Sofia Lopez wants to give back and she’s using her birthday to do so. This year, instead of birthday gifts, Sofia has asked family and friends to donate to Isaiah’s Kitchen, a food outreach charity in Hobbs, and hopefully, by her eighth birthday on Jan. 16, the charity will benefit. It all started a few weeks ago. Sofia and her …

Denise Benson will celebrate four years of volunteering at Isaiah’s Soup Kitchen in November, she said Thursday. While preparing to serve chicken and pasta for lunch, she laughed, “I just like making people happy because happy people make me happy.” Mike Stone, president of the Isaiah’s Soup Kitchen board of directors, said Benson’s tenure is special and she seems to …