By Kyle Marksteiner
September 12 was a very special day in Eddy County. On that day, almost 200 volunteers representing 14 different groups spread out across the county as part of 2024’s “Day of Caring.”
They painted, they weeded, they put in toilets and cleaned old storage rooms. These nonprofits spend their time and resources focused on helping members of the community, and sometimes fall behind in taking care of themselves. Day of Caring is a cost-effective way to hit a reset button and allow Eddy County's wonderful nonprofits to focus on public service.
Former United Way board member Donavan Mager brought Day of Caring to our area. Linda Dodd, the United Way’s former director, got the ball rolling. We were honored to have both serve on our committee this year.
North and South Eddy County’s United Ways merged in 2019, and COVID hit in 2020, so this year was the first time to have a county-wide Day of Caring. We were joined in our opening ceremonies by elected officials from both Carlsbad and Artesia, and we broadcast a simulcast together from both ends of the county.
We had two title sponsors—Mewbourne Oil Company and Devon Energy—and most of the money from sponsorship went toward supplies such as paint and cleaning materials. P&R Enterprises sponsored our event T-shirts. Carlsbad Medical Center handled breakfast and lunch in Carlsbad and delivered the food. A very special thank you to Melissa Suggs and her team for delivering to 11 sites.
Artesia General Hospital hosted breakfast in Artesia and treated Artesia’s volunteers to lunch. ConocoPhillips fielded two teams and donated gloves. One nonprofit, the Boys and Girls Club of Carlsbad, hosted breakfast and fielded a team.
At the United Way office, we received special assistance from a huge group of Mewbourne workers, as well as several folks from ExxonMobil. Devon helped at CASA and at Haven of Hope up in Artesia. ConocoPhillips joined the Haven of Hope project and also did a lot of work at the Southeast New Mexico Community Action Corporation. ExxonMobil also got a lot done over at LifeHouse.
Permian Resources did some great work at the Carlsbad Battered Families Shelter, while Intrepid Potash tackled two projects at Carlsbad MainStreet. Chevron and the Boys and Girls Club both teamed up at CARC. Flogistix was assigned to Oasis Women’s Services, while P&R Enterprises assisted at Carlsbad Transitional Housing. SIMCO had a great team at Affirming Heart Victim Services.
There was a lot of great work done that day, but I especially appreciate the folks at Mewbourne and ExxonMobil who worked on the United Way building. Our office is in better shape than it has ever been.
Thank you so much to every team who helped with Day of Caring this year, and we look forward to doing it again in 2025!
Marksteiner is executive director of the United Way of Eddy County. He is also co-owner and editorial director of the Carlsbad Local.
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