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Editorial: Bouquets & brickbats

Tribune editorial
Wednesday, February 6, 2008

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Bouquet: Wolfe

We should all have the energy and passion of Lenore Wolfe, who turns 92 on Saturday, and whose buddy, Catherine Loughlin, says Wolfe is "more like the Energizer Bunny than anyone I've ever met."

Wolfe's passion is early childhood education. Her energy is revealed in the fact that the lifelong educator still works about 40 hours each month as a consultant for Albuquerque's Childhood Development Program — not to mention the additional volunteering and advocacy she does for New Mexico's children. The Tribune's Carrie Seidman wrote about Wolfe in "A long life dedicated to kids," in Tuesday's paper.

It is rare to find someone who hears a definite calling at a young age — and who maintains her enthusiasm for the adventure throughout life. Wolfe says she "always loved little kids. Still do." She says of her life: "It's been such a good time. Each experience has been different and fun. That's the joy. Just finding out it's a pretty good world after all."

Wolfe is remarkably modest about her effect on children, claiming she can think of only three whose lives she changed.

We are sure, however, that generations of New Mexico youngsters — including many who long since have become decent and productive adults — credit her caring instruction for a large portion of their success. The state of New Mexico, too, whose future relies on high-quality early childhood education, owes her a huge debt of gratitude.

Brickbat: escapes

We'll concede that it's tough to predict youthful misbehavior, and it's important to give juvenile offenders, who still have their whole lives ahead of them, reasonable opportunities to grow and change.

But the record of youths' escapes during the past year — eight in all — primarily from the Albuquerque Boys Reintegration Center, run by the state Children, Youth and Families Department, is not tolerable. It clearly is not the kind of leeway that does any good whatsoever to the center's young clients, or to the public whose interests such institutions in large measure are supposed to serve. The Tribune's Susie Gran reported on the escapes in "Eight escapes in one year," in Monday's Tribune.

Among the most infamous of the eight is Oden Gutierrez, 16, who was charged in the shooting death of Thomas Powell, 83, of Farmington after Gutierrez's escape from the Albuquerque center. Another youth, who escaped from CYFD's Eagle Nest Reintegration Center, killed an Albuquerque man while on the lam, then killed himself during a police chase after a robbery. And three of the eight remain at large. They had been sentenced for rape, burglary and assault. Others had been sentenced for misdeeds ranging from drug offenses to armed robbery. These are all serious matters.

The problems identified at the centers include:

• CYFD hasn't been alerting the public about escapes, though they are working on a plan to do so now.

• Once captured, escapees rarely, if ever, face the consequences of new charges.

• The Albuquerque center, at least, is understaffed.

• Evaluations of boys — to determine who is a likely candidate for reintegration into society and who is a likely threat — aren't always accurate. Hence, the escapes.

It is understood a certain amount of risk comes with the territory. However, CYFD clearly needs to review its evaluation criteria, because its current record of escapes is unacceptable.

Again, such problems don't help — either the boys or the public. We expect CYFD to address these problems with all due seriousness.