New Mexico
New Mexico children, who died by abuse and neglect, honored with Angel Tree
The Guardians of the Children has put together the Angel Tree event for the past 10 years.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The holidays are filled with events and light displays, including the lighting of a tree in Albuquerque Civic Plaza that has a deeper meaning behind it.
People gathered Saturday to light an Angel Tree to honor New Mexico children who have been lost to abuse and neglect. Each of the tree’s ornaments contains the name and a photo of a New Mexico child who lost their life because of abuse and neglect.
“We want people to understand we’re never going to forget them. We’re going to be mentioning their name. I’m of a firm believer that the minute we stop speaking their name, that’s when they’re gone,” said Frank Montano, of the Guardians of the Children Rio Grande chapter.
Guardians of the Children motorcycle club has put on this Angel Tree event for the past 10 years.
“My prayer is that we don’t need to add anymore,” Montano said. “No child deserves to live in fear.”
Throughout the rest of the year, the guardians will work with the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office and the court system to help other kids who have become victims. That could mean escorting the child to court or school and providing protection and comfort to them.
“Most importantly, empower them to not be afraid. Because of all that, our conviction rates are extremely high,” Montano said.
Despite any stereotypes about bikers, Montano says this work is their most important.
“We use that word ‘adopt’ in our motorcycle family and we give them a road name. They wear a vest, they wear a patch very similar to ours, so they become one of us,” Montano said.
New Mexico
Landlord AC ordinance, Rio Grande water levels, Spotty rain, New legislative office, New Mexico Motorfest
Monday’s Top Stories
Monday’s Five Facts
[1] ABQ City Councilor aims to bolster protections for renters amid unseasonable warmth – Albuquerque city councilor is looking to make sure city landlords are not only providing cooling systems, but also ensuring they actually work when they’re needed. City Councilor Tammy Fiebelkorn spearheaded an ordinance in December of 2024, requiring all Albuquerque rental properties to have a cooling system. Now, Fiebelkorn is taking it a step further, hoping to establish cooling system performance requirements. The ordinance is expected to be voted on in final action at Monday’s city council meeting.
[2] Rio Grande showing dry spots in Valencia County amid record-low snowpack – Portions of the Rio Grande are now seeing dry spots earlier than expected. Officials say the timing is not normal. In Valencia County, parts of the river are already running dry. Near the river crossing in Los Lunas, the river has open pockets. Further south, it is being reported as dry as well. There is a slight positive outlook for the monsoon season, with forecasters and officials predicting a strong season in the Middle Rio Grande Valley.
[3] Very spotty rainfall, warmer, & mostly calm week – Warmer weather will continue building in across the state throughout the upcoming week. A few isolated rain chances will return Monday in parts of New Mexico, but some of that rain may evaporate before reaching the ground. Temperatures will continue to increase through the middle of the week.
[4] NM representatives celebrate grand opening of new office with open house – A new state legislative office made its debut for representatives Eleanor Chavez and Yanira Gurrola. The new location is just one of the handful of new legislative offices now open across the state. They hosted a grand opening for the building that was open to the public. Representative Gurrola says it’s just one step towards modernizing the state’s legislature. The new office will allow residents to stay more connected to each representative.
[5] New Mexico Motorfest 2026 takes place in celebration of Route 66 Centennial – Another Route 66 celebration took place over the weekend and this one was all about cars. The New Mexico Motorfest happened at the Expo New Mexico racetrack. Over 300 vehicles from classic hot rods to lifted trucks were featured at the event. Some of the proceeds went to New Mexico veterans.
New Mexico
Los Alamos Public Schools Students Compete At 2026 New Mexico State Science & Engineering Fair
Students from Barranca Mesa Elementary, Mountain Elementary, Los Alamos Middle School, and Los Alamos High School at the 2026 New Mexico State Science & Engineering Fair at New Mexico Tech. Photo CourtesyLAPS
LAHS junior Tate Plohr and freshman Linus Plohr qualified to attend the 2026 Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair in May in Phoenix, Ariz. Photo Courtesy LAPS
Los Alamos Middle School student Branden Keller was awarded the CO2 & Greenhouse Gas Scholarship in the amount of $2,000 at the 2026 New Mexico State Science & Engineering Fair. Photo Courtesy/LAPS
LAPS NEWS RELEASE
Twenty students from Barranca Mesa Elementary, Mountain Elementary, Los Alamos Middle School (LAMS) and Los Alamos High School (LAHS) competed, with several garnering awards at the 2026 New Mexico State Science and Engineering Fair held at New Mexico Tech in Socorro.
LAHS junior Tate Plohr qualified to attend the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) next month in Phoenix, Ariz. He was awarded the 3rd-place Grand Award. Freshman Linus Plohr qualified as an alternate and will also be attending the Regeneron ISEF.
Students who participated in the state competition include, from Barranca Mesa Elementary, Sydney Chen, Mary Beth Kelsey, Lily Neale, Aurora Roberts Voss and Henry Rodarte; and Glyn Lo and Ernest Maupin, Mountain Elementary.
Students from LAMS who competed include Evelyn Fobes, Mason Garcia, Andrew Gilbertson, James Junghans, Sequoya Ke, Brandon Keller, Nejan Liyanage and Daniel Yampolsky.
LAHS students Julia Neale, Linus Plohr, Tate Plohr, Lilia Veteva, Helena Welch and Kalliope Welch competed at the senior level.
2026 Award winners:
Category Awards – Junior Division
- Animal Science, Cellular & Molecular
- Biomedical & Health Science
- Honorable Mention: Sequoya Ke
- Embedded Systems, Math, Robotics, Software & Technology
- 2nd place: Nejan Liyanage
- Physics & Astronomy
- 1st place: Sydney Chen
- 2nd place: Mason Garcia
- Honorable Mention: Marybeth Kelsey
- Plant Science
Category Awards – Senior Division
- Behavioral & Social Science:
- Honorable Mention: Linus Plohr
- Earth & Environmental
- Honorable Mention: Lilia Viteva
- Embedded Systems, Math, Robotics, & System Software
- 3rd Place: Helena Welch and Kalliope Welch
- Physics & Astronomy
Grand Awards
- ISEF finalist 3rd place: Tate Plohr
- Brandon Keller received the CO2 & Greenhouse Gas Scholarship in the amount of $2,000. James Jungans and Marybeth Kelsey garnered Thermo Fisher Awards.
Other special award winners include:
- CO2 & Greenhouse Reduction Awards (Junior Division)
- Daniel Yampolsky, 2nd place, Earth & Environmental Sciences
- Sequoya Ke, 1st place, Biomedical & Health Science
- Brandon Keller, 1st place, Energy & Materials Science
- Andrew Gilbertson, 1st place, Physics & Astronomy
- CO2 & Greenhouse Gas Reduction Award (Senior Division)
- Lilia Viteva, 1st place, Earth & Environmental Sciences
- Office of Naval Research Award
- David Shortess Award
- New Mexico AVS Award
- Citadel Award
- Naval Research Award
- NM Network for Women in Science & Engineering Award
- Yale Science & Engineering Award
- Rose Baca Rivet Award
Related
Arizona State baseball will host a four-game homestand, beginning with New Mexico State on Wednesday, April 22.
The Sun Devils and Aggies faced each other in late March, with ASU winning 10-4. The two teams will meet for the final time at 6:35 p.m. at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.
ASU will then welcome Baylor on Friday, April 24, for a three-game series. The Sun Devils have yet to face the Bears this season, but ASU has been doing well so far and has been in the top 25 for four weeks.
Sophomore center fielder Landon Hairston earned Big 12 player of the week honors on April 13, after delivering five home runs in five games. His 10 runs in that stretch were tied for the second-most nationally and his 14 runs batted in were tied for third-most nationally. All nine of his hits went for extra bases, three more than any other player.
ASU’s series against Baylor will start at 6:35 p.m. for the first two games, followed by a 1:05 p.m. start on Sunday, April 26.
April 19
Softball at Houston, Cougar Softball Stadium, noon.
April 22
Baseball vs New Mexico State, Phoenix Municipal Stadium, 6:35 p.m.
April 23
Women’s golf at Big 12 Championship, Dallas Athletic Club, TBA.
Track and field at Penn Relays, Franklin Field, 1:22 p.m.
Beach volleyball at Big 12 Championship, Bear Down Beach, all day.
April 24
Baseball vs Baylor, Phoenix Municipal Stadium, 6:35 p.m.
Softball vs Texas Tech, Farrington Stadium, 7 p.m.
April 25
Lacrosse at Colorado, Prentup Field, 11 a.m.
Softball vs Texas Tech, Farrington Stadium, 3 p.m.
Baseball vs Baylor, Phoenix Municipal Stadium, 6:35 p.m.
Reach the reporter or send tips for stories at jenna.ortiz@arizonarepublic.com, as well as @jennarortiz on X.
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