Those who know former New Mexico Supreme Court Justice Patricio “Pat” Serna may, on rare occasions, hear him mention that he hails from the small, western New Mexico town of Reserve, which has a population of between 300 and 400.
Reserve is the seat of Catron County, which is New Mexico’s largest county in land area.
Although larger than Connecticut, Catron County has a population of only 3,725.
I traveled to Reserve this weekend for a sad occasion (the funeral of my great-uncle), but I did make an appellate pilgrimage to the log cabin where Justice Serna was raised along with his seven siblings.
From this humble dwelling, and through his own hard work, Justice Serna rose to the top of the legal profession in our state.
If you are ever in Reserve, do stop by to take a look. The cabin is just south of Reserve’s “downtown” area, on the west side of the road.
At the funeral, I ran into the good justice himself, in his best western attire. He seems to be thoroughly enjoying his well-deserved retirement.
