ON THE LINE:

PORT DIRECTOR AIMS TO PREVENT THREATS FROM ENTERING US

FABENS -- Donna Sifford is leading the fight against terrorism and the
drug trade at a quiet site surrounded by fields of cotton and pecans.

She is the new director of the Fabens Port of Entry and Fort Hancock
International Crossing for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency.

Sifford took over the position on Oct. 24, but a formal change of
command ceremony took place Nov. 23 at Fabens High School.

Sifford replaced Barry Miller, who was recently promoted to assistant
port director at the El Paso Port of Entry.

Sifford was born and raised in San Luis Obispo, a city along the
central coast of California. She was 13 years old when she joined the
Police Explorers and developed an interest in law enforcement.

"I always felt a strong sense of serving my country and my community,"
she said.

Sifford first joined the United States Air Force and four years later
she applied to be part of U.S. Customs.

Sifford started her career with the U.S. Customs Service in 1992 as a
canine enforcement officer at the El Paso Port of Entry.

She left El Paso in 1996 to serve as an instructor and course
developer at the Canine Enforcement Training Center in Front Royal,
Va. She then was program manager for the Canine Enforcement Program at
the agency's headquarters in Washington, D.C.

After 14 years away from the El Paso area, Sifford said she is happy
to be back on the border.

She said her goal in her new position is to provide agents with the
latest training, technology and resources to maintain the border's
security.

"I am committed to preventing all potential threats from entering the
United States," she said.

Some of her responsibilities also include dealing with immigration
issues related to the admission and exclusion of people attempting to
enter the United States.

Eventually, Sifford will oversee the new Tornillo-Guadalupe Port of
Entry, which will replace the Fabens Port of Entry.

The new international crossing will be built on 117 acres of land in
Tornillo and will be one of the largest ports of entry in the country.

In addition to handling pedestrian and vehicle traffic, the
Tornillo-Guadalupe Port of Entry is intended to help alleviate the
cargo traffic at other border crossings in the El Paso region.