Editor,
This letter is in response to (“Professor and student ask for help after blaze,”) Monday’s article by Pat Lohmann regarding Charles Truxillo, Robert Gutierrez and the Castle Apartment fire.
I was taken aback by Truxillo’s attitude. In the entire article, his voice can be summarized as, “Give me. Provide more. What has already been given to me was not enough.”
On any normal day, I would probably read this article and go on to the next, but the Castle blaze is far larger than just one UNM professor. You see, a valued co-worker of mine and her sister also lost everything in that fire. I saw her upset at a local eatery. I saw her taking time off work in order to find another place to live. In all this, she never once asked for financial or material assistance, even though it was offered by just about everyone in the workplace. She never ever implied that it wasn’t enough when a workplace fund was started on her behalf. Rather, she took this tragic event on the chin, but held her head up high, and is recovering on her own. I’ll also add that she’s a full-time student, and her source of income is that of a student employee, earning far less than a full-time UNM professor.
It just strikes me as odd that Truxillo would imply that the UNM administration owes him some kind of compensation for an event that affected everyone who lived in that complex. He was not the only person who lost everything and he was certainly not the only one associated with UNM.
When the University spokeswoman stated that she couldn’t recall a past instance of the administration providing aid of this sort to UNM staff, faculty or students, I have no doubt in my mind that she’s telling the truth.
Things happen. It’s tragic and sad, but in the end, people are able to survive and move on because of the help from others on a private basis. Not because it’s deserved or due, and certainly not after it’s implied that what has been given already is not enough. This is especially true when there are others who suffered in the exact same event but never asked for anything.
I guess it’s just a person’s character. My co-worker has integrity. Truxillo does not. For the record, my sympathies go out to those who lost so much in that fire. I will, however, pass on donating any money to Truxillo’s private Paypal account.
Arthur Sedore
UNM student
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