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Recreation
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City of Roswell
P.O. Drawer 1838
Roswell, NM 88202-1838
(505) 624-6700
Fax: 624-6889 |
THE LEISURE INCIDENT
"Portrait Of An Active Family - The Humphreys"
December 15, 2025
Mr. Kim Elliott, CPRP
Recreation Director
City of Roswell
What does an active family look like? Why are they so active? What keeps them
moving forward?
Does the Leisure Incident affect the overall family unit?
These are questions that deserve an honest look at how the Leisure Incident
correlates with the individuals in a family unit. In order to find some of these
answers, let's look at an active local family. Let's look at the Humphreys!
Jim and Katy Humphreys both grew up in Chihuahua, Mexico, the son and
daughter of mining engineers who worked for separate mining companies. Luckily
for them, the companies operated close together which gave both Jim and Katy and
opportunity to get to know each other as they were growing up. Katy earned a
degree in Agricultural Engineering from NMSU and Jim attended UTEP and graduated
with a degree in microbiology. They were married a week after their graduation
and both then went to Texas A & M in College Station, TX where Katy received a MS Degree and
Jim earned his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Degree.
After moving to Roswell in 1981, Katy worked for the USDA Soil Conservation
Service for 13 years before starting her own business, Quality Control
Engineering. Jim went to work for a local veterinary practice in 1983 and is a
full partner of College Garden Animal Hospital. Along the way John Thomas was
born in 1985 and Robert Bryd followed in 1988.
But that was only the beginning!
It seems to be common knowledge that things seem to change around the age of
forty. Maybe it is the magical age where enlightenment seems to hit all of us.
Maybe it just an age where people seem to take inventory of the important things
in their lives. Forty also touched Jim and Katy!
"We… realized that our two boys, the light of our lives, were
growing up much too quickly. By being active and encouraging them to be active,
we have been able to spend more time together as a family. Whether we're running
together or…attending the boys activities, we are accumulating countless hours
of memories that will be absolutely invaluable as we grow old. There isn't much
more we could ask for in our lives except perhaps to have the opportunity to
grow old and watch our boys enjoy the same pleasures that we have."
The Humphreys are active in a variety of different opportunities.
Jim and Katy are active runners who also bike and swim. John Thomas enjoys
band (trombone) and cross country while Robert Byrd also plays in the band
(percussion) and basketball.
An example of the Humphreys Fall schedule looked like this! Sierra Football
with the band on Thursdays, Roswell High Football with the band on Fridays, and
Cross Country meets on Saturdays. The rest of their time was split between,
Roswell High and Sierra PAC's, Altrusa, Roswell Band Boosters, and meetings with
the Roswell Runners Club to name a few.
"We stay busy. We try not to miss any of the annual fun runs. We also
participate in the Super Kids Triathlon, Summer Biathlon, Relay for Life, …
summer youth band camp… We're looking forward to basketball and maybe track
this Spring!"
Robert has participated in the youth basketball program at Yucca Recreation
Center since he was eight and both boys played youth soccer. Special events like
Party on the Pecos, Fourth of July activities, Gus Macker, all the local fun
runs and the Milkman Triathlon are also events in which the whole family
participates. A must for the whole family is the Labor Day Symphony Concert.
Why are the Humphreys active as a family? Jim says it this way! "Because
Katy and I realize that in six years our boys will be gone from our nest and our
lives will change forever. We don't intend to waste a second of that remaining
time." What about after they are gone? "We'll still be running
and having a good time!"
What about those local agencies and individuals who have helped them achieve
their goals? Who are they? "Roswell is extremely lucky to have such an
active Recreation Department, Runners Club and triathletes like Larry Marshall
and Jan Olesinski, who all contribute to twelve months a year of fun as well as
competitive running, biking, swimming and shooting." Two of Katy's heroes
are Jim Lilley and Nita LaTurner, who both in their seventies, provides the
inspiration for her to keep active. Kent Jordan, the Sierra and Roswell High
Band instructor has been instrumental, no pun intended, in John Thomas saying
band is his first love. Jim says that Perry Toles is one of his heroes and that
he is having a "lot of fun chasing him" in the many local runs.
It is apparent that the leisure incident plays an important role in the
family health of the Humphreys. Can we expect anything less? I don't think so.
The Humphreys would probably agree with a statement by Grenville Kleiser who
said, "The true purpose of recreation is not merely to amuse, not merely
to "kill time" but to increase our fitness, enhance our usefulness,
spur achievement."
The Leisure Incident! It helps build a community one family at a time!
L to R Top
Bottom |
The Humphreys
John Thomas, Katy, Jim
Robert Byrd |
Parks and Recreation! The Benefits Are Endless...TM
