Gallup ready to start planning centennial

By Bill Donovan
Staff writer

GALLUP — In just more than 42 months, New Mexicans will have a chance to celebrate the state’s centennial.

But there are some in the state who are wondering if New Mexico will be ready when Jan. 6, 2012, comes around.
One of these is Craig Newbill, executive director of the New Mexico Humanities Council, who has been working with a task force created by Gov. Bill Richardson to make plans for the big event.

Newbill, who was in Gallup to speak at a class at the University of New Mexico-Gallup, said Monday that New Mexico “is not really great in making plans.”

Arizona, which will be celebrating its centennial 12 weeks after New Mexico, has been planning for the event for more than two years and has allocated $4 million for the past three years. New Mexico’s allocation so far is just more than $200,000.

Oklahoma, which is now in the midst of celebrating its centennial, has spent $45 million in state funds and has raised another $150 million from the private sector.

Saying he realizes that New Mexico is not a state that likes to spend a lot of money on these kinds of events, Newbill said he hopes to see the state eventually will contribute $6 million to $7 million to the project and get another $10 million from the private sector.

Newbill estimated that less than 10 percent of the state’s population is even aware that the centennial is coming up. In fact, he said, only three cities — Las Cruces, Silver City and Gallup — have even shown any interest so far in coming up with programs to celebrate the centennial, Newbill said.

Martin Link, who is teaching history class Newbill attended Monday, has been trying — unsuccessfully so far — to get the state legislature to appropriate $50,000 for a project to provide posters commemorating historical events in the state’s history. These posters would be placed in the state schools to get schoolchildren educated about the centennial.

Roy Howard, the director for the Gallup Performing Arts Center, has also composed a piece commemorating the state’s history for the centennial, he said.

As for the rest of the state — including Albuquerque and Santa Fe — there has been little or no interest so far. Santa Fe officials, which are now preparing for the city’s 400th birthday celebration in 2010, said once that is over they can start thinking about the state’s celebration.

Newbill said he expected a lot of cities will host a parade on Jan. 6, 2012, but he’s hoping that there will be a series of events and smaller celebrations leading up to that date.

It will begin, he said, this September when a group will be coming to seven communities in the state — including Gallup — to celebrate the publishing of the first book in 1908 by Jack Thorpe on the “Songs of the Cowboys.”

The show will include a short history lesson plus a selection of the most popular songs from that songbook.