New Mexico
'They were doing God's work': Families remember N.M. first responders killed in helicopter crash
By Gregory Hasman
Albuquerque Journal
TIJERAS, N.M. — Honor guards from the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office and Bernalillo County Fire Rescue stood watch at the East Mountain Memorial Wall on Tuesday evening to honor four men who died in a 2022 helicopter crash in northern New Mexico.
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As they stood, dozens of people walked up to the wall. Some kissed their fingers, then placed them over the name of a loved one on the wall, while others kneeled in front of the name.
“We can never forget those guys for what they did for us,” said Tim Sheahan, who came to remember the first responders.
On July 16, 2022, Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office Undersheriff Larry Koren, 55; Lt. Fred Beers, 51; Deputy Michael Levison, 30; and Bernalillo County Fire Rescue Specialist Matthew King, 44, were returning to Albuquerque after conducting firefighting operations near Chapelle, south of Las Vegas, when BCSO’s Metro 2 helicopter crashed.
Andrew Levison, brother of Michael Levison, told the Journal that, earlier in the day, he went to the crash site. As he walked to a memorial consisting of an American flag and pieces of the helicopter honoring the men, Andrew said he thought about their sacrifices.
“I’m proud of them for what they were doing that day,” Andrew said. “They were doing God’s work, in my opinion.”
While some time has passed since the incident, the memories remain fresh for many family members and friends.
“For the longest time, I thought it was just a bad dream,” said Noëlle Ashoo, Michael Levison’s partner. “Even after the first year, I thought this was a messed-up drama.”
‘A true brother’
While some people walked to the memorial, others intermingled with other relatives or members of the sheriff’s office and fire rescue.
Retired BCSO Sgt. Nathan Lerner was talking to some of King’s family when he said Beers was the “perfect mensch,” which is Yiddish for a person with integrity and honor.
Beers was not only a smart man, he said, but “he would never have anything bad to say about anybody.”
“He was a true brother,” Lerner said.
Sheahan said he remembered Beers and Koren as being “very dedicated at their jobs and dedicated to the people of Bernalillo County .”
King was known for his passion for his job, his desire to serve others, and his sense of humor.
“He would make you laugh until you couldn’t stand it,” his father, James King, said.
James said he had a tough time talking about his son’s death, but two years later, he is able to “talk about Matt a lot.”
“Every day is tough, and I imagine it’s going to be tough for quite a while,” James said.
‘We have more questions’
Tuesday’s remembrance took place just weeks after the National Transportation Safety Board issued its final report on the crash investigation. In it, federal investigators said engine failure due to poor maintenance caused the crash.
Andrew said the report made his parents “angry, disappointed and frustrated” because the incident could have been prevented.
“Why did this happen?” Andrew asked. “Why did we lose our family member?
“This didn’t get our family closure to any degree. We have more questions.”
Ashoo said she hasn’t brought herself to read the report. “It won’t bring him back,” she said, “so it changes nothing for me.”
While the report may not change things or bring closure, Andrew said the next step is “to prevent this from happening to anybody else.”
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(c)2024 the Albuquerque Journal (Albuquerque, N.M.)
Visit the Albuquerque Journal (Albuquerque, N.M.) at www.abqjournal.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Leapfrog released its 2026 spring hospital safety grades.
Grades are assigned based on overall performance, including patient safety.
The Leapfrog Group’s goal is to publicly report patient safety and quality information for the benefit of consumers, purchasers, and referring physicians as they make decisions about where to seek care and where to direct patients,” the company stated on its website.
Here’s how your local hospitals performed.
MountainView Regional Medical Center – A
Leapfrog gave MountainView an “A.”
“Being the only hospital in Doña Ana County to earn an ‘A’ from The Leapfrog Group speaks to the high standards our team sets – and meets – every day,” said MountainView CEO Patrick Shannon. “This achievement reflects the dedication of our physicians, nurses, and employees to deliver the safest care possible for our community.”
“An ‘A’ Grade is a strong sign that MountainView is deeply committed to protecting patients from harm,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “We commend the leadership, Board, clinicians, staff and volunteers for the role each played in earning this distinction.”
The hospital performed better than average in several areas including low infection rates, addressing safety problems, and ICU care. The hospital received below average performances ratings in surgical site infections post colon surgery, communication about medicine and discharge, communication with doctors and nurses and nursing and bedside care for patients.
Memorial Medical Center – B
Memorial Medical Center received a “B” grade from Leapfrog.
The hospital performed well in effective leadership, reduction and prevention of infections and addressing safety problems.
The hospital received below average ratings for kidney injury after surgery, serious breathing problems, harmful events, communication about medicine and discharge, and communication with doctors and nurses.
Not rated by Leapfrog were Three Crosses Regional Hospital.
Nearby top rated hospitals
Leapfrog gave an A to William Beaumont Army Medical Center and Del Sol Medical Center in El Paso. Las Palmas Medical Center in El Paso received a B.
How did other New Mexico hospitals perform?
A recipients were:
- CHRISTUS Southern New Mexico in Alamogordo
B recipients were:
- Lovelace Women’s Hospital in Albuquerque
C recipients were:
- Carlsbad Medical Center in Carlsbad
- CHRISTUS St. Vincent in Santa FE
- Eastern New Mexico Medical Center in Roswell
- Lovelace Medical Center-Downtown in Albuquerque
- Lovelace Regional Hospital in Roswell
- Lovelace Westside Hospital in Albuquerque
- University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque
D recipients were:
- San Juan Regional Medical Center in Farmington
- UNM Sandoval Regional Medical Center in Rio Rancho
Explore the full survey results at https://www.hospitalsafetygrade.org/.
Jessica Onsurez is editor of the Las Cruces Sun-News. Reach her by email at jonsurez@usatodayco.com.
NEW MEXICO (KRQE) — The Social Security Office released the most popular baby names for 2025 on Thursday. And here in New Mexico, we saw some familiar names top the charts once again.
Coming in at No. 1 for girls is Mia, and as for the boys, Noah ranks No. 1. That’s no change from 2024 when Mia and Noah also led the pack, both coming in at No 1. For 2025, there were a total of 66 babies named Mia and 115 babies named Noah, while in 2024, there were 81 Mias and 105 Noahs.
What do the names mean? Online sources list a few different interpretations for Mia, but one common association is with the Italian word “mia,” which means “mine.” As for Noah, the name is most commonly associated with the prominent bible figure. It’s thought to mean “rest,” or “comfort.”
Here’s a look at some of the other top baby names in New Mexico for 2025.
- Girls:
- Olivia (65 total)
- Sophia (65 total)
- Sofia (60 total)
- Camila (59 total)
- Eliana (57 total)
- Isabella (56 total)
- Amelia (53 total)
- Aria (45 total)
- Aurora (45 total)
- Boys:
- Liam (109 total)
- Mateo (99 total)
- Elijah (76 total)
- Santiago (70 total)
- Sebastian (69 total)
- Ezra (67 total)
- Elias (66 total)
- Ezekiel (66 total)
- Levi (69 total)
Nationally, Olivia and Liam are the most popular baby names, and have been for the past seven years, according to the Social Security Administration. As for the fastest-rising names, Klarity jumped nearly 1,400 spots on the girls’ list, and Kasai jumped 1,108 for boy names.
Other names rising in popularity for boys include Atlas, Adriel, Emiliano, Arthur, and Archer. On the girls’ list, Ailany, Sienna, Amara, and Georgia are becoming more popular.
You can find the full list by state online.
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