Scott Brocato:
Let's briefly touch on a story that's on the website: the police chief defending the use of flock cameras.
Spencer Fordin:
Yes, last week at the city commission meeting, Alamogordo Police Chief David Kunihiro, he defended the department's use of flock cameras. He said that they've helped the department solve some hit and run cases. He says that the technology is still in its infancy, and Alamogordo police are still figuring out how to use it, but they don't see it as an overly intrusive device. They see it as a very helpful device in their investigations.
Scott Brocato:
Moving on to other stories, let's talk about Willie Estrada, who was a Korean War veteran, and his family wants to plan something for him. Talk about that.
Spencer Fordin:
Yes, sir. Willie Estrada was a Korean War veteran. He won the Distinguished Service Cross for his heroic actions on the evening of September 21, 1952. He passed away as a result of those actions, and he's been quite decorated over the decades. In September, the entire month is going to be set aside for him here at the American Armed Forces Museum. They're going to celebrate his life. Here in Alamogordo, the Civic Center is named after Willie Estrada.
His family, however, they want the Medal of Honor. They're holding out for the Medal of Honor. They're hoping to get that honor for him. And his brother, Pete Estrada, is still 94 years old and he's dedicated his life to remembering his brother's memory, and he's hoping that he'll get to see him get the Medal of Honor at some time before he passes.
Scott Brocato:
Let's move on to an event that's happening at the library, a book tasting. Talk about that. I'm curious.
Spencer Fordin:
Yes, this was described to me as it's like "speed dating with books." The library staff, they put a bunch of different sections and you can move around and sample a lot of different books. There's going to be light refreshments there and the Alamogordo Public Library, this is on September 1, their book tasting event. They're hoping to show the community that they're a resource for entertainment, for edification, for education, and all their services are going to be open till 8 P.m. on September 1st. They're trying to do events like this quarterly.
Scott Brocato:
And this a little bit out, but folks might want to start planning if they're interested in going to the Trinity Open House.
Spencer Fordin:
Yes, the Trinity Open House. This is the site of the first detonation of a nuclear bomb. It's only open twice a year. It's open in October and it's open to the public in April. Otherwise, it's behind the White Sands Missile Range. So you can't really get there unless you have special clearance. But if anybody is interested in New Mexico or otherwise, it's going to be open on Saturday, October 17th from 8 A.m. to 3.30 P.m.
Scott Brocato:
So where could folks read about those stories and more?
Spencer Fordin:
This will all be at alamogordonews.com.