Tradiciones — Unsung Heroes 2018 by The Taos News

THE TAOS NEWS

AND THE UNSUNG

HERO E S T radiciones 2018

Citizen of the Year

Francis Córdova

Past Citizens of the Year Past Citizens of the and Unsung Heroes Year and Unsung Heroes Unsung Heroes

Jill Cline

Deacon Donald Martínez

Polly Raye

Francisco “Cisco” Guevara

Lucille and George Jaramillo

Andrew Montoya

Jesse Martínez

Janet Webb

Angel Reyes

ROBIN MARTIN, OWNER CHRIS BAKER, PUBLISHER STACI MATLOCK, MAN AGING EDITOR SCOTT GERDES, SPECIAL SECTIONS EDITOR MORGAN TIMMS, PHOTOGRAPHER KARIN EBERHARDT, CREATIVE DIRECTOR CHRIS WOOD, ADVERTISING DIRECTOR WILLARD AVERY II, PRODUCTION MAN AGER MARY BETH LIBBEY, COPY EDITOR RICK ROMANCITO, TEMPO EDITOR ARCENIO TRUJILLO, SPORTS EDITOR CODY HOOKS, JOHN MILLER, JESSE MOYA, REPORTERS BARBARA SCOTT, CONTRIBUTING WRITER

ON THE COVER: Citizen of the Year Francis Còrdova poses for a portrait with a horse he has raised since it was one year old, nicknamed Cash, at his home in El Prado. Photo by Morgan Timms

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

TRADICIONES HOME IS WHERE THE HEROES ARE

AND THE Committee selects 2018 Unsung Heroes Heroism represents the best of human nature no matter the perceived severity of a situation or need. Acts of kindness and courage are born from reaction and action. Such deeds, however, can often go unnoticed by those not personally affected. There are caring, unselfish souls in our midst who quietly and consistently go out on a limb to make a difference in others’ lives — regardless of whether their efforts are recognized by those not affected. Often, these people shy away from the limelight, preferring to see the results of their deeds rather than seeking adulation. For the 17th year, The Taos News honors a group of local citizens for making notable contributions to the community. It takes a committee to choose Unsung Heroes. Since the second year of Tradiciones in 2001, The Taos News has called upon community members to nominate people who quietly make a difference. Citizen(s) of the Year and Unsung Heroes continue to be the silent pillars of Taos, oftentimes little known but not taken for granted. The 2018 selection committee included Ernestine Córdova, Stella Mares-McGinnis, Marilyn Farrow, Barb Wiard, David Mapes, Elizabeth Crittenden-Palacios, Larry Martinez, Mike Trujillo, Yale Jones, Pavel Lukes, Joseph Quintana and Mary Ellen Ferguson. Overseers of the process included Taos News publisher Chris Baker, managing editor Staci Matlock, advertising director Chris Wood and me, special sections editor Scott Gerdes. None of us were involved in the selection process during the focus group confab.

The 2018 Tradiciones Citizen of the Year and Unsung Heroes Selection Committee: Front row from left Ernestine Córdova, Stella MaresMcGinnis, Marilyn Farrow, Barb Wiard, David Mapes, Elizabeth Crittenden-Palacios and Larry Martínez. Back row from left Mike Trujillo, Yale Jones, Pavel Lukes, Joseph Quintana and Mary Ellen Ferguson. Not pictured: Esther Garcia and Kathleen Michaels. Scott Gerdes

However, the paper’s management staff did make the final selection for Citizen(s) of the Year from a list of nominees presented by the committee. The Taos News staff sincerely thanks the 2018 Tradiciones Selection Committee for their time and energy in making this annual series possible — and for bringing so many deserving people to light. Scott Gerdes

special sections editor

Congratulations on a job well done!

Francis Cordova Citizen of the Year

and all our

TAOS DEMOCRATS

Unsung Heroes of Taos! Your commitment, hard work, and perseverance have built a legacy for Taos’ future.

Congratulate CITIZEN OF THE YEAR

Wanda Lucero 575.737.5433 wandalucero.com

Francis Cordova

tradiciones / heroes 2018

CITIZEN OF THE YEAR:

Francis Córdova

Taos’1st Sergeant by staci matlock It doesn’t take long for Francis A. Córdova to make people around him laugh. He has a gift for levity, poking gentle fun at himself and those around him. “I have horses,” he says to a visitor. “One is named after me.” Really? “Yeah,” he deadpans. “Short of Cash.” (His black stallion really is of the Dash for Cash bloodline for those of you racing quarter horse fans). A few minutes later the retired National Guardsman, who is a staunch advocate for veterans and has helmed the Taos Feeds Taos holiday food effort at Christmas for years, mentions St. Francis Drive in Santa Fe. “That street is named after me,” he says with a twinkle in his eye. “Minus the saint.” His wife and stalwart companion, Ernestina, sitting next to him at the kitchen table of their El Prado home smiles, and if she’s heard these jokes many times before, she doesn’t show it. They met at Taos High School. Did he play football? “No, I played left out.” He grins, then chuckles gleefully. CONTINUES ON PAGE 8

Retired National Guardsman Francis Còrdova poses for a portrait on the 20 acres of land he helped secure to become the Taos Veterans Cemetery at the end of County Road 110. Morgan Timms

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CONTINUES FROM PAGE 5

’IT’S A GOOD FEELING TO HELP PEOPLE OUT’

First Sgt. Francis A. Córdova is honored by friends and family as he retires from the 1115th Transportation Company of the New Mexico National Guard during a March 2004 ceremony in Taos Civic Center Río Grande Hall. Greg Kreller/Taos News archives

tradiciones / heroes 2018

Córdova, 71, said he was part of a stand-out track team back in the day. Both sides of the couple’s families have been in the region for generations. She comes from the Abeyta and Santistevan clans; he is part of the Antonio Martinez Land Grant. One of his grandmothers was Jicarilla Apache. Their parents grew up during the Great Depression. From them, they learned not to waste, to fix things that broke, to work hard and help others. In September, the couple celebrated their 51st anniversary. “She’s a good partner,” he said. “I was the first sergeant, but she was the colonel.” “We’ve been together through good days and bad, more good than bad,” he said. “We’ve been blessed. Our children have a strong foundation.” They raised three daughters and a son. Stephanie, the eldest, retired from the Air Force and is an electrical engineer. Son Francisco owns Diamond Finish Construction. Yolanda works for the state Department of Transportation and earned a master’s degree in business administration. Their youngest, Consuelo, is a computer engineer and contractor for the federal government. Córdova joined the Fifth Army attached to the National Guard, but was able to stay in New Mexico for his career. Part of his job was to train new guardsmen on equipment: tanks, missiles, trucks. Any new equipment or artillery that came in, he learned to use it. “I didn’t want to be out there and be embarrassed by a private,” said Córdova, who retired in 2004 as a 1st Sergeant after 35 years with the guard. As things changed in the National Guard, Córdova shifted with them. When a general asked him years ago what he thought about having females in the guard, “because it has always been all male units here in Taos and other places that I worked at. I told him, ‘My mother was a female, my wife is female and my girls are females. I have all the respect in the world for women.’ ” “I was lucky to have women join the force,” Córdova said. “You would see those young girls drive those (big) trucks all over and backing them up.” During the brutal 1980 riot at the New Mexico State Penitentiary outside of Santa Fe, about 65 guardsmen from Taos were sent down to help bring the situation under control. Córdova was one of them. “Talk about PTSD,” Córdova said. “That was like going to war.” He later worked with Sen. Carlos Cisneros to get some benefits for some of the National Guard who had been there. “Guardsmen needed to get the credit they deserved,” he said. After he retired, he continued to work on veterans issues, helping bring a VA clinic to Taos. He continued to advocate for local veterans who weren’t receiving the benefits to which they were entitled.

Citizen of the Year and president of the board for Taos Feeds Taos Francis Córdova prepares for his opening remarks during a past Taos Feeds Taos prior to the onset of distribution at the Army National Guard Armory. His shirt describes his attitude to a T. Katharine Egli | Bottom: Francis Córdova speaks with Brig. Gen. Andrew Salas before distribution of Taos Feeds Taos food boxes got underway in December 2015 at the Taos National Guard Armory. “Bill Knief, who serves on the Taos Feeds Taos board with Córdova, said it was Córdova’s broad contacts and ability to get people working together that helped make Taos Feeds Taos happen.” File photo

He helped fill out paperwork, call the Veterans Administration and push for their compensation. He said he helped one World War II veteran from Trampas get his benefits. “He got a big payout for back benefits. I asked what he was going to do with all the money. He said he was going to buy himself a new set of teeth and eat a big steak,” Córdova said, chuckling. “Isn’t that something?” Some of the veterans and their paperwork kept getting rejected until Córdova stepped in. ‘We’ve gotten a lot of people their veterans benefits,” he said. “The widows, too.” Córdova may be good-humored, but he also is relentlessly committed once he takes on a project, say those who have worked with him on a variety of projects from Taos Feeds Taos to a veterans’ clinic to a veterans’ cemetery. “Once Francis is committed to something, he doesn’t stop,” said Cisneros, the region’s state

lawmaker from Questa who has worked with Córdova on funding for a number of veterans’ initiatives. Taos County donated 20 acres of land for the cemetery. Córdova, Cisneros and others have been working since then to obtain state permission and funding to make it an official burial site for veterans. “Francis Córdova has been an incredible voice of the people all of his life,” said U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Luján. “I’ve worked with him on a number of important projects, including the establishment of the Taos Veterans Cemetery, working to help the heroes in our community through veterans casework, and numerous others. We are all grateful for his dedicated service to New Mexico, and all are better because of his example.” Córdova also served as commander for the Disabled American Veterans in Taos for six years. Most people, however, associate him with aiding the hungry. CONTINUES ON PAGE 10

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CONTINUES FROM PAGE 9

órdova helped launch Taos Feeds Taos after Jim Ulmer came to him with the idea in 1986. He needed a big place to put together hundreds of bags of food before Christmas for low-income residents. Córdova sought permission from Gen. Edward D. Baca, now retired, to use the National Guard facility for the endeavor. “He gave us his blessing,” Córdova said. “The majority of the volunteers those first years were guardsmen. They didn’t get paid.” “When Francis (Córdova) and Jim (Ulmer) approached me about using the guardsmen, the armory, and our vehicles to collect and distribute food to the needy in Taos County, I saw the perfect opportunity to accomplish all of our goals,” Baca later said of the project. “Taos Feeds Taos is an example of how the Guard can, and should, interact with (its) community.” Córdova, then a board member of Kit Carson Electric Cooperative, used his contacts there to get the co-op involved. They’ve remained stalwart volunteers ever since. Bill Knief, who serves on the Taos Feeds Taos board with Córdova, said it was Córdova’s broad contacts and ability to get people working together that helped make Taos Feeds Taos happen. Now about 300 volunteers from all walks

of life, including local youth, gather at the armory to pack up about 1,200 boxes of groceries for delivery to families in need. It is a massive undertaking requiring someone who is hyper-efficient. That skill is what Córdova brings to the annual event, along with his humor. “He’s still the sergeant,” said Knief. “Command and control comes to mind. He runs a tight ship. For 30-something years he’s been the heart and soul.” The organization has to raise about $72,000 a year, most of it through private donations and an annual pancake breakfast to pay for the gas, food and other expenses. Taos grocery stores sell them food at cost to help out. Each year, people apply for the food baskets. Ernestina helps manage the lists.

Retired 1st Sergeant of the National Guard and Citizen of the Year Francis Córdova has spent years helping veteran's receive benefits, Taos Feeds Taos, and bringing a veterans’ clinic and a veterans’ cemetery to Taos County. Morgan Timms

“There’s a lot of people who really, really need it,” Francis Córdova said of the food effort. “I think it is the best one in the state.” Whatever boxes aren’t handed out are taken to church food programs at Shared Table, St. James Episcopal Church and Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church. “It’s a good feeling to help people out,” Córdova said. “Because what goes around comes around. If you help people it all falls back into place.”

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‘What goes around comes around. If you help people it all fal s back into place.’ — Francis Córdova 2018 Citizen of the Year Morgan Timms

We are so proud of Janet Webb for being selected as an Unsung Hero! Your leadership in theAID arts GLOBAL of Taos has left an CHARITY indelible impression. Thank you for all you do for SOMOS, the literary society of Taos, and for your many contributions to other organizations including Paseo, Main Street Project, The Harwood Museum, TCA, and more!

CONGRATS TO OUR HERO, JANET

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

2008 Citizens of the Year:

2001 Citizen of the Year:

2005 Citizen of the Year:

Luis Reyes

Art and Susan Bachrach

Cid and Betty Backer

Unsung Heroes:

Shelley Bahr Paul Bernal Beatríz Gonzáles Nancy Jenkins Ida Martinez Celina Salazar Larry Schreiber Stephen Wiard Fred Winter

Unsung Heroes:

Mardoqueo Chacón Juan “Johnny” Devargas Carmen Lieurance Ernie and Frutoso López Roy Madrid Betsy Martínez Isabel Rendón Johnny Sisneros Dr. Bud Wilson

Crestina Armstrong Mario Barela Art Coca Mike Concha Rose Cordova Jeanelle Livingston Christina Masoliver Jake Mossman Sr. Nita Murphy

2003 Citizens of the Year:

2006 Citizen of the Year:

2009 Citizen of the Year:

Nick and Bonnie Branchal

Jenny Vincent

Rebeca Romero Rainey

Unsung Heroes:

Richard Archuleta Elizabeth Gilmore Bruce Gomez Jane Mingenbach Patty Mortenson and Terry Badhand Cynthia Rael-Vigil Guadalupe Tafoya Bernie Torres Ted Wiard

Francisco Córdova Telesfor González John Holland Vishu Magee Juan Martínez Luís C. Martínez Becky Miera Gabriel Romero Snider Sloan

Billy and Theresa Archuleta Carolina Dominguez Eddie Grant Mary Trujillo Mascareñas Connie Ochoa Marie Reyna Lawrence Vargas Frank Wells

2015 Citizens of the Year:

Alipio Mondragón Chavi Petersen Siena Sanderson Mary Alice Winter

Randall Family Unsung Heroes:

2012 Citizens of the Year:

Jim and Mary Gilroy Unsung Heroes:

Marilyn Farrow Dennis Hedges Pat Heinen Judy Hofer

Walter Allen Mary Ann Boughton Carl Colonius Liz Moya Herrera Melissa Larson Addelina Lucero Bruce McIntosh Thom Wheeler

2002 Citizen of the Year:

Eloy Jeantete Unsung Heroes: Paulie Burt Martha Dick Shawn Duran Lucy Hines Palemón Martinez Theresa and Rúben Martinez Joleen Montoya Mary Olguin John Randall

2007 Citizen of the Year:

2004 Citizen of the Year:

Jake Mossman Jr.

Tony Reyna

Unsung Heroes:

Chilton and Judy Anderson Cindy Cross Shirley and Jerry Lujan Albino Martínez Max Martínez Ted Martínez Irene Párraz Corina Santisteven Michael and Sylvia Torrez

Unsung Heroes:

Charlie Anderson Connie Archuleta Stephen Cetrulo Victor Chavez Ernestine and Francis Córdova Clay Farrell Dee Lovato Jeannie Masters Rosemarie Packard

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2010 Citizen of the Year:

Vishu Magee Unsung Heroes:

Candido Domínguez Esther García Michael Hensley Cherry Montaño Mish Rosette Patrick Romero Charlene Tamayó Feloniz Trujillo Malinda Williams 2011 Citizen of the Year:

Jim Fambro Unsung Heroes:

Benjie Apodaca Patrick Delosier Cyndi Howell

Phyllis Nichols Loertta Ortiz y Pino Dolly Peralta Lillian Romero 2013 Citizen of the Year:

Patricia Michaels Unsung Heroes:

Edy Anderson Cynthia Burt John Casali Maria Cintas Father William Hart McNichols Mark Ortega JoAnn Ortiz Effie Romero Fabi Romero 2014 Citizens of the Year:

Ernie Blake Family Unsung Heroes:

Valorie Archuleta Jane Compton Tina Martinez Alex Medina Jean Nichols Lisa O’Brien Louise Padilla Mary Spears

2016 Citizen of the Year:

Elizabeth CrittendenPalacios Unsung Heroes:

Benton and Arabella Bond Paul Figueroa Carl Gilmore Judge Ernest Ortega Ernesto Martinez Medalia Martinez Sonny Spruce Becky Torres 2017 Citizen of the Year:

Kate O’Neill Unsung Heroes:

Juan Abeyta Claire Cote Brian Greer Max Ortega John Romero Jimmy Stadler Larry Torres Connie Tsosie-Gaussoin

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

THE TAOS NEWS

HEROES T radiciones 2018

Servant of the community Advocate, youth pastor, mom Jil Cline by rick romancito

Morgan Timms

tradiciones / heroes 2018

Oppostie: St. James youth minister Jill Cline laughs during a weekly meeting with the Common Grounds Advisory Council at St. James Episcopal Church. Morgan Timms

“In 2016,” Cline said, “when we had the fourth teenage suicide, at the end of that summer anybody who has teens or works with teens or anybody who has a conscience or a heart ended that summer wondering what the hell was going on. I knew we had to do something.” She helped found Common Ground, a counseling service based on "non-traditional counseling and re-wilding practices with an emphasis on marking transitions in one’s life.” Morgan Timms CONTINUES ON PAGE 18

We cherish the lives of our ancestors for their perseverance, Through their valor we, as a people, have a place in this world.

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lot of folks recognize there are Taos kids in need, but do little or nothing to really help. Not so with Jill Cline, and it’s for her efforts on behalf of Taos youth that a focus group hosted by The Taos News chose her as one of this year’s Unsung Heroes. After receiving an email informing her of the honor, she said, “I had to read it several times. I did. And, then I got all teary-eyed. I was on my way to Santa Fe and was driving with blurry eyes. I really am stunned. I look at the quality of people who have been named over the years for this kind of stuff and I’m like, ‘You people are crazy.’ ” We’re not, just for the record.

Cline has made a name for herself as a tireless advocate for youth and families in Taos. The roots of this service to

MY MISSION IN LIFE, I THINK, IS TO FIND PLACES WHERE WE CAN DEVELOP RELATIONSHIPS WITH EACH OTHER TO MAKE A BETTER WORLD FOR ALL OF US. — Jill Cline

community go back to her youth in Oklahoma. Having worked with kids in summer camps, she went on to college and then went to work in St. Louis, Missouri for the Six Flags amusement park, after which she was transferred with the Six Flags data center to Fort Worth, Texas in 1995. In 1997, she and her husband Ron were married and by the turn of the century she was working for Tom Worrell’s Dharma Properties, which sent her to Taos, arriving here on April Fool’s Day. Much of her life in Taos has been centered on raising her kids: Dylan, age 19, who has a third degree black belt in karate and is a student at the University of New Mexico-Taos; Aaron, 17, who plans to get his pilot’s license before he turns 18; and Sidney, 15, who is a student at Taos Academy. One thing she has become aware of in Taos is the prevailing notion that there is nothing here for youth to keep them engaged after graduating from high school. Cline said she has observed certain challenges in small-town life as opposed to large urban settings. “A small town is hard because there’s not always access to resources like you find in the larger cities. And, at the same time, a small town gives you the opportunity to get to know people better. So, you can create your safety net of resources if you need to. My kids and Ron and I have benefited from that safety net and creating relationships that allow for resources to be found when needed,” she said.

Jill Cline poses for a portrait outside St. James Episcopal Church.

As for the “nothing to do” idea, Cline said she believes there are plenty of things for youth here, but if you aren’t willing to think outside that box, it’s easy to fall into thinking negatively.

Morgan Timms

live. love. indulge.

Thank You

Polly Raye: our inspiration and favorite role model

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Proud to Support Taos’ Heroes for 47 Years. AquÍ en Taos! Taos Volunteer Fire Department Taos Hockey Taos Youth Baseball Taos Youth Soccer Taos Tiger Athletics High Altitude Athletics

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

Lehrer, Florence Miera and Stephanie Waters — started working on building a safety network to develop a program to reduce suicides in the Taos area. We created Help Outreach Taos (HOT). It is a suicide risk reduction project run as a special project of the Taos Community Foundation. I have written and we have received grants from Taos Community Foundation, Con Alma and United Way of Northern New Mexico to create a formal community-based network.” Working with St. James Episcopal Church in Taos, she also starting having “lock-ins,” described as a kind of sleepover where groups of youth could hang out at the church, watch movies until late and then have breakfast the next morning. Of course, during that time, Cline and other adult leaders had a chance to participate in conversations with the kids about what is important to them. The idea has continued and grown to include lock-ins for New Year’s Eve, the Fourth of July and other occasions, during which they’ve included as many as 35 kids.

St. James youth minister Jill Cline meets with teens involved with the Common Grounds project once a week at St. James Episcopal Church. Morgan Timms

“I think the people that stay in Taos, regardless of whether they come from the outside to live here or are raised here and choose to stay, I think the person has to really want to be here. It’s not about how there’s a lot to offer or not,” she said. That’s where one of the roots of her community advocacy became centered. “In 2016,” she said, “when we had the fourth teenage suicide, at the end of that summer anybody who has teens or works with teens or anybody who has a conscience or a heart ended that summer wondering what the hell was going on. I knew we had to do something.” Spurred into action, she said, “Several in the community — me, Ted Wiard, Sue Mulvaney, Risa

Out of these conversations, Cline said Common Ground was born. “Common Ground Counseling is dedicated to fostering relationship with self, community and the natural world through nontraditional counseling and re-wilding practices with an emphasis on marking transitions in one’s life. Our programs aim to bring people together to find “common ground,” according to a description on the website at commongroundtaos.com. While Common Ground was being developed, a group of these kids expressed their concern for the pervasiveness of gun violence in the nation, sparked especially by the shootings in Parkland, Florida. At one point, she said a group talk took place in which youth sat in the center and adults sat in a circle outside and just listened. This culminated in a demonstration in solidarity with Parkland students that took place earlier this year (see youtube.com/ watch?v=gRppwPdKtlM). Some of the teens who spoke at the demonstration were present when an active shooter incident occurred at a local high school, one that brought home the sense that school safety is an issue as present in Taos, New Mexico as it is anywhere.

Cline’s advocacy also was part of what motivated her to stand up to a Taos Municipal School Board vice president. After a state Supreme Court battle, she won. The opinion issued May 22, 2017 reinforced the First Amendment rights of New Mexico citizens to petition their government without fear of retaliation in the form of civil litigation. The issue was sparked after a recall effort was initiated for school board member Arsenio Córdova. Although the recall effort eventually fell apart, Córdova sued Cline and the Citizens for Quality Education for damages, saying they used the recall process simply to harass him and lacked any legitimate complaints. The high court found that the group’s recall effort was protected by a state statute on what is known as SLAPP litigation, an acronym for strategic lawsuit against public participation. Asked if she felt vindicated after the ruling, Cline said, “I don’t think vindication was part of it.” She said the incident, though, did have the effect of shining a light on still prevalent issues. “We have so many wonderful educators in this town, and we have a horribly dysfunctional education system,” she said. “And its not dysfunctional because of educators, administrators and not because of school board members. It’s dysfunctional because of what we created as a society … we have an educational system that was built when we were in the industrial age and we’re not that now.” Today, Cline is a youth minister at St. James and is working toward being a spiritual servant rather than a political activist. About her calling, she said, “I don’t know, when you hear God calling you, I don’t know if it’s a motivation. It’s a sense of knowing. You’re just supposed to go and follow … My calling is to be a servant of the community in a spiritual capacity and to be a thorn in the side of those who need to hear from me … My mission in life, I think, is to find places where we can develop relationship with each other to make a better world for all of us, and do what Christ taught us, which is to ‘walk in love,’ probably why I’m studying to be a priest now, huh?”

Congratulations to the 2018 Citizen of the Year and Unsung Heroes. Your hard work and commitment make Taos the special place it is. Thank you Taos County for your ongoing support. If I may assist you please call 575-770-3178.

Roberto “Bobby” J. Gonzales

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Walking the walk An inspiration among the faithful, Deacon Donald Martínez

by cody hooks

tradiciones / heroes 2018

A person can get a lot of thinking done walking 20 miles. “Oh yeah, you sure can,” said Deacon Donald Martínez, thumbing through the biblical readings for a noon service, just one he leads each week in the chapel behind Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in Taos. “I try to prepare a little bit before hand so I don’t go in there with an empty mind, even though many times you prepare and go in with an empty mind anyway,” he said. But in those times especially — with a calm and clear head, whether on foot or in the parish office — a person can learn a lot more about themselves than they’d expect. He certainly did. Rev. Deacon Donald Martínez poses for a portrait inside Our Lady of Guadalupe Church. Morgan Timms

Martínez, or Deacon Don as he’s known around town, used to just get up and take a walk for “oh…10, 20 miles” whenever he needed some distance from his stressful job managing a large grocery store. He also got some thinking in every summer during the Pilgrimage for Vocations, an annual trek of Catholics in New Mexico to pray for the people to go into the priesthood, a monastery or, as Martínez eventually would, the diaconate.

When Martínez’s eldest son implored him to walk the pilgrimage the first time, he turned him down. He didn’t participate the next year either. But finally, Martínez relented. (Actually, his wife, Celina, drove away while his back was turned, leaving him with a stunned look and a sleeping bag.) As happens with many peregrinos (the pilgrims), he walked again the next year. And the next. And the next. By the time two heart attacks forced Martínez, now 81, to slow down, he’d walked the pilgrimage for over three decades, longer than almost anyone else. “You know how it is, some days you hurt. It’s not easy to walk 100 miles. One day, I got angry. I said, ‘God, I don’t know what I’m doing. I’ve been walking for 10 or 12 years and you’ve never called any of my children.’ ” But in the quiet of the walk, he heard these words: “I don’t want your children. I want you.” Martínez answered the call. CONTINUES ON PAGE 22

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

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For his perpetual service to the community of Taos,

the parishioners of Our Lady of Guadalupe and the faithful peregrinos, and for his unquestionable contribution to the spiritual rearing of so many people in Northern New Mexico, The Taos News honors Deacon Donald Martínez as one of the Unsung Heroes of 2018.

Following the Holy Family Martínez grew up in Santa Fe in a “very strict Catholic family.” He doesn’t boast, but points out that he’s only missed Mass a few times in his life, so few “you can count them on one hand. And you don’t have to use all the fingers.” “His dedication to his faith is just incredible,” said Roberto Lavadie, a woodworker and Guadalupe parishioner. “He cares for the people he serves. He’s always there.” Martínez and Celina have been married for over 60 years. The two moved to Taos in 1960. They built their home on Ranchitos where they raised six kids because it was the only paved road in Taos, he said. If people know the deacon for his service in the church, he’s know as much for his dedication to his family. Celina’s grandmother gifted the couple a statue of the Holy Family, his favorite devotion. “She said, ‘As long as you follow the example of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, you guys will never have any problems.’ And it’s true. The Holy Family has been our example,” he said. They still pray to the Holy Family anytime they go away for a trip and have spread the devotion to the Guadalupe parish.

the upstairs bathroom. Over the years, he worked his way up. By the time he left Safeway, Martínez was managing over 200 employees.

Walking the pilgrimage Martínez is among a few people, along with Fr. Ed Sevilla and Arcenio Cordova, whose names conjure from the depths of memory the sights, smells and sores of the early years of the Pilgrimage for Vocations. Martínez walked it so many years, he’s now the pilgrimage rector, the second-in-command of the yearly spiritual undertaking. In the early 1970s, a group of boys and young men from Estancia turned down a fishing trip so they could walk to Chimayó. The first route from the north started in Ranchos de Taos and followed the banks of the Río Grande, according to a history complied by local historian Ernestina Cordova. And in 1977, the northern route to the holy shrine started in Costilla and went south via the High Road — a path pilgrims still take every year, along with three other routes that all meet in Chimayó for a festive Mass. During pilgrimage, the walkers enter a spiritual space found only in the steady steps of roughly 20 miles a day. They meditate, sing and pray petitions for the sick, their parishes and for the communities they walk through. “When it got dark, that’s where you pulled out the sleeping bag. People would feed us on the side of the road. It wasn’t organized like it is now,” Martínez recalls.

Celina ran the household and meticulously managed the family bank account while Martínez worked.

Joseph Quintana walked several pilgrimages with Martínez. The week long trek and conversations with the older pilgrims, he said, “builds character, spirit, unity, teamwork…a lot of things that impact a youthful person.”

He had to ask for a job at the grocery store three times, but he was finally hired on the spot and asked to clean

“I don’t feel the same thing every time I go,” Martínez said. “It’s going to be completely different. And it

especially depends on how you’re living your life. Everyone has a different situation.” One pilgrimage was especially different — when he heard the call to be a deacon. Five years ago, two heart attacks forced the Martínez to give up walking, but not his love for it. “I know you’re hurting,” Martínez told the tired and sore pilgrims on the second day of the walk this June. “But remember this: it hurts more for those of us who can’t walk with you.”

Diaconate By the time Martínez was 45, his job paid well but came with the steep price of relentless stress. A doctor and good friend said Martínez was on the verge of a nervous breakdown and that if he didn’t change his life, he wouldn’t be long for this world. He lacked four years to retirement. But it was too long to go on the way he had. “I wanted to retire but I wanted to live, too,” he said. The day he quit, Martínez went to the Guadalupe church, where he had been a parishioner and mayorodomo since moving to Taos. As it happened, the groundskeeper had also quit his job that day and the pastor suggested Martínez step in. “I said, ‘Father, Don’t look at me. I don’t want to do no work at all.’ ” Then he said he’d think about it. And then he told the priest he’d work until they found someone else. But then he went through the steps of becoming a deacon (the only one out of an initial crop of 100 men). He still works nearly every day at the church, 37 years later. In that time, he’s performed countless baptisms, weddings and funerals; prayed in the adoration chapel most mornings; and on snowy days wakes up a little earlier to plow the parking lot.

Congratulations to the

Citizen of the Year and all of the Unsung Heroes

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

“He’s really been there,” said parishioner Ignacio Peralta. Though Martínez loves to talk, it’s been his “actions more than his words” that have stood out. There’s certainly a lot of joy to his work as a deacon, though heart-wrenching days come with the territory. Martínez was a good friend to Fr. Michael O’Brien, the founder of the pilgrimage who, after his death, was accused of sexually abusing dozens of men when they were young boys in the church. Martínez had counseled people who’ve experienced the abuse and known some who’ve taken their lives because of it. The Catholic Church’s sexual abuse scandal demolished the faith of many. Early on, the church “didn’t know how to handle it and they handled it very badly.

There’s a lot of regrouping and recouping to do,” he said.

‘That caliber of person’ When he first heard the call to be a deacon, he wondered if God truly knew his heart, then why him? “I wasn’t putting myself down or anything, but I didn’t feel I was that caliber of person, you know,” he said. Before heading off to the sermon in the chapel, Martínez again mentioned the Holy Family and the aspiration for fathers to be like Joseph, mothers to be like Mary and children to be like Jesus, which he admits “is the hardest one.” In his aspiration, Martínez has been an inspiration, a lifelong walker guiding the rest. As with his job at the grocery store, joining the pilgrimage and becoming a deacon, some blessings take a little time before they’re ready to be turned over for a person to take as their own and let it be worked in the world.

Deacon Donald Martínez uses his unique cane, sculpted into a bear, everywhere he goes, including on the 20-mile-long pilgrimages he embarks on every year. Morgan Timms

‘Time you always have,’ Martinez said.‘It’s just what you do with your time that counts.’

CONGRATULATIONS ANGEL! We're proud of all that you, and the rest of Taos' Unsung Heroes, Do For Our Community.

tradiciones / heroes 2018

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Serial entrepreneur

Businesswoman, community visionary, youth advocate Polly Raye by barbara scott

Polly Raye describes herself as a serial entrepreneur. Over her 43 years in Taos, she founded or co-founded five businesses, including three nonprofits, and worked with hundreds of people she describes as “amazing.”

aye grew up near Boston and had an early career as a stockbroker and financial analyst in New York. When she found herself unexpectedly divorced, with three young children to support, she knew she could resume her career. Doing so, however, meant less time with her children, and she wanted to do something that felt more meaningful. She took a year off to think about her values and how to build a relevant life. Polly bought a used 1974 Chevy van, equipped to travel and live in with her children (and their books). This was not a strange choice for a woman who had majored in religion in college and written her thesis on “The Meaning of Life.” The commune movement was strong in the mid-1970s, and Raye had the idea that life in a spiritual commune might be a good fit for her family. Having read “Communes USA,” she set out to see if she could find one that felt right; in the East, they hadn’t. As December grew cold, they crossed into Mexico and traveled down its east coast, where they met friendly families living in one-room, grassroofed, mud-floored palapas with one bed for the whole family, a hearth in the corner for cooking and chickens in the rafters. These generous people changed her world view. She thought about a spiritual teacher who had said, “There are two ways to be rich: One is to have a lot, and the other is to not want much.” The family spent the rest of that winter in Guatemala then traveled up the west coast of Mexico back into the United States, still searching for the right commune. Eventually, they discovered the Lama Foundation in San Cristóbal. It felt “right,” with 14 children going to school in town every day, daily meditation and decisions by consensus.

tradiciones / heroes 2018

After four years of simple off-the-grid living,

transportation to after-school activities became challenging for Raye’s preteen children. She moved the family to a former church in the center of town, where she still lives today.

Polly Raye poses for a portrait by the gardens scattered throughout the John Dunn House Shops. Since Raye bought the property in 1982, she has spearheaded efforts to make the property more beautiful, fostering community and helping businesses thrive. Morgan Timms

Raye started a meditation group around her adobe fireplace and soon learned that all 10 members, herself included, were unemployed or underemployed struggling to support their families with part-time, minimum-wage jobs. They all wanted to practice the Buddhist path of Right Livelihood, so they decided to open a restaurant with healthy organic food, plenty of opportunities for “service” and the possibility of lots of jobs. The name Apple Tree came to her in a dream and also honored the old apple tree at the center of the patio. For many years at their weekly meetings, the staff explored what Right Livelihood meant. Everyone contributed recipes and created the menu together. Wages were equal, jobs were shared and all the compost went to the chickens. When making decisions, someone usually said, “Well, if this were a REAL restaurant…” Over the years, new staff came and Raye told them, “What we serve is love, disguised as food.” Raye credits the success of the restaurant to the phenomenal people who worked there, some of whom later moved on to open their own restaurants.

In 1979, Raye started the Downtown Merchants Association which, around 2000, morphed into The Taos Project. With roughly 30 active merchant members, the group worked closely with the town government to improve the downtown. During her 10 Apple Tree years, Raye also served on the boards of both the Taos Chamber and Taos Mainstreet. Raye sold the Apple Tree to her employee Ginny Greeno who, Raye said, made it even better. In over 30 years, the Apple Tree employed hundreds of people. It was the first job for a whole generation of Taos teenagers, many of whom Raye now sees in town with their children or grandchildren. As she was thinking about what to do next, Raye was at a social event with Judge Joe Caldwell when he told her about a Taos girl he had sent to a group home in Albuquerque. While running away from the home to get back to Taos, she had been raped, beaten and left for dead. The girl was lying in a hospital in Española. Caldwell said, “We need a group home for girls in Taos.” Raye decided to build one. She visited teen facilities all over the state, worked with the Children Youth and Families Department, wrote a grant for initial funding, met with the governor when she needed a bit more and invited everyone interested in the project to a series of lunches to spread the word and share ideas. CONTINUES ON PAGE 26

My thanks to all those unsung heroes who volunteer or work hard to make our community healthy, happy, and safe... -Taos Search and Rescue -Stray Hearts Animal Shelter -Community Against Violence -Nonviolence Works -Taos Men's Shelter -H.E.A.R.T of Taos -Taos Community Foundation -Taos Habitat for Humanity -Taos Educators and Coaches -DreamTree Project -Taos County Crime Stoppers ... and all First Responders, EMS Personnel, Fire Fighters, and Law Enforcement

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CONTINUES FROM PAGE 25

The original 10-member board coalesced from those lunches. Linda Hill donated 5 acres. Raye hired an architect and a builder who donated most of their services as did many Taos subcontractors and suppliers. More than 500 Taoseños donated money or goods to build the home. Casa de Corazon opened in 1990. Over the eight years Raye worked there, it expanded to include a school and outpatient services to families. During those years, Raye was also a licensed foster parent, mostly caring for teenage girls waiting for a space in the home. In 1988, Raye received a visit from Kristina Wilson, Liese Frank and Carol Harrington, who wanted her to help them form a land trust. Harrington’s father had recently passed away, leaving a beautiful meadow in El Prado. With a land trust she could preserve the land as open space and wouldn’t have to sell it to pay estate taxes. Together they formed the Taos Land Trust and served on the board for several years. It was too late to save Harrington’s land, but since that time the Land Trust has helped Taos landowners create voluntary conservation easements that permanently protect over 25,000 acres of family lands, usually saving families significant taxes in the process.

HEART advisory board member Polly Raye stands inside the Casa de Corazon home that is being renovated to become a transitional living space for homeless women and children. Morgan Timms

Congratulations Polly! Thank you for all your help resurrecting Casa de Corazon into the HEART House. You are a true hero to the women and children that HEART of Taos serves.

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

While they were working together at Casa de Corazon, volunteer accountant Fred Winter asked Raye to help him start a community foundation. Winter had clients who were making significant gifts of land and money to out-of-town charities because there was no organization in Taos capable of accepting those donations or holding an endowment. Raye discovered a trove of resources at the National Council on Foundations. But she found little local understanding of community foundations, and in fact, some nonprofits feared that a community foundation would reduce donations to their causes. It was clear that the first step in Taos was to educate both the nonprofits and the public about community foundations. Edy Anderson, Leslie Hale, Carolyn Haddock, Marcus Whitson and Mari Ulmer joined Winter and Raye on the original “organizing board.” Today, TCF has an endowment of more than $10 million, oversees grants and donations of some $800,000 a year and, equally important, offers training and expertise to keep Taos’ 200-some nonprofits strong. Raye considers the three nonprofits her most valuable business ventures. But the one she is best known for, in addition to the Apple Tree, is the John Dunn Shops. For years, the Plaza was the center of town, and a rickety boardwalk past John Dunn’s house connected the Plaza to Bent Street. In the 1970s, Harvey Mudd purchased Dunn’s home and divided it into seven small shops for his friends from the New Buffalo Commune. Dunn’s stable became the popular Joe’s Restaurant. When Mudd moved to California in 1982, he asked Raye to buy the property. She didn’t have any money to invest, so he lent her the down payment and she secured a mortgage at the bank. Polly’s

interest was in making the property beautiful, supporting a sense of community and helping the businesses thrive.

In 1983, Joe’s Restaurant burned down. With some open space available, the town asked Raye to create a safe walkway to the Plaza for its employees, who were all on Armory Street (now Civic Plaza Drive). Raye worked with the town to design a long-term land-use plan and, with the insurance money as down payment, went back to the bank, created the walkway and built seven shops on the footprint of Dunn’s old stable. The John Dunn House Shops grew from there. Most of the shops now have second-generation owners. Few have gone out of business. When Raye was told she’d been selected as an Unsung Hero, she was surprised and said, “I’m a has been,” as her last business was started 20 years ago. And she said that none had been her idea or really “hers.” All had been created in response to a need, and all were successful only because of the collaboration of many people. These days, Raye is still supporting nonprofits, especially SOMOS;

TECC (Taos Education and Career Center); and TCEDC. She is also on the advisory board of HEART, which is currently renovating the Casa de Corazon home for a transitional living space for homeless women and children. Fifteen years ago, she married her childhood sweetheart, Bill Christmas. Together they have 10 grandchildren, who live on both coasts. The Rayes look forward to spending more time visiting them.

CONGRATULATIONS TO TAOS COMMUNITY FOUNDATION’S UNSUNG HERO’S!

George and Lucille Gallegos-Jaramillo TCF Board Vice Chair and TCF Taos Public Education Fund Advisor

An Honor Well Deserved tradiciones / heroes 2018

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

THE TAOS NEWS

HEROES T radiciones 2018

Man of the river

Río Grande advocate, skier, dancer, rafter and prolific storyteller Cisco Guevara by staci matlock

tradiciones / heroes 2018

He’s run the Río Grande well over 3,500 times in the last 51 years,

first as teenager testing his mortality and then as a commercial guide with the company he founded, Los Rios River Runners. He knows every inch of the river’s curves, boulders and rapids the way one does any longtime companion. He can read the Grande’s moods.

While Francisco “Cisco” Guevara’s made a living from the river, he’s also been among its staunch advocates and defenders. He’s a founding member of Amigos Bravos, one of the foremost river advocacy organizations in the nation and chairman of the nonprofit’s board of directors.. Guevara brings a unique perspective as a commercial guide to a board made up of biologists, lawyers and engineers, said Amigos Bravos Executive Director Joseph Zupan. “He’s a very eloquent ambassador for why watershed protection is so important,” Zupan said. “He’s always ready to promote our mission, taking meetings with donors and doing an annual fundraiser on the river. He donates staff and equipment.” Part of the gift Guevara brings Amigos Bravos is his ability to spin a good yarn, making others care as deeply about the strip of river stretching from Colorado to the Gulf of Mexico as he does. The river flows through his stories, the ones he regales his clients with while they ride the Grande, gripping the sides as the boat plunges in and out of the rapids. Photos by Morgan Timms

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CONTINUES ON PAGE 32

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Guevara floats down the Río Grande River by the John Dunn Bridge in the late afternoon light. “Moving water releases energy that has the ability to positively influence human health,” said Guevara, owner of Los Rios River Runners in Taos. “There’s the adrenaline rush, there’s the rush from just the sheer beauty. When you’re floating down a calm, beautiful, peaceful part of the river, especially at sunset when the light is changing, it’s sublime.” Morgan Timms CONTINUES FROM PAGE 31

He’s gained a reputation as a preeminent storyteller, too, with SOMOS, the Taos literary organization he has supported through the decades as student and benefactor. “It’s unbelievable to have a renaissance creative like Cisco Guevara living and working in Taos, a native of New Mexico and tireless supporter of SOMOS, which includes Cisco’s annual storytelling appearance every October at The Taos Storytelling Festival,” said James Navé director of the Taos Storytelling and Taos Poetry festivals. “You will undoubtedly be entertained when you hear Cisco unspool his yarns on a professional storytelling stage, or on-air through the radio or casually around a campfire under the stars along the river Chama,” Navé continued. “SOMOS looks forward to many more years of dynamic collaborations with Cisco, the man who wears that big cowboy hat and tells some of the best stories in the world.” Guevara is the son of a thermonuclear engineer at Los Alamos National Laboratory and a descendant of the Guevara line stretching back to Spain. One of those ancestors bore the last name Ladron de Guevara or “Thief of Guevara.” There’s a tale that goes with the name, something about his ancestor stealing back a strategic castle from the Moors and handing it over to the King of Spain. In honor of his swashbuckling ancestor, Guevara added Ladron back to his last name. “It fit with the rebel I wanted to be and very much was,” Guevara said. In North America, the European side of his family came in 1540 with the Coronado expedition and returned again in 1598 with the conquistador Don Juan de Oñate. Guevaras married into local Indian families. “We’ve been around ever since,” he said. He visited Spain and the land of his ancestors decades later with his middle child, Pachin. As a kid growing up in Los Alamos near the river, “We would run down to the river and jump in. We didn’t know we were jumping in spring flood, strong Class 3 rapids,” Guevara said, adding that several times, “I remember rescuing my buddies, pulling them out bloody and battered after they nearly drowned.” They floated down the river in inner tubes, flipping when they hit the rapids. “It didn’t occur to us we were risking our lives,” he said.

European scientists at the lab who launched Boy Scouts Explorer Post 20 heard about the young daredevils and tutored them in the art of river running. “They taught us how to canoe, kayak and row boats,” Guevara said. “They were famous nationwide for having a really unique white-water program.”

of whom I’d taught to ski. Usually they were in so much pain they didn’t recognize me.”

Many professional river guides, especially across the West, can trace their roots back to Explorer Post 20.

For decades now, when Guevara wasn’t on the river or up on the slopes or rescuing people in an ambulance, he was on the dance floor twirling partners. A fan of rock ’n’ roll, it was a pretty woman who got him interested in two-stepping, and by extension country music, one night at the Sagebrush Inn. He became a two-stepping master.

By the time he was in his late teens, Guevara was in line to follow after his dad into a career at the lab — until they found out he had stolen a police car in one of his more rebellious youthful moments. “They asked me to withdraw my application,” Guevara said with a grin. He wasn’t sorry. The idea of being stuck in a cubicle working on research related to nuclear weapons didn’t thrill him.

‘The river presented itself and I never looked back,’ Guevara said. River guiding alone couldn’t support him in those early years. So like others in Northern New Mexico, he developed a range of skills to survive. He became an EMT, a ski instructor and worked construction. He applied for a job at Taos Ski Valley when its founder Ernie Blake was still master of the mountain. “Ernie told me he would hire me if I cut my hair and shaved my beard, but I wasn’t going to do that.” When Red River heard Guevara was experienced in skiing the monster slopes at TSV, they hired him immediately, with his beard and long hair. Here’s the way he tells the story of his seven winters working at Red River: He would bike in his ski suit to open the ski shop at 6 a.m. The owners would take over at 8 a.m. Guevara would walk over to the ski area and don his ski jacket. People would be renting skis. He’d convince them to take a ski lesson from a guy named “Cisco.” Then he’d put on his ski school jacket, walk to the slopes and offer lessons. Next he’d put on his ski patrol jacket, because he was a certified EMT, “and I’d pick up the people who were injured coming down the mountain, some

He would take them down the mountain. He’d take off ski patrol jacket and put on his EMT garb and start a drip line on them in the ambulance. It all makes for a good tale.

In the midst of his already packed life with business, hobbies and children, he made time to volunteer. He was among the early participants in the Taos Storytelling Festival 18 years ago. He’s been a part of the group ever since. He volunteers with Río Grande Restoration and was a charter member of Amigos Bravos in the mid-1980s. They raised seed money and “we took on Molycorp Mine, which was our first issue that we were fighting. It took off from there. Now Amigos Bravos is on the forefront of a lot of national fights – groundwater restoration, wetlands preservation and instream flow.” He was president of the Talpa Community Center for six years, turning the old elementary school into a public center that now thrives with a library, classes and meeting space. “We put a lot of time into that place, painting, cleaning, repairing. It was a lot of fun,” he said. This summer he came up against his own mortality in a way he didn’t expect. Life on the river and on ski slopes is inherently risky. But it was an infection following surgery that almost killed him. “This was me thinking I’m powerful, I’m different, I have a really great living and people admire me for what I do,” he said. “Then bam, I got knocked down.” But he’s back up, focused on a different way to approach his life and health. He’ll keep storytelling and dancing and loving the river.

Because the river is part of him. Their stories are inseparable.

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Cisco Guevara two-steps at Michael Hearne’s 16th annual Big Barn Dance Music Festival at Kit Carson Park.

Morgan Timms

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Rotarians, kids’ champions, Lucil e and George Jaramil o by arcenio j trujillo

tradiciones / heroes 2018

Life’s highway is full of surprises.

Taos Pueblo Day School students line up to embrace Taos Milagro Rotary member Lucille Gallegos-Jaramillo May 16 after the Taos Milagro Rotary Cub meeting at the El Camino Inn. GallegosJaramillo donated her Good News collection winnings to Taos Pueblo Day School during the meeting. Morgan Timms

Bottom: “Lucille GallegosJaramillo and George Jaramillo have dedicated their careers to education and have helped shape the minds of several kids and young adults through their heartfelt extensions of the self.” Morgan Timms

And it offers anyone with an exploratory mind and a passion for learning, opportunities galore. It also extends plenty of chances to serve and share one’s talents. Thus, the twists and turns, ascents and plateaus, and bridges and overlooks are made more meaningful as brief stops along the way provide precious encounters and gifts, to each traveler and each host. Lucille Gallegos-Jaramillo and George Jaramillo have dedicated their careers to education and have helped shape the minds of several kids and young adults through their heartfelt extensions of the self. Now, that their journey has brought them here to Taos, their enthusiasm has not diminished. CONTINUES ON PAGE 36

Our ‘Abuelitas’are our HEROES at Taos Municipal Schools

TOWN OF TAOS

The Town of Taos would like to recognize and congratulate all of this year’s Unsung Heroes for their commitment to community and advancing the common good for Taoseños. 2018 Unsung Heroes:

JANET WEBB GEORGE AND LUCILLE JARAMILLO FRANCISCO GUEVARA DEACON DONALD MARTINEZ LT. ANDREW MONTOYA JESSE MARTINEZ JILL CLINE ANGEL REYES POLLY RAYE FRANCIS CORDOVA TAOSGOV.COM 400 CAMINO DE LA PLACITA

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pon arrival, a collision of hearts and minds occurred at the conjunction-junction between this true-life power couple and an eager reading community. The result has been the betterment of Taos kids. “My journey began in the 7th-grade when a casual question by the mother of one of my childhood friends who asked me which university I was planning on attending,” said GallegosJaramillo, who was dumbfounded by the query, and at the time, was not yet prepared with an answer. “That planted the seed, however, and motivated me to explore the possibility of going to college.” From that point on, Gallegos-Jaramillo pushed herself to excel in school, breaking through gender barriers and expectations of a bygone era. She earned a doctorate in secondary education reading with bilingual emphasis. Eventually she endeavored to push others as well. Her dissertation work explored the level of academic achievement of students in a bilingual program versus those who were not. Because of this research, she oversaw federal and state ESL (English as Second Language) programs for migrant students in pre-K through 12 in Greeley, Colorado, helping them get into college. “Often, kids just need someone to say ‘you can do it,’ ” said Lucille, who went on to become a principal at the local elementary and high school in Greeley for several years before moving to Taos. George started at the University of Illinois, where he worked for five years before transitioning to the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley for the next 20 years. From there, he was offered a job as an associate dean at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado. With Lucille acquiring the principal job at Enos García Elementary School, the two native New Mexicans returned to their home state,

and George took a crack at his first retirement. The short stint at idleness didn’t work out so well for him, so George returned to the workforce and became the director at the Taos Public Library until 2013. Still not ready to take it easy, Jaramillo currently splits his time as vice president of the Taos Community Foundation board, treasurer for Rotary Club, tutor at Taos Pueblo Day School, board member of the Taos Education Career Center and consultant for UNM-Taos. He also spent years as a volunteer in the emergency room at Holy Cross Hospital. Both fully retired now, the two former educators devote a lot of their time and energy on furthering the mission of the Rotary Club. With a shared commitment to the organization and its slogan, “service above self,” George and Lucille join the more than 50 Taos Milagro Rotary members who donate their time to read to kids, provide free dictionaries to over 400 Taos County students, maintain and supply books for the 15 “little free libraries” in and around Taos and raise funds for scholarships. Fundraising is a big part of the duties the two carry out as part of their involvement in the Rotary. The annual “Chile Challenge” is the club’s flagship event, which includes a golf tournament, best chile in Northern New Mexico competition, silent auction and battle of the breweries. Along with scholarships for deserving high school graduates, funds are used for multiple international projects as well, including the Himalayan Stove Project and the Guatemala Water Project. Along with assisting with the hosting and sending of students interested in traveling abroad to study in another country, these international endeavors punctuate the goals of the club as a global organization. Through it all, it was the philosophy of their parents that encouraged them to try new things, educate themselves as much as possible and always give back to others. It is in this

tradiciones / heroes 2018

‘Often, kids just need someone to say, You can do it.’ “A collision of hearts and minds occurred at the conjunction-junction between this true-life power couple and an eager reading community. The result has been the betterment of Taos kids.” Morgan Timms

way, both Lucille and George have dedicated their life’s work. “Education is power,” said George, who gave credit for this quote to his mother. “It was an expectation for me and my siblings to go on to college after high school.” Whether it’s reading to kids at the various elementary schools around the county, storytelling at the Taos Pueblo Headstart, judging the Halloween costume contest at Taos Pueblo or dressing up as Mr. and Mrs. Claus during the Christmas season, George and Lucille find purpose in the smallest of acts. “It’s fun,” said George, who reiterated that he and Lucille both

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have backgrounds that can help others. “So, that has been our focus.” “When we’re gone, we hope to leave this world a better place,” said Lucille, who finds great satisfaction knowing that many of her students have taken up the mantle of service and are passing it along to the next generation. With pride, she points to a bright example of that enactment. One of her high school Spanish students has risen up to become an elementary school principal. Given all that the Jaramillos have done for Taos and the international community, it’s a small wonder they weren’t named “Unsung Heroes” years ago.

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MAKING MOVES

At-risk teen advocate, mentor Andrew Montoya by john miller

Andrew Montoya grasped a set of dice in a loose fist and gave them a shake before his roll, uncertain as ever as to how they might land, but sure the two teens dressed in jail blues on either side of the game board stood little chance. He flung the little bone-colored cubes, and they all watched as they hit the cardboard, tumbled, shifted and settled flat. The black dots came up. Six. Montoya moved in his uniform to slide his piece to a valuable square of real estate. After a few turns, he had bought and built on properties that seemed to position him for an easy win. As they circled the board, the youth detainees — cousins from Colfax County who had picked up petty crimes — shared little pieces of their stories, minute details hidden in jokes or brief anecdotes that suggested why they had wound up at the Taos County Juvenile Detention Center in the first place. They reminded Montoya, 39, of friends he had grown up with in a neighborhood of tract homes in San Jose, California. There, Montoya said he had known kids who became involved in criminal activity or drug use at a young age. Some wound up homeless, often because their parents worked so many jobs or were so deep in addiction it was like they weren’t around at all. Pretty soon, Montoya was at the school yard in San Jose again, hearing familiar voices in kids he’d only just met. He’d go bankrupt listening to the conversation. “I had my money all organized,” Montoya recalled. “I knew where all my properties were … Maybe they had it memorized because they’d played it so many times. Bottom line was, they killed me.” He checked in with his supervisor down the hall. “I should be working,” he said. “You are working,” they replied. “You’re listening to everything they say.”

Andrew Montoya poses for a portrait outside the detention center. Photos byMorgan Timms

MEMO

CONTINUES ON PAGE 40

Our Heroes Are the Lifeblood of Our Taos Community We Thank You For Your Selflessness

TO: The Communities of Taos County From: Wayne Rutherford Re: Unsung Hero Jill Cline Jill has given her heart and soul to many community organizations over her 20 or so years in Taos. Her selfless service is a shining example for us all. I also want to recognize and thank Jill for her contributions during 18 years as the Business Manager of Wayne Rutherford, General Contractor, Inc.

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t was Montoya’s first day as an officer at the old youth jail in Taos County, a clean, industrial-looking facility located behind the adult jail. Some of the adult detainees on the other side of the complex had started in the same place as the teens Montoya met that day, playing board games or shooting hoops in the recreation yard. Some would go on to commit more serious crimes later in life while others would come to the youth jail once, maybe twice, then Montoya would never see them again. He returned to the youth detention center for the next 11 years, attaining the rank of lieutenant by the time it moved to its new location at the Taos County Courthouse Complex on Albright Street. Throughout his career, Montoya dedicated himself to keeping youth out of the jail while striving to keep its doors open for at-risk youth that still needed support in the counties the jail served: Taos, Mora, Union, Colfax and Clay. His first day on the job changed his view as to what youth detention ought to be, but during an interview in 2015 for a job at a youth detention center in Sonoma County, California, he said he learned about what he describes as “evidence-based practices.” The jail director showed him programs they had created for youth that sought to equip them with the stability, skills and confidence that could help set them on a better course.

‘It was simple stuff: teaching kids how to tie a tie, teaching the kids to cook, teaching the kids how to be healthy,’ Montoya said. Since the detention center shut its doors June 30, Montoya has been working to reopen the vacated space as a residential treatment center for at-risk youth. Morgan Timms

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

He turned the job down, but the programs left an impression. He returned to the youth jail in Taos with the intention to model his own style of detention after what he had seen in California. “I started trying to bring in as many volunteer-based programs as I could,” he said. “I really thought I was going to have a budget for all of this, but what I found was that there were a lot of people in the community that were willing to volunteer and make these changes happen.” He recruited members of the Taos community to teach classes. Metta Theatre Director Bruce McIntosh came in two days a week to teach acting and improv. A nurse would come in on Wednesdays to teach basic health and answer questions some detainees couldn’t ask elsewhere. On Thursdays, Suki Dalury would come to teach yoga. Volunteers from the local school district would come in to teach Monday through Friday. Montoya saw the programs become successful, but partly due to that success, the number of youth at the jail began to dwindle. “We had capacity to hold 18,” he said. “Twelve males and six females. We were rarely at capacity.” The positive outcomes Montoya was achieving raised a question as to whether the high cost of running the youth jail — just under $900,000 a year, he estimated — justified keeping it open. On May 15, the Taos County Board of Commissioners voted to close it down.

But since the facility shut its doors June 30, Montoya has been working to reopen the vacated space as a residential treatment center for at-risk youth. This summer, he and members of Nonviolence Works in Taos have been in touch with Michael Bronson, who works at the New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Division, which operates a residential center in Albuquerque. They proposed they partner to create a similar treatment center to serve Northern New Mexico. “Residential treatment would stretch a lot further because there are a lot more kids that need that than need detention,” Montoya said. Montoya envisions a renovation of the youth jail that would make it feel more like a home, where kids dealing with addiction issues, family trouble or other problems can have a safe space to go. The lieutenant hopes to bring back programs previously offered to youth detainees, but he’d also like to take residents on “field trips” — into the mountains to go hiking, or to the river to go fishing, activities he partook in when he would come visit his relatives in Taos County on summer break from school in San Jose. But while he continues to work toward that goal with Nonviolence Works, he says it’s up to the people of Taos County to form a community “that really pulls together” to look out for its at-risk youth.

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

THE TAOS NEWS

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Feeding stomachs and souls

St. James Food Pantry’s Jesse Martínez by mary beth libbey

esse Martínez’s dark eyes lock on yours when he greets you at the church door. He seems to study your words carefully. Then someone yells for him from across the room. He gestures to you to follow. He answers their question, gives a direction, exchanges some teasing words with a smile. Then he shuffles on. Martínez is a balding, middle-aged man in a T-shirt, baggy shorts and athletic shoes. His shoulders hunch a bit, and his gait slow due to one leg that’s in a brace. Martínez is the kind of guy you’d pass on the street or in the grocery store and not even notice. Nothing remarkable stands out about this man. That is, until you talk to the people who work with him at St. James Episcopal Church food pantry. “What he does, he does out of love — for God and for his fellow man,” said Marilyn Farrow, the volunteer director of the food pantry. “His treatment of our volunteers is noteworthy — lots of the young adults who work with him stay in touch with him for years. He respects them, talks with them and prays with them.”

CONTINUES ON PAGE 46

Jesse Martínez offers food to guests at the weekly food pantry at St. James Episcopal Church. Morgan Timms

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e can’t tell you when he started working at the food pantry. He can’t tell you when he started to go to church at St. James either. His friends in the congregation say it was about 14 years ago, only a few months after Farrow took on the top job. “I’m not good with time, with dates,” he said. Indeed, certain areas of life have been difficult for Martínez. He had a loving home in Des Montes, he said, with his grandparents, Atilono and Maclovia Roybal and his parents Damacio and Presciliana Martínez. Sometimes, he said, families hide a “different child in a corner.” His family didn’t do that. And they taught him “respect for elders.” He stopped the interview and said, “One thing I want to say in the article. Young parents need to teach their children respect for their elders. It’s getting out of hand. You see them pushing an elderly person instead of picking them up.” But he said he struggled in school at times, and he was put in special education classes at other times. He didn’t learn like other kids. He moved awkwardly and fell down sometimes.

when they are in trouble, especially those who are different. “I’m disabled, too,” he said simply. Still, he’s held down all types of jobs. He was a supervisor at the Molycorp mine in Questa and a caretaker at El Mirador.

Nevertheless, giving to others has long been a n integral part of Martínez’s life. Before St. James, Martínez and his wife Elvira started a food pantry in their house in Arroyo Seco. His reason: “People needed it.” He can’t tell you how people learned to stop by his house for food or how he got the food to give out. No marketing plan was needed. Martínez said that retailers and food distributors seemed to just know about his home-based effort. “They just showed up: Smith’s, Creamland, Taos Farms eggs,” he recalled. Then a friend, a member of St. James, told him about the church’s food pantry, and he signed on about a year after he closed their homegrown pantry.

He was teased and it hurt. Kids took advantage of him and his grandma would scold him for being so naïve. “She would say, ‘They are mean to you, but you still give them your jacket,’ ” Martinez remembered. “You deal with it. You learn from it.” In fact, he speculated, that experience may be why he finds it easy to accept others and has long acted on his faith’s teachings that one should help others

Today, he’s the St. James pantry’s produce manager, but it’s clear that he does much more than that: answering questions, directing the set-up, checking to see if lunch is on the stove. It’s tough to see how this complex operation would work without him. “He’s my right hand man,” said Farrow. They serve an estimated 500 families each Thursday, distributing about 1,500 pounds of food,

“much of it the produce that Jesse so beautifully manages,” said Farrow. The day starts at 8 a.m. The church’s ample narthex is stacked with tables that in turn are stacked with pallets of canned and dry goods, sometimes meat, always potatoes and other fruit and vegetables. This particular day, boxes of watermelon are stacked in the parking lot. People have already started to show up, chatting under the portal. Just before noon, the kitchen crew, volunteers, including Elvira Martínez, serve a hot lunch for the 70 or so volunteers who show up every Thursday to help out Jesse and the rest of the St. James crew. Most of the volunteers are not church members. Among them are people who once stood in line regularly outside, convicted offenders working off some community service, residents at a local drug rehab facility, the Rocky Mountain Youth Corp., schoolchildren and many people looking for some social interaction. “People come here to get out of their own heads, to get out of the house. You can spend too much time alone,” said one volunteer eating her enchilada lunch. “It’s not good.” The doors open at noon and stay open until the food is gone, usually several hours. Then, Jesse and Elvira Martínez deliver food to others in the community if there is anything left. He’ll stop his pickup at the Pueblo, at the McDonald’s parking lot, at the post office, and then he’ll take a box to individual homes. That’s why Martínez was nominated as an “Unsung Hero” by Stella McGinnis who saw him around town, said Farrow. “She was impressed with his kindness and courtesy.”

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

Sometimes the Martínezes’ day does not end until 10 p.m. But Jesse Martínez said over the years he has been sought out at the church for other reasons, not only food. “Sometimes people want to pray with me,” he said. “They trust me.” It’s not hard to understand why. When he found out about this reporter’s daughter was having surgery soon in Albuquerque, he asked her to pray with him. He reached out, held her hands and said a simple prayer at the end of the interview.

Jesse Martínez laughs with fellow volunteer Nestor Martínez during the weekly food pantry at St. James Episcopal Church. Morgan Timms

Some might say my journalism ethics were compromised, or that my religious beliefs were not being honored because he didn’t ask me what they were, but it didn’t feel that way. It was part of Jesse Martínez’s work, part of his day, part of his faith.

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

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Representing the ‘real’ Taos

Artist, volunteer, web designer Janet Webb by jesse moya

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‘A

while ago, there was New York, Chicago and Taos. That’s where you went to collect art,” said Taos resident David Mapes. “We would be not on that map at all if it wasn’t for Janet.”

With over 40 years in Taos, few can say they have done more for the arts community, or the community in general, than Janet Webb. From graphic design to the promotion of the arts, Webb has spent her time in Taos ensuring the survival of the artistic feel of this historical town. During that time, she has seen the creation of various councils, groups and businesses and has offered her time and efforts to making Taos a better community for all who live in it. Hailing from Los Angeles, Webb decided to make Taos her permanent home to raise her three children and immerse herself in the community she would come to love. From the busy business world of the city to the calm serenity of Taos, Webb decided to get the ball rolling on a new project after a few years of settling into the area. “You start a business here just because there’s nobody to hire you,” she said laughing.

Artist and web designer Janet Webb poses for a portrait in her home. Morgan Timms

That startup would quickly become one of the most important support and design businesses in Taos with a simple yet memorable name, Webb Design. Webb worked with countless businesses in the Taos area in print, website and other graphic needs that spurred the creation of a Taos business scene. Posters, pamphlets, maps and more began pouring out of the design shop, and business after business came through to have their media built by Webb Design. Practically everyone in Taos was a client of Webb Design at some point including hotels, ski resorts and even churches in the area. The community at large relied on Webb Design for their print and promotional needs.

Webb visits the Harwood Art Museum, where she is a board member. Morgan Timms

For over 30 years, Webb helped businesses get their names out to the community and her company was responsible for many of the first websites business owners launched. During the company’s lifespan, nearly 60 people worked for Webb and helped her build Webb Design into the company that launched hundreds of dreams for such a long list of businesses in and around Taos. “All those years, I always had good people working for me,” Webb said. “So now, with all this volunteer work I do, it’s just me. I’m realizing how much my staff did.” CONTINUES ON PAGE 50

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

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While her impact on the business community was a shining light, earning her such accolades as the New Mexico Hospitalities Association’s hall of fame and a tech award from the New Mexico Technology Council, art is truly this gifted Taoseño’s passion. Webb expressed her passion for the arts as a sketch artist and continues to create when the inspiration is right. When not working on her own compositions, Webb can be seen at one of the several committee or board meetings she is involved with around town including the PASEO, Harwood and SOMOS boards. “I wanted Taos to be represented in a more authentic way than a lot of marketing people would do,” she said. She is still actively involved with the boards and can often be seen at various community meetings that have agenda items pertaining to the arts. Webb’s contributions to Taos were not limited to only the artist community, but to the digital realm as well. In an effort to better connect Taos to other parts of the world, Webb helped dial in the finishing touches on Taos Net. “A lot of people move here to get away from the big city, and they like the primitiveness and the ruralness of Taos,” she said. “It’s a rural place that has a very urban global mindset and I like that. I want to be part of the world.” During the early part of the 1990s, only one internet company existed in Taos, which limited the connections people here had to the rest of the world. Webb decided this was unacceptable to allow a single provider to monopolize the internet industry and helped Taos Net get off the ground. Since then, the company has been providing internet services to the people of Taos.

“Janet Webb worked with countless businesses in the Taos area in print, website and other graphic needs that spurred the creation of a Taos business scene.” Morgan Timms

In keeping with her artist roots and traditions, another contribution Webb continues with is the online Taos Art Calendar, which keeps the community aware of the various art gallery openings and happenings in the communities around Taos. Webb sees her efforts to keep the widely viewed calendar as a needed service that directs tourists and locals to the happenings at galleries, thus supporting the community of artists. Every detail of every show or opening in the calendar is added simply because Webb thinks people need to know where to see and experience the art of their town. “She has just been devoted and loyal to keeping Taos in the news and portraying it in a positive light,” Mapes said. “She has made herself really available to the new marketeers as a well of history and knowledge.” Taos revels in the history of the arts that has solidified itself here with Webb adding to the list of that century-old history and tradition with each step she takes. What the future holds for Janet Webb even she doesn’t know. However, if there is an artistic element attached to it, chances are she won’t be too far behind.

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

Supporting the underdog

Centinel Bank’s Angel Reyes by scott gerdes

Centinela Bank’s Angel Reyes poses for a portrait overlooking the Gorge at the Rift Valley Trailhead, where he frequently runs. Morgan Timms

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ure, as Centinel Bank’s chairman of the board and CEO, banking is Angel Reyes’ job. He could, however, choose to be Mr. Potter from one of his favorite movies, “It’s a Wonderful Life.” But on the contrary, he’s more George Bailey than Mr. Potter.

“Angel is a special person,” said Pavel Lukes who nominated Reyes. “He’s a role model to young people and many people owe him for their prosperity. He is a fan of Taos business people.” When it comes to getting accolades for taking chances on local entrepreneurs or people who just need a hand getting over a hurdle, Reyes feels that it’s the bank helping the community, not just him. He’s self-effacing when talking about how people have noticed his willingness to go out on a limb to help others in any way he can. “I’m humbled,” he shared with no hesitation, no reservation. “What feels really good is that I was able to come back home knowing that I wanted to make a big difference in my community, and having this opportunity to make decisions that have a positive outcome. Sometimes we understand that

we might be getting over our skis a little bit, but we believe in the customer, in the business and in the community. I really feel good about knowing that we want to support the underdog. When it comes back to us that’s great, but really it’s them who should get the credit.”

Behind the scenes

It isn’t just from behind a banker’s desk from which Reyes touches the community. When his son, Angel Jr., and daughter, Elizabeth, were kids, Reyes was a Little League and soccer coach. He also served on the Little League board. For nine years he was the chair of the Taos Community Foundation and is presently the chair of TCF’s Real Property Foundation. Through his time as TCF chairman, he learned there are people in Taos who had real estate they wanted to donate, but there wasn’t a clear way to deal with it. “It’s kind of hard to do,” Reyes explained. “We’ve had the opportunity of late to help people who’ve made bequests, and we figure out how to receive that property.” Ultimately, they liquidate most properties and then those funds become an endowment to support TCF. If Reye’s plate wasn’t full enough, he’s the vice chairman of the New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority. Its mission is primarily to provide access to affordable housing for New Mexicans, whether it’s through home ownership or affordable

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rents as well as assisting the homeless and other individuals. One such apartment project was recently completed behind Taos High School. It’s part of the low-income housing tax credit, which involves a subcommittee he also chairs called the Allocation Review Committee. “Tax credits are the largest tax subsidy the state of New Mexico receives to provide housing to its constituents. There is a huge need for that,” he stated with conviction. All of his chair responsibilities run on volunteered time. The NMMFA was a governor’s appointment in 2011. This summer, he accepted an invitation to serve on the New Mexico Independent Community Bankers Association board. And if that still isn’t enough to juggle, Reyes headed to the University of Colorado in July to serve as an instructor for third-yearbanking-school students to help them understand the roles of senior-level management in a simulated environment.

In the beginning

Before becoming the chairman of the board and CEO, Reyes, a spry 46, was named president of Centinel Bank in 2003. Prior, he held the title of CFO in 1998. And it all started from behind a teller’s window. The born and bred Taoseño attended the University of New Mexico’s Anderson School of Business where he earned a business degree in 1995. Four years later he graduated from

the University of Colorado School of Banking. His initial pursuits, however, were squarely aimed at the military. Before UNM, he earned an associate of arts degree and was a regimental commander at New Mexico Military Institute in the early 1990s. He also served many years with the New Mexico Army National Guard. Reyes wanted to go into the “regular” Army and was hoping that his wife (Deanna, also from Taos) would be a teacher for the Department of Defense. “And then we had our son. At the time, I was scratching my head thinking, ‘Do I do the military? What do we do?’ We decided to come home.” His sister and brother-in-law owned the Taos restaurant Jacquelina’s. He took over the manager reins and through that job made connections with the Centinel Bank owners. They pitched the idea of working at the bank. They saw something in Reyes. They had been watching him for a while. And those great banker’s hours? Well, that was too good to pass up. His first day was the day after Labor Day in 1996. It wasn’t long before he was working alongside the CFO and within two years, she was getting ready to retire. He took over her position and the rest is history. Since then, he has won numerous leadership awards. “Titles and awards weren’t really of interest to me. It was just a real insatiable desire to want to learn, leverage my business CONTINUES ON PAGE 54

JANET WEBB

O U R H E R O A LW A Y S WE L YO U R

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V E YO U FA M I LY

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tradiciones / heroes 2018

degree and just having a lot of fun,” Reyes reflected. “I always felt I was sprinting a marathon, trying to learn a lot of things very fast — there’s still a lot to learn and there’s still a lot to give. Finding that balance is always the important thing of what I do and how I approach my day.”

Out of the office

Speaking of marathons, Reyes likes to run, literally. He runs long-distance races, but his biggest competition is with himself and his watch: “I set a lot of personal goals to improve the time by which I complete a certain distance.” What started as a fitness pursuit with his wife and inspired by his daughter, he found himself training for the Bull of the Woods marathon this past summer. He’s conquered the Up and Over at Taos Ski Valley for four straight years, which is “super tough.” People ask him what he thinks of that race and the answer is always, “I think I’ve tasted my aorta.” Frankly, Reyes never thought he’d enter a marathon. Running has become a kind of sanctuary to him. When solo training, he’s come to realize those hour to two-hour runs are a good time to think, process and reflect. “I get a lot of solitude and I come back with a lot of great ideas. I’m really invigorated, so the benefits of running are really good. But, then there’s this whole other side of being able to evaluate challenges, process ideas and just take advantage of the time.”

The backbones Angel Reyes poses for a portrait with his wife, Deanna, before an early morning run at the Rift Valley Trail in Taos. Running, he says, is a good time to think, process and reflect. Morgan Timms

Reyes is the youngest of five siblings (Luis, David, Sandra and Richard). His parents, the late Luis and Olivia Reyes, instilled the importance of education. He gives a lot of credit to his family for his success and for the type of person he has become. “What (his parents) left me with is a great value system, tremendous work ethic and the acknowledgment to serve others,” Reyes stressed. “I really believe that my passion, where I get my energy, is from observing the success of others and helping do whatever I can to help somebody else. The circle doesn’t have to come back. I think success breeds the success of others.”

¡Gracias a nuestros Héroes Locales! Zeke’s sINCe 1963

116 Alexander St. Taos 758-8895 Mon-Fri 7:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Sat 7:30 a.m. - 3 p.m.

The best heroes are the ones behind the scenes. . Taos Feeds Taos, 1985-2018 President, board member, founding member. . Instrumental in bringing the VA Clinic to Taos . Taos Commander of the Disabled American Veteran’s Chapter 12 here in Taos. . Served in the Army National Guard in the Taos Unit from 1967-1980. Active duty in the 5th Army with the New Mexico National Guard in Taos. Thank you Francis for making Taos a better place.

~Mayor, Dan Barrone tradiciones / heroes 2018

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“Certain things catch our eye, but pursue only those that capture the heart.” - Ancient Indian Proverb

Taos Pueblo Governor Gilbert Suazo Sr.

Taos Mountain Casino is proud to honor those who both exemplify the best of the past and who help us weave it into the future. These people are our own links in what continues to be an unbroken circle of tradition at Taos Pueblo. 56

tradiciones / heroes 2018