Phyllis Eileen Banks is both writer and artist.Her articles have appeared in Southern New Mexico Magazine, FYI, Vision Magazine, Roswell Daily Record, New Mexico Magazine, Ranger Rick, Concern, Anchorage Daily News, and other periodicals. In addition, with Cynthia Smith she authored The Anchorage Fun Book.
Much of her experience has been as an editor.Her editorial experience includes The Alaska Presbyterian, The Alaska Heart, newsletter of the Alaska Heart Association, the book COCAHINIA (Consultation on Church and Human Need in Alaska), and Roaming Southern New Mexico.
"I have invisible antennae that 'vibrate' when something doesn't seem right.Of course editing someone else's work is easier than editing one's own," she says.
People stories, historical pieces, and travel writing are her favorites.She and her husband, Hal, moved to New Mexico from Alaska.
"New Mexico has some of the same mystic of Alaska – wide open spaces, different cultures.The transition was easy," says Eileen."It is truly The Land of Enchantment and no matter where you reside you carry it with you."
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Nine miles north of Crossroads on NM 206 is another settlement at another crossroads, Milnesand. The first store was opened in 1910 by Mrs. Lillian Curl. Settlers from Texas and Oklahoma had arrived around 1913 and homesteaded in the area. In 1915, Mrs. Curl became the first postmistress. A merchant named Parker had a Model T chain driven truck, and he hauled freight between Milnesand and Portales. He would also take passengers at $5 each per trip. The unusual name, Milnesand, is due to the deep sandy soil and windmills on a nearby ranch; hence, it was called Mill-in-sand.
Pep is the next settlement as you go north on NM 206. The name implies energy and filled with vigor. However, it appears instead to be a laid-back community of ranchers. A latecomer, the post office was established in 1936. Some credit the name to a popular cereal called Pep. Others say it was transferred from Pep, Texas. T. M. Pearce, a place name researcher, concluded it was named by Edward Cox because he wanted it to reflect a lively place for his home and store.
Founded in 1905, a mile west and 3/4 mile south of the present site, Dora was on the homestead of the Lee sisters, the oldest of whom was named Dora. Others think the first postmaster in 1906, Frederick Humphrey, named it for his daughter Dora. New Mexico 206 was originally NM 18 and when it came through the territory in 1915, the settlement moved to yet another crossroads, NM 114. Each of these four settlements continue to have their post offices, an indication that there are many ranchers' homes scattered among the wide open spaces of the Llano Estacado.