The Wild News
UNM Center for Wildlife Law
1117 Stanford NE, Albuquerque, NM 87131 505/277-5089; FAX 505/277-5483

• Standing Ovation for Wild Friends
• Foothills Students Meet Lawmakers
• Supreme Court Justices Wow Students
• Celebrating Rivers Day
• Sign Up to Save the Cranes
• New Mexico Game & Fish Wants to Know!
• WF Meet Senator Bingaman
• Thank You Lois Taylor and Speaker Sanchez
• WWW Scavenger Hunt

It was the last day of the 1999 New Mexico legislative session. Sen. Ben Altamirano had the Wild Friends memorial in hand, ready to introduce in the full Senate, but the time ran out and no memorials were voted on. The difficult, slow-moving budget bill (all the money that pays for state programs) had created a major legislative traffic jam. If it hadn’t been for the backup of bills, the Wild Friends memorial probably would have made it.
     Wild Friends student representatives traveled to the Round House for the session. Belen, Foothills, and Rio Grande high schools; Alameda Junior High; Garfield, Jefferson, Moriarty, and Polk middle schools; and the Wild Friends Dancers from several schools worked hard meeting representatives and senators on behalf of HJM 34. Other groups who were unable to make the long journey to Santa Fe faxed, wrote and phoned their legislators in support of the joint memorial. Because of their efforts, the full House of Representatives and two major committees in the Senate considered the issue of cruelty to wildlife. Every handshake with an elected official or staff member, every student opinion voiced in a committee hearing, every time a student stopped someone in the hallway, was important. Every meeting at the New Mexico Supreme Court and the New Mexico Game and Fish Department was helpful in raising awareness that students care about the wild animals in our state. Part of the purpose of a memorial is to raise awareness, and Wild Friends really excelled in raising awareness.
     Student testimony in committees is always critical. This year in the House Judiciary Committee, Anna Folks, Annie Krahl, and Isabel Shanahan from Alameda; Travis Green, Lacy Michelsohn, and Chantel Oliver from Jefferson; and Siobahn Asgharzadez and Bridget Lynch from Belen testitified on behalf of the state’s wildlife. Over in the Senate Conservation Committee, Valerie Garcia and Nicole Masters of Moriarty impressed committee members with their tenacity (they stayed till 7:30 p.m. until the bill was heard). Siobahn sat with Speaker Sanchez to introduce the bill, while Valerie and Nicole sat with Sen. Dede Feldman on the Senate side.

Belen HS Wild Friends with Speaker of the House Raymond Sanchez

Standing Ovation for Wild Friends
       On the day the New Mexico House of Representatives voted 61-0 to pass our Wild Friends memorial HJM 34, students from Moriarty Middle School seated in the House gallery were delighted to receive a standing ovation from the legislators on the House floor. Wearing their bright turquoise t-shirts, they represented all Wild Friends around the state who worked so hard to get the memorial passed. A record 11 school delegations went on field trips to shake hands and talk with with legislators and testify before committees. "Wild Friends are the most visible youth group up here," said one lobbyist to some students after seeing so many students, day after day, in their Wild Friends t-shirts.
      A second standing ovation happened in the rotunda after a performance of the dance, "Journey of the Whooping Cranes," by the Wild Friends Dancers. The performance was part of "Celebrate New Mexico Rivers Day." The student dancers and director Lorin Saint were elated to receive the applause from the rotunda audience that also included Wild Friends from Polk Middle School and Rio Grande High School.

Foothills Students Meet Lawmakers
     Seven Wild Friends students from Foothills High made the rounds at the State Legislature this session. The difference between this school and other Wild Friends schools is that Foothills is part of Youth Diagnostic and Development Center (YDDC), a state juvenile correctional facility. So it was a rare privilege and wonderful treat for these special students to be in the halls of the Round House, asking legislators for their support of the wildlife anti-cruelty memorial.
      Among the dignitaries meeting with them were House Majority Whip Danice Picraux, Bernalillo County Commissioner and former Senate leader Tom Rutherford, and Senate President Pro Tem Manny Aragon. Rep. Picraux told them to stay in school, register to vote, and work on what they’re interested in, even if it takes years to accomplish. Tom Rutherford talked about his youth, how he started out as a page at the age of 13 and went on to be elected the youngest senator at age 25. He talked frankly about getting in trouble and being kicked out of school, and about how every time he was in trouble alcohol was involved. He said if you think you have a problem with drinking or drugs you probably do. "Always strive to do the right thing." Sen. Aragon advised them to pay attention and get involved because if they didn’t, someone else would.
      Sen. Rick Miera, who has dedicated many years working with juvenile offenders, shook hands all around when passing through the House gallery. "I’m glad you could come," he told each of them. They also caught up with House Speaker Raymond Sanchez in the halls who spoke with them at length. "He was a cool guy," said one of the students.
      All had a chance to shine as they rehearsed a committee hearing on the memorial in the empty Education Committee room under the able tutelage of John Ness, a former public school administrator. Foothills High students played the legislators, asking many good questions of Wild Friends from Alameda JHS who testified. The students had to leave before the actual hearing that night, but they would have made excellent Wild Friend representatives of the memorial. We look forward to YDDC students participation in years to come.

Supreme Court Justices Wow Students
      It was awesome," said one high school student. "It was the opportunity of a lifetime," said teacher Sheila Feeney. These two New Mexicans were referring to the reception they received from the justices at the state’s Supreme Court. Chief Justice Pamela Minzner and Justice Patricio Serna each took time from their busy schedules to mentor students who were in Santa Fe on Wild Friends business. Chief Justice Minzner talked with young women from Belen HS about how judges are selected and how the judicial system works. She continued with stories about ground-breaking women of New Mexico, and how these young women, too, can expect to play a role in the state’s future. Justice Serna met with a large group of Jefferson students. He urged the students to always follow their dreams. He told the story of his own family of eight brothers and sisters, his mother dying when they were very young, leaving his father to raise the large family. Justice Serna, who will be the next chief justice, said he always wanted to be a supreme court judge.
      In addition to all the nooks and crannies of the Supreme Court building, the justices showed the students the Hall of Justices. The students noticed that the portraits there were all of men. Justice Minzner’s will be the first portrait of a woman. (Justice Minzner asked the students for suggestions as to what style of portrait she should have.)

Celebrating Rivers Day
    On Feb. 22, the WF participated in celebrating New Mexico’s many rivers. Students from Rio Grande HS and Polk MS were in charge of the Wild Friends booth in the rotunda. Beautiful whooping crane banners from Alameda and Polk hung from the second story railing and graced the rotunda where many dedicated river groups displayed their information. The Wild Friends dancers performed twice for a "wildly" enthusiastic audience. Our sponsor Speaker Raymond Sanchez delivered a passionate speech about the importance of our rivers to New Mexico. He spotted Wild Friends in the crowd and mentioned that we were one of the groups helping to raise awareness.

Sign Up to Save the Cranes
A petition for more whooping crane research in our state and in the Rocky Mountains is ready for you. Three Wild Friends, Adrian Madrid, Michael Maldonado and Shannon Lael Early, along with mentor Jack Pickering, helped write it. A copy of this petition is included in this newsletter. Our goal is to collect thousands of signatures to send to the US Fish and Wildlife Service. The petition will help Kent Clegg convince officials that many people support his research to help these birds. Kent Clegg is our hero who flew the ultralight and taught the whooping cranes how to migrate.
     There will be an Earth Day celebration in Santa Fe on the Plaza from 1:00 - 6:00 PM. One of the 50 booths at the fair will be a Wild Friends petition booth. In the lineup of entertainment is our Wild Friends dancers performing the dance, "Journey of the Whooping Cranes." Alameda JHS Wild Friends have volunteered to "hawk" the petition at our booth.
     Other Earth Day celebrations scheduled in your community, school or classroom are excellent places to collect signatures. You can photocopy the petition in this newsletter or ask your teacher to get copies for you. Adult readers are urged to distribute petitions and/or collect names also. You probably have great ideas about how to collect a thousand names. Here are some more. You could get the signatures of the Lobo men and women basketball players on the petition. Or at meetings of your church, scout or other youth group. Or put the petition on your school website. We will also put the petition on the Wild Friends website http://ipl.unm.edu/cwl/wf/home.html.
     How many names can you get? We need to have the petitions back by the end of May. Tell us your ideas - and start collecting!

NM Game & Fish Wants to Know!
    Many Wild Friends met Director Jerry Marrachini on their field trips to Santa Fe and their visits to the New Mexico Game & Fish Department. Mr. Marrachini has some questions for New Mexico citizens. These questions could help Wild Friends select an issue for next year’s legislature. He asks:

• Should there be more, or fewer, elk, deer, grouse, hawks or owls on state land?
• How do we prevent private property owners, especially those who make their living from the land, from being economically hurt by wildlife on their property?
• Should we acquire more land to be set aside for wildlife?
• Should there be stiffer fines for wildlife violations? (A Wild Friends anti-poaching bill increased some NM fines two years ago.)
• Should the Department of Game & Fish have management authority over all the state’s wildlife?
• Should the Department hire more employees? If yes, what kind of employees and where should the money come from?

    Talk about these questions in your groups and we’ll check in with you when we start gearing up for the Year 2000 legislative session.

WF Meet Senator Bingaman
    It was a special privilege for students from Garfield Middle School to meet U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingamin (D-NM), after he delivered a speech to a joint session of the legislature. Afterwards, a KOAT-TV camera crew from Hello New Mexico filmed a greeting from these Wild Friends.

Thank You, Lois Taylor and Speaker Sanchez!
     Lois Taylor is the legislative analyst from Speaker Sanchez’s staff who worked on the Wild Friends memorial from its first draft to the very last minute in the Senate. She and the Speaker really believed in what the students were trying to do, and it showed! Lois met with students and helped them prepare their testimony. She fed them sodas and fruit. She took care of them, even walking them to the parking lot at night. The Speaker always made time to meet with visiting Wild Friends in spite of a particularly hectic session. Thanks, Speaker Sanchez, Lois Taylor, and everyone on the Speaker’s staff!

World Wide Web Scavenger Hunt!

If you are excited about your success in this scavenger hunt, the next step is to tell other people why you care about having whooping cranes in our state. Get at least 10 signatures in your school, sports team, or on your block for our petition.

We welcome new groups of Wild Friends from all over the state. Call 505/277-5089 or e-mail us if you are interested!

The University of New Mexico
Center for Wildlife Law
School of Law, INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC LAW
1117 Stanford NE, Albuquerque, NM 87131-1446