New Mexico

New Mexico’s largest and only shelter serving homeless women and entire families has been making urgent calls for support as it faces escalating demands and diminishing resources.

Faith-based ministry Joy Junction will celebrate its 22nd anniversary Friday night and is still hoping for more supporters to purchase tickets or sponsor tables despite the financial crisis that has been brewing in America.

“Ticket sales are still sluggish and the difficulty we are experiencing is a huge increase in demand for our services,” Dr. Jeremy Reynalds, founder and CEO of Joy Junction, told The Christian Post Thursday. more >>

The largest and only homeless shelter of its kind in New Mexico will celebrate its 22nd anniversary this week with the help of popular Christian songstress Jaci Velasquez.

But more than a celebration, Joy Junction Homeless Shelter’s 22nd Anniversary Banquet will serve as a rally for support amid increasing demand and decreasing supplies.

Dr. Jeremy Reynalds, founder and CEO of Joy Junction, says the success of its anniversary banquet on Friday and community help are essential for the ongoing and expanded success of its life-changing endeavor. more >>

Just a scenic 30 minute drive from the Albuquerque International Airport, brings visitors to the rural village on Tijeras in Bemalillo County. The community name derives from Spanish for "scissors," for the shape of two canyons crossing like the blades of scissors.

For the adventurous, downtown Santa Fe is a beautiful 75 minute drive on the historic Turquoise Trail through the picturesque villages of Madid and Cerrillos. Enjoy this relaxing day trip of site seeing, art galleries, photo Op’s, great restaurants and other unexpected delights!

The Tijeras area is a vacationers dream! View the countryside as you drive east from Albuquerque on Interstate 40 through "the canyon" as you enter the East Mountain area. Be amazed how the scenery changes dramatically from flat, high desert rock and cactus, to hilly, very green terrain punctuates by an abundance of Juniper, Pinon and Ponderosa Pine., as you climb from an altitude of 5200 feet above sea level, to over 6500 feet, and feel a 5 to 10 degree drop in air temperature. While in Albuquerque, don’t miss one of the longest tram rides in the world! more >>

LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) - In some parts of the country, a balmy September afternoon might be spent picking pumpkins or apples.

But in this corner of New Mexico, people have flocked to Joe Lujan's "you-pick" farm in Las Cruces for the past 45 years to hand-pick chili peppers.

Nestled between pecan groves and surrounded by desert, Joe Lujan Farms is 40 acres filled with five varieties of chili as well as squash, okra, onions, tomatoes, jalapenos, cucumbers and a small pecan orchard. more >>

Correction appended A pastor spent an entire week living on the roof of a local business in New Mexico to raise funds for African orphans for Sunday’s National Day of Care.

Dr. Mike Hattabaugh, founding pastor of Gathering Community Church in Farmington, N.M., lived outdoors this past week on the roof of Treadworks, a tire company, in New Mexico.

“It is hard to wrap your arms around 15 million orphans [in Africa],” said Hattabaugh, who is also director of the National Day of Care, to The Christian Post in an earlier interview. “That’s bigger than a lot of states in the United States. That’s like eight New Mexico’s just full of orphans. It is just hard to grasp that.” more >>