By Kevin Hendricks — The Paper. Dozens of Rio Rancho residents, veterans and elected officials gathered Monday morning at Veterans Memorial/Monument Park to honor the men and women who died in military service — marking Memorial Day with music, prayer and community ceremony organized by local veterans groups. Mayor Paul Wymer read a formal proclamation […]
Rio Rancho
Posted inRio Rancho
New Mexico Goatheads drop full schedule for inaugural hockey season
By Kevin Hendricks — The Paper. Professional hockey returns to New Mexico this fall when the Goatheads drop the puck on their inaugural ECHL season Oct. 16 at the Rio Rancho Events Center — bringing the state its first pro hockey team since the New Mexico Scorpions folded in 2009. The team released its full […]
Posted in+Arts & Culture
Memorial Day weekend brings ceremonies, music and festivals to Rio Rancho area
By Kevin Hendricks — The Paper. Rio Rancho and neighboring communities mark Memorial Day weekend with a full schedule of events — from solemn military tributes to live music, outdoor markets and regional festivals — running Friday through Monday, May 22–25. The weekend’s anchor event is Rio Rancho’s annual Memorial Day Ceremony on Monday, May […]
Posted inRio Rancho
Beyond the badge: How ‘Steele Got Your Six’ is mobilizing the Rio Rancho community to support police families
By Kevin Hendricks – The Paper. A Rio Rancho woman who spent decades watching law enforcement families quietly struggle in crisis launched a nonprofit to change that — and in less than two years, it has already reached nearly 400 people. Laci Steele founded Steele Got Your Six in December 2024 after years of funding […]
Posted inSandoval County
Pentagon taps Sandoval County missile maker for hypersonic weapon contract
By Kevin Hendricks – The Paper. The Pentagon has signed a first-of-its-kind production deal with Castelion Corporation to manufacture its Blackbeard hypersonic strike missile — and Sandoval County’s Project Ranger facility will be where those weapons get built. The Defense Department — which the Trump administration refers to as the Department of War — announced […]
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National Labor Leader praises RioTECH as a blueprint for collaborative CTE education
By Kevin Hendricks – The Paper. All 20 seniors at RioTECH are graduating this week — every one of them holding an industry-recognized credential, and some leaving with an associate’s degree before finishing high school. It is the school’s first graduating class. RioTECH — an acronym for Technical Education Career Hub — opened in fall […]
Posted inRio Rancho
Sandoval County Democrats launch voter outreach, fight childhood hunger in Rio Rancho
By Kevin Hendricks – The Paper. Rio Rancho may have a reputation as a Republican stronghold, but the Democratic Party of Sandoval County is betting the city is closer to purple — and it’s fighting childhood hunger to make the case. Party chair Greg Bennett sat down with The Paper. to lay out two parallel […]
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Rio Rancho council takes first step towards approving $18M bond sale, names new deputy mayor
By Kevin Hendricks – The Paper. Rio Rancho residents who voted in March to fund road repairs, public safety upgrades and quality-of-life improvements moved a step closer to seeing that money put to work Thursday night, as the city council approved the first reading of an ordinance to issue $18 million in general obligation bonds. […]
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Bargains, books and blooms: Your Weekend Guide for May 15-17
Rio Rancho residents looking for weekend plans in and around the City of Vision this weekend can expect a heavy dose of outdoor markets, community fundraisers and historical showcases. From the return of the Corrales Garden Tour to a massive community yard sale in Rio Rancho, here is your guide to what’s happening in and […]
Posted inRio Rancho
‘A bridge too far:’ Stoddard loses key endorsements following reports of history with guns, domestic violence
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. — Two Republican state legislators withdrew their endorsements of Sandoval County Commission District 3 candidate Daniel Stoddard after The Paper. reported on a May 1 incident in which a hotel manager said Stoddard drew a revolver and threatened to shoot him — and a December 2024 domestic battery arrest at […]