we provide. In addition, by using a menu we can ensure

that we are providing the necessary ingredients for each meal. Here

are additional highlights about our deliveries and photos to show how

our process works:

♦

We started the Food Box Deliveries on May 26, 2020

We started by serving all elders 80 years of age and older (all

who wanted a food box)

Added 70-79 years of age (all who wanted a food box)

Added the last group to meet the maximum number of 225 by

adding 65-70 years of age (all who wanted a food box)

To date we have provided 26,056 meals to 303 consumers

As always, we are so very happy to be serving our elders and hope

that the pandemic will be over soon! Please take care of yourselves!

We love you and miss all of you-Happy Holidays!

January 2021

Isleta Pueblo News

What to Expect if You

Receive a COVID-19

Contact Tracer Phone Call

Isleta Health Center

www.healthline.com

Stephanie Barela, BS CHES CSST, 869-4479

Page 17

Happy to Share with the Community

Exciting News on COVID Vaccines!

Contact tracing is a public health strategy that

involves identifying everyone who may have been

in contact with a person who has the coronavirus,

this also includes the positive person. Contact

tracers collect information and provide guidance

to help contain the transmission of disease. It

starts when the Health Center or local department

of health gets a report of a confirmed case of

the coronavirus in its community and gives that

person a call. It is crucial during this time to

answer your phone. You may not recognize the

number, it might be a contact tracer calling to

let you know that someone you have been near

has tested positive for the coronavirus. Ignoring

calls from contact tracers could put you at risk of

unknowingly transmitting the virus to your loved

ones and others.

The contact tracer usually provides information

on how to isolate, when to get tested, signs and

symptoms. During your conversation with a contact

tracer, you will be asked an array of questions. For

example, family, employment, places and people

you have been around. This helps identify people

that may have been exposed to the virus. The

interview can take anywhere from 30 minutes to a

few hours, depending on how complex it is.

If you are the person who tested positive for

COVID-19 you will be asked who you have been

in contact with two days prior to the onset of

symptoms. This is because the infectious time is

believed to be 2 days before symptom onset. The

Contact tracer will ask the person if they are socially

distancing and other precautionary measures,

wearing a face mask, staying 6 feet away, and

hand hygiene. Socially distancing and places

they have been. It’s a relatively straightforward

process,

If the Positive person has not been adhering to

the prevention guidelines and has been getting

together with others, not wearing a mask, traveling,

working close to others and not washing their

hands, the interview can get a lot more involved.

The person might need to review their calendar,

create a timeline of everywhere they have been,

and figure out how long they spent with different

individuals.

After the case interview, the contact tracers will call

the people who have been around and potentially

exposed to the coronavirus by the person who

tested positive. They are given recommendations

on how to safely quarantine or isolate, where to

get tested, and what to do if they become sick.

If they’re not already sick, we still need to selfquarantine to prevent the spread of COVID. Just

because you feel fine, you can still spread the

virus to others.

Reaching contacts of positive cases can be

difficult:

1. People do not answer their phone,

2. Return messages

3. Contact information is incorrect.

4. The number of contacts they have had.

5. Fear of getting in trouble

Please help keep Isleta healthy,

thank you.

Isleta Pueblo News

Editor:

Nathaniel Lujan

Asst. Editor:

Diane Abeita

Published By:

Valencia Express

Isleta Health Center is excited to share

with you a photo our EMS Manager

Daniel Castro delivering our first phase

of COVID Vaccines to the clinic.

Photo of Erica Carrasco, Pharm D &

Shay Jaramillo, RN our first and second

Isleta Health Care Tribal Members

receiving the Pfizer COVID Vaccine.

Johnson O’Malley December Family Night

The Johnson O’Malley program

in collaboration with the Isleta

Language Program, demonstrated

a tamale making session with

families

for

the

December

“Christmas Time is Tamale Time”

Family Night activity. This virtual

experience was phenomenally

eventful and complete with family

fun. A big shout out to the five

lucky raffle winners, as well as,

the junior saxophone player who

concluded the event with some fine

tunes. We look forward to seeing

families at the next virtual family

night in January.

Page 18

Isleta Pueblo News

Facts about COVID-19 Vaccines

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/

vaccines/vaccine-benefits/facts.html

FACT: COVID-19 vaccines will not give you COVID-19

None of the COVID-19 vaccines currently in development in

the United States use the live virus that causes COVID-19.

There are several different types of vaccines in development.

However, the goal for each of them is to teach our immune

systems how to recognize and fight the virus that causes

COVID-19. Sometimes this process can cause symptoms,

such as fever. These symptoms are normal and are a sign

that the body is building immunity.

It typically takes a few weeks for the body to build immunity

after vaccination. That means it’s possible a person could be

infected with the virus that causes COVID-19 just before or

just after vaccination and get sick. This is because the vaccine

has not had enough time to provide protection.

FACT: COVID-19 vaccines will not cause you to test

positive on COVID-19 viral tests

Vaccines currently in clinical trials in the United States won’t

cause you to test positive on viral tests, which are used to see

if you have a current infection.

If your body develops an immune response, which is the goal

of vaccination, there is a possibility you may test positive

on some antibody tests. Antibody tests indicate you had

a previous infection and that you may have some level of

protection against the virus. Experts are currently looking

at how COVID-19 vaccination may affect antibody-testing

results.

FACT: People who have gotten sick with COVID-19

may still benefit from getting vaccinated

Due to the severe health risks associated with COVID-19 and

the fact that re-infection with COVID-19 is possible; people

may be advised to get a COVID-19 vaccine even if they have

been sick with COVID-19 before.

At this time, experts do not know how long someone is

protected from getting sick again after recovering from

COVID-19. The immunity someone gains from having an

infection, called natural immunity, varies from person to

person. Some early evidence suggests natural immunity may

not last very long.

We won’t know how long immunity produced by vaccination

lasts until we have a vaccine and more data on how well it

works.

Both natural immunity and vaccine-induced immunity are

important aspects of COVID-19 that experts are trying to

learn more about, and CDC will keep the public informed as

new evidence becomes available.

FACT: Getting vaccinated can help prevent getting

sick with COVID-19

While many people with COVID-19 have only a mild illness,

others may get a severe illness or they may even die. There

is no way to know how COVID-19 will affect you, even if you

are not at increased risk of severe complications. If you get

sick, you also may spread the disease to friends, family, and

others around you while you are sick. COVID-19 vaccination

helps protect you by creating an antibody response without

having to experience sickness. Learn more about how

COVID-19 vaccines work.

FACT: Receiving an mRNA vaccine will not alter

your DNA

mRNA stands for messenger ribonucleic acid and can most

easily be described as instructions for how to make a protein

or even just a piece of a protein. mRNA is not able to alter or

modify a person’s genetic makeup (DNA). The mRNA from a

COVID-19 vaccine never enter the nucleus of the cell, which

is where our DNA are kept. This means the mRNA does not

affect or interact with our DNA in any way. Instead, COVID-19

vaccines that use mRNA work with the body’s natural

defenses to safely develop protection (immunity) to disease.

Learn more about how COVID-19 mRNA vaccines work.

January 2021

Isleta Pueblo News

Page 19

JOHNSON O’MALLEY

Ma’Gu’am, He’dem’bak! Ta’Ween chee’beh’ee mum goo’bah’che!

Greetings, everyone! Happy New Year.

First things First!

We are pleased to announce the newest

members to the Johnson O’Malley (JOM)

team. Our JOM program has a new JOM

Coordinator and a new College Peer Tutor.

Let’s welcome…

Tanesha (Tish) Howard as the JOM

Coordinator;

Tish is the daughter of Tata Paul and Nana

Rae Padilla. She has resided in the Isleta

Pueblo community her whole life. She

holds a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary

Education with a minor in English and a

Master’s degree in Language, Literacy and

Sociocultural Studies with an emphasis on

American Indian Education. Both degrees

were obtained at the University of New

Mexico (UNM).

their work and teaching course materials

when the professor was out. He is currently

attending the UNM for his Bachelor's

in Liberal Arts degree with a focus on

Video Game Design, Film and Digital Art,

Information Technology, and Computer

Science. He plans to attend college all the

way through to a Master's degree, where he

will pursue a teaching role as a professor.

Brandon feels that the job as a College

Peer Tutor is an excellent step towards

his goal. He feels that this is an amazing

opportunity to help a community to

hopefully improve the education and daily

lives of many people. He looks forward to

working alongside everyone in the JOM

program and participating in community

events. Brandon looks forward to getting to

know everyone!

Tish has worked with youth and in the

education setting for 20+ years. She has

served as a regular education teacher,

as well as a substitute teacher for both

Albuquerque Public Schools and the Los

Lunas School district. She has served

as a social worker with the Indian Child

Welfare Unit. Tish has collaborated

with the Department of Education in

the past, where she has developed an

academic Tiwa curriculum, as well as an

online Tiwa curriculum, specifically for

COVID 19 restrictions, with the Isleta

Language Program. She has also served

as vice-president on the Indian Education

Committee with the JOM program.

Tish is extremely delighted to be a part

of the JOM program, as she brings much

experience and knowledge with her.

Brandon Norine is an indie video game

developer and article writer by trade.

However, he has always had a passion

and interest in education by helping

communities have successful education

provided to them. Brandon graduated from

the UNM with an Associate's Degree in

Video Game Design and Simulation. He

spent a fair amount of time working as an

unofficial teaching assistant for the game

design program, by helping students with

Lastly, parents will be receiving a Survey

Monkey link from the JOM program. This

survey is a mid-year check in to ensure that

students are still achieving during their

remote learning period. Please complete

the survey to better help the JOM program

on assisting you and your student(s).

Facebook, anyone?

The JOM program now has a Facebook

Group page. This group is created to provide

ongoing communication and updates

for families and students. If you are a

Facebook type of person, please join the

Pueblo of Isleta Johnson O’Malley group.

All you would need to do is: click the groups

tab on your Facebook page, search Pueblo

of Isleta Johnson O’Malley Program, click

join group, and voila! You are in the JOM

Facebook group.

Did you know?

Welcome Tish and Brandon to the JOM

program! We look forward to a prosperous

New Year!

Program Updates:

Brandon Norine as the College Peer Tutor;

family activities, etc. The Indian Education

Committee Meetings are held quarterly

and sometimes more for special meetings,

if necessary. The IEC meetings are open for

all parents to attend. Currently, meetings

are being conducted via Zoom and will

continue until it is safe to return to in person

sessions. The next IEC meeting will be held

on Thursday, January 07, 2021 @ 5:30pm.

Inquire with the JOM program for a Zoom

link for this meeting. If you are interested

in joining the IEC, please submit a letter of

interest to Tish Howard, JOM Coordinator,

Tanesha.Howard@Isletapueblo.com.

February 1st, 2021 will be the last day for

letter of interest submission.

The year 2020 has not been like any

other year we have encountered. With the

pandemic at our sides, students had to

adapt to virtual learning, as well as many

other online methods of schooling. The JOM

program continues to work diligently to

provide adequate service to our Indigenous

youth. As we proceed into a new semester,

the JOM program will be offering tutor

support for our K-12 students. As you

have read, the program has Brandon, the

new College Peer Tutor on board who is

available to assist students with their need.

The College Peer Tutor will work alongside

AuDrena Abeita, Academic Coach, to

make tutoring supports accessible for all

students. If you or your student is in need

of a tutor, please contact the JOM program

for an application to the tutoring program

at (505) 869-9810. The sessions will be

twice a week for 4-8 weeks depending on

the need of the student. Tutoring sessions

will be held via Zoom or Google Meet until

in person learning can resume. Slots fill up

quickly!

The JOM program would also like to

encourage all interested parents to be

a participant on the Indian Education

Committee (IEC). At this time, there is a

vacant position for an IEC member. The

IEC is responsible for approving the JOM

budgets, discuss grievances or concerns,

New Mexico celebrates a birthday on

January 6th. New Mexico had become the

47th state of the United States on January

6, 1912. Although that was 109 years ago,

New Mexico is still one of the nation’s

youngest states.

Prior to statehood,

New Mexico was known as New Mexico

Territory and further back, Mexico/New

Spain territory. On January 6th, be sure

wish our beautiful state a Happy Birthday!

The

Johnson

O’Malley

Program wishes everyone a

safe New Year. Please take

care of yourselves and one

another.

NM Poison Control

During the Pandemic, we should be

cleaning and disinfecting more often.

It is important that you do not inject or

ingest these chemicals into your body.

Please remember to keep ALL chemicals

out of children’s reach. If any cleaning

or disinfectant solution is swallowed or

injected, please contact the NM Poison

Control immediately.

Page 20

Isleta Pueblo News

January 2021

Isleta Health Support Group

January Meeting Canceled

During these difficult times I want you to know

that you are not forgotten. I really miss seeing

the group and although the group has not met, it

is my hope that we can start meeting again later

on in 2021, either over the internet, the phone, or

in person. Please reach out to me if you have any

questions, concerns, or just to let me know how

best the group can support you.

We are working hard to determine ways to stay

connected,we hope to continue with the

group as soon as possible.

Please call 869-4479 if you are interested in

being contacted once decisions

are made.

For information please contact

Stephanie Barela

869-4479

This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.