THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO: The yellow field and red symbol colors are the colors of Spain. First brought to New Mexico by Spanish explorers in 1540. On New Mexico's flag we see a red sun with rays stretching out from it. There are four groups of rays with four rays in each group. This is an ancient sun symbol of a Native American people called the Zia. The Zia believed that the giver of all good gave them gifts in groups of four. These gifts are: The four directions - north, east, south and west. The four seasons - spring, summer, fall and winter. The day - sunrise, noon, evening and night. Life itself - childhood, youth, middle years and old age. All of these are bound by a circle of life and love, without a beginning or end. STATE FLAG (SEE ABOVE): STORY ABOUT STATE FLAG (SEE RIGHT HAND SIDE)    Prepared by: Helen Barela

WHERE IS NM?

State Capital: Santa Fe Admission to Statehood: January 6, 1912; 47th State Current Governor: Honorable Bill Richardson State also sometimes called: “Land of Enchantment”

New Mexico’s Economy Agriculture: Cattle, dairy products, hay, nursery stock, chilies. Industry: Electric equipment, petroleum and coal products, food processing, printing and publishing, stone, glass, and clay products, tourism.

Enjoy the sunshine and beautiful year-round weather and much more in Las Cruces, southern New Mexico's largest city. Whether you want to sightsee, hike, mountain bike, camp, canoe, raft, fish, ski, snowboard, swim, or just hang out, you have your pick of adventures. A city of more than 80,000, Las Cruces is located in the fertile Mesilla Valley with 9,000 foot peaks of the Organ Mountains to the east and the Rio Grande to the west. Las Cruces is 45 minutes from the El Paso airport, 1 hr from White Sands National Monument, 1 hr from Elephant Butte Lake, 2.5 hrs from Ski Apache, 2.5 hrs from Gila, 3 hrs from Albuquerque, 4 hrs from Tucson, Arizona, 6 hrs from Farmington, 8 hrs from Pueblo, Colorado. Source: http://www.nmsu.edu/exploretheregion.html

New Mexico State University called University of New Mexico THERE ARE Total of 21 Traditional Colleges/Universities throughout New Mexico Two Major Rival College Teams: New Mexico State University called The AGGIES!! From Las Cruces, NM VS. University of New Mexico Called The Lobos From Albuquerque, NM

New Mexico State Flower Yucca flower (Yucca glauca) Adopted as State Flower on March 14, 1927. Member of lily family Symbol of sturdiness and beauty. Early summer, pale ivory flowers bloom at tips of its long, fibrous stalks. At base of the plant are broad, sharp edged leaves that look like stilettos. Yucca sometimes grows to the height of a small tree.

State Bird of New Mexico Roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus). Adopted as State Bird on March 16, 1949. "Chaparral Bird". Roadrunner prefers running to flying and has been clocked at speeds of 15 miles per hour. Is approximately 22 inches in length Its’ diet consists of: insects, lizards, centipedes, mice and snakes.

Arts/Culture Source: http://www.governor.state.nm.us/history.php?mm=8 April 2005, Governor Bill Richardson signed executive order Establishing first New Mexico Music Commission. Governor Richardson stated, "New Mexico has a rich and treasured musical tradition. Diverse and vibrant, it is time to recognize the contributions of thousands of New Mexico musicians and to work with them to preserve our heritage, promote continued creativity and assist the state's music industry in reaching its full potential." The New Mexico Music Commission works with other state agencies such as the Tourism and Film Departments to further develop and promote New Mexico’s many musical traditions, from ancient melodies of New Mexico's Native nations, tribes and pueblos, to chart topping current hits of New Mexico resident and country music star Randy Travis and state's thousands of Mariachi musicians. Source: http://www.governor.state.nm.us/history.php?mm=8

The Culture of New Mexico “New Mexico is rich in personality. No other state can claim our geographical or cultural diversity, or match our historical complexity. Our state has been home to successive waves of Native American hunters, farmers and herdsmen, Spanish explorers, missionaries and settlers, Yankee traders, Southern expatriates, emancipated Black Americans, Irish railroad workers, Italian stonecutters, Japanese farmers, Jewish and Lebanese merchants, hard rock miners from Eastern Europe, cowboys, soldiers, artists, scientists, and many others who have added to the unfolding tapestry of our state's evolving history. In all of our cultures flows a rich tradition of artistic endeavors and achievements, and we are pleased to benefit from all the expressions that each has to offer, from opera to flamenco, traditional fine art to retablos, classical music to mariachi, del canto singing, ballet and ritual dancing, drumming, ceramics and southwestern style jewelry. All of these expressive traditions – and many more - are ALIVE in New Mexico, and are continuing meeting each other and re-combining into the rich cultural stew that is every New Mexican’s birthright. Each community of New Mexico owns its own small piece of this enormously interesting story. New Mexico's cultural heritage is part of everyday life here, and we invite you to join us in celebrating the uniqueness of our people and places.” For more information about the rich blend of cultural diversity in New Mexico, please visit the Department of Cultural Affairs at http://www.newmexicoculture.org/ Source: http://www.governor.state.nm.us/history.php?mm=8

New Mexican Cowboys Photo Credit, Chris Corrie Native American Drummers Photo Credit, Jack Parsons

During September (New Mexico State Fair) Albuquerque, NM

WHITE SANDS Is About an hour from LAS CRUCES, NM RUIDOSO, NM Elephant Butte, NM Is About 70 miles from LAS CRUCES, NM Sadly, this Lake has been down quite a bit :( Gila National Forest, Close to Silver City, NM; Reserve, NM Gila National Forest, (During a Dry Season)

Surrounding Areas (El Paso, Texas) Less an hour from Las Cruces, NM El Paso County Courthouse Old Popular Department Store Building Abraham Chavez Theater

El Paso/Las Cruces Types of Restaurants American • Fine Dining • Mexican • Steaks • BBQ • Bars • Bar & Grill • Night Club • Clubs • Italian • Asian • Burgers • Coffee House • Casual • Quick Lunch

New Mexico State University-Some Pictures of Main Campus Go Aggies!!

WANT TO KNOW MORE? CHECK OUT THESE LINKS: (Request a visitor’s guide—the 1st link) http://www.newmexico.org/guides/index.php http://www.nmtourism.org nmsu.edu http://www.lascrucessymphony.com