Dear Editor,
I am writing to announce my departure from the Marfa Country Clinic, effective January 15, 2025. It has truly been an honor to work as a physician in my hometown. Marfa was a wonderful place to grow up, and has been an equally excellent place in which to practice. Thank you, Marfa and surrounding communities, for all of the support you provided, and for the trust you later placed in me to be your doctor.
I would especially like to thank Don Culbertson and Valerie Breuvart for allowing me to be a part of the clinic for over 20 years, first as a patient, then to volunteer and shadow, then employed as a medical assistant, all of which were integral parts of being accepted to medical school, and finally to return as a physician. Thanks also to Kaela Donaldson and Kassandra Hernandez, our medical assistants who make a difficult job exponentially easier and more enjoyable, and without whose efforts the clinic could not run.
I have accepted a job as a family physician with the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo in El Paso, Texas. Indigenous Health has been a calling for me, so it is with a great mix of emotions that I leave my present post here which had also always been a personal and professional goal.
After January 15, 2025, I will no longer be able to refill medications, provide treatments, or answer questions pertaining to your medical care. Don Culbertson, PA-C will continue to see patients at the clinic. Your medical records will continue to be stored at Marfa County Clinic and to be available should you decide to transfer care to a different practice.
Be well, and farewell for now, Marfa.
In gratitude,
Marco Garcia, DO
Marfa Country Clinic
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U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales is still misleading on immigration statistics even after his errors were pointed out months ago. In his op-ed last week, he said “As of July this year, 662,566 noncitizens with criminal histories were on ICE’s national docket.”
He didn’t tell you those were not recent arrivals — many have been here for years, even decades. Most are noncitizens in the criminal justice system either at the federal or state level, either indicted or serving their sentences. When those are completed they will be eligible for deportation.
Then he talks about deporting “criminal migrants” without saying what that term includes. Does that include people whose only crime is entering the country illegally? And to further confuse, he referred to those seeking asylum, which is legal entry, and complains they are being allowed out in our communities while their claim is evaluated. We do need a better court system to process those claims, but those seeking asylum are more often a credit to our communities.
Of course, he pulls out some rare examples of noncitizens committing heinous crimes; however, he never reveals that noncitizens, including undocumented migrants, have a much lower crime rate than citizens. It’s selective use of statistics and anecdotes to scare us. We don’t need to start deporting criminal aliens since it’s already happening; and surely he isn’t proposing that those in jail or prisons be taken from there and deported.
Often deportation only benefits the cartels who profit from bringing the deported back into the country. The real solution is an expeditious process of admitting and assimilating the many immigrants we need in our industries and communities and holding both citizens and noncitizens accountable for criminal activity. Meanwhile, he should stop denigrating immigrants and scaring people away from the border. America is already very safe.
Mary Bell Lockhart
Alpine
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Dear Editor,
The Marfa Studio of Arts wants to thank the community for coming out last Saturday to celebrate the joyous art by the children of the Marfa Elementary School. The amazing festive treats were donated generously by Aster’s Café, Bitter Sugar and supported by Lowe’s Market.
The kids were delighted by our Marfa Santa Claus (AKA David Beebe) and we sent home photos of them with their very special Santa. None of this would be possible without the dedicated teachers of our Studio in the Elementary School Art Program: Sam Dwyer (SITES Coordinator), Suzanne Mcleod, Rhonda Manley and Ariana Vega. Our great gallery staff Lindsey Gore and Alex Luna were invaluable in organizing and setting up the event.
The exhibition will be open through December and January, gallery hours are Tuesday to Saturday 12 p.m. To help continue this wonderful program, you may go to our fundraising campaign: givebutter.com/artformarfakids or send a check to MSA, P.O. Box , Marfa, Texas 79843
Sincerely,
The Board of the Marfa Studio of the Arts