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What Once Was Will Be Again

June 19, 2020 By Melinda Olivas 2 Comments

What Once Was Will Be Again

By: Melinda Olivas

Another blog about COVID-19 and its effects, you ask? Well, it does play a significant role in the lives of people around the world. Here we go; I’m going to take you back to the time of Tobosa’s final gatherings before the quarantine, and social restrictions were put into place.

Let’s start in February, the month of love. Our CEO, Rosy, had recently watched the film “The Peanut Butter Falcon.”

Without giving too much away, the movie is a modern Mark Twain adventure, where a young man, Zak, with Down syndrome runs away from an assisted living facility. He meets a wayward fisherman (also on the run), and the two share a memorable journey to achieve Zak’s dream of becoming a professional wrestler. If you haven’t watched it, I recommend you add it to your list! This movie will have you laughing while pulling at your heartstrings.

Inspired by the storyline and how it went hand-in-hand with our mission, Rosy wanted to invigorate the workforce of our organization; we decided to have a movie screening! We set up our Training Center as a theater, and people brought snacks to munch on, it was a success even with the few stragglers that came in after the show started (haha). The screening took place on the morning of Valentine’s Day; of course, we couldn’t let the day end without a party. That’s not how we roll! Everyone was to meet at the Roswell Adult Center for a Valentine Celebration with food and dancing. It had been a minute since we got our boogie on, but all who attended had a blast! People were socializing, filling their bellies, taking photos, and grooving to the beats by DJ GC (aka Andrew Garza). Thinking about it now gives me chills, who knew those moments would be some of the last that our Tobosa family would be able to get together.


Rounding out the month of February, we had two more events; I’ll begin with our 3rd Leap Year Time Capsule. It all started (hold on, let me do some mental calculation) oh yeah, eight years ago with Tobosa’s first burial of a leap year time capsule in 2012. We asked the employees and individuals of Tobosa to bring in items that were personal, sentimental, or just something they thought might be obsolete in the next four years. We’ve been digging up memories and burying the soon-to-be past every leap year that followed. This year’s dig up, however, was quite an experience.

First of all, for some reason, we had a hard time figuring out if we had even buried one during the last leap year. We would go back and forth amongst each other, saying, “yes, I think we did” or “no, no, I’m sure we didn’t.” Once it was determined we did bury one, we had to remember exactly where we hid the little sucker. Luckily we came across some photos (those factored in the conclusion we had buried one) that showed us where we hid the capsule. Finding the hidden treasure was an adventure because our “X” did not mark the spot; after four years, it had disappeared (go figure).

On the day of the unveiling, a few of us went out early to see if we could find the exact place. I don’t want to toot our own horn, but I will, with some Tobosa ingenuity, we found it on our first try. No surprise, we’re awesome like that! We covered it back up enough so no one would notice, but not too much so that it wouldn’t cause another struggle. It’s always amazing to see what comes out of that capsule, but this time there were notable items from some outstanding people we had lost over the past four years. There were tears of joy remembering those sweet souls.

Now we wait, 2024 we’ll see you soon!


During a month, people rejoice love and kindness; there is no better time to host our 2nd Annual Providers Appreciation Luncheon.

Some might be thrown off by the word “providers,” this event is to honor and thank people and businesses in our community who have shown their support to our organization. The event was held again at The Fraternal Order of Eagles, and with more time to plan, the decorations were superb thanks to Veronica! Portofino catered a delectable lunch, and the speakers did an excellent job expressing their appreciation to our guests.

Whether it’s Tobosa’s adult services or our children’s services through Little Steps Learning Center & Los Pasitos Early Intervention, people show up and step up! As a non-profit organization, we don’t always have the leisure to thank our supporters year-round; nonetheless, we will continually make an effort to show our gratitude whenever possible. Overall, it was a lovely event, and we look forward to thanking, entertaining, and recognizing more of our supporters in the future.

2020 Honorees

Zoo Day was the last event put on by Los Pasitos and Little Steps in March. Now, this happened to fall on Friday the 13th; I’ll let you decide if the superstition that this day is unlucky holds any truth. An invitation was open to families, children, and adults who are supported and receive services throughout Tobosa. Plans were set, and everyone was to enjoy personal tours, animal presentations, and pizza! Nobody was sure how many people would be in attendance because this was the Friday before Spring Break and the outset of COVID-19 in our state. There was still a lot of confusion about the virus, and we were in the early stage where people were advised about social distancing.

Not to mention, the few days prior, the weather had been in the upper 70s, but this day we woke up to 60 something degrees, clouds, wind, and rain. This was not the business for an outside event, but we all know how unpredictable NM weather can be.

We stayed optimistic and did not cancel, and as you may have guessed, the turnout was not what we had hoped. Unbeknownst to all the end had come, that would be our final gathering.


Here we are, three months later. We’ve had to cancel our annual events like the EI Easter party, Adopt-A-Highway clean-up, Stepping Out for Children, Summer Bash, and possibly our Tobosa Classic golf tournament. Sure, we were able to Zoom our Overall Staff Meeting and the Friendship Visit with Journey of Hope (The Ability Experience), but it’s not the same. You can see, but you can’t feel the joy and excitement of others that are sharing that specific moment with you. You can’t capture the memories with photos with the people who mean the most to you. Yes, one day, all the orders will be lifted entirely, and people will be allowed to congregate again, but will it be like old times? Will people be hesitant to slap you a congratulatory high-five for air mailing all four bags in a cornhole game? (By the way that is some of the entertainment we have at our Summer Bash) Only time will tell, but I do hope we can all return to normal, whatever that normal was to you pre COVID-19. I know I’m counting down the days not only to get back to the office but also to be able to catch up on some quality time with my Tobosa family & friends!

Until then, be safe, be healthy, be kind!

Filed Under: Events Tagged With: community, COVID-19, little steps, Los Pasitos, memories, social distancing, tobosa, together

Celebrate Giving Tuesday With Tobosa

November 10, 2018 By Melinda Olivas

Giving Tuesday

“Celebrated on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving (in the U.S.) and the widely recognized shopping events Black Friday and Cyber Monday, #GivingTuesday kicks off the charitable season, when many focus on their holiday and end-of-year giving. Since its inaugural year in 2012, Giving Tuesday has become a movement that celebrates and supports giving and philanthropy with events throughout the year and a growing catalog of resources.”

This year on November 27, 2018, Tobosa is joining the Giving Tuesday movement to encourage giving both worldwide and locally.

Gary and Terri Finch graciously donated the old Primm Drug building to Los Pasitos Early Intervention, and we are truly grateful! With the gift of this new facility, Los Pasitos will be able to increase our exceptional quality of service to the children of our wonderful community. However, before we can begin, we need to do some much-needed restoration and furnishing. That’s where you come in!

All fundraising proceeds and donations from this past year and many coming up in the future are going towards this exciting project. We want to give our amazing Los Pasitos team the best opportunity to continue their mission to help children reach their full potential, one tiny step at a time!

Please show your support by contributing this year on #GivingTuesday to help us reach our goal. No amount is too small, especially when it comes from the heart!

#GivingTuesday

To find out more about #GivingTuesday, please visit www.givingtuesday.org

Los Pasitos Early Intervention Program – Bizzell Family Success Story

My name is Kim Bizzell. The Los Pasitos Early Intervention program has changed my family for the better. When we first started working with the Los Pasitos program over three years ago, we were all strangers. Now we are like family. We have worked with the same team ever since we started with Los Pasitos. I consider us very blessed to have had this talented team help my kids over the years. 

Tuf, Tye, and Tryp Bizzell
Tuf, Tye, and Tryp Bizzell

Tuf

The Los Pasitos team started seeing my son Tuf when he was 18 months old. At first, he would not speak or communicate and showed severe delays. This team never gave up on him, never got frustrated with him, and always kept trying to help him. At two years old, Tuf was diagnosed with Autism. The team wasn’t just there for Tuf. They were there for me. They helped me help my son open up and start learning, and they were there for me for support.

The Los Pasitos team and I worked together to help Tuf start learning in the ways that work for him. He started speaking, and now my son and I can communicate. Tuf is now enrolled at a local school and he is doing very well. If Los Pasitos hadn’t paved the path for Tuf, the road to success would have been much more difficult, and he probably wouldn’t be where he is now.

Tye

My son Tye started in the Los Pasitos program when he was ten months old. He worked with the team there until he turned three. At first, Tye had problems crawling and with his balance. Within a few months of our team working with him though, not only was he crawling but he was walking. The improvements he made over a short period with the help of Los Pasitos were just incredible. 

Tuf and Tye Bizzell
Tuf and Tye Bizzell

Tryp

My youngest son Tryp, also started with Los Pasitos around ten months and is still in the program. Tryp had a very rough start when he was born. He was severely ill and almost didn’t survive his first year. He had already been in the hospital four times before he was eight months old. When our team started working with him, he had severe delays. He refused to sit up, do tummy time, or anything physically active. All he would do was lay on his back. Over the past few months, not only has Tryp learned to sit up on his own with no assistance, but he can now scoot himself across the floor to get what he wants. We’re excited to see him make progress towards walking.

Tryp Bizzell
Tryp

My family and I are grateful for all the hard work and dedication we have received from our Los Pasitos Early Intervention team.

Filed Under: Events, Success Story Tagged With: donation, family, giving tuesday, givingtuesday, kindness, Los Pasitos, Los Pasitos Early Intervention, program, success, success story

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