Acosta has Deep Roots and Big Vision
By John Earp
Elizabeth Acosta (also known as Lisa Olivas) is running for a position on the Jal City Council. When asked, “What is your reason for deciding to run for city council?” she said, “I grew up in this community, and I’ve seen the good, the bad and the ugly, of course, that can happen in any place. I know Jal has given me a lot, so I wanted to give back to Jal. I’m big on communication. I know that’s not everybody’s strongest point. Sometimes, that’s one of my strongest points. I do have a big vision, big imagination, so I would just like to bring in some of my talents, my purposes, you know, and incorporate those with the rest of the city council members and see if we can get this town maybe a little bit better. I have a vision for revitalization of our Main Street as well as our neighborhoods. I came in with the understanding, that I know that New Mexico is kind of like a red-tape state. So, I know things are not easy, but I like to put in my time and my thoughts, my ideas, and see what I could do to help bypass through the challenges that I know Jal has faced. So that is the reason I decided to run.”
When asked to share about her personal and professional background that she feels has prepared her to serve on the city council, Acosta replied, “I’ve done a little bit of everything in my life. I started off my very first job was working at a Dollar General, and then I did work at Allsup’s here. From there, I moved over to Midland, where I did get my CNA license actually, I got it out of Odessa College and I practiced that here in New Mexico with a company that we used to have. So, I had a little experience with that. I did work at Medical Center Hospital in Odessa, where I was a supervisor for a company called Integrated Services. So, I kind of managed a little bit of every department there at Medical Center Hospital there in Odessa. I’ve also served as a paralegal there in Midland, Texas, as well as work for the Midland County District Clerk’s Office. I worked for a commercial management company also, kind of managing the little town squares that they have around Midland, big buildings, you know, from Basic Energy to Key Energy to just a lot of things. So, I’ve kind of had my hands in a little bit of all sorts of things, and I feel that would be able to help me, and that has helped me understand things that are going on around here.”
When asked, “If you’re elected, what would you consider to be the top two or three priorities as you see it, that the city council should work on and work towards?” Acosta replied, “One of our biggest things I know is our water situation. I’d like to find out, I’d like to work on that, find out what we can do, where the struggle is, where the challenges are, maybe push off on that. Another one is housing for a community. We have oil fields here and other families choose not to move here because there is nothing here. So, aside to housing would also be bringing in small businesses, working on our Main Street, bringing in things. We have one grocery store here and it gets packed. So, like, you know, bringing in different businesses, if that means asking Lowe’s to expand or bringing in another grocery store aside from our Lowe’s. So, to me, those are the biggest three things I feel that we need work on. I’m going to throw a fourth point in there, which is communication, because I feel like our city could use a little bit more communication to their citizens too. It is their community. And I feel that that’s one of the big issues that a lot of people don’t understand what’s going on with things that are happening. And it’s maybe just the way that it’s being sent out there. So, my biggest things are the water, the housing, our businesses around here in Jal, and communication is a huge, huge point for me as well.”
When asked, “If someone were to ask you, why should I give you my vote, what would you tell them?” she replied, “I would say, I mean, I’m here to serve our community. I’m the person who’s available. You can text me, you can call me at any time. And of course, you know, I will bring you ideas. I will let you know how you go about getting in there. I’m here to serve you. I’m here to serve our community.
Acosta presently is working at Fulco Trucking. She has deep family roots and branches in Jal, which includes her mother, father, sister, three children, and two grandchildren. She moved to Jal with her parents when she was three years old. She is married to a veteran, Kevin Crispin, who served in the Army.
When asked if there were anything else she would like to share with the people of Jal, she said, “I have a love for the community. I’m a Christian, faith-based person, and I know that you cannot do things alone. You know we need God to help you in all the decisions that we make, and that’s what I’m going in with, with God on my side and I’m letting him lead me forward. So, I’m here to serve from the community as a disciple as well, and try to see what we can do, to improve our community.”