Socorro Rewind

JEAN FRASSINET, is a 17-year-old senior at Socorro High, where he is president of the student council and a member of the distributive education clubs of America. He was a representative on the student council as a freshman. Jean participated in football, basketball and track his freshman years and football his junior and senior years. He is a 3-year letterman in varsity football, and he belongs to the lettermen’s club at boys’ state. He was a member of the parks and recreation department.

A TRUE ARTESAN creates his artistic craftsmanship through inspiration, frequently religiously rooted, careful work and skill. His hands are his second-best tools after his mental processes have created the design or image in his mind. The Guerros, Fred and Barbara, are that kind of artisans. Their particular craft is that of making beautifully handmade Indian jewelry of silver, enhanced with turquoise and or coral in the Navajo tradition. This man and wife team took top honors at the New Mexico State Fair. Mr. Guerro learned his trade from a master craftsman, Sam Piaso of Canoncito. It takes some years to learn how to hand-create pieces of Navajo jewelry with skill so as not to overheat the stone in its setting or to solder smaller designs to the basic one. It takes tools and stampings. All this Fred Guerro has learned with great patience and is able now to teach his family members and friends of the Alamo Indian reservation.

NOVEMBER 13, 1999

ANNIE DEAN would be a good spokesperson for an anti-smoking campaign. “Do I smoke?” the 103-year-old Socorro resident asked in a stern voice. “My goodness, no. I wouldn’t have that stuff in my house.” It’s quite obvious from the volume of her voice that this 103-year-old, as of Nov. 8, isn’t bothered by cigarette related disease. But she doesn’t have a prescription for long life, although she says she does enjoy food. She is also fond of coffee. Dean lives at the Socorro Good Samaritan Village. She’s been a Socorro County resident for most of her life. Dean has lived in the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries.

MARY T. TORRES, a Socorro native, has been named vice president of the State Bar of New Mexico. Torres works in the Las Cruces offices of Modrall, Sperling, Roehl, Harris & Sisk, PA. She earned her law degree from the University of New Mexico School of Law in 1992. Prior to earning her law degree, Torres taught high school in Socorro. In 1995, she was awarded the Outstanding Young Lawyer Award.

NOVEMBER 6, 2014

SOCORRO NATIVE Louis Vega, The Dow Chemical Company’s chief of staff and global director, now has added responsibilities as vice president of Olympic Operations. As part of his role, Vega will engage host committees for upcoming Games through 2020 and be Dow’s main focal point for the International Olympic Committee. Vega joined Dow in 1998 as a global business communications leader, assuming the role of Dow’s global media relations leader specifically for the company’s merger with Union Carbide. At Dow, Vega will continue to lead the team that supports the Office of the Chairman and CEO and Executive Communications, managing strategic initiatives that require cross functional, business and geographic coordination; and directing the programs, appearances and actions that require the engagement of the CEO and other corporate executives.

Vega graduated from Socorro High School in 1987 and received his degree in government and public relations from New Mexico State University right after.