R.Stephen(Steve) Hallford:  

Greetings and best wishes to ALL! We were truly blessed to have attended AHS, and to live in a town like Aztec. Our little burg was big enough to have a good education system, a bevy of churches, a couple of banks, a small airport, a 9-hole golf course, a local theater, a car dealership or two, an oval race track, and even a couple of fast-food restaurants (A & W and Blake's LottaBurger come to mind). But Aztec was also small enough for kids to "bike to town" and for families to merely dial 5 numbers to make a phone call (remember dialing?). There was only one traffic-light (and it was just a 1-color flasher!). Our Senior Trip didn't involve jetting off to Europe or sitting on the beaches of Cancun. We made due on the shoreline picnic tables at Navajo Lake. We were pretty satisfied with the simple things of life. "Football Hill", "the Big Tree", "the dump", "the Ruins", the "Hi-Spot" "the big ditch", "the 'A'", and the "Dam Road", create different memories for all of us. If any of these locations could talk, I'm sure they would have a million stories to tell (I know I've got a few, and I'd love to read yours!). I still chuckle as I remember my little brother Jimmy saying (as we sat in the back of Dad's truck with the tailgate down on the way to Navajo Lake) "Wow, the Dam Road is rough!" I miss playing golf at Mr. Armstrong's Hidden Valley Country Club w/Dad, brother & golf team, and I fondly remember my dear friends at 1st Baptist Church and Pastor Elder's insightful messages. And who can forget the crowded school hallways, the bitterly cold football games, and the mixed emotions as we signed yearbooks, graduated, and said our good-byes... Yep, we are blessed indeed to have come from a town small enough to have a welcome sign that informed visitors that we had "2,500 friendly folks and 6 old soreheads". Everything in town was closed on Sundays, and they rolled up the streets at sundown. You didn't go "all the way to Farmington" unless you "just had to", and the 3 TV-channels that we received provided plenty of televised entertainment! Brother Jim & I had such 'great fun' climbin' on top of the roof during a thunderstorm to adjust the antenna so that Dad could watch his Cowboys play football! ...That high-pitch noise you heard on occasional Sunday afternoons? It wasn't the narrow gauge railroad passin' through town... it was Dad screaming at the TV set because he missed seeing a Roger Staubach touchdown pass due to the "no-good stinkin' TV reception"! (Thankfully instant replays became the norm, thus saving us from the storm!) Seriously, our fondest memories should be of our families & friendships. We should try to keep in touch, share pics of our kids & grandkids, and pray for each other. I am the guilty-est (is that even a word?) classmate of all. I have totally lost touch with almost everyone, and hope you are able to share your thoughts, stories, and personal biography on your profile. I know there are some exciting, humorous, earth-shattering, life-changing testimonials that should be shared. Pls feel free to write from the heart, and have fun! This is my personal bio in brief: After graduation, I wandered from place to place (Aztec - Farmington to Las Cruces/NMSU, to Gallup, etc). I finally decided to move to Texas in 1979 to attend a small local college while working at my uncle's pizza biz (Mr. Gatti's). Though I missed NM and several close friends, I soon fell in love w/the East Texas area, a neighborhood church, and the locals. As a bachelor, I rented an apartment for a while, and then bought a small home on a private lake. My brother, sister and uncle all came to live with me at different times while they moved out here. I met my dear wife Linda at a local Christian bookstore in late 1980; dated nearly 4 years and were married during a Sunday morning church service on June 24, 1984. We lived in my quaint lake house for 3 years, then sold it and built our present home. Linda owned an antique, gift and accessories store called "The Grey Pony" for 17 years and closed shop in 1999. As a certified interior decorator, she helped Tylerites & fellow East Texans decide which antique furniture pieces, household fabrics, lamps, rugs, quilts, etc., would best suit their homes. Over the years her store became a place for ladies to meet and share burdens and blessings. (She still decorates a couple of homes per year). I sold construction related products for 20 years, and for the last 10 years have been in the Christian book publishing/printing industry. (I'm now 'back' in commercial construction sales). We live in a 2-story "salt-box" style house on several acres near Chandler, TX and are blessed with 3 fun-loving, hard working teenagers. When our firstborn, Ruthie (and her firstborn cousins) arrived on the scene in '88 and '89, Mom and Dad immediately high-tailed it from Aztec to East Texas. Ruthie graduated High School in '08 and has 2 part-time jobs. Ruthie's expertise on the sewing machine is incredible; friends (and friends of friends) frequently ask her to make purses, pillows, dresses, curtains, etc., etc., etc.,...!! Ruth Ann is also an incredible cook, decorator and "foal whisperer". Our boys (Lakin-17, and Ethan-14) love fishing w/ friends & cousins down on the pier, riding 4-wheelers and dirt bikes, eating pizza & Coke, and inventing crazy/convoluted, mechanical & electronic gadgets. (It's safe to say that they're big Rube ...Expand for more