2 0 1 3 t r a d i c i o n e s F T h e ta o s n e w s
Leyendas T
radiciones time again?
That’s right, and kicking it all off is the 2013 issue of Leyendas. For the Tex-pats among us, that means “Legends” in Spanish. This is the beginning of 13th edition of The Taos News’ annual Tradiciones series of publications, which will continue for four succesive weeks, culminating with the Unsung Heroes publication on Oct. 10. Between this one and that one, we will celebrate our Raices (roots) on Sept. 27 and
Thirteenth Annual
Tradiciones celebración de nuestra gente
Photo by: Adam Schallau
the Artes (arts) on Oct. 3. Year after year, we’ve tried to put together a collection of stories that encapsulates what it means to be a Taoseño. In fact, this
issue of Leyendas features the history of the building that currently houses El Taoseño restaurant. But we also address some other legends, including a cabin once inhabited by Aldo Leopold, the origins of the run names at TSV, Maria the fire truck, New Buffalo Commune, the rebellion of 1847 and Spanish crosses in the Río Grande Gorge. And oh yeah, we also talk about Texans! It’s going to be legendary for sure. — Andy Jones, special sections editor
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The kitchen staff at El Taoseño.
El Taoseño
A banquet of food and history By Teresa Dovalpage
B
uildings have history. Just like people, they go through different stages in life (or incarnations) and each stage adds a different and characteristic touch to a place. The building that now houses El Taoseño Restaurant is one of these places with historia — a long and interesting history that belongs to all its previous owners as well as to the town of Taos. The Granada Building: Taos’ first bowling alley and skating rink
The backroom at El Taoseño was once a bowling alley.
“The Granada Building opened in 1959 as a combination bowling alley and skating rink because of the dreams of two brothers, Luis and Martin Torres,” says UNM professor and historian Larry Torres. “Luis and Martin Torres, of Arroyo Seco, had just married two sisters, Elma and Bernice Tafoya, of Ranchos de Taos, and they decided to open the Torres Rink, as it was called, in the Granada
Building. It was the very first bowling alley in Taos.” The two brothers had already cooperated on one project before — they had opened up El Cortez Movie Theater in Ranchos de Taos. “It was at this theater that the movie ‘Easy Rider’ was first shown to the world,” Torres said. “It would later become Dennis Hopper’s house.” The night before the Torres brothers opened the bowling alley the whole family was still working hard. “My father, Fermin Torres, who was Luis’ and Martin’s brother, was busy putting up ceiling tiles in the front room while their mother, Ana Torres, was washing the windows before the grand opening,” said Torres. “I was a little boy then but I remember everything clearly.” The Torres Rink was a family venture. The Tafoya family was also involved in it. “Bonifacia Tafoya ran the concession stand and her little brother Benji Tafoya was the pin boy,” said Torres. “In those days they used to sell hamburgers and Frito pies, popcorn and candy bars.” The Torres Rink lasted 20 years. Afterward, the Ortiz family bought the building. They took off the skating rink but kept the bowling alley and the same concession stand. They also added a dance hall. Floyd’s Café In the early ’80s, the building was bought up by Floyd García, from Mora, who opened
Photos by Tina Larkin F The Taos News
Contents
El Taoseño
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11
New Buffalo Commune
Leopold’s Mi Casita
4
14
The rebellion of 1847
Run names at TSV
6
16
Spanish crosses
Maria the fire truck
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18
Good Texans
Staff
Robin Martin, Owner Chris Baker, Publisher n Joan Livingston, Editor Chris wood, Advertising Manager andy jones, Special Sections Editor Marilyn M. Olsen, Designer virginia l. clark, Copy Editor michelle M. gutierrez, Production Manager Cover design: marilyn M. Olsen Cover photograph: Maria the fire truck, by Tina Larkin
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it up as Floyd’s Café. “When Floyd’s Café started, it still had a bowling alley in the back but after a number of years Floyd removed the lanes and made the dance hall bigger,” said current co-owner and general manager Fred Archuleta. “The dance hall was really big and impressive.” Floyd’s Café soon became popular and many community parties took place in the dance hall, which was perhaps the biggest one in town at that time. “It was a great place for Fiestas because it could accommodate so many people,” said Archuleta. “When my wife and I got married, we had our wedding reception right here.” “I also remember when our mom and dad bowled here,” said co-owner and manager Diana González, Archuleta’s sister. “It was a fun place. I was a little girl and came for the home fries and a Coke.” El Taoseño Arturo and Connie Archuleta had opened up their own restaurant almost across the street from Floyd’s Café in 1983. “That was the first El Taoseño,” said Fred Archuelta. “They started with a small café and soon their food became really popular, particularly the red and green chile and the smothered breakfast burritos. Then, they realized that they needed a bigger space.” When Floyd Garcia decided to sell his business in 1993, the Archuleta family was happy to buy it. “We continued to own it as a restaurant, lounge and dance hall for about 15 years,” said Fred Archuleta. “You can still see a section of the original bowling alley floor. We also continue the tradition of having bridal showers and other group functions here.” A liquor store was open for about seven
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El Taoseño 819 Paseo Del Pueblo Sur, Taos, NM 87571 Phone: (575) 758-4142 taoseno.com The lunch crowd at El Taoseño. years. As the flow of patrons and tourists slowed, the Archuleta family concentrated on the restaurant and closed the liquor store. “And that is how El Taoseño came to be what it is,” says Fred Archuleta. “It’s so big that we pride ourselves in saying that people don’t need to make reservations. Most of our clients are repeat customers and referrals from locals. When tourists ask for a good place to eat in Taos, they are often sent here.” The five children of Arturo and Connie Archuleta (Fred Archuleta, Diana González, Yolanda Muñoz, Orlando Archuleta and Leonard Archuleta) are current owners and have all worked here, as well as their spouses and kids. Some employees have
been working at the restaurant for over 20 years. “Of course, we like it when people appreciate this place as a good restaurant, because we serve great food at reasonable prices, and we have been here for 30 years now,” said Fred Archuleta. “But El Taoseño is more than that. It’s part of Taos’ rich history and we look forward to preserving it. We are currently remodeling the building and have many plans to take El Taoseño into the future. ”
The markings of the old bowling alley are still visible on the floor at El Taoseño.
KEEPING TAOS IN THE DRIVER’S SEAT FOR 20 YEARS
Twenty years has passed like the blink of an eye. But one thing’s remained constant: we’re local folks taking care of our community. Thanks, Taos, for making us a part of your story.
1320 Paseo del Pueblo Sur, Taos 751.3200 www.cottam-walker-ford.com
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Courtesy of the Aldo Leopold Foundation
Aldo and Estella Leopold at Mi Casita shortly after their marriage, in either 1912 or 1913.
Leopold’s Mi Casita
‘To sit on a piece of land without spoiling it’
I
By Andy Dennison
f you’re on the porch of Mi Casita, it doesn’t take long to realize you are standing on the spiritual footprints of modern environmentalism. Aldo Leopold, author of “A Sand County Almanac” — a seminal work that introduced concepts and language still used by conservationists — was also one of the first superintendents of the Carson National Forest.
He built this modest two-story bungalow in 1912 as headquarters for the Carson and dubbed it Mi Casita. Equally as important was his desire to have his new wife, Estella Bergere Leopold, move from Santa Fe and set up house by the rock outcroppings of what is now Tres Piedras. She did, but their residency didn’t last long. Leopold suffered kidney failure in 1913, and the young couple moved out for good. The cabin remained vacant for nearly 100 years. It fell into disre“He recognized that the local people needed slowly pair until 2006, when the land, and the nation needed the forests. the U.S. Forest Service celebrated its centenFrom him came road-free wilderness areas, nial and made $230,000 grazing practices, permitting system based available for rejuvenation of the historic on resource ability and most everything building. “Aldo Leopold in multiple use.” taught all of us in the Forest Service to be conservationists,” said Benjamin Romero, former district ranger in Tres Piedras. “When I came to the district and saw that the house wasn’t doing anything, I wanted to do something. Now that house is firmly attached to the Carson National Forest and Leopold’s legacy.” One of Leopold’s enduring concepts was that of “multiple use.” It’s clear from his writings during his time in Tres Piedras that the subsistence demands of the locals on the forest influenced his thinking, said Romero. “He recognized that the local people needed the land,
and the nation needed the forests,” said Romero, now retired. “From him came road-free wilderness areas, grazing practices, a permitting system based on resource ability and most everything in multiple use.” With that legacy in mind, Romero and others sought to find more active uses for the cabin other than standing elegantly at the edge of the forest. What has emerged is a writer-in-residence program aimed to let distinguished and emerging artists and writers in the conservation field sit on that porch and find inspiration. The first writer-in-residence was the Quivera Coalition’s creative director Courtney White, who fit firmly into the multiple-use mantra. Based in Santa Fe, the nonprofit organization aims to bring ranchers, conservationists, scientists and public land managers together to improve the health of the land. White stood on that porch and then wrote this: “That I could stay in Mi Casita exactly a century after its construction added to the honor … it was easy to sense Leopold’s spirit there, especially when standing on the casita’s porch during a tempestuous summer thunderstorm, as he must have. “Looking out, I imagined that the view had not changed much in 100 years. The view east toward the Sangre de Cristos is still unobstructed, with the village’s weathered post office, a busy highway and scattered utility poles the only peripheral intrusions. There were other changes, I’m sure, but they didn’t overwhelm the feeling that time had stood still at Mi Casita.” In “Aldo Leopold: His Life and Work,” Leopold biographer Curt Meine wrote, “Aldo Leopold could look on
The 2013 Aldo and Estella Leopold Writer-In-Residence program will culminate with a lecture by 2013 resident, writer John Hausdoerffer. The event is free and open to the public. Who: John Hausdoerffer, Mi Casita resident and writer F What: The Aldo Leopold Foundation and SOMOS present a lecture: ”The Art of Environmental Ethics: George Catlin, Aldo Leopold, and the Aesthetics of Justice” F Where: Fechin House, Taos Art Museum F When: Tuesday, Nov. 12, at 6:30 p.m. For more information about the writer-in-residence program and the Aldo Leopold Foundation, visit aldoleopold.org
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Courtesy the U.S. Forest Service
The Aldo Leopold Cabin in Tres Piedras. his life with deep satisfaction. He had the modest but tastefully appointed home he had envisioned. He was supervisor of his own forest and had helped to make that forest a viable proposition. “He had only to stand on his porch to partake of a landscape as beautiful as any on the continent ‌ For a sweet interval, he had attained his ideal: his land, home, family, and work, his fireplace, pipe, books, and time for the contemplation of the days. Leopold enjoyed the best of all worlds. Like the Carson Forest itself, he had ached his way through a long period of change to emerge secure and established.â€? Paul Bogard, another of the 2012 writers-in-residence, is
an author and teacher of environmental literature. “Aldo is one of my heroes, so it felt wonderful to be where he had been. I spent a lot of time on the front porch, looking out at the Sangre de Cristos, imagining Leopold doing the same thing. It’s an inspiring setting. Being in the place where your hero once was gives you the gift of knowing that you’re not alone as you try to change the world for the better.  You give thanks for their life and their work, and you renew your promise to do everything you can to carry on and advance their work.� As Romero and others have hoped, the program has gained momentum and publicity for the cabin in Tres Piedras. Although not yet as famous as Leopold’s “shack�
in Iowa or the couple’s home in Madison, Wis., Mi Casita is becoming a vital link in the legacy of the man who brought ethics to the forefront of public lands management. “We end, I think, at what might be called the standard paradox of the 20th century: our tools are better than we are, and grow faster than we do,â€? Leopold wrote in 1938. “They suffice to crack the atom, to command the tides. But they do not suffice for the oldest task in human history: to live on a piece of land without spoiling it. “Nothing so important as an ethic is ever written ‌ It evolves in the minds of a thinking community.â€? Anyone who’s stood on that porch would likely say simply, “Amen.â€?
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Courtesy Taos Ski Valley/Seth Bullington
Appropriately, this skier attacks the run “Spitfire,” named for the British World War II fighter planes, through the air.
Resistance, friendships play role in naming trails at tsv By Andy Dennison
B
“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet.” --Juliet in Romeo and Juliet
egging Shakespeare’s pardon: For Ernie Blake and his family, the names of trails at Taos Ski Valley aren’t just any ol’ words, picked willy-nilly, mere signifiers.
Courtesy Taos Ski Valley
Ernie Blake in January 1962, no doubt scanning TSV and thinking up some new trail names.
Almost all of the designated 113 trails have names steeped in the history of this 57year-old ski mountain and its founders, Ernie and Rhoda Blake. Many commemorate heroes of the Resistance in Europe during War World II. Others honor the pioneers of skiing or the ski valley. A few bear a distinct Mexican flair. “Both Ernie and his son Mickey were tremendous history buffs,” TSV marketing manager Adriana Blake said about her grandfather Ernie, who died in 1987, and her father Mickey, president at Taos Ski Valley. “Naming the trails was a personal thing for the family, and it doesn’t take long to see that.” Indeed, hop on Chair 1 from the base and history smacks you right in the face. Pitching steep and long under the lift is Al’s Run, named for Taos surgeon Al Rosen who knew the politicos that helped establish the ski area. To the right is Edelweiss, named for the Alpine flower of Blake’s Swiss homeland. Farther into the trees is Rhoda’s, aptly tagged because it was one of her favorite powder stashes, and Jean’s Glade, named for the owner of the St. Bernard Lodge. Farther to the west is Spencer’s Bowl, named for Ernie’s favorite teacher, and a
short slot named for Hannes Schneider, a concentration camp survivor who is familiar to early skiers in the Northeast. Schneider started one of the first ski schools at Cranmore Mountain in New Hampshire and pioneered many teaching techniques. And you haven’t even gotten to the top of the first lift yet! Much of the upper half of the mountain’s front side is dedicated to the Germans who opposed Hitler during World War II. “Ernie was an intelligence officer for Gen. George Patton in the war,” said Adriana. “Everything was confidential, but he started writing down notes about the people in the war. The story is that he watched the movie Patton with star George C. Scott, and told Scott that ‘it wasn’t really that way.’” That’s why a ride up Chair 2 suddenly returns us to the Second World War. The first batch of runs down West Basin are dedicated to Resistance fighters. There’s Fabian and Stauffenberg, both German officers whom made failed attempts to assassinate Hitler. The latter is the favorite of Alejandro Blake, because of its historical significance for his grandfather.
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Courtesy Taos Ski Valley
Juarez, along the Highline Ridge, is named for Mexican revolutionary and politician Benito JuĂĄrez. There’s Oster, named for a German officer who tried to warn the Danes of the impending invasion and who was ultimately executed by Hitler. Spitfire commemorates the British fighter plane, and Blitz recalls the Germans’ deadly blitzkrieg bombings on the British Isles. On the back side and up off of Kachina Ridge, the World War II theme sustains — Patton, Tresckow — but a decidedly Hispanic and mythological flavor emerges. “Sometime in the 1970s, when Mickey (Blake) was married to my Mexican mother, he named trails off the ridge for Mexican revolutionaries,â€? said Adriana. “That’s how we got Hidalgo, Juarez, and NiĂąo’s Heroes.â€? The names of mythological creatures appear at the top of the chutes off the top of Chairs 2 and 7A. Adriana’s favorite trail name
is Lorelei, the German siren who lured boatsmen into the rocks. There are, of course, seemingly more mundane trail names “The name just fits the run perfectly,� she said. “It’s a siren at TSV. The beginners’ Strawberry Hill is a prime berry-picking who calls you in. Right from the top, the run sucks you in and then territory. Lone Star gives props to TSV’s loyal Texas contingent, you’re committed.� and Mucho Gusto does the same for Just up the ridge a bit is Walkyries, Adriana’s favorite trail name is regulars from south of the border. A a steep powder plunge named after Lorelei, the German siren who Whitefeather symbolized cowardthe Norse wood nymphs who lead the ice in the Boer War, so the name courageous to heavenly Valhalla. Side- lured boatsmen into the rocks. for this easiest of runs makes sense. by-side front-side chutes tab Roman Maxie’s was named for New Mexico gods Castor and Pollux. The so-called Return Route from backside balloonist Max Anderson, who made the first balloon crossing of to the front is officially named Rubezahl, after the one-eyed East the Atlantic. But true to Ernie’s love of all things of the past, it’s not German giant who steals from the rich and gives to the poor. Snakedance, Shalako and Kachina get their names from the surprisingly that they too — like all trails at TSV —- have a back story. Native American culture that permeates the Southwest.
The legend lives on‌ in a great institution and in the aspirations of our students.
Over 90 Years of Calling Questa Home
In 1914, the Panama Canal officially opens, the cost of postage is $0.02, Woodrow Wilson is President of the United States and a claim is staked for what is to become the Questa Mine. In 1916, a molybdenum ore body is discovered in Red River Canyon, but is mistaken for graphite and first used as wagon wheel lubricant. By 1926, the Questa Mine is the second largest producer of molybdenite in the world.
UNM-Taos
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Folk-lore in the area includes the use of the mineral molybdenite for ceremonial “paint� by the Pueblo Indians, who added it to the yellow and red ochres that were obtained from the natural erosional scars near Questa. Also, it was said that molybdenite was used as a boot polish, which was less successful than mixing it with animal fat as a wagon wheel lubricant. Now molybdenum’s primary function is to reinforce stainless and alloy steels, and it is found in solar panels, mountaineering equipment, rifle barrels, filaments for light bulbs, high-performance automotive parts, medical equipment and many of the tools and cooking utensils you use at home. Chevron Mining Questa Mine shares a long and proud history with the community of Questa. Over the ninety years of our mining tradition, generations of families have worked in our mine and it is our family that is proud to be a part of Northern New Mexico for nearly 100 years.
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Taos Fire Capt. Eddie Joe Abeyta shows Avran Montoya, 2, how to ring the bell on Maria, the fire truck.
Maria the Fire Truck
A truly special lady
T
By Ariana Kramer
hroughout its history, the Taos Fire Department has had very few women on staff. But, their longest standing member is the highly regarded, much-loved Maria. She is capable of spraying an impressive 500 gallons of water per minute to douse unruly flames. And, once she gets going, it’s hard to get her to change her direction. Maria is 78 years old with no plans to retire.
The brand new American La France pumper truck was purchased by the Taos Fire Department and shipped out from Elmira, N.Y. in 1936. When she arrived, perhaps as a nod to the “She’s a difficult truck to drive. town’s Catholic leanings, she was Back then there was no such thing as dubbed “Maria.� By the time Attorney Clifford power steering or power brakes. Johnson joined the Taos Fire in 1978, Maria I’ve always said you don’t drive Maria, Department, was already out of active duty. you herd her down the street.� Johnson said at that time there were still some members who Clifford Johnson had been around when Maria was
purchased, but they have since passed on. No living memories of Maria in her glory days, remain. Today’s firefighters know her in her current role as the perpetual embodiment of the tried and true — a gorgeous red-head who is hard to handle but worth every ounce of her hefty weight for her ability to inspire the masses when she parades around town. But driving her is no easy task. “She’s a difficult truck to drive,� said Johnson, who has been a treasurer, president, member of the board of directors and captain on the fire command side, and is now a life member of the Taos Fire Department. “Back then there was no such thing as power steering
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“Today’s fire trucks are capable of reaching 60 mph. Maria’s top speed is around 25 mph. This makes her a perfect parade vehicle.”
or power brakes. I’ve always said you don’t drive Maria, you herd her down the street.” These days Maria is used to escort fire department dignitarJim Fambro ies for funerals, weddings and special occasions, as well as for local parades and the annual fundraising drive. Johnson remembers setting out to drive Maria to pick up John and Barbara Brenner for their anniversary many years ago. John was a member of the fire department, and when he and Barbara were married, they were paraded around the Taos Plaza in Maria. So, they wanted a repeat event for their anniversary. “That was right around the time when I was broaching the need for knee replacement surgery,” recalled Johnson. “I and another firefighter drove the truck to the Brenners house to pick them up ... Well, I couldn’t push down the clutch far enough to get it out of first gear.” Johnson said he was happy to turn the wheel over to the trainee who had accompanied him for the ride. “When I was a younger fireman I drove her several times and I was thrilled to do so … I had my turn.” Not only does Maria have a reputation for being difficult to drive. She is also a breezy ride. Maria continues on page 10
Maria the firetruck carries Santa Claus and the Fiestas royal court during the 2011 Christmas tree lighting ceremony in Taos Plaza.
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Now, trucks have power steering, power brakes, power door locks, power mirrors. Maria doesn’t even have doors.
File photo
Modern-day fire trucks are technological marvels, with all the bells and whistles ... literally. Maria continued from page 9
are required to hold at least 500 gallons of water. Now, all fire apparatus have to have enclosed cabs with seat belts Jim Fambro has served as fire chief for the Taos Fire — more modern ones even have side air bags — while Department for 34 years. He has driven Maria many times, Maria doesn’t even have seat belts. Now, they have power and recalled the cold he experienced just driving Maria to steering, power brakes, power door locks, power mirrors. Taos Plaza with Santa Claus on board. She doesn’t even have doors. “I admire our firefighters of old that drove her in December “Modern-day pumpers have to pump a minimum of 750 and January out to Ranchos because with that open cab and gallons per minute and she pumps 500.” Fambro continued, very stiff clutch, and she’s very hard to steer … it makes for “She has wooden ladders, wooden pike poles — those are an interesting trip,” Fambro said. “Stories from old firefight- poles we use for grabbing things and long-reach devices ers of the past say that the first thing they would do when with hooks on the end for pulling sheetrock down and they got to a fire with Maria was to get to the fire and warm things like that — everything that was wooden is replaced up.” by aluminum. Fambro noted some of the differences between Maria “Then, of course, the cost — she was in the neighborand a modern-day fire truck. hood of $5,700 in the middle ’30s. Now we pay $650,000 for “There’s no water tank on Maria. Now, all your pumpers a pumper,” said Fambro.
Johnson explained that a pumper like Maria is designed to take water from a hydrant and deliver it to a fire scene through a hose. Today, the Taos Fire Department owns many different types of vehicles able to respond to a variety of needs. They include pumpers, tankers, brush trucks (which can drive off road), ladder trucks and others. Another important difference between Maria and her modern-day counterparts is speed. Today’s fire trucks are capable of reaching 60 mph. Maria’s top speed is around 25 mph. This makes her a perfect parade vehicle. She is on display for the town’s Fiestas, homecoming parades, the balloon rally, Lighting of Ledoux and other occasions. Fambro recalled that Maria even made an appearance on “Good Morning, America” in the late 1980s. Johnson said Maria has a unique role at the conclusion of the annual fundraising drive. “She’s the lead vehicle when we conclude our fire drive,” he said. “We parade around the plaza with the winning captain of the fire drive team being pushed around the plaza in a wheelbarrow by the losing captain.” Fambro added that Maria has the special task of carrying the wheelbarrow used in the spectacle. While Maria has not been used for decades to respond to a real fire, she is capable of the task if the need should arise. “She’s pretty solid,” said Johnson. “I’ve heard no thoughts of retiring her. I don’t think we’d want to, either. As long as we can keep her running we’d want to use her. I suspect even if we can’t use her for parades we’d still want to keep her around. She’s a relic from when this department was first born. Here we are 80 years later and this department still exists and is stronger than ever.” Fambro summed up the department’s sentiments toward Maria by saying, “We protect her like she’s one of our own.”
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Photo by Lisa Law
A rainbow over New Buffalo Commune in 1967.
New Buffalo remains spirit of original intent
“L
By Cindy Brown
ike any good legend, New Buffalo keeps evolving to include the present,” says Bob Fies, the current owner. Founded as a commune in Arroyo Hondo, New Buffalo continues to honor the ideals that were established in 1967: freedom, simplicity and living close to the earth.
“When the ’60s hit, we came to live here. We wanted to get as far away as possible from mainstream culture and to do something really different,” says Rick Klein, who was originally from Pittsburg, but had visited New Mexico. Klein and friend Max Finstein, a poet who had a gallery in Santa Fe, went looking for land near Taos. With an inheritance, Klein purchased more than 100 acres for the commune and worked with others for a year to get it going. An ownership structure was established, but the group never applied for nonprofit status. “We thought society was going to collapse at any minute, so we didn’t bother with the paperwork,” says Klein The small group that began building New Buffalo had good intentions, but limited resources and little knowledge. Several American Indian elders, including Henry and Little Joe Gomez and Telus Goodmorning, assisted them, providing help and spiritual guidance. The main room is built as an echo of a kiva and has been used for ceremony
Courtesy Photo
The sign for New Buffalo Commune, on Lower Hondo Road.
and music throughout the life of New Buffalo. The commune was named to honor the way American Indians used all the parts of the buffalo to sustain themselves and how the buffalo gave itself as a gift for that purpose. New Buffalo was among several communes established around Taos. In her book, “Flashing on the Sixties,” Lisa Law writes, “New Mexico really was the Land of Enchantment. We could feel the vibrations of the presence of thousands of years of Indian Nations living on the land. There weren’t many people living in the northern part of the state … We felt like frontier people.” New Buffalo soon attracted many “hippies,” who had read about it in counterculture publications. Historian Larry Torres has said at that time in Taos there were four cultures — American Indian, Hispano, Anglo, and Hippie or “Jipe.” As was the case in many communities across the country, the new influx was not always welcome in Taos. There was a clash of cultures between the Hispano community, with its traditional values, and the newcomers, who were often Anglo, young, and perceived as unwashed and exhibiting questionable moral standards. Also at work was a revolution of values. As suggested in the film “Easy Rider,” it was not the visible differences that were so threatening; it was the idea of freedom. In the movie, Jack Nicholson says, “They aren’t scared of you; they are scared of what you represent. What you represent to them is freedom; if they see a free individual that’s going to scare them.” “Easy Rider” made by Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper, takes place in part in Taos, including a scene inspired by New Buffalo continues on page 13
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Photo by Lisa Law
Building the main house at New Buffalo Commune, in 1967
When the building was close to completion in the spring of 1968, a few children playing with matches burned the place to the ground. While it was a tragedy, it also shifted the relationship of the commune with its neighbors. The next day after the fire, people from Arroyo Hondo began to arrive with food, clothing, and blankets.
AQuÍ En TAos It’s not just a slogan. It’s a way of life.
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New Buffalo continued from page 11
New Buffalo, but filmed in Hollywood. Klein says the filmmakers wanted to shoot the scene at the commune, but the community declined, not wanting that much publicity. Hopper died in 2010 and is buried in Ranchos de Taos. The original founders and those who came after began work on a 5,000-square-foot main building that had a common sleeping loft. When the building was close to completion in the spring of 1968, a few children playing with matches burned the place to the ground. While it was a tragedy, it also shifted the relationship of the commune with its neighbors. The next day after the fire, people from Arroyo Hondo began to arrive with food, clothing, and blankets. The main house was rebuilt with all local materials, this time to include family sleeping rooms. Photo by Lisa Law Several other structures were eventually built, including a dairy barn. Cow and goat milk, cheese, butter, and Rick Klein, left, founder of New Buffalo and friends Steve, Carol and Jenna Hinton, eggs were delivered throughout the area. Many of the members, during the early days of the commune. participants felt they had met their goals to create a communal and sustainable living environment for their in my teepee and conA retired physician, Bob Fies bought New Buffalo in families. But by 1980, use of hard drugs and firearms by necting with the nat- 2003. Originally 103 acres, it is now 20 acres after parcels a few residents led to discord and dissolution, according ural rhythms of the were sold off over time. The site of concerts and other to current owner Fies. sunrise and sunset. I activities, Fies sees himself as a steward of the original During the next few years, New Buffalo would be a was spending lots of ideas established here. His goals are to preserve the native seed farm, an alternative high school, and eventutime in and around property, make it more sustainable, and more beautially a bed and breakfast, after returning to the original the river and the hot ful. He has done extensive renovations, adding insulaowners Rick and Terry Klein. Painter Kimberly Webber springs, playing my tion and raising roofs to provide more light, but has arrived in 1993. Having never seen Taos, she came from drum and being con- otherwise maintained the original buildings. He has California with a teepee and a few belongings in her nected to the earth. planted more than 300 trees. Currently, New Buffalo has pickup truck. After first finding the co-op food store New Buffalo was a returned to farming and serves as a home to an artist Amigos, south of the plaza, she was directed to New Courtesy Photo bed and breakfast, and several other individuals. It is open for lodging and Buffalo. Within 24 hours of arriving, Webber had set up Current but people with simi- events. Fies says the future of New Buffalo will be shaped her teepee on the grounds and arranged to help serve New Buffalo owner lar ideals were still by shareholders and a nonprofit board. breakfast and clean up in return for her teepee space and coming through. I Today, New Buffalo still stands for living in beauty, Bob Fies. use of a painting studio on Lama Mountain, also owned felt so happy to find simplicity and sustainability and is as much a state of by the Kleins. She says “I was in a phase of my own life where I was unplugging, unraveling all my formal train- there were people who were exploring consciousness mind, as a piece of land. For more information, visit the website at newbuffalocenter.com. ing and found this situation in New Mexico. I loved living and living on the earth in a different way. �
Leyendas Legends The UNM Connection Dr. Alan Reed, Emeritus Professor of Public Administration at the University of New Mexico, taught or directed UNM’s programs in northern New Mexico in his role as Director of UNM-North for almost 20 years. He planned and founded UNM Santa Fe and UNM Taos. He explains, “The UNM Santa Fe Center started out of the trunk of my car in 1975, mainly to provide Public Administration and Civil Engineering courses to state government employees ... well established by 1980. It grew quickly... From 1980-88, I managed the combined centers in Los Alamos and Santa Fe... [then] we had requests from Taos and nearby school districts for education classes.� The first schedule was offered in Spring 1993 with just four classes; Drawing, Painting and two in English Literature.
Alan Reed, Ph.D.
UNM Emeritus Professor Founder of UNM Taos
“...We had requests from Taos and nearby school districts for education classes. So we started classes at the Harwood [in 1993] but, Taos being Taos, it didn’t take long before the art community wanted to get involved. So we added art education and access to art. Shortly after that, some of the local, state and federal agencies up there needed courses, and that evolved into our Master of Public Administration (MPA) program... The University’s programs in the many communities of northern New Mexico constitute the most important and most rewarding achievements of my career.â€? “...People wanted access to a UNM degree but couldn’t move to Albuquerque for many reasons. We kept extending our reach to the communities, through live classes, then interactive television (ITV) classes and, now, online‌ now there are fewer barriers and limitations to getting a degree.â€?
JerĂłnimo DomĂnguez, Ph.D.
Vice Provost (retired) UNM Extended University In 1993, UNM-North operated three centers: the UNM Centers for Graduate Studies in Santa Fe and Los Alamos; and UNM at the Harwood Foundation in Taos. Later that year, UNM assumed a new role in Taos as the parent institution for the Taos Education Center, which offered its first semester in Fall 1993. UNM Taos was officially approved by the New Mexico Commission on Higher Education and the State Legislature in 2001. It became a full branch community college of UNM on July 1, 2003, offering Certificates & Associate’s Degrees, now at Klauer Campus. The UNM Taos Bachelor & Graduate Programs are located adjacent to the Harwood Museum in the heart of the historic district.
Dr. JĂŠronimo (Jerry) DomĂnguez served as Vice Provost of UNM Extended University from 1999-2013. More than 1,300 students have graduated college through the statewide education centers created under DomĂnguez’ leadership, providing the opportunity for students to stay in their home communities and complete a UNM degree. DomĂnguez, a native of Tucumcari, New Mexico, built the Extended University enterprise on his vision for access to higher education for all of New Mexico’s citizens.
TAOS Bachelor & Graduate Programs IU U Q U B P T C HQ V O N F E V t
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“Colonel Price’s attack on the church at Taos” from “The History of Military Occupation of the Territory of New Mexico from 1846 to 1851 by the Government of the United States” by Ralph Emerson Twitchell.
The other side of the 1847 insurrection
J
By J.R. Logan
ohn Suazo cradles a cannonball the size of an orange in his powerful right hand, turning it over slowly. More than 165 years ago, Suazo’s great-grandfather pried the ball from the still smoldering ruins of the Taos Pueblo church the day after it was bombarded by U.S. soldiers. The weight of the metal is a visceral reminder for Suazo.
J.R. Logan
John Suazo holds a cannonball that was fired by U.S. Army troops into the Taos Pueblo church during the rebellion of 1847.
“When I see this, I just see memories, you know?” Suazo says, giving the ball a light toss. “Stories ... and time.” The story of Suazo’s cannonball starts in 1846. That year, the U.S. Army “conquered” New Mexico without firing a single shot in what were the early days of the MexicanAmerican War. While the initial months of New Mexico’s occupation were relatively quiet, rebels in Taos organized a brutal attack on the invaders early the next year. On the morning of Jan. 19, 1847, a mob of Mexicans and Pueblo Indians began a rampage that led to the deaths of several American officials and another eight white traders. The Anglo governor, Charles Bent, was riddled with arrows and scalped in front of his family. The insurrection brought a harsh reprisal from the U.S. Army, which killed hundreds of Mexicans and Indians using the full force of its artillery. Once the smoke cleared, dozens of so-called rebels were jailed, and many were convicted in hastily organized courts and hanged in Taos Plaza. A century and a half later, the impact of the bloody episode is still felt by those whose relatives were part of the turmoil. And in many ways, the story has always been a little skewed. Most of the written records pertaining to the insurrection — court transcripts, military reports, eyewitness accounts — come from Americans. The graves of the Americans who died in the rebellion are well-marked at Kit Carson Cemetery in Taos. Plaques and remembrances talk of the valiance with which the Americans fought off their attackers. By contrast, little is said of the Mexicans and Indians who were arguably standing up to a foreign invader. The graves of the Mexicans hanged at the plaza were long ago paved over, and the only memorial to the Indian lives lost in the battle is the crumbling adobe bell tower at Taos Pueblo that stands
over the unmarked graves of those who were killed in the fighting. Years ago, John Suazo’s grandfather told him the story of the rebellion as it had been passed down through the family’s oral history. According to the account, those at the Pueblo were wary of American rule, fearing it would lead to the loss of land. Suazo says young men in the tribe allied with Mexicans rebels and plotted the assault. “They had no choice,” says Sauzo, explaining that the tribe’s connection to the land meant it must be defended, regardless of the risk. The rebellion, fueled by heavy drinking according to Suazo’s grandfather, was swift and bloody. Once word of the American deaths began to spread, Suazo says Pueblo warriors prepared for a fight. When soldiers arrived at the Pueblo, some warriors stayed to fight while others fled into the mountains. American accounts say that only a handful of soldiers were killed, but Suazo says the U.S. death toll was much higher. His great-grandfather was one of many tribal members gathering weapons and blankets from the dead soldiers the day after the battle ended. Suazo says nearly all of the men in the tribe had been killed or were hiding in the mountains, which meant the woman and children were left to fend for themselves. “That winter they had a hard time because the soldiers took everything — their grain, their corn, their dried meat. Everything,” Suazo says. “It was hard, but they survived.” The subsequent trials and hangings only added to the anguish. Suazo says 12 tribal council members were arrested and taken into Taos to meet their fate. Suazo says women from the tribe painted their faces black to visit the condemned before the execution. “They went downtown to visit and see them for the last time,” Suazo says. “Right after that they got hung.” Records show that one Indian, Tomás
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Romero, was killed by a guard while allegedly trying to escape from jail. According to the trial transcript, five other Indians — Francisco Naranjo, Jose Samora, Juan Diego Martín, Juan Antonio Lucero and a man called “El Cuervo” — were hanged in the plaza on April 30. William B. Drescher, a U.S. soldier who fought in the Mexican-American War, witnessed the hangings and described the scene in his memoirs. “You should have seen the poor wives of the Indians hung — heard their moans and observed their despair,” Drescher wrote. Suazo says the bodies of the hanged Indians were taken back to the Pueblo and were the first to be buried in the ruins of the church. Those who were killed in the battle were buried there as well, Suazo says. In addition to the Indians, records show that 12 Mexicans were hanged in public executions in the wake of the insurrection. Pablo Montoya was accused of leading the rebellion with the Indian Romero and was tried in a quickly convened military court on Feb. 6. He was convicted of multiple charges — including “exciting the people to rebellion” — and was sentenced to death and hanged on Taos Plaza the next day. Court documents show that six more Mexicans — Isidro Antonio Romero, Pedro Lucero, Manuel Antonio Romero, Ramon Trujillo, Hipolito Salazar and Manuel García — were hanged April 9. Another four — Manuel Sandoval, Rafael Tafoya, Manuel Miera and Juan Pacheco — were hanged April 30. Burial records for seven of these men show that they were buried in graveyard plot 6 of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe Church just west of the plaza. That church was torn down in
15
the Mexicans and Indians before the rebellion, urging them not to attack because it would bring a violent response from the Americans. In turn, the padre wrote a letter to the military commander of New Mexico asking for leniency in the punishments being handed out to the accused insurrectionists. The priest’s apparent role as arbiter earned him few friends in the uneasy aftermath of the insurrection. Suazo says the priest took land in exchange for a promise to have Indian leaders released, only to renege on the deal. Americans long accused the priest of working to incite the violence in the first place. For Vicente Martínez, clearing his greatgreat grandfather’s name is important to both of their legacies. Martínez still lives part-time in the padre’s home — the same house that quartered U.S. soldiers during the revolt and was the site of the 1847 trials. Through dogged research, Martínez has found a transcript of a deed suggesting the Pueblo land deal was J.R. Logan unrelated to the triThe grave of Padre Antonio José als. But like so many Burial records for seven of these men Martínez is now located in the details from the time, show that they were buried in graveyard Kit Carson Cemetery, along with it’s inconclusive. the bodies of many Americans who In putting the plot 6 of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe were killing during the 1847 Taos pieces together again, Martínez thinks it’s Church just west of the plaza. That church insurrection. important to consider was torn down in 1911 and the location 1911 and the location of that specific plot is that the Mexicans unknown. and Indians who took of that specific plot is unknown. The burial records were signed by Padre up arms against the Antonio José Martínez, an icon of the 19th cen- Americans were acting as patriots, protecting tury New Mexico and a leading character in the their property and way of life. It’s an alternastory of the rebellion. tive story line that he and others are still workVincente Martínez, who claims to be the ing to establish. great-great grandson of Padre Martínez, says After all, Martínez says: “It’s the victors that there is evidence that the priest appealed to write history.”
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Courtesy of the Bureau of Land Management
Some petroglyphs are more ornate than others, and appear to tell a story.
Petroglyphs in the Gorge offer view into area’s history
I
By Cody Olivas
n the gorge of the RĂo Grande, petroglyphs from ancient people are scattered ubiquitously. Crosses are a common petroglyph, but determining their origin, whether they’re prehistoric or Christian in nature, is a difficult challenge.
Courtesy of the Bureau of Land Management
The cross is the symbol of Christianity, but it’s also a basic symbol that has been used throughout history. Many petroglyphs in the region have been “pecked� into basalt, a black, igneous rock that is nearly impenetrable. Pecking is like chiseling: Chipping away at the basalt, over and over with another rock, to draw images. Many of the petroglyphs of crosses are small, under six inches. Some stand alone. Others have been superimposed on other,
more ancient symbols. The petroglyphs are a window into the past, displaying the history of the area. The first Christians who came to Northern New Mexico were Spaniards, specifically to Santa Fe in 1603. In the 19th and early 20th century, Penitentes, a sect of catholics, are believed to have pecked many of the crosses in this area. The Penitentes have been active in the Northern New Mexico for roughly the last 250 years. Hundreds of years after pecking crosses, they are still preserved along the
It’s difficult to know if the crosses on some of the ancient petroglyphs in the gorge were created by indigenous people or by Spanish penitentes.
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Courtesy of the Bureau of Land Management
Anyone who disfigures an ancient petroglyph will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. RĂo Grande river near Pilar. â&#x20AC;&#x153;There are a bunch,â&#x20AC;? Merrill Dicks, an archeologist with the BLM, said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re all over.â&#x20AC;? Dicks said that many petroglyphs can be seen hiking along the current trail system in the area. Since many of the petroglyphs are in a
fragile environment near Pilar, however, there is a delicate balance between preserving the history of the area while also showing it off. Since a few petroglyphs in the area have been defaced, the BLM doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t advertise where many of them are located. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We want people to see these, but we want to preserve them,â&#x20AC;? Dicks said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re
here to protect these things. If we catch people defacing them weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll prosecute them to the full extent of the law.â&#x20AC;? The history of the land, however, is drawn on basalt for people to read. Crosses and prehistoric images of animals and shields are a glimpse into a time much different from the present. The art, however, lives on.
+
Hundreds of years after pecking crosses, they are still preserved along the RĂo Grande river near Pilar.
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Tina Larkin
Thom Wheeler mixes up a batch of his “Texas caviar.”
Good Texans
Flexible Tex-patriots debunk the ‘ugly Texan’ myth
T Tina Larkin
The recipe for “Texas caviar.”
By Andy Jones
Most Mexican citizens living in the disputed area had little knowledge the claim even hey’re everywhere you look in Taos ... buying art existed. If Texans in the villages of Red River and on the Plaza while wearing either cowboy clothes Angel Fire are more the flag-waving variety, or golf appearal, cutting you off on Whitefeather Lone Star transplants in Taos tend to be a little more adept at assimilation. out at Taos Ski Valley or whooping it up louder Take for instance local artist Thom Wheeler. than anyone at The Taos Inn on a Friday night. The sculptor and painter’s studio/home on They are Texans, and like it or not they article) living right here in Taos. They turn the east end of Kit Carson Road is a modmake a huge contribution to the economy of down the twang on the accent slightly or drop ern marvel pieced together with a truckload Taos. Those flatland dollars keep many busi- some of the braggadocios behavior, but at the of antiques and fixtures he brought to Taos nesses in town afloat in the lean years and end of the day it’s hard for any Texan to forget when he moved from Houston in 1985. “I’ve never lost the feeling that I’m Texan, make all our pockets a little deeper during where he or she is from, no matter how long deep-down inside. But I’m New Mexico a boom. And that’s just the tourists; making we’ve been “living abroad.” an even greater contribution are the more Texan influence has persisted in Northern through and through,” Wheeler says. “And quiet Texans who choose to live in our midst New Mexico as long as there’s been a Texas. I’m a Taoseño above all.” Not stereotypically Texan in appearance every day. The Republic of Texas (1836-1846) even There are many, many Tex-patriots, recov- claimed the Río Grande as its western most (whatever that would be), Wheeler does bear ering Texans, Tejanos or whatever you want boundary, though it didn’t have the military some resemblance — with his white mane of to call us (that’s right, even the author of this or monetary resources to enforce such a claim. hair — to Texas-born song writing luminaries
Roberto “Bobby” J. Gonzales
Strength In Balance
Legends take time to build
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Guy Clark and Kris Kristofferson. Or maybe Jeff Bridges, who isn’t a Texan but famously played Duane Bridges in the film versions of Texas author Larry McMurtry’s “The Last Picture Show,” and “Texasville.” And while not one to run for public office or anything like that, Wheeler has made contributions to the community over the years, donating time and money to various nonprofits, including a stint as president of the board of the Stray Hearts Animal Shelter. Most recently, Wheeler co-founded the Lilac Festival with John Hamilton (the inaugural event was held this past spring). He also has re-established and serves on the board of the Sierra Vista Cemetery, a little-known patch of land on the north side of town where many famous Taos artists are buried. “Just because you were born in Texas doesn’t mean that you can’t live somewhere else and be a valuable citizen,” he quips, noting that he’s never had anyone in Taos treat him differently because of his Texas roots. “When I first moved here, I had a little car that had Texas plates on it and the real estate agent said, ‘first thing Thom, you need to get those Texas plates off your car,’” he recalls. “And I did shortly thereafter, but I’ve never had one person say anything to me. I feel as home here as I could ever be.” Other notable members of the art community that Wheeler “outed” as Texans include painter Jerry Jordan and gallery owners Robert Parsons and Ray Trotter (both from Paris, Texas). And while Wheeler says they are all, “great guys,” he claims there isn’t a Texas clique in the art scene. “One thing about Taos is all the artists kind of stick together,” Wheeler says. “There’s
People
people from all over who come to love Taos like I do.” Kathy “Kat” Pruitt is another Texan who loves Taos as much as Wheeler. After retiring from teaching positions in North Texas, Pruitt and her husband Pat moved to Red River, aka “Little Texas,” where they would spend the next seven years. “What we learned was we were close to home, but we weren’t home,” Pruitt says. “We love a lot of people up there, but you could very easily say that’s just like being in Texas. “We didn’t move here to be Texans, we moved here to be New Mexicans and to experience the whole culture. We’ve finally found our heart’s home.” After being in Taos for five years now, Pruitt has found some success as a children’s book author and she also works at Red Cat Melissiana. During her hours at the latter job, she meets people from all over the world, many who express an interest in moving to Taos. “I tell them, ‘if you are not an open, tolerant person, don’t even think about it,’” she says, acknowledging that like anywhere, Taos has its problems. Ultimately, though she chooses to focus on the beauty and openness of the community. “It is just a good place for those of us who are willing to open ourselves up,” she says. “It’s just home. We didn’t come here to change it.” If you ask her to, Pruitt will go on and on about the beautiful diversity of her neighborhood and the wonderful people she has met from all walks of life. Like Wheeler, she agrees that those Texans who are more prone
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Courtesy Photo
Kathy Pruitt with her husband Pat during a recent celebration at El Pueblito United Methodist Church. The couple renewed their vows in honor of their anniversary. to assimilation will have the best time in Taos. And for the most part, Pruitt and Wheeler’s experiences in Taos are not unique. There are countless Texans who have found their way to town, learned to love it, and just as quickly started blending in. So the next time you hear someone using non-existent words like “dudn’t” or “wouldja,” try not to judge. Texans are people too. And if you give them a little time to get acclimated, some of them even make pretty darn good Taoseños.
History
“When I first moved here, I had a little car that had Texas plates on it and the real estate agent said, ‘first thing Thom, you need to get those Texas plates off your car.’ ”
Legends
Thirteenth Annual
Tradiciones
Download the entire section, anytime at taosnews.com
celebración de nuestra gente
Photo by: Adam Schallau
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“Be strong when you are weak. Be brave when you are scared be humble when you are victorious.” - Ancient Indian Proverb
Former Taos Pueblo Governor, Tony Reyna
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.
2 0 1 3 t r a d i c i o n e s F T h e ta o s n e w s
Raices R
oots. We all have them, whether they be in Taos County or one of the thousands of laces people come from to make this valley their home.
And it’s the exploration of those roots (raices) that is the heart of this publication, the second installment of the 2013 Tradiciones series. Rick Romancito kicks things off with a discussion about Native Pueblo dances,
Thirteenth Annual
Tradiciones celebración de nuestra gente
Photo by: Adam Schallau
and what distinguishes religious ceremony from some of the more purely celebratory exhibitions. From there, Teresa Dovalpage breaks down chicos and bolita beans, two ancestral
New Mexican foods. Then, Jim O’Donnell takes us back to the Pueblo for a piece on the Snowballs firefighting team’s relationship with Smokey the Bear. We also have Andrew Oxford’s tale about the continuing restoration of the Catholic church in Questa; JoAnne Lee’s history of the Martínez Hacienda; Steve Tapia’s roots (literally) of oshá; and Eric Fincher’s story detailing the history of Philmont Scout Ranch. — Andy Jones, special sections editor
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2013
Tina Larkin
Sacred rituals
Pueblo Indian dances part of complex cycle of ceremonials By Rick Romancito
W
henever a group clamps down a veil of secrecy over their activities, one of the first reactions among Westerners is that they have something to hide. However, in the American Southwest, secrecy has been used as more of a shield to protect certain aspects of Native religion, not just from prying eyes but from dissipating the importance of their rituals.
Rick Romancito
The Taos Pueblo Powwow, at top and above, is an annual event conducted on the second weekend in July. These dances are part of inter-tribal traditions and are not part of the Taos Pueblo Native religion.
The Pueblo Indians in New Mexico adhere to a complex and vital cycle of ceremonial activities as part of a religion that traces back to antiquity.
This type of secrecy was not always so. This phenomena began in Spanish Colonial New Mexico during the 1600s when some overzealous Catholic priests and members of the military attempted to destroy Native religion by outlawing its performance, in the belief that this was necessary in order to convert the Indians to Christianity. This forced Native religion underground, which further incensed colonial authorities, who then took drastic actions such as capturing and torturing Native priests, destroying their religious objects and smashing kivas (their underground chambers where sacred rituals were conducted). The reason for this insurgency was actually simple. The Pueblo Indians in New Mexico adhere to a complex and vital cycle of ceremonial activities as part of a religion that traces back to antiquity. To interrupt this cycle was the
same as inviting chaos to the world. It was after decades of oppression that the Pueblos had had enough, and through the inspiration of an Ohkay Owingeh leader named Po’pay, the Native people of New Mexico rose in revolt on the Feast of San Lorenzo, Aug. 30, 1680. This was the first American revolution. After the Spanish were allowed to return in 1692, a new relationship was forged between the colonists and the Indians, one that was hoped to be positive because it outlined a more respectful attitude toward Native religion. Things were not so smooth, however, because additional conflicts continued for many years. Native religion, though, continued and was essentially left alone until the arrival of the railroad in the 1800s. As Easterners became enamored of the “vanishing red man” myth (a genteel reaction to hearing of the U.S. government’s genocidal
Contents
Pueblo Indian Dances
2
11
Hacienda de los Martínez
Ancestral Foods
4
14
Oshá
Taos Pueblo Snowballs
6
Questa Church Renovation
8
16
Philmont Scout Ranch
Staff
Robin Martin, Owner Chris Baker, Publisher n Joan Livingston, Editor Chris wood, Advertising Manager andy jones, Special Sections Editor Marilyn M. Olsen, Designer virginia l. clark, Copy Editor michelle M. gutierrez, Production Manager Cover design: marilyn M. Olsen Cover photograph: Bolita beans, by Tina Larkin
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policies), so too did interest in witnessing their lifeways before they disappeared to progress and assimilation. So, tourism was born. And, with it, came caravans of non-Indians eager to study them, capture their visages in photographs and paintings, and yearn to find a way to be an accepted participant in these ancient customs. Like the assault of the 1600s, the tribal councils began to recognize the insideousness of this incursion and by the 20th century began finding ways to limit its exposure. Today, many dances are open to the public. But these represent only a portion of the overall ceremonials the tribe must conduct. Because they are an important aspect of their Native religion, most ask that onlookers observe them as though they were in their own church. They ask that visitors not inquire as to the “significance” of the dances, regalia or activities; they generally consider this to be very rude. They ask that visitors not stray from designated areas, and most importantly to not photograph or record anything. Obviously, these dances are very different than those found at an intertribal powwow. Secrecy has its purposes here. It helps preserve a way of life that has survived hundreds of years, and maintains a special quality known only by tribal members themselves. For more information, visit taospueblo.com.
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Rick Romancito
The Matachines Dance, which is done periodically at Taos Pueblo, is not related to those associated with the tribe’s Native religion. This dance has its origins among the Moors and was brought to the New World by the Spanish, then adopted by some Pueblo tribes.
Today, many dances are open to the public. But, these represent only a portion of the overall ceremonials the tribe must conduct. Because they are an important aspect of their Native religion, most ask that onlookers observe them as though they were in their own church.
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Dried chicos
Chicos and bolita beans
Two ancestral foods of northern New Mexico By Teresa Dovalpage
S Chicos
eptember is the best time to harvest corn. And for those interested in making chicos (dried kernels of corn), this is also the right moment to start the process. Just be prepared — it can be time consuming. “But the results are worth every minute of it,” says Benji Apodaca, head of the Culinary Arts Program at Taos High School and at UNM-Taos.
“Chicos are great comfort food, particularly during the fall and the winter.” Chicos used to be a typical, everyday food for Hispanics and American Indians throughout the American Southwest. “Corn was a staple of their diet because it could be used in a variety of forms,” Apodaca said. “Unfortunately, not many people take the
time to make chicos anymore.” Chicos seem to belong to a time when life was slower and people devoted endless hours to cooking. Yet making chicos is a tradition that should be kept alive. “It is actually quite simple,” Apodaca said. “Just follow these steps and you will end up with enough chicos to last you all winter long.”
Chicos seem to belong to a time when life was slower and people devoted endless hours to cooking. Chicos How to make chicos the old-fashioned way, in an horno (oven): 1. Get the horno ready. Plaster it and make sure it is sealed. 2. Make a fire with apple, cherry or any other hard wood. Keep a very intense fire going until the outside of the oven is really hot. Depending on the day and the weather, this may take four or more hours. 3. While the oven is being heated, the corn (white corn, not sweet) should be soaked in water for at least a couple of hours. 4. Once the oven’s temperature is sufficiently hot, take most of the ashes out, leaving only some inside. 5. Throw the ears of corn, with their husks still on, in the oven. 6. Seal the front of the oven with a metal tray and then put zoqueta, or
adobe stucco, around the door so it is completely closed. Leave the corn in the oven overnight. 7. Next morning, unseal the oven, open it and pull the corn out. 8. Remove the husks from the corn. Then make ristras with the cobs. Ristras should contain six to eight ears of corn. 9. Let the ristras of corn dry out in the sun for a day or two. 10. When they are thoroughly dried, shock the ristras to get the kernels off the ears. The best way to do this is get two ears of corns together over a tray, and rub them against each other so the kernels come right off the cobs. 11. Put a handful of kernels over a quilt or a sheet. Get two people to hold the sheet and throw the kernels up. If there are still some little pieces of husk left, they will fly away and only the “clean” kernels will drop back to the sheet.
Drying corn
12. At this point, you have chicos ready to be stored if you want to preserve them. And, naturally, ready to be cooked right away, too. F How to cook chicos — the modern way Chicos add a sweet, fresh taste to the dish as well as a slightly smoky flavor. They are usually cooked in combination with beans. “Another way of eating them is putting the chicos in a caldito, a broth, with pork shoulder,” said Benji Apodaca. “You will need to boil them for an hour and a half. They are also a great addition to stews.” Here is a recipe for chicos taken from the cookbook “Cocinas de New Mexico” (Public Service Company of New Mexico, 1990) Ingredients: 2 cups chicos
Photos by Tina Larkin F The Taos News
10 cups cold water 2 tablespoons oil 1/2 pound pork 1 medium onion, diced 1 clove garlic, minced 2 teaspoons salt 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano 4-5 dried green or red chiles, crumbled Preparation: Soak chicos in cold water overnight, then cook , on low with the water in a crock pot all day. If you prefer, just simmer them on the stove for about 3 hours after soaking. Heat the oil on medium flame and sear the pork. Add the onion and garlic, and cook until translucent. Add the salt, oregano, chiles, and the chicos with all their water. Cook for 20 minutes (or longer, as desired) to blend the flavors and rehydrate the chiles. Serves 4 to 6 people.
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Bolita beans Bolita beans are known for their high protein content. At one time they were extremely popular in Northern New Mexico, but, just like chicos, their popularity has decreased. â&#x20AC;&#x153;And it shouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be this way,â&#x20AC;? says ethnobiologist and farmer Miguel Santistevan. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Their flavor is richer than the pinto beans. But the pintos need less cooking time and nowadays, most cooks prefer them to bolitas.â&#x20AC;? Santistevan is the founder of AIRE (Agriculture Implementation Research and Education) a local nonprofit organization. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We want to reconnect people with the land, their food and ecology,â&#x20AC;? said Santistevan, â&#x20AC;&#x153;while addressing the growing problems associated with the industrial food system, climate change and nature deficit disorder.â&#x20AC;? Getting a taste of ancestral, nutritious foods like chicos and bolita beans may be a good start.
Bolita beans with chicos Ingredients: 1 pound bolita beans 3 tablespoons vegetable oil 1 diced onion 4 medium garlic cloves, finely chopped 12 ounces bacon 1 can of peeled tomatoes
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Tina Larkin
Bolitos used to be a New Mexican staple. tablespoons salt tablespoons brown sugar cups chicos to 5 cups water
Preparation: Soak the bolita beans overnight. SautĂŠ onions and garlic in a large skillet until soft, then add the other ingredients, except waÂÂter, and cook briefly to combine.
Place all in a large pressure cooker and start adding water until the beans are well covered. Cover and cook, following your pressure cookerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s instructions, on high pressure for 20 minutes. Remove the pressure cooker from the heat and allow the pressure to come down naturally for at least 15 minutes. Quick-release any pressure left in the cooker before removing the lid.
â&#x20AC;&#x153;We want to reconnect people with the land, their food and ecology.â&#x20AC;? Miguel Santistevan
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Rick Romancito
During a 2008 event, Paul Romero, one of the Taos Pueblo Snowballs who found the original Smokey Bear, holds up the comic book distributed to school children depicting what he says is the incomplete story.
The Taos Pueblo Snowballs, smokey the bear and a story largely untold By Jim O’Donnell
“T
hese were physical people. They were fit. They had the ability to go up and down the mountain. They were people of the land and they were tough,” said Rene Romero, the current Taos Pueblo Fire Management officer. He pointed to a photocopy of an old photograph taped to a cabinet overhanging his desk. “The Snowballs came from a strong place.”
The Mescalero had the Red Hats. The Zuni had the Thunderbirds. The Navajo crew were known as the Scouts. The crew from Taos Pueblo was the Snowballs. “One version of the story,” said Rene Romero, “Is that the name came from the speed with which they put out the fires. It was as if they were using snowballs.”
The photocopy itself was creased and folded. The photograph faded. Still, you could make out some of the faces in the 60-year-old image. The men wore government-issue jeans, work shirts and hard hats. They all carried the same belted canteens. Long braids hung over their shoulders. These were the original Taos Pueblo Snowballs. Romero could name many of them. They are legends. “They were tough but they were also extended family,” he said. “So they took care of each other on the fire line.” Only two of the original crew are alive today. Romero himself is a veteran of the nation’s firefighting campaigns having made 198 jumps over 16 years as a smokejumper. He knows the fire line. In the decades after World War II when money seemed limitless and the nation’s forests suffered from short-sighted management, — with a 100 percent ‘no burn’ policy — land managers at the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management worked with the Bureau of Indian Affairs to develop firefighting crews from the Western tribes. These crews were made up mostly of war veterans. The Forest Service sought to create “a paramilitary service of national defense” against forest fires. Persistently hard economic conditions in the tribal communities drove many young men to join the crews. The money was good. In 1950, the first year the Native crews were sent off-reservation and around the West to fight fires, the Mescalero brought home about $10,000, according to David H. DeJong of the University of Arizona. In 1951, the “gross earnings of the Apaches, Hopis and Zunis exceeded $100,000,” he wrote in a 2004 article on the history of American Indian fire crews. By 1961, firefighting accounted for over $1.5 million in income to tribal members in the West. It was an economic boost and it was a self-esteem boost.
“Oh man. I’ve heard stories that when the Snowballs came home in those days, it was like Christmas. They came with presents, toys for the kids, clothes and money. It was a big boost to the Pueblo economy,” Romero said. The Mescalero had the Red Hats. The Zuni had the Thunderbirds. They Navajo crew were known as the Scouts. The crew from Taos Pueblo was the Snowballs. “One version of the story,” said Romero. “Is that the name came from the speed with which they put out the fires. It was as if they were using snowballs.” Another story, dating to the Capitan Fire in 1950 appeared in the Bureau of Indian Affairs magazine Smoke Signals. It told of a Taos Pueblo member who compared the snow on Taos Mountain with the white hard hats the crew wore and said the young men “looked like a bunch of snowballs.” The American Indian firefighters were always on demand and were sent to the most brutal terrain. The Snowballs were requested by name by some fire managers, Alipio Mondragon a former Forest Service dispatcher told The Taos News in 2008. The Snowballs had a reputation of getting the job done and done right. “They had a spiritual strength they could pull from and a spiritual relationship with fire,” said Romero. Indeed, religious ceremonies among the tribal crews were often reported on the fire line — many times with astounding and inexplicable results. “The Snowballs were noted for holding lines that other crews simply couldn’t hold,” Romero continued. “Was it luck? Skill or guidance from somewhere else I don’t know. But it worked.” By the mid-1960s, however, the use of American Indian crews was on the decline. The post-war manpower shortage was no longer an issue and the costs
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associated with moving the crews around the West no longer made sense. The Forest Service began to use permanently employed â&#x20AC;&#x153;hot shotâ&#x20AC;? crews on the frontline and for a number of years, there simply werenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t as many forest fires as there had been during the 1950s. Mandatory physical standards established in the 1970s further hurt the tribal crews. Changes in lifestyle since the 1950s meant that many of the new generation simply couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t pass the test. War on Poverty employment programs took many of the Snowballs off the fire line at the same time. At Zuni, permanent jobs making jewelry were more attractive than the part-time, dangerous jobs fighting fires. By 1980 most American Indian fire crews, including the Snowballs, ceased to exist. It was at that famous Capitan Fire on the Lincoln National Forest that members of the Snowballs found Smokey Bear. As the story we think we know goes, it was an Army crew from Fort Bliss that found the bear. In fact, it was the Snowballs who came across the badly burned creature hanging in a pine after the flames swept through. They turned the cub over to the Forest Service. The rest is history. The bear was nursed to health and with the motto â&#x20AC;&#x153;only you can prevent forest fires,â&#x20AC;? Smokey took to the airwaves and magazines extolling the patriotism of protecting the nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s forests. This summer the Forest Service is giving Smokey a makeover, making him less admonishing and more, well, huggable. The new Smokey advertisements on television have him squeezing people in the forest â&#x20AC;&#x201D; people who do the right thing, that is. So when youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re out in the woods hiking, hunting, camping or picnicking
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Rick Romancito
Smokey the Bear, meets and greets Taos Pueblo residents during a 2008 event where the Bureau of Indian Affairs acknowledged the role of the Taos Pueblo Snowballs in finding the original â&#x20AC;&#x153;Smokey Bear.â&#x20AC;? this Fall, you too can prevent wildfires and get a hug from the half-naked bear in a ranger hat. You can thank the Snowballs for that. There is talk on occasion of reviving the Snowballs but it hasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t happened yet. Unfortunately for the crews out there this year battling one of the most deadly, destructive and expensive fire seasons in memory, the Snowballs arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t on the line. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They were remarkable,â&#x20AC;? Romero concluded.
It was at that famous Capitan Fire on the Lincoln National Forest that members of the Snowballs found Smokey Bear.
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A volunteer descends a ladder at the San Antonío del Río Colorado.
More than just a building
Project invigorates Questa
T
By Andrew Oxford
he 72-foot hand-carved, braided beams that ran down each side of San Antonío del Río Colorado for more than 170 years had long been hidden behind layer upon layer of adobe. The timbers were merely two examples of the craftsmanship and the brute strength of both man and nature revealed when the church’s walls nearly collapsed in 2008.
Father Andrew Ifele, center, blesses parishioners of San Antonío del Río Colorado on July 27, before they begin work on the ongoing restoration of the church.
“This is a monument to the people who started this community,” Mark Sideris said as he surveyed the sanctuary one August morning. A renovation and restoration of the building entered its third year weeks earlier. Now, engineers and architects were ambling around the building with blueprints and schematics. Sideris and the parishioners who spearheaded efforts to save the church were preparing to apply for one last permit that would allow them to finish the job — for now. If anything is apparent from tearing up
floor boards and stripping away adobe, it is that San Antonío del Río Colorado is never finished. Stepping down from the alcove that once — and would soon again — house the church’s altar, he pointed to the intricately carved vigas propping up the timber ceiling. “I cannot imagine what was in their minds,” Sideris said, explaining the labor and time that would have been required to craft each piece. The floor beams, too, were a testament to the skill of the church’s first parishioners
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2013
who commenced work on the structure in the mid-nineteenth century. Each timber had been smoothed and rounded by ax, he said. “The ambition of those guys was incredible,” Sideris remarked. That same ambition manifested itself in the new generation of Questeños and others who have volunteered to restore the once-crumbling edifice. The process began shortly after the near-total collapse of the building more than five years ago. New Mexico’s archdiocese originally moved to close the church, rejecting the costs of rebuilding and restoring the structure. Parishioners pushed back, however. Negotiations headed by local officials ended in an agreement with church leaders in Santa Fe. Questa would have six years to restore the church but would also shoulder the costs — estimated at about $1 million. Sideris, who worked in construction and was renovating a house he had just purchased across the street from the church when negotiations concluded, was asked to coordinate the project. Initially, he said, it was a daunting prospect. “I was trying to figure out how we would get this all done,” Sideris recalled. Parishioners as well as members of the community and Questeños who had long since left the village lent a hand, however. A force of volunteers labored over every aspect of the process, donating their working weekends and evenings. “They are doing it out of their hearts,” Sideris said.
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Volunteers lay adobes on the East wall of San Antonío del Río Colorado during work in July. Muscle too, given that the project was ahead of schedule and under-budget in 2013. Two walls, which were completely rebuilt this year with 40,000 adobe bricks were initially projected to cost between $150,000 and $200,000. Each was constructed for about $30,000. “It is moving very fast,” Father Andrew Ifele, who was installed as the church’s Questa church continues on page 10
The process began shortly after the near-total collapse of the building more than five years ago. New Mexico’s archdiocese originally moved to close the church, rejecting the costs of rebuilding and restoring the structure.
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Questa church continued from page 9
priest earlier this year, told The Taos News. â&#x20AC;&#x153;More people are coming out to work because it is their church. They always come out with that good spirit.â&#x20AC;? At an annual meeting on the renovation, it was even suggested that parishioners would be able to celebrate Christmas at the church in 2014. â&#x20AC;&#x153;That date is very ambitious,â&#x20AC;? Sideris said. The construction had only just moved indoors when the walls were completed, he added. With the roof once again resting on the adobe structures, the bracing was removed and volunteers were able to grapple with projects on the buildingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s interior. Those projects, Sideris said, would entail â&#x20AC;&#x153;hard costâ&#x20AC;? items. Plumbing, wiring, and plastering lay ahead. Volunteers would also install a new heating system, flooring and stained-glass windows. Buttresses would also be built to strengthen the structure as well as a foyer, choir loft and a sacristy. The remaining work would cost $228,000, according to parishioners â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and require a lot of work. San AntonĂo del RĂo Colorado Historic Preservation has launched a series of fundraising initiatives in addition to forging partnerships with local craftspersons to secure resources for the project. Even the federal government has been engaged by the churchâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s boosters with the Forest Service approving the removal of spare timber for the renovation. Volunteers have also been forthcoming. While many local residents have joined weekly work crews on nights or weekends,
Tina Larkin
A signup sheet for volunteers helps keep the work steady and organized. other volunteers travel from across the state to help on visits to what is an ancestral home for many of them. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It is so worth it,â&#x20AC;? Joe Rael said when asked about donating a summer weekend to mixing adobe and laying bricks. Raelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s family were among the churchâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first parishioners. The name of a great-grandfather was found etched in one viga. The church is a legacy, he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are not only building the church but building the community.â&#x20AC;?
At an annual meeting on the renovation, it was even suggested that parishioners would be able to celebrate Christmas at the church in 2014. â&#x20AC;&#x153;That date is very ambitious,â&#x20AC;? Sideris said.
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JoAnne Lee
The courtyard at Hacienda de los Martínez.
Hacienda de los Martínez
A living history museum By JoAnne Lee
B
uilt in 1804, the Hacienda de los Martínez is a living museum located off State Road 240 on the west side of Taos. Since October 1983, the Hacienda continues to serve as a cultural heritage site once occupied by the extended family of Antonio Severino and Maria del Carmel (Santistevan) Martínez. Antonio Severino Martín — of French heritage who pluralized his last name to Martínez — was born in Abiquiú in 1761. He bought the tract of land the Hacienda sits on in the Lower Ranchitos area from Antonio Archuleta in 1803. Within the next several years, Martínez constructed adobe living quarters surrounding a courtyard for his family. From a tract of land deemed suitable for farming, Martínez grew his hacienda to 21 rooms and two courtyards. Commercial trade with the north along the Santa Fe Trail and with Mexico allowed Martínez to move wool, animal hides and household goods. Martínez imported cotton, medicines, iron and ceramics. Martínez’ oldest son Antonio José, a priest, was a spiritual and social leader in the northern Río Grande region. Before the elder Martínez’ death, he
served as alcalde (mayor) for the Taos area. From its construction in 1804 through 1931, the Hacienda — a fortified compound of living quarters, interior courtyards, storage areas, rooms, and a walled corral area — housed members of the Martínez family. Throughout the 1800s, the Hacienda Throughout the 1800s, maintained trade operations the Hacienda — first run by Severino and as far south as Chihuahua, Mexico, then his son Pascual and as far north and east Bailón — maintained trade operations as far as St. Louis, Mo. south as Chihuahua, Mexico, and as far north and east as St. Louis, Mo. As generations of Martínez family members lived in the compound, rooms and exterior spaces continued to evolve. Following the death of Bailón in 1882, Hacienda continues on page 12
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Careful consideration and study of historic documents, including the “Last Will and Testament of Don Severino Martínez allowed restoration experts to bring the Hacienda back to its 1820s glory.
Hacienda continued from page 11
Martínez family members remained with the property through World War II, and finally sold it to Jerome and Anne Milord in 1964. Faced with extensive repairs and remodeling, the Milords worked on the restoration project until they sold the property to the Kit Carson Memorial Foundation in 1972. Careful consideration and study of historic documents, including the “Last Will and Testament of Don Severino Martínez allowed restoration experts to bring the Hacienda back to its 1820s glory. Furnishings match the time-period when the original Martínez family lived in the home. Dedicated as a museum in 1983, Hacienda de los Martínez is on the National Register of Historic Places. Open year round, seven days a week beginning at 10 a.m., the Hacienda relies on donations and minimal entrance fees to help maintain yearly upkeep. Roger Martínez (not related to the Hacienda Martínez family) works the front desk and conducts tours. “For the most part, most of our income comes from entrance fees throughout the
JoAnne Lee
Claudio Ortiz remembers the Martínez Hacienda as it was when he was a boy, growing up in the Ranchitos area. year. We have a yearly fundraiser and auction in July and a fall Trade Fair,” Martínez said. Volunteers help with tours and participate as members of the living museum. Visitors are likely to see a blacksmith demonstration, weaving, or quilt making by a group of dedicated quilters. The annual Old Taos Trade Fair, scheduled this year for Sept. 28 and 29, promises dancers, period costumes, crafters, traditional foods, storytelling and historic reenactments. Contact the Hacienda at (575) 758-1000 or visit TaosHistoricMuseums.org.
Martínez Hacienda exhibits 19th Century Taos architecture. JoAnne Lee
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Looking back:
Local man recalls childhood near the Hacienda Hacienda de los Martinez draws in countless passerby from historians touring the state, visitors and locals like Claudio Ortiz, known as “Gigger” in the community. One bright Taos morning, in the middle of this summer’s mudding session at the Hacienda, Ortiz stopped by to check on the progress of the renovations. He holds the compound as a special place, a space in which he and his childhood friends had free rein to marvel in the mystical waters of the river and play in the cool adobe rooms.
“I
remember the Hacienda here when I was growing up. That river, right by the fence, it bends, and there was the big old cottonwoods. Oh, the water was as high as this roof here and that is where we used to swim. The water used to run crystal clear. You could see big trout. You could see the specks on the trout. It was beautiful. Now, its a bosque. In years past, people had sheep and cattle and they would eat all that vegetation, and there was no chance for a bosque, you know. You could see the river way over there and it was flat and a lot of people used to get flooded here. And then the state brought in some dozers and they scraped the river and built the berms on the sides. The water used to run so crystal clear and everybody has polluted that water really bad. In years past, I mean, you use to see the trout and all their specks. We used to damn that river so we could swim. The Pachecos, us. We all used to hang around here. “We used to pitch the hay and now they bale it you know. In years passed, they used to cut the hay with horses. Back when I was about 10 years old, we built a house not too far from here and I harnessed the horses and took the rake — it was a big old rake with the big old wheels — and I raked all the weeds and we burned them and that’s how I cleared the yard before we built that house. We had that house here and one at midtown, but if you go down the road here and see Tino Lane, Tino was my dad. That’s where we grew up, but our childhood was right in here. We used to play. There was an empty room there and we’d climb up on top and I remember the apples on the apple tree were so big. I remember the guy that used to work for my uncle killed a bull snake in that room right there. It was a long one. “My dad, I was telling the gentleman here, that Daddy carved his name in 1923 on the doors there and I carved mine in 1953. I was only 12 years old. “We used to play in here. There were no windows then. The historical society finally got ahold of this hacienda somehow and they started renovating it. They renovated it very nice, but I got to see it the way it was.” Claudio “Gigger” Ortiz —Taos Resident
JoAnne Lee
Restoration and maintenance are a constant at Hacienda de los Martínez.
“Oh, the water was as high as this roof here and that is where we used to swim. The water used to run crystal clear. You could see big trout.” Claudio Ortiz
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File Photo
Oshá growing in the forest.
Oshá (Lingusticum porteri) – Good for Whatever Ails You
A
By Steve Tapia
native of higher altitudes of the Rocky Mountains and the Southwest, the root of the oshá plant is a traditional Native American herb. Oshá is strictly a mountain plant and it is commonly found in deep moist soils rich in organic matter.
The plant requires partial shade and it is widely distributed in the Rocky Mountains and the high mountains of northwestern Mexico. common in “It may be that some little root of the Sacred Tree still lives. Ittheis most upper limits of Nourish it then, that it may leaf and bloom and fill the subalpine zone, with singing birds. Hear me, not for myself, but for my people. sopartinoftheits southern range, it I am old. grows at elevations from 7,000 to 10,000 Hear me that they may once more go back into the sacred feet. hoop and find the good red road, the shielding tree.” Oshá is the most widely used herbal in New Black Elk, Oglala Sioux Holy Man and Medicine Man. medicine Mexico, for virtually any problem. It is typically ingested, usually as a tea. The root also has many talismanic values as it is considered effective in warding off rattlesnakes when carried or tied around the boots. It also acts as a good luck charm, and is supposed to ward off the effects of witches. Pueblo Indians placed oshá root in acequias to cut down on cutworms and other larvae. In his book, “Curandero: A Life in Mexican Folk Healing,” author Eliseo “Cheo” Torres states that “perhaps the most popular of all these high-desert country plants, in terms of its uses as a remedy, is oshá, otherwise known as chuchupate. This plant seems to be regarded as a cure-all for a wide variety of maladies. Oshá root was historically used
by plains Indians for treatment of respiratory problems. The herb is sometimes combined with wild cherry bark, licorice root, or common mullein and together made into a syrup and administered directly. In “Secrets of the Sacred White Buffalo; Native American Healing Remedies and Rituals,” Gary Null says to burn the oshá root and inhale the smoke for maximum results in clearing tight mucus. John Duncan, a local herbalist, said a simple recipe for a medicinal honey is to grind oshá root and infuse it into honey for a winter remedio. Duncan also suggests cutting the root into small pieces, instead of grinding it, to allow you to have pieces of honey-infused oshá to chew on. Oshá is sometimes confused in the wild with poison hemlock; the difference between the two is that the oshá root is extremely “hairy” and smells like incredibly strong celery. Oshá got the name “bear medicine” because it was noted by Native Americans and early settlers that bears would seek osha out when they first emerged from hibernation as a means to stimulate their appetite, as well as chewing it into a “cud” of sorts and then dripping it down and rubbing it into their fur. Oshá also goes by the common names Colorado cough root, Porter’s wild lovage, Indian root, empress of the dark forest, and mountain ginseng. Oshá is dependent on mycorrhizal fungi,
2013
and as such, attempts to artificially cultivate the plant outside of its native habitat have not been very successful. Virtually all commercially grown oshá is wild harvested. According to Tibo J. Chavez in his book, “New Mexican Folklore of the Río Abajo” (lower Río Grande), oshá de la Sierra is one of the most multi-used of the medicinal plants. It is used to treat wounds or sores and the dry root is chewed for stomach disorders and headaches. It is mixed with other remedios and applied to the chest or other parts of the body that ail you. Considered the wonder drug of the Río Abajo, sheepherders and cowboys carried the dry root in their pocket as a medicinal kit. Oshá grows in the same habitat in some areas of the mountain west as poison hemlock and water hemlock, both highly poisonous members of the same family. Oshá can be easily distinguished from poison hemlock by its “spicy celery” odor, hair-like material on its root crowns, and its dark chocolate-brown, wrinkled root skin. Hemlock roots are white, fleshy and thin-skinned. They are typically heavily branched rather than carrot-like, and poison hemlock roots have little to no odor. The plants themselves smell musty or rank, while oshá leaves have an intense fragrance when bruised and are typically larger than those of poison hemlock. Also, most poison hemlock plants have purple blotches or shading on the lower stems if they are fairly mature ... but this is not always the case. Unlike its poisonous cousins, oshá does not tolerate overly-moist soils, because it depends on mycorrhizal fungi, and as such, it is never found growing in standing
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File Photo
A popular preventable measure to the flu is Oshá Root, also known as bear root or wild celery, it can be made into tea or chewed. water. Nevertheless, oshá and poison hemlock can be found only a few feet apart from each other. If the plant is growing in or near water in consistently moist soils, is approximately 1.5 feet tall, has purple blotches on the main stem, and is heavily branched with small umbrels of white flowers, it is probably poison hemlock and should be avoided.
Raices Roots
Mary Lutz, M.F.A.
Operations Manager UNM Taos Bachelor & Graduate Programs
“I feel like I’m a witness to history. It is fascinating to me to see how our students take on new challenges and new roles in the community after our program. I am inspired when I see where their paths take them and their confidence in finding a new purpose. The threads come together. It’s as though the UNM Bachelor & Graduate Program weaves a beautiful tapestry through the Taos community. “New seeds are always being planted. Being a part of this is a constantly rejuvenating experience. It is really beautiful to see how UNM’s presence in the community changes people’s lives.”
The Harwood Connection UNM-North, which became UNM Taos Bachelor & Graduate Programs, was housed at the Harwood Foundation’s Alcalde Building from 1993-1995 and, since 2008, resides in a building adjacent to the Alcalde Building, sharing a common wall. This historic location has always been a magnet for learning, intellectual activity, and for art. Burt and Elizabeth (Lucy) Harwood came to Taos in 1916. As the Harwoods came to know Taos and its people, they were astonished to learn that Taos had no public library. Lucy Harwood opened a lending library from her front portal and lent out books from their extensive personal collection. They wanted to bequeath this legacy to Taos, which at the time was a village without the funds to manage a facility. So the Harwood Foundation became a part of the University of New Mexico in 1936, operated on behalf of the people of Taos. The mission of the Harwood is to support the quality of life of the community. Over the years, the Harwood Foundation changed its name to the Harwood Museum. In 1997, the Harwood was renovated and the Town of Taos constructed a new building to house the library and to transfer operations to the town.
The UNM Connection In 1929, the University of New Mexico first connected with Harwood’s potential as an educational institution with the Field School of Art, which continued every summer until 1955. In Spring of 1993, Alan Reed, UNM-North Director, opened the first semester of UNM-North in Taos. That same year, Mary Lutz, who was working with the Harwood, was hired to run the program, where she continues as the current Operations Manager. The program office started out on the second floor of the Harwood Alcalde building. The Alcalde building’s former stable was converted to a meeting room, with all the original WPA furniture. UNM worked in cooperation with the WPA to create an enhanced facility. The first “live” classes and ITV nursing classes were held in this meeting room. The first UNM-North graduate was Miko Concha, of Taos Pueblo, in 1994. UNM added a new role as the parent institution for the Taos Education Center, which held its first semester in Fall 1993. The Center achieved community college status as UNM Taos in 2003, offering Certificates and Associate Degrees, now celebrating its 10th anniversary! UNM Taos Bachelor & Graduate Programs, still located adjacent to the Harwood, marks its 20th year of offering educational opportunities to the Taos community.
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Matthew Prokosch/Courtesy Philmont Scout Ranch
Rock climbing is one of the many activities for youth at Philmont Scout Ranch.
Philmont Scout Ranch celebrates 75 years
O
By Eric Fincher
ver the past 75 years, Boy Scouts from all across the nation and the world have, most likely at some point, made their way to Philmont Scout Ranch south of Cimarrón. This year, Philmont is celebrating its 75th
anniversary.
Sprinkled throughout the nearly 137,500-acre ranch are several camps, where Scouts learn everything from archery to trapping, and how to prep and fire an old-style black powder rifle.
Philmont Scout Ranch is one of the biggest employers in the Cimarrón area, and during the summer months, more than 20,000 Scouts descend upon the ranch to take part in the many backcountry activities on the vast property. Sprinkled throughout the nearly 137,500-acre ranch are several camps, where Scouts learn everything from archery to trapping, and how to prep and fire an old-style black powder rifle. Many of the scouts who spend summers at Philmont earn multiple badges as part of their experience. Philmont is owned and operated by the Boy Scouts of America.
Brendan Best/Courtesy Philmont Scout Ranch
Philmont staff gather at the dining hall for the first ringing of the Ranger Bell ceremony on May 29, 2011.
Programs Since Philmont’s first camping season — which included some 196 campers in 1939 — more than 965,663 Scouts and their leaders have participated in the rugged challenge of its backpacking program. Next summer, an additional 21,500 Scouts are expected to participate, which means the one millionth Scout will take to the trails in the summer of 2014. Philmont’s camping season lasts from early-June to late-August. Organized in crews of seven to 12, including at least two adult Scout leaders. Youth participants must be at least 14 years old to take part in programs at the ranch. Participants hike Philmont’s rugged terrain for 10 full days, spending nights at various backcountry campsites. At the camps, Scouts participate in a variety of programs presented by Philmont staff. The programs include horseback riding, burro packing, gold panning, rock climbing, and .30-06 (thirty-aught-six) rifle shooting and reloading. Scouts also participate in 12-gauge shotgun shooting and reloading, archaeology, mountain biking and historical interpretive programs, such as homesteading and a mountain-man rendezvous. There’s also a strong emphasis on “leave no trace” principles; environmental awareness and sustainability are part of
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Courtesy Philmont Scout Ranch
Hang your boots at the Philmont Scout Ranch, operated by the Boy Scouts of America. every Scout’s experience at Philmont. Philmont Scout Ranch has served as the National Volunteer Training Center for the Boy Scouts of America since 1950, and the Philmont Training Center offers more than 80 different week-long conferences for Scouting volunteers and professionals each summer. Additionally, while Scout leaders are in summer conferences, programs are planned for all members of their families, from infants to adult family members. Family members can
Courtesy Philmont Scout Ranch
Ancient petroglyphs and etchings exist in parts of the Philmont Scout Ranch.
enjoy programs like hiking, tours, handicrafts, games, campfires and outdoor activities. There are numerous camping activities in which Scouts can partake while at the ranch. Normally, while at Philmont, Scouts will spend the vast majority of their time in the backcountry, but make no mistake, these young men aren’t out there sunbathing and relaxing. Conditions are harsh. Scouts have to deal with rain, wind, heat and near-freezing temperatures, even in the summer months. However, although they may be exhausted after backcountry adventures, Scouts build memories that will last a lifetime. One of the backcountry camps is Baldy Town, a ghost town perched on the side of a
mountain nearly 10,000 feet above sea level. The camp is a jump off for French Henry, which is a placer gold mine, located near the summit of Mount Baldy. If the weather is favorable, Scouts are permitted to hike to the summit of the mountain where they can see the vast expanses of the Moreno Valley and the eastern plains of New Mexico. At many backcountry sites, Scouts can take part in a wide range of activities. Activities that are available include a variety of mountain survival and mountain climbing lessons. Summer, however, isn’t the only time of year when Scouts can come to Philmont; there are also fall and winter programs, when Scouts can learn winter/cold weather survival and conservation skills. Fall backpacking adventures allow Scouts to experience the vibrant fall colors of the area. History Oklahoma oilman Waite Phillips became interested in developing a ranch out of the old Maxwell Land Grant in 1922. He eventually collected 300,000 acres of mountains and plains in a ranch he named Philmont (derived from his name and the Spanish word for mountain, “monte”). Philmont continues on page 18
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Philmont continued from page 17
Courtesy Philmont Scout Ranch
The Philmont home under construction in the 1930s.
The SpanishMeditteraneanstyle home that Waite Phillips built as a summer home for him and his family in the 1930s.
Courtesy Philmont Scout Ranch
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The Philmont Ranch became a showplace, with immense herds of Hereford cows and Corriedale sheep grazing its pastures. Villa Philmonte, a large Spanish-Mediterraneanstyle home Phillips built on the property, was home for his family at the headquarters for the ranch. He developed horse and hiking trails throughout the scenic backcountry along with elaborate fishing and hunting cabins for his family and friends. Phillips believed in sharing his wealth with people outside his family. In this spirit, he offered 35,857 acres of his ranch to the Boy Scouts of America in 1938 to serve as a national wilderness camping area. The area was named â&#x20AC;&#x153;Philturn Rocky Mountain Scout Campâ&#x20AC;? (after Phillipsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; name and the Boy Scouts slogan, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Do a Good Turn Dailyâ&#x20AC;?). The response from the first scout campers was enthusiastic, so Phillips increased the size of his gift in 1941, this time including his best camping land, the Villa Philmonte, and the headquarters of the farming and ranching operation. The second gift was made so that, according to Philmont staff, â&#x20AC;&#x153;many, rather than fewâ&#x20AC;? could enjoy his rich and beautiful land. Phillips realized that the cost for maintenance and development of the property could not and should not be derived entirely from camper fees. As an endowment, he included in the gift his 23-story Philtower Building in Tulsa, Okla. In 1963, Norton Clapp, former vice-president of the National Council of the Boy Scouts of America, purchased another piece of the Maxwell Land Grant and added to Philmont. This purchase included the Baldy Mountain
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mining area, consisting of an additional 10,098 acres, bringing the total to a whopping 137,493 acres of Boy Scouts-owned property. “Philmont is also celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Baldy Mountain North Country gift this year,” says Owen McCulloch, associate director of programs at Philmont. For the public In addition to the backcountry and training center programs for scouts, several opportunities are available for the public and other visitors. F Villa Philmonte — Waite Phillips built the Villa Philmonte as the summer home for his family on the Philmont Ranch. It was completed in 1927 and was designed in the Spanish-Mediterranean style. Restored to the period when Phillips owned the ranch, it now serves as a memorial to him and his generosity to the Boy Scouts of America. Guided tours are offered during the spring, summer and fall. Admission is free. F Philmont Museum and Seton Memorial Library — Exhibitions at the Philmont Museum, which rotate throughout the year, portray Philmont’s rich frontier and scouting history. F The Seton Memorial Library houses the library and personal art and natural history collections of the world-famous author, artist, naturalist, and first Chief Scout of the Boy Scouts of America, Ernest Thompson Seton. F The museum/library was constructed in 1967, and was made possible because of L. O. Crosby Jr., a Scout from Mississippi. The museum and library are open daily from June through August and Monday through Friday, from September to May. Admission is free.
Courtesy Philmont Scout Ranch
Philmont Scout Ranch. F Kit Carson Museum — Located seven miles south of Philmont’s headquarters is Rayado, the first settlement of the Beaubien and Miranda Land Grant. The Kit Carson Museum in Rayado was built in the style of Mexican haciendas of the middle 19th century. The rooms of the museum are furnished to the period of the 1850s, when frontiersmen Kit Carson and Lucien Maxwell carved out a wilderness ranch there along the Santa Fe Trail. Tours are given each day from June through August by staff in historic costumes who detail the life of the area’s earliest pio-
Phillips believed in sharing his wealth with people outside his family. In this spirit, he offered 35,857 acres of his ranch to the Boy Scouts of America in 1938 to serve as a national wilderness camping area. neers. Admission is free. The Philmont Scout Ranch headquarters is four miles south of Cimarrón on Highway 21. It employs more than 80 year-round, fulltime employees and 1,100 summer seasonal employees. PhilmontScoutRanch.org.
Honoring our Culture, Traditions, and All Things Taos for Generations… A centuries old fiesta celebrating the gathering of generations to enjoy delicious cuisine, traditional music, and fellowship, while honoring the cultural uniqueness of taos We invite you to join us for the Fiestas de Taos
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“Certain things catch your eye, but pursue only those that capture the heart.” - Ancient Indian Proverb
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.
2 0 1 3 t r a d i c i o n e s F T h e ta o s n e w s
ARTES T
he history of Taos as an art community is a long and interesting tale.
And the beauty of the story is that it’s an ongoing one, which much like a novel by Thomas Pynchon, keeps introducing important characters in each new chapter. This installment of The Taos News’ Tradiciones series, Artes, focuses on and celebrates the then and the now of the Taos art scene. From the founders to the moderns to Taos’ Third Chapter (a term coined by the
Thirteenth Annual
Tradiciones celebración de nuestra gente
Photo by: Adam Schallau
recently deceased Stephen Parks), the story of art in our community continues to be told. And here in Taos, we are fortunate to possess not only a bevy of fine visual artists
but also a wide array of musicians, authors, poets and craftsmen and women. Some of the stories in Artes dwell on the past, such as Joan Livingston’s story about the 50th anniversary of Frank Water’s “Book of the Hopi.” Others are rooted firmly in the present, like Ariana Kramer’s story about jewelry maker Maria Samora, or Elizabeth Cleary’s piece on Bill Acheff. All in all, these stories are but a small part of the big picture that is Artes in Taos. —Andy Jones, special sections editor
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Kathleen Brennan
Stephen Parks and Jim Wagner.
Stephen Parks’ ‘Third Chapter’ By Ariana Kramer
“I
think it’s safe to say that Steve coined the term the ‘Third Chapter,’ ” said Jina Brenneman, referring to Stephen Parks, owner of Taos’ Parks Gallery. Brenneman names Parks as the inspiration for the Harwood’s recent exhibition on the third wave of Taos artists.
Photo by Elliott McDowell
R.C. Gorman posing in front of the Santa Fe Depot in 1975.
Parks died on the morning of Aug. 31, 2013, less than 10 days before the end of the exhibit’s successful run at the museum. Ever since Brenneman started her position as curator of collections and exhibits at the Harwood five years ago, she said she has been inundated with suggestions for what to exhibit. “They’re whispering at me — like ghosts, everywhere,” she gestures in a movement suggestive of swatting at swarms. Every once in awhile, she said, a suggestion sticks. Brenneman said that was the case with Parks’ comment to her within her first year on the job. “Steve said, ‘You should do a show on Chapter Three.’ He talked about [the artists] in the sense of the next wave — Jim Wagner, R.C. Gorman.” Brenneman’s reaction to Parks’ idea was not subtle. “I thought: ‘No way will I do a show on R.C. Gorman.’ ” But Parks’ suggestion, which he made only once — “He didn’t hound me at all” — kept echoing in the back of her mind. Eventually, Brenneman became curious to know what others saw in Gorman’s work. She began to dig up his early works, and recognized a mastery that she had not previously
Corrections
She also began to understand that Gorman was part of the first generation of artists who could mass produce their works with both low- and high-quality print reproductions.
In a previous installment of Tradiciones, Raíces, we incorrectly referred to the Catholic Church in Questa as San Antonio del Río Colorado (the historic name of the town and the name of the preservation group helping to restore the church). The church is San Antonio de Padua. — In Leyendas, the man in a historical photo on page 6 was misidentified as Ernie Blake. The man in the photo was actually Walter Ruegg.
Parks continues on page 4
Contents
Stephen Parks’ ‘Third Chapter’
2
14
50 years of Taos School of Music
6
16 Craftmanship instrumental for luthier
Carmen Velarde: A Taos living treasure 8 Maria Samora’s unique designs
associated with the flamboyant, commercially successful Navajo artist. She also began to understand that Gorman was part of the first generation of artists who could mass produce their works with both low- and high-quality print reproductions. It opened up a new world of opportunity that artists such as Gorman and Woody Crumbo could use to bring their art to a much wider audience than before. Jim Wagner, on the other hand, only made originals, but creatively painted them on all manner of items, taking art off the canvas and onto the kitchen cabinet or bathroom sink. With the Harwood establishing an exhibit for Taos’ contemporary artists, Brenneman started wondering, “What about the time in between the Moderns and contemporary artists?” Her answer was the echo of a four-year old suggestion, “I hear Steve Parks voice in my ear, whispering, ‘Third Chapter. Third Chapter.’ ” Naturally, Brenneman was quick to let Parks know she had decided to run with his suggestion. Parks became actively involved in producing the Harwood Museum of Art’s exhibits, which included “Jim Wagner: Trudy’s House,” “R.C. Gorman: The Early Years,” “Fritz Scholder: The Third Chapter,” “Woody Crumbo: The Third Chapter,” as well
11
‘Book of the Hopi:’ 50 years later
18 Bill Acheff’s strength through solitude
Staff
Robin Martin, Owner Chris Baker, Publisher n Joan Livingston, Editor Chris wood, Advertising Manager andy jones, Special Sections Editor Marilyn M. Olsen, Designer virginia l. clark, Copy Editor michelle M. gutierrez, Production Manager Cover design: marilyn M. Olsen Cover photograph: Bill Acheff, by Tina Larkin
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“For 70 years Taos had been a great place to make art but it had few galleries and artists were reliant on art markets in major metropolitan areas.” — Stephen Parks
Photo by Elliott McDowell
Fritz Scholder in 1982, with buffalo.
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Courtesy Pat Pollard/ New Mexico Magazine
Melissa Zink with “Guardians, 2004” at The Parks Gallery in Taos. From left are “Chamberlain of Letters,” “Minister of Words,” and “Book Warden.”
cultures and magnificent landscape. They were followed by the Modernists who, from as works by Melissa Zink. The shows were the 1930s to the ’60s, brought to the valley exhibited from May 18 through Sept. 8 and such modern modes as cubism and abstracthe Harwood has plans to create an exhibit tion — Benrimo, Ribak, Mandelman, Stroh with Gorman’s early pieces that will tour the among them. For 70 years Taos had been a great place to make art but it had few gallernation. Brenneman relied heavily on Parks as she ies and artists were reliant on art markets in developed the exhibit. He provided her with major metropolitan areas. “That changed suddenly in the early 1970s. the “institutional memory” “Tally Richards, Maggie Kress, Julia Black, she needed to understand A new generation of young artists had moved particular era of Taos art to Taos, drawn by the history and aura of the Thom Andriola and the most famous and successful the place, certainly, but also by the low cost of history. of them all, R. C. Gorman, who was as Parks co-founded and living ... Galleries opened to showcase the ARTlines with Nancy art being created, led by passionate and progood a promoter and salesman as he was artist. edited Pantaleoni. The journal on fessional dealers — Tally Richards, Maggie These were the ones who spearheaded arts in Santa Fe and Taos Kress, Julia Black, Thom Andriola and the was circulated from 1980-85. most famous and successful of them all, R.C. Chapter Three ...” He authored several books, Gorman, who was as good a promoter and including “Jim Wagner: An American Artist” salesman as he was artist. These were the (Rancho Milagro Productions, 1993), and “R.C. ones who spearheaded Chapter Three ...” “He’s a brilliant writer,” said Brenneman, Gorman: A Profile” (NY Graphics/Little Brown, who quoted Parks liberally in the Harwood’s 1981). He wrote introductions to “Melissa Zink: The Language of Enchantment” (New printed exhibition notes, titled “What Mexico Magazine Press, 2006), and “Douglas Becomes A Legend Most.” “In a decade or so, when critics and colJohnson: A Painter’s Odyssey” (Clear Light lectors look back at the last third of the 20th Publishing, 1998). In 1993, Parks opened Parks Gallery with his wife, Joni Tickel, rep- century, they’ll see the Third Chapter, a disresenting Melissa Zink, Jim Wagner, among tinctive period in the continuum of art history in this, arguably the most important small others. Setting the stage for his description of art town in the U.S. The Third Chapter is charthe third chapter of Taos artists, Parks wrote acterized by two distinct but tightly related on his gallery website, “The first artists to elements,” Parks writes in the exhibit’s introdiscover this gorgeous, unruly place were the duction piece. “First, a great wave of young, relatively Founders — Sharp, Phillips, Blumenschein, Higgins, et al., wonderful, fairly conservative unknown artists of all stripes arrived in town, painters enthralled with the mix of ancient drawn by the powerful Taos ‘art magnate,’ a Parks continued from page 2
Taos News archives
Jim Wagner in the 1960s.
2013
ARTES
force generated by a combination of history, tradition, landscape, and a sense of freedom that is irresistible to artists. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Second and just as significant, a score of smart, dedicated art dealers set up shop to represent these exciting new artists. The combination created a powerful aesthetic and commercial vitality that was new to Taos and unique in the country.â&#x20AC;? Brenneman closed her introductory piece with a nod to these art dealers who â&#x20AC;&#x153;threw parties, printed invitations, and brought in collectors from around the world. They were a huge economic force in Taos. Perhaps most important was the innovative and intelligent publication ARTlines, published by Stephen Parks. The publication serves to this day as the most important chronicle of the most creative voices of its time.â&#x20AC;? Brenneman said she and Parks were involved in a project to create an online archive of ARTlines. Wandering through the Harwoodâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Third Chapter exhibit, a pattern emerges. Each artist, in their own way, plays with the idea of repetition and differentiation â&#x20AC;&#x201D; reproducing objects, but with subtle variation. Wagner clusters clouds, flowers and magpies while Cromboâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s drawings center on numerous ornate feathers, ribbons and dots. Gorman draws over and again the backs of figures, and the roundness of toes. Perhaps, with time and distance, the work of this particular generation of artists will be studied, and the breath of its collective memory, understood. Meanwhile, we have Stephen Parks to thank for nurturing and preserving the legacy of this Third Chapter of Taos artists.
5
We have Stephen Parks to thank for nurturing and preserving the legacy of this Third Chapter of Taos artists.
Taos News archive
Stephen Parks, right, and Bill Gersh in this undated photo.
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2013
A group of Taos School of Music students practice backstage at the Taos Community Auditorium before a concert this past July.
Taos School of Music
More than a half century of melodies in the mountains
J
By Andrew Oxford
uly is not exactly a busy time of year at the Hotel St. Bernard in Taos Ski Valley. It was hardly quiet, though, as 19 young musicians filled the mountain air with the chamber works of composers ranging from Brahms to Janacek. During an afternoon rehearsal for a performance later that week, the 2013 class of the Taos School of Music sat around the hotel’s restaurant. The school’s 51st season would conclude within days and the students were gathered to hear their peers prepare for their last performance. Four musicians — a pianist, two violinists and a violist — sat on a crowded stage in a corner of the cozy restaurant and launched into a work by Brahms. The small audience, who had teemed with adolescent energy moments earlier, suddenly seemed lost in the music. For a group of twenty-somethings, there were few
“It’s very calm. You can focus,” said I-Jung Huang, a 19-year-old Taiwanese violinist. A student at the New England Conservatory in Boston, she added that Taos was a refreshing change of pace from the East Coast. A violist from New Zealand, 20-year-old Bryony Gibson-Cornish noted the unique opportunity the school provided to music students who did not often get a chance to perform works written for a handful of instruments as opposed to large orchestras. “I really wanted to play chamber music for my summer. It’s the intimacy of it,” said Gibson-Cornish, a graduate student at the Julliard School in New York. “You can have your own voice and be heard,” she added, noting it was hardly a summer vacation. “It is pretty strenuous. We practice for five to eight hours each day, sometimes with two coaches in a day,” the violist said. cellphones to be seen or eagerly fidgeting The musicians of the 2013 season were legs. The thunder of a monsoon storm hardly accustomed to hard work, executive director stirred the students. Kathy Knox told The Taos News. The small hotel on the side of a mountain “We are very high level and you should in New Mexico might have seemed a strange not audition until you are ready,” Knox said. venue for the musicians — nearly all of Her description of the year’s class as one whom hailed from the coasts or beyond and of the best, if not the best, she had ever seen were pursuing degrees at prestigious schools in locales such as New York and Toronto. But the intimacy, as several students said, comThe small hotel on the plimented the music.
was particularly high praise. The daughter of Taos School of Music cofounder Chilton Anderson, Knox grew up around the world-class musicians who summered in New Mexico’s mountains before returning to the stages of Kennedy Center and Royal Albert Hall. She conceded it was the mountains that interested her most at the time. “All the faculty had kids my age and TSV was a playground,” Knox said. “When it came to the School of Music, I didn’t give a damn. I goofed off in the forest playing hide-and-seek and building forts.” After a childhood spent sleeping through concerts, Knox said she developed an appreciation for the music to which her father had devoted his life. Her own career as a zookeeper and anthropologist took her far from Taos — Florida to Burundi to Mammoth Lakes, Calif. Knox settled there to take a job working with bighorn sheep for the state’s Fish and Wildlife Department. In 2000, Knox’s father asked her to join the Taos School of Music’s board of directors. “I think he knew he was having a hard
side of a mountain in New Mexico might have seemed a strange venue for the musicians — nearly all of whom hailed from the coasts or beyond and were pursuing degrees at prestigious schools in locales such as New York and Toronto.
Photos by Tina Larkin F The Taos News
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The program for a Taos School of Music performance at Taos Community Auditorium, on July 7, as well as some sheet music.
7
time and needed to find someone to carry on,â&#x20AC;? she said of the transition from the schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first generation to its younger leadership. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was his way of protecting something so unique and so special. I was honored to do it.â&#x20AC;? Knox said she did not envision any grand redesigns when she assumed the role of executive director in 2007. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are not trying to get too big,â&#x20AC;? she explained. Instead, she sought to improve the experience for students and patrons alike. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We want our niche to be intensive chamber music training,â&#x20AC;? Knox said. The school, she noted, was as selective of faculty as it was of students. Coaches, who work with a group of pupils throughout the season, were typically chosen from elite universities or conservatories. Quartets, which visit throughout the summer, also work with students. Those musicians also tend to be educators as much as performers, Knox said, and several who visited during the 2013 season included Taos School of Music alumni. The executive director said she was also concerned with broadening the programâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
audience. â&#x20AC;&#x153;How do I get people under 50 to come to our concerts?â&#x20AC;? Knox asked rhetorically, explaining she sought to balance the nonprofitâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s finances with the priority of accessibility. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I always want to keep it affordable. Chamber music should be for everybody,â&#x20AC;? she said. If the schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s last concert of 2013 was any indication, local classical music lovers could still be counted on to pack the house. The 2013 season featured 22 performances between June 16 and August 4 at venues ranging from the intimate alpine settings of the Hotel St. Bernard to the Taos Community Auditorium and Southern Methodist University-Taos. Three quartets and three soloists also visited to teach and perform . With the close of the 51st season, planning for the 52nd would get underway. Some quartets have resolved to return and aspiring students are no doubt already practicing for their auditions. What distinguishes the Taos School of Music, Knox said, would not and probably could not change. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s being in the mountains. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s seeing stars like you have never seen stars before. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s seeing a bear,â&#x20AC;? the executive director said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a family.â&#x20AC;?
Students performing in July at Taos Community Auditorium.
With the close of the 51st season, planning for the 52nd would get underway. Some quartets have resolved to return and aspiring students are no doubt already practicing for their auditions.
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2013
A Taos living treasure
Carmen Velarde By Teresa Dovalpage
D
oña Carmen Romero Velarde is well in her 80s but nobody can tell by just looking at her. Her energy fills the room and her dark eyes sparkle with the warmth of the fire coming from the kiva fireplaces she used to build.
“I was born in 1928 in Ranchos de Taos,” she said. “And I was raised by my grandparents, Trinidad and Julian Ybarra. My grandmother was half Mescalero Apache and half Taos Pueblo. My grandfather was of Mexican and European ancestry.” A devout Catholic, Velarde remembers her grandparents waking up at 6 a.m. and saying their prayers even before having breakfast.
Stuart Pally
Carmen Velarde works on the wall at the San Francisco de Asís Church during the annual enjarra (mudding) of the church in Ranchos de Taos, in 2010. “They prayed for strength to do their work,” she said. “I didn’t understand that back then because I was young and strong, but now I do the same. And I feel blessed that at 85 years of age I have no pains and I can still work and move around. I just passed my senior driving test yesterday with no problem at all!” She often takes communion to people who can’t go to church and helps her relatives, neighbors or anyone that needs her. “My life is full of blessings,” she said. “I pray a lot. I also eat nutritious food and don’t drink
or smoke so I can keep in good health.” A passion for learning Both her grandparents worked in construction. “They lent everything they did an artistic touch,” Velarde said. “They were artists in their own right.” The Ybarras used adobe, vigas and latillas in their construction projects. They harvested the materials themselves and made their own bricks and adobe mix, as most people did at that time.
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“There was no Ace Hardware at the turn of the century,” Velarde said with a smile. “So they had to go to the forest and cut the trees to build houses or furniture. It was then that I learned how to build fireplaces and ovens because I was always helping my abuelos. Children were expected to help in everyday tasks. Besides, I enjoyed learning new things.” Later in her life she attended the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque and studied anthropology, photography, bookkeeping and law pertaining to business. “I have been learning all my life,” she said. A tradition starts: Carmen Velarde’s fireplaces Velarde knew how to make a regular fireplace, but when one of her clients asked her to customize it, she added a nicho and a shelf to the surrounds. “The result was an original fireplace, different from anything else I had done before,” she said. “I liked it and continued experimenting afterwards.” Other people also liked her style and soon the word spread about Velarde’s work. The addition of shelves, nichos and even bancos to the fireplaces became her trademark. She also made retablos and santos — images of saints carved in wood. Sometimes she would leave a retablo by a fireplace when she finished building it. This was a parting gift to the people she had worked for, and also proof of her originality. “Everything I did was handmade,” she said. “That is why not two of my fireplaces
Teresa Dovalpage
Retablos painted by Carmen Velarde. are identical.” Velarde traveled to Colorado, California and Texas, among other states, to build fireplaces. Here in Taos they can be seen in the Convention Center, at The Sagebrush Inn and The Quality Inn among other places. Santos, retablos and more After Velarde stopped building fireplaces, she continued making santos, retablos, tin artwork and colcha embroidery. Many of her Velarde continues on page 10
Other people also liked her style and soon the word spread about Velarde’s work. The addition of shelves, nichos and even bancos to the fireplaces became her trademark.
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Velarde continued from page 9
pieces are in galleries and private collections while others are kept in her family home. She has just finished a retablo of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, the first American Indian saint. Velarde still helps with the enjarre (mudding) of the St. Francis de Assisi Church in Ranchos de Taos. “Why should I stop?” she asked. “I also train young people who are interested in building fireplaces or remodeling adobe homes. I teach them how to do arched doors the easy way and how to change windows in old adobe houses. They know how to do many of these things but they want to make sure that they are doing them the right way.” She also gives talks at schools and colleges, from Enos Garcia Elementary School to UNMTaos. “I talk not only about my work and my art, but also about deeper issues,” she said. “I tell students about the importance of education and of learning more than one trade, so they can always have a job. That’s what my grandparents taught me and it has helped me immensely.” La familia Carmen married Ernest Velarde and they were together for 58 years, until he passed away. “He gave me complete freedom so I could fulfill myself as a human being,” she said. “We raised our children with a lot of love, prayers and respect. We taught them to respect people, the earth, the mountains, everything …” Their children (one daughter and four sons) have carried on the family traditions
2013
and learned how to build fireplaces and work with adobe. “And they are passing these skills on to their children,” she said. “This is part of who we are.” The family has grown over the years. On Aug. 12, Velarde welcomed her 40th greatgrandchild, a boy. “I hope he learns how to build fireplaces and retablos, too,” she said. Recognitions Velarde’s work has been exhibited all over the country. The Smithsonian Museum in Washington D.C. has invited her twice to represent New Mexico. One of her fireplaces and one of her traditional New Mexican ovens are in its permanent exhibit. She has received the Award of Merit in appreciation for her work and the Governor’s Award for Excellence and Achievement in the Arts. She is also included in the book “Remarkable Women of Taos,” published in July 2013 by Nighthawk Press. Velarde was named Woman of the Year in 1995 by the town of Taos. “A community’s strength lies in its people, and the community of Taos is truly fortunate to have in its midst a person of the caliber of Carmen Velarde,” reads the proclamation signed by the Mayor Fred Peralta. His words are still true, now more than ever. Que viva Doña Carmen.
Courtesy Photo
Carmen Velarde at an enjarra at San Francisco de Asís in her younger days.
“I talk not only about my work and my art, but also about deeper issues. I tell students about the importance of education and of learning more than one trade, so they can always have a job.”
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2013
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Tina Larkin
Maria Samora’s work space includes traditional tools and some brand new inventions.
Maria Samora
Designing with Earth’s metals and jewels By Ariana Kramer
M
aria Samora prefers clean lines that flow without disturbance, mixed metals that illuminate the beauty of earth’s jewels, and settings that fit the body’s natural curves and movements.
Until two years ago, Samora shared [Phil] Poirer’s studio with him. Now, she works out of her own studio in El Prado, which is open by appointment most weekdays.
Kevin Rebholtz
Circle cuff made from 22-karat, oxidized silver bi-metal with three top-white diamonds set in 18-karat gold tubing.
These qualities set Samora apart as a jewelry designer, and have earned her the notice of collectors from around the world. Samora didn’t plan to become a jeweler. She just took a class with a girlfriend for fun. But something about the process of making jewelry captivated her, and Samora took more classes, and soon began an apprenticeship with Taos-based goldsmith Phil Poirer. “He’s been my mentor. He’s taken me under his wing and taught me just about everything I know about making jewelry — and running a business, as well,” Samora said. Until two years ago, Samora shared Poirer’s studio with him. Now, she works out of her own studio in El Prado, which is open by appointment most weekdays. Samora’s husband, photographer Kevin Rebholtz, has learned design production from Samora, and the two work side-by-side to produce Samora’s designs. They also work with an assisstant who helps with production work. “There’s a very traditional aspect of making the pieces at the bench,” said Samora. “It’s all very hands on.” Samora shared that opening her own studio has been “a dream come true.” It has enabled her to utilize the help of others in production, so that she has more time for the design process, which includes not only envisioning a new piece, or collection, but also figuring out how to bring it from idea to form.
Samora’s studio employs the use of innovative jewelry-making tools such as cutting machines that are guided by computer-navigated control, and special tools engineered by Poirer, who is a top-notch engineer. “We get to demo the tools that aren’t even on the market yet,” said Samora. Those tools are sometimes specifically designed for a piece that Samora has dreamed up. She or Rebholtz explain the design idea to Poirer, and before they know it he has already crafted a tool for the job. Asked about her influences, Samora said her mother was a jewelry-maker, but had given away all of her silversmithing tools by the time Samora discovered her own interest in the art. Though Samora’s designs are contemporary, the names of her collections indicate that her roots are a shaping force. Summer Rain. Corndance. Lightning Bolt. Seed Pod. Cosmos. “I get inspiration from everything — a lot of my designs include elements from nature,” said Samora, who added that these days she is also inspired by textiles, reading magazines and her kids. “I feel like I constantly have my eyes open. Sometimes the designs come in dream forms.” “I’ve always loved jewelry-making,” Samora said. “Being able to take something in such a raw state, to see all the nuances and detail that go into it and to see how metal can Samora continues on page 12
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2013
Asked about her influences, Samora said her mother was a jewelry-maker, but had given away all of her silversmithing tools by the time Samora discovered her own interest in the art. Samora continued from page 11
be transformed is a magical thing.â&#x20AC;? Samoraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s aesthetic is contemporary, but she has gained a large following among collectors of traditional Southwestern designs. This has been a pleasant surprise. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The first year I did Indian Market I was nervous because even though I am native, I felt my work was so contemporary I wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t fit in,â&#x20AC;? she said. Samora not only fit in, she was very well received. The success of that first show made it possible for the designer to turn her attention full-time to jewelry-making, and she has returned to Santa Feâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Indian Market every year since. This year she featured new designs that were inspired by raw sapphires and rubies she came across at the Tucson gem show she attends annually. She set the pieces meticulously in highkarat gold settings. Also new to the Market were Samoraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s collars, which were designed to sit low on the throat. Another collection she brought to the show were her orbit bangles decorated with different 10-millimeter colored stones. The bangles were reminiscent of Samoraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x153;Summer Rainâ&#x20AC;? collection, which she produced steadily for 10 years before taking a break. â&#x20AC;&#x153;People remarked that they recognized them from before,â&#x20AC;? said Rebholtz, adding that many return collectors come to see Samoraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work at Indian Market. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s always constant pressure to create new pieces for the show,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Maria always pushes herself for Indian Market, to come up with new collections. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s easy to take for granted how hard that is. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Santa Fe Indian Market has really strong standards. She needs to be able to produce award-winning pieces â&#x20AC;&#x201D; which could take years,â&#x20AC;? Rebholtz said. In addition to Indian Market, Samora and Rebholtz bring her designs to several other shows each year. Recently, these have included Heard
Tina Larkin
Maria Samora tosses around a few ideas in her studio.
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Museum in Arizona; Native Treasures, a benefit for the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe; and the Autry Museum in Los Angeles. Throughout her career, Samora has received recognition for the high quality of her designs. Among her honors, Samora won Best of Jewelry in 2006 at the Taos Invites Taos show of Taos Fall Arts Festival. In 2008, she won Division First Place for necklace and Second Place and Judgeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Choice for bracelet and earring set at the Heard Museumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Indian Fair and Market. In 2009, Samora was selected as the official poster artist for the Santa Fe Indian Market. Samora and her work have been featured in four books of Southwestern American Indian jewelery. Samoraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s designs are represented by Blue Rain Gallery in Santa Fe, (505) 954-9902, blueraingallery.com; Heard Museum Gift Shop in Phoenix Ariz., (602) 252-8344, heard museumshop.com; Garlandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Indian Jewelry in Sedona, Ariz., (928) 282-6632, garlands jewelry.com; and Sorrel Sky in Durango, Colo., (970) 247-3555, sorrelsky.com. Maria Samoraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s working studio is at 824 Paseo del Pueblo Norte. You can contact her at (575) 779-0982 or maria@newmex.com for an appointment. Samoraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s designs can also be viewed online at samora studio.com.
Kevin Rebholtz
Earrings made with raw, facetted rubies, set in 22-karat gold.
Kevin Rebholtz
Samoraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x153;Royal Ringâ&#x20AC;? collection, made of 18-karat gold and moonstones from this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tucson Gem Show.
Kevin Rebholtz
New bangles, reminiscent of Samoraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s earlier collection, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Summer Rain.â&#x20AC;?
Kevin Rebholtz
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2013
Taos News archives
Frank Waters at home, date unknown.
‘Book of the Hopi’
Fifty years later By Joan Livingston
“T
he first world was Tokpela [Endless Space].” So begins the “Book of the Hopi” by the late Frank Waters, one of Taos’ most famed authors, who lived from 1902-1995.
An illustration of a Male-Female Páho from “Book of the Hopi.”
A Coloradan by birth, Waters found his way to Taos in the 1940s. Mabel Dodge Luhan, patroness of the arts, and her husband, Tony, befriended Waters.
With the aid of a translator, Waters related the Hopi view of the world, as told to him by 30 tribal members. Published 50 years ago by Penguin, the “Book of the Hopi” had a cult following during the ’60s. The book continues to have relevance for those wanting to understand the tribe’s culture and religion. Waters spoke about the “Book of the Hopi” in a 1992 Tempo interview to mark his 90th birthday. “I believe in that Hopi life and teachings completely. They’re good people. They have a good religion. Doing that ‘Book of the Hopi’ taught me a lot. We’re a right-brain people, a rational thinking people, a rational mind; we figure things out. But the Hopis are a left-brain people. They go by intuition and that intuition is geared to the religious side of things. We’re geared to the materialistic side. They don’t have, as we do, a Sunday religion,” he said. Waters also said in the interview that during the ’50s he worked for the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, as it was called then, and in Las Vegas, Nev., for the atomic tests at Yucca Flat and Frenchman’s Flat. He said witnessing the detonation of about 100 nuclear bombs made him realize “how delicate a grasp humanity has on controlling the destructive powers in the universe as described in the Hopi teachings.”
During his lifetime Waters wrote 27 books, many of which reflect his deep interest in American Indian culture and religion. Among his most popular is “The Man Who Killed the Deer,” published in 1942 and based on a true story of a Taos Pueblo man arrested and fined for shooting a deer days after hunting season ended in Carson National Forest. Waters, whose father was part Cheyenne, said his early books on American Indians gained little attention. A Coloradan by birth, Waters found his way to Taos in the 1940s. Mabel Dodge Luhan, patroness of the arts, and her husband, Tony, befriended Waters. He wrote and edited El Crepúsculo, Taos’ bilingual newspaper for two years. Waters was nominated numerous times for the Nobel Prize for Literature and was awarded seven honorary doctorate degrees from Southwestern colleges. His widow, Barbara Waters, also an author, began the Frank Waters Foundation to foster literary and artistic achievement in the Southwest. Three years The “Book of the Hopi” took nearly three years to complete. Much of the time Waters lived in harsh conditions on the Hopi Reservation below Pumpkin Seed Point.
2013
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Taos News archives
Frank Waters receives a proclamation from then Taos mayor Eloy Jeantete in 1992. In the late ’50s Oswald White Bear Fred ericks, a member of the tribe’s Coyote Clan, approached Fredrick Howell, director of the Charles Ulrick and Josephine Bay Foundation, to finance a history of the Hopi people. Eventually Waters was chosen as the writer. Waters wrote about his experiences in “Pumpkin Seed Point: Being Within the Hopi,” published in 1969. In the book he describes going to a Wall Street office to meet people — he does not identify any by name including a woman he called “The First Lady of Wall Street” — who told him they wanted to help the Hopis “by persuading them to relate freely, for the first time, the complete history and religious beliefs of their people.” They wanted the book to be useful and not an academic study that would end up in museums and libraries. Waters wrote in “Pumpkin Seed Point” the project appealed to him immediately. “All my life I had known Indians and had written about
them, and I felt I now owed them some con structive help in return for all they had given me.” His research included Fredericks, who translated the recordings of tribal members from Hopi to English. Fredericks was married to Naomi, a white woman who called herself Brown Bear. “White Bear collected most of our research material. He would take down on a little bat tery-run tape recorder the discourses of our Hopi spokesman. Later he would play them back translating them in English to his wife who would type them for my use. He also served as my interpreter when I interviewed Hopis, guided me to all the mentioned sites of ancient ruins and hidden shrines, and made drawings of pictographs and petroglyphs carved on rocks,” Waters wrote in “Pumpkin Seed Point.” The “Book of the Hopi” is divided chrono logically into sections: The Myths — Creation
of the Four Worlds; The Legends — Migrations of the Clans; The Mystery Plans — The Ceremonial Cycle; The History — The Lost White Brother. Waters doesn’t get in the way of the Hopi message. His writing is straightforward and unadorned. Alexander Blackburn, an author and retired professor from the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs who wrote “A Sunrise Brighter Still: The Visionary Novels of Frank Waters,” says Waters likely wrote in that style because he worked off transcribed notes. He remarked on the access Waters had among the Hopi. “He was the one they trusted,” Blackburn said. Blackburn noted a book Waters wrote, “Masked Gods: Navajo and Pueblo Ceremonialism,” in 1950 preceded the Book of the Hopi. Blackburn, who has co-edited with John Nizalowski a yet-to-be published book con taining 40 years of critical essays about Waters’ writing, called him a masterful storyteller. “I think of him in the top tier of American writers of the 20th Century,” he said. Waters wrote in the opening notes of “Book of the Hopi”: “the Hopi spokesmen willingly and freely gave the information they were qualified to impart by reason of their clan affiliations and ceremonial duties.” None were paid. “Each regarded the compilation of this book as a sacred task — a monumental record that would give their children and their children’s children a complete history of their people and their religious belief,” he said.
Artes Arts Ed Cardenas - Health Education
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The “Book of the Hopi” is divided chronologically into sections: The Myths — Creation of the Four Worlds; The Legends — Migrations of the Clans; The Mystery Plans — The Ceremonial Cycle; The History — The Lost White Brother.
TAOS Bachelor & Graduate Programs
Gary Cook - University Honors, Art Studio
UNM Faculty mark the occasion “As J. Krishnamurti teaches, the
“I want to thank the many students from real purpose of education is not different cultural just to prepare us for getting a backgrounds who job, but to help us understand have contributed. “the whole process of life;” Many have to help us understand our obtained their psychological process and to license and are serving our community. bring heart and mind into harmony.” We are here to serve you.”
Dr. Andrea Heckman - Anthropology,
Richard Marchese - English
Jean Ellis Sankari - Integrative Health
“It is never too late nor are you too old to make this dream become a reality with the help of our high quality programs and instructors in Taos.”
“Learning to write solid proposals means you are in a position to make a major contribution to society. I believe that “service to humanity” is the best work of life. Happy grant writing!”
“UNM Taos Bachelor and Graduate Program classes provide meaningful connections that guide students academically while creating a path toward realizing their dreams.”
Sean Murphy - University Honors, English
Larry Torres - American Studies, Spanish
Bill Whaley - University Honors, English,
Media Arts
“20 years of great opportunities for our students! UNM Taos Bachelor and Graduate Program rocks!” Photo credits: Ian Sinon
“Learn about different people and different languages because multiple perspectives tend to yield multiple realities.”
Education, Sociology
American Studies
“Like life, a UNM Taos Bachelor and Graduate Program education is worth examining.”
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Norbert Ubechal in his workshop, with one of his Newcaster Guitars.
Newcaster Guitars
Quality craftmanship is instrumental for local luthier
N
By Andrew Oxford
orbert Ubechel built his first guitar when he was 12 years old. The instrument did not make much music, he said, and hardly worked. The German teen was undeterred, however, as he grew up on a steady diet of Jimmy Hendrix and developed a keen interest in rock and roll. Twelve years later, Ubechel moved to the United States where he lived with a master guitar maker in San Francisco. Their friendship began a years-long education in the art and craft of constructing guitars that was abbreviated by Ubechelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s relocation to Taos after a year in California. While running a local woodshop â&#x20AC;&#x201D; a career that would span nearly two decades â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Ubechel was joined by his luthier friend. Working together, Ubechel developed his skills as a guitar maker. He described it as a slow process but one that suited him given
The large Newcaster Guitar sign shows the way to Norbert Ubechalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s studio.
Ubechelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s knowledge of woodworking. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You cannot really make a guitar unless you are a woodworker,â&#x20AC;? the craftsman said during a tour of his workshop on U.S. Highway 64. Ubechel opened Newcaster Guitars after retiring from his business in 2003. From his studio overlooking a field of sagebrush and a giant metal guitar that juts into the mesa sky, the craftsman sells the instruments he designs by hand. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I make the guitars I want to make,â&#x20AC;? Ubechel said of his instruments, which are based on the traditional Fender Telecaster.
Photos by Tina Larkin F The Taos News
Roberto â&#x20AC;&#x153;Bobbyâ&#x20AC;? J. Gonzales
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State Representative District #42 Democrat The Light, the Land and the People of our Community Make Taos a World-Class Arts Destination State Representative Roberto â&#x20AC;&#x153;Bobbyâ&#x20AC;? J. Gonzales District 42, Democrat
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2013
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“A real musician would never order a guitar. A real musician would want to play 10 different guitars and hear each one, feel each one.” The perfect instrument, he added, required a musicians ear and a craftsman’s hands. “A real musician would never order a guitar. A real musician would want to play 10 different guitars and hear each one, feel each one,” he said. That is exactly what Ubechel offers customers a chance to do at his studio where the walls are lined with electric guitars. Clients from out of town provide the majority of his business, he said, but local musicians often drop by.
How to build a Newcaster guitar
Newcaster Guitars has a nice space for trying the instruments.
F Each instrument begins with a few different wooden boards. Ubechel chooses between several varieties of lumber that create The process of building instru- distinct sounds. African bubinga, ments is a slow and steady one, rosewood and mahogany stacked that requires great attention to carefully in the Newcaster workdetail. But Ubechel also immensely shop are sourced from wholesalers in Albuquerque and Colorado. enjoys his craft. “It’s fun. People come in and Ubechel is selective about the age talk and play — sometimes while of the wood, too. The resins in each I work,” Ubechel said, explaining board dry and harden over time, the process that transforms lumber he explained, and influence the into a finely-tuned electric guitar. sound of each piece. Selecting the
right material is crucial. F After gluing together two or more boards, the wood is sanded. The seam becomes almost impossible to distinguish. F The chambers of the guitar are outlined on the boards with a felt pen. The pieces are then removed with a jigsaw. This is the first instance in which the boards are cut as the jigsaw is a tougher tool and rattles the materials more than other saws used during the process. Lightening the guitar by
removing the chambers will give the instrument a distinct sound and resonance. F A band saw is used to cut the edges of the guitar and create its curving shape. F A pocket is carefully carved for the neck. Forging this space is a delicate process, Ubechel said. The guitar’s strings will run down the neck and across its body to the bridge. A slight millimeter of error can misalign the strings and effectively ruin the instrument.
F The neck, with 21 hand-finished frets, is attached to the body. Though maple is used on the back of the neck, rosewood and ebony are popular on the front. F A hand-finished steel guard and bridge is attached to the front alongside a control panel, Alnico 5 pickups and a string-through-body system with brass saddles. A local metalsmith crafts the “hardware” for each guitar and Ubechel tweaks the electronics to client specifications.
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Bill Acheff at work.
Still-life painter finds strength through solitude
L
By Elizabeth Cleary
ike many in the Taos artist community, acclaimed still-life painter Bill Acheff came to Taos and found it the perfect spot to cultivate his talents. He arrived here from the Bay Area when he was 26. The bustling metropolises of San Francisco and Oakland were too much of a distraction for the budding artist, who was focused on developing his style.
Taos artist Bill Acheff knows himself like he knows his palette.
“I was tired of California,” he said. “I was changing, becoming more introverted.” A friend told him about Santa Fe’s art scene, and said he should try his luck there. So he packed his bags and his then-girlfriend into the car and headed east. But when he got there he was having trouble finding a suitable studio space in Santa Fe. He’d heard of a little town up north called Taos, and decided to visit. What he found was a cozy community of artists in a town with one traffic light. He knew this was the place where his creative juices could flow. “You come to Taos, and all of a sudden it’s this silence,” he said. “And the silence, it draws you into yourself.” So he unpacked his paints and settled in. That was 40 years ago. Countless paintings and dozens of accolades later, Acheff sits in the studio space of his roomy home off Kit Carson Road, the decor of which is a stunning marriage between hard-edged modern and classic Southwest. His home is filled with art and artifacts dating all the way back to prehistoric times. His collection of Native American pots, which fills two floor-to-ceiling cabinets in his studio, is particularly striking. It’s these ancient Southwestern artifacts
that serve as the inspiration for much of Acheff’s still-life paintings. While the subject matter is purely American, his style is reminiscent of the works of realism employed by oil painters during the Renaissance. This is not by coincidence, as Acheff studied in California under Italian painter Roberto Lupetti, who had been trained in Renaissance-style painting in Italy. Acheff met Lupetti in a barber shop where Acheff cut hair in his early 20s. After high school, Acheff went to barber college and eventually wanted to open his own shop. Acheff knew he had a knack for drawing, so Lupetti invited him to attend one of his art classes. Acheff displayed such remarkable talent that Lupetti, who was at the time uninspired by his crop of students and about to quit teaching, felt motivated to keep offering classes. Lupetti told Acheff he could make a living as a painter, so the young artist started shopping paintings to local galleries. Dealers were quick to make offers. “That was the beginning,” Acheff said. A few short years later Acheff was on his way to New Mexico. It was not long after that Acheff and his girlfriend at the time were settled in Taos. “I just felt I’d have to stay here,” Acheff
He’d heard of a little town up north called Taos, and decided to visit. What he found was a cozy community of artists in a town with one traffic light. He knew this was the place where his creative juices could flow. Photos by Tina Larkin F The Taos News
2013
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â&#x20AC;&#x153;If you want to get to know yourself, you have to be alone. You will be stronger because you will depend on yourself, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll know yourself.â&#x20AC;? said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I felt comfortable here, so I stayed.â&#x20AC;? But it wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t long before Acheffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s girlfriend grew weary of small-town life. She decided she needed to move back to the Bay Area, whether Acheff was coming with her or not. But Acheff knew Taos was where he belonged, so the two separated. The more time Acheff spent in Taos, the more he started noticing the beauty inherent in the uniquely Southwestern artifacts that surrounded him. As he continued to develop his technique, he incorporated more and of more these objects into his work. For a long time, the Pat Shriver gallery, located in the building that currently houses the Taos Ale House, was his primary showing space. And in 1989, Acheff won his first prestigious award, the Prix de West. Every year, The National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, located in Oklahoma CIty, gives the award to an artist who exquisitely captures an aspect of Western culture, history or landscape. He won the award again in 2004. Acheff has never owned a gallery of his own, which is a conscious business decision on his part. He says when artists own galleries, other spaces are less inclined to show their work. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d rather have samples of his work in spaces across the country than confine all his work to one location. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Owning a gallery is a kiss of death,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to sit in a gallery all day, I want to be in a studio, painting.â&#x20AC;? Acheff says people should come to Taos if they want to get to know themselves. He says people come to Taos and often canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t
handle the silence and lack of distraction, which drives them to head back to bigger cities. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You can equate Taos to the self,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;In the big city, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s everyone.â&#x20AC;? Acheff values his time alone because it was essential in developing his sense of self and his award-winning artistic style â&#x20AC;&#x153;If you want to get to know yourself, you have to be alone,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You will be stronger because you will depend on yourself, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll know yourself.â&#x20AC;?
A painting from Acheffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s early years.
Bill Acheff in his Taos studio.
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“The way to overcome the angry man is with gentleness, the evil man with goodness, the miser with generosity and the liar with truth.” - Ancient Indian Proverb
Taos Pueblo War Chief, Samuel Gomez
Photo by Rick Romancito
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.
The Taos News
Page Title
2 0 1 3 t r a d i c i o n e s F T h e ta o s n e w s
Month X-X, 2010
Citizen of the Year and unsung heroes
Thirteenth Annual
Tradiciones celebraci贸n de nuestra gente
Photo by: Adam Schallau
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citizen of the year
2013
Citizen of the Year
Patricia Michaels
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By Joan Livingston
hen the first challenge on the TV reality show Project Runway was to create New Yorkinspired fashion, Taos Pueblo designer Patricia Michaels thought of the artistic women from that city who found themselves in New Mexico. On a harbor boat ride, Michaels recalled the windows Georgia O’Keeffe painted in her cityscapes and the linear simplicity of Agnes Martin’s paintings. Her interpretation was a dress with sleek urban lines and fabric handpainted with a soft geometric pattern. “Everybody was wondering, ‘Who was this Indian girl?’ She doesn’t have anything to offer to the world. Where does she come from? She doesn’t have any concept of fashion or art,’ ” she said. “Then, when I went on the stage and started talking about all these brilliant, successful women, this is what (judge and designer) Zac Posen said, ‘I think we have a woman for a woman’s voice here.’ ” Michaels made news when she became the first American Indian contestant on the Lifetime Television show. But week after week she persevered with artistic garments and innovative textiles that pushed the bound-
aries of what people might expect from an American Indian designer. It’s a stereotype she has worked hard to overcome during her career. In the end Michaels was first runner-up for season 11. She says being on Project Runway brought her great exposure, and importantly, enabled her to be an example for Indian youth. And for her creativity and the positive attention she brought to Taos — and in particular, Taos Pueblo — Patricia “Water Lily” Michaels was chosen Citizen of the Year.
Trendsetter The day after Michaels was born, her mother brought her to the opening of the family’s Santa Fe gallery and laid her on Navajo rugs, an auspicious start in life. Her father, Eddie Michaels, of Polish heritage
“Everybody was wondering, ‘Who was this Indian girl? She doesn’t have anything to offer to the world. Where does she come from? She doesn’t have any concept of fashion or art.’ ” Photos by Tina Larkin F The Taos News
Citizen of the Year: Patricia Michaels Past Heroes and selection committee Fabi Romero: For all the right reasons ‘Father Bill’ a comfort and blessing Firefighters rely on training and passion Profiles: Tina Larkin and Tony Jojola
Contents
2 8 10 12 17 20
21 24 26 28 30
Cynthia Burt: Paying it back Maria Cintas: Leading by example JoAnn Ortiz: Doing what she enjoys Edy Anderson: A lineage of caring Effie Romero: Friend to Talpa artists
Staff
Robin Martin, Owner Chris Baker, Publisher n Joan Livingston, Editor Chris wood, Advertising Manager andy jones, Special Sections Editor Marilyn M. Olsen, Designer virginia l. clark, Copy Editor michelle M. gutierrez, Production Manager Cover design: marilyn M. Olsen Cover photographs: 2013 Citizen of the Year and Unsung Heroes, by Tina Larkin
Page Title citizen o f the year
The Taos News
2013
Michaels exhibited her fashion at a number of museum and art shows. Still, she kept encountering a pervasive question: “What’s so Native American about her clothes?” Her response was, “I’m Native American so that’s what is Native American about it.” from Wisconsin, made reproductions of Native American beadwork and quillwork. Her mother, Juanita Turley, is from Taos Pueblo. Michaels says she was fortunate her “fabulous stepfather” Frank Turley came into her life in fourth grade. She says Turley’s skill as a blacksmith inspired her four years later to work in silk. Why silk? Wool, cotton and leather had already been done in Native America, she says. Michaels, one of four children, grew up in Santa Fe but the family spent a great deal of time at Taos Pueblo. She sewed powwow dresses and ceremonial clothes for herself and family members, using her grandmother’s foot-operated sewing machine. When she was a teenager, she chose to live with her grandparents, Ben and Manuelita Marcus at the Pueblo. “I wanted to be fully educated about who I am,” she said. Her grandfather, Ben Marcus, was a tribal leader who gave her a wealth of knowledge. “He said I can’t leave without respecting who my people are.” Michaels went to Santa Fe High School during her senior year for its extensive art courses. She studied at the Institute of American
Indian Arts before going to the Chicago Art Institute. Her first show was in 1992. At the end, she said, Lloyd Kiva New, founder of the Institute of American Indian Arts, told her, “First Santa Fe and then Paris!” Michaels apprenticed with a tailor in Milan, Italy, and with two children in tow, headed to New York City’s garment district. Another career highlight was working with the W.K. Kellogg Foundation on two international cultural exchange shows for Native American and South African fashion designers and artists. As the featured artist for the Aboriginal Awards Festival, she showed at Toronto Fashion Week. Michaels exhibited her fashion at a number of museum and art shows. Still, she kept encountering a pervasive question: “What’s so Native American about her clothes?” Her response was, “I’m Native American so that’s what is Native American about it.” The year 2008 was a rough one in which her 16-year marriage to artist Tony Abeyta ended. She says her husband gave her an ultimatum: choose a career or marriage. “I said Michaels continues on page 4
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Month X-X, 2010
Congratulations on A JOB WELL DONE Patricia Michaels Citizen of the Year and
Unsung Heroes of Taos! I’m proud of the commitment and hard work you’ve put into achieving your goals.
2010, 2011, 2012, 2013
Wanda Lucero 575.737.5433 wandalucero.com
KEEPING TAOS IN THE DRIVER’S SEAT FOR 20 YEARS
Twenty years has passed like the blink of an eye. But one thing’s remained constant: we’re local folks taking care of our community. Thanks, Taos, for making us a part of your story. 1320 Paseo del Pueblo Sur, Taos 751.3200 www.cottam-walker-ford.com
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citizen of the year
Month X-X, 2010
2013
Michaels works in her studio on her famous hand-painted Eagle Feather silk scarfs.
Congratulations To Patricia Michaels & The Unsung Heroes Together You Make Taos a Better Place To Call Home Unde r New Own ershi p
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2013
citizen of the year
Month X-X, 2010
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Michaels continued from page 3
‘okay I choose career,’ ” she said. “It was the scariest decision I ever made.” It was also one that brought her a great deal of pain — “I cried for three years,” she said. Michaels headed to New York, where everthe-trend-setter, she was the first Native American to have a label at Fashion Week. She returned to Taos, continuing to do shows and filling orders for her loyal clients. Her garments took top honors at the Santa Fe Indian Market. And when she wasn’t working on her fashion, she assisted her companion, James Duran, with his construction jobs, plastering, mixing mud and sifting sand, building latilla fences — all to pay the bills. The call Michaels said she and Duran were living in Taos Pueblo last year and down to their last $40. She went to the Taos Public Library to use a computer to see if any clients had emailed her. Instead she had a message from a Project Runway casting agent who discovered her through a fashion website. She heard of the show but had never seen it so she used some of the $40 to rent two seasons. “I was saying, ‘Oh my god I love this. I could totally do this,’ ” she said. For a month, Michaels worked at the essay questions for the show’s lengthy application using the free computer time allotted each day by the library for its patrons. She didn’t tell anyone what she was doing. As part of the application process, she had
Michaels talks to a fan during a showcase opening at the Poeh Cultural Center and Museum. to send photos of her garments, undergo two psychological evaluations and an audition. She and Duran rented a car to drive to Dallas for the audition. Friends put them up — she and Duran slept on an air mattress in an over-heated antique shop. After the audition she was told to stick around in case she had a call back. So she contacted Ray Trotter, who owns R.B. Ravens
And when she wasn’t working on her fashion, she assisted her companion, James Duran, with his construction jobs, plastering, mixing mud and sifting sand, building latilla fences — all to pay the bills.
Michaels continues on page 6
“Without heroes, we are all plain people and don’t know how far we can go” ~Bernard Malamud
Photo by Megan Avina
Our Taos Lifestyle is special. We’re different. We draw on the roots of a thousandyear-old civilization at the base of Taos Mountain. We cherish the authentic. We revere natural beauty. And we live to create. Taos Lifestyle is proud to celebrate Patricia Michaels and all she’s done for our community. Patricia, you’re an inspiration; a heroine; our friend.
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The Taos News
citizen of the year
Month X-X, 2010
2013
Michaels continued from page 5
Gallery in Ranchos, to see if she could sell on-commission pieces of jewelry he had at a Dallas store. She also had paintings and powwow parasols to sell. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I made $185,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s enough for fast food and gas to get home.â&#x20AC;? The callback wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t necessary. She said Armando Thomas â&#x20AC;&#x153;Mondoâ&#x20AC;? Guerra, one of the judges and winner of Project Runway allstars, told her, â&#x20AC;&#x153;I wanted you to know right from the beginning it was a yes for me.â&#x20AC;? In June 2012 she learned she was to be one of the 16 contestants. She arrived July 1 in New York and stayed through the third week of August for the showâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s grueling production schedule. Contestants faced challenges such as creating a prom dress from Duck Brand duct tape or a breakaway outfit for a male stripper. She flew to Paris for one challenge â&#x20AC;&#x201D; remembering Kiva Newâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s prophetic words. There was the sniping by competitors. Michaels kept going. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I thought about plastering with James,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I told myself you can climb those stairs again. You can do this. I thought about the heat of summer holding a latilla on a bale of hay trying to find my balance after coming down from the mountain dragging a big latilla. Or filling out that application at the library.â&#x20AC;? Each morning she held her sonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s eagle feather as she prayed for all youth to appreciate, respect and embrace what their elders did before them. In the evening she thanked
Heroes Mariel Lovato - University College
Rudy Baca - BLA
â&#x20AC;&#x153;If you believe in yourself, anything is possible with the UNM Taos Bachelor and Graduate Program!â&#x20AC;?
Michaels during the opening at Poeh Museum and Cultural Center. her ancestors and elders for giving her this chance. As one of four finalists, Michaels returned to Taos to create a collection for MercedesBenz Fashion Week in New York. Tim Gunn, the contestantsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; mentor, arrived Dec. 19 at her live-in studio for a critique. Michaels was given $10,000 to spend but hesitated to start until Gunn gave his consent. When Gunn threw out her wool coats she had to rethink her collection and whom she was designing it for. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I said, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;I am making it for the world because finally American Indians get to have a voice,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;And this voice is going to happen now.â&#x20AC;? In one of the showâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s more memorable moments, Gunn joined her family for a traditional meal cooked by her sister Esther
A mannequin dressed in one of Michaelsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; designs.
TAOS Bachelor & Graduate Programs IU U Q U B P T C HQ V O N F E V t
Amber Ohlinger- ECME â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thank you to the UNM Taos Bachelor and Graduate Program for giving me this opportunity to complete my Bachelorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s degree and for contributing to my future!â&#x20AC;?
â&#x20AC;&#x153;While living and working in Taos, I was able to pursue Heidi Thorleifson - BLA my Bachelorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x153;Besides the amazing degree. The UNM caliber of instructors Taos Bachelor with the UNM Taos and Graduate Bachelor and Graduate Program offered Program, the age and the opportunity for me to be a role cultural diversity of the model for my kids, who are also in the students offers a unique program or have graduated.â&#x20AC;? university experience.â&#x20AC;?
David Lewis - MPA â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wonderful not to have to commute to Albuquerque to get a Masterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s degree.â&#x20AC;?
Sheila Shortell - BLA
â&#x20AC;&#x153;Higher education makes us more prepared to be a part of forming the future.â&#x20AC;?
Photo credits: Ian Sinon
Our Students are the Heroes!
Page Title
The Taos News
2013
citizen of the year
Fans admiring Michaelsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; work.
â&#x20AC;&#x153;Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s come from all of it, which is positive, is that I have gotten letters from the youth. They have said they are embracing their elders.â&#x20AC;?
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Month X-X, 2010
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Winter at her grandparentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; home in Taos Puebloâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s historic village. Michaels and her team of artisans, including Duran and her stepfather, got to work. The end result was a collection inspired by trees that features Michaelsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; fabric manipulations, silver and mica paillettes, horsehair, and of course, flowing silk. Her stunning blue frock, layered and glittery, and horsehair headpiece closed the show. Her family, including her children, Gabriel and Margeaux, now 23 and 16, were in the audience. No one outside the show knew Michelle Lesniak Franklin won. Michaels was contractually obligated to keep it a secret from family and fans at the local viewing parties she attended until the finale aired April 25. As the first runner-up Michaels didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t win any money but the attention, she says, is priceless. Moreover, the response to her success on Project Runway has been overwhelmingly positive with people in remote spots of the globe writing to say they were rooting for her. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s come from all of it, which is positive, is that I have gotten letters from the youth,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They have said they are embracing their elders. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve had youth come to the door with their grandparents. I have elderly men and women who pray and send me gifts of what they do and what they make. I have given them incentive not to give up.â&#x20AC;? Post-Project Runway, Michaels has been receiving orders for her fashion, particularly her signature eagle feather scarves; companies are calling for her advice. She has contract work from other designers and now is working toward a collection under her PM Water Lily Label for Fashion Week this coming February in New York.
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Past Heroes 2001 Citizen of the Year
Jeannie Masters Rosemarie Packard
Unsung Heroes Shelley Bahr Paul Bernal Beatríz Gonzáles Nancy Jenkins Ida Martínez Celina Salazar Larry Schreiber Stephen Wiard Fred Winter
2005 Citizen of the Year
Luis Reyes
2002 Citizen of the Year
Eloy Jeantete
Unsung Heroes Paulie Burt Martha Dick Shawn Duran Lucy Hines Palemón Martínez Theresa and Rúben Martínez Joleen Montoya Mary Olguin John Randall
Christina Masoliver Jake Mossman Sr. Nita Murphy
Art and Susan Bachrach
2009 Citizen of the Year
Unsung Heroes Mardoqueo Chacón Juan “Johnny” Devargas Carmen Lieurance Ernie and Frutoso López Roy Madrid Betsy Martínez Isabel Rendón Johnny Sisneros Dr. Bud Wilson
Unsung Heroes Billy and Theresa Archuleta Carolina Domínguez Eddie Grant Mary Trujillo Mascareñas Connie Ochoa Marie Reyna Lawrence Vargas Frank Wells
Rebeca Romero Rainey
2006 Citizen of the Year
2010 Citizen of the Year
Unsung Heroes Francisco Córdova Telesfor González John Holland Vishu Magee Juan Martínez Luís C. Martínez Becky Miera Gabriel Romero Snider Sloan
Unsung Heroes Candido Domínguez Esther García Michael Hensley Cherry Montaño Mish Rosette Patrick Romero Charlene Tamayó Feloniz Trujillo Malinda Williams
2007 Citizen of the Year
2011 Citizen of the Year
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 Torréz
Unsung Heroes Benjie Apodaca Patrick Delosier Cyndi Howell Chavi Petersen Mary Alice Winter Siena Sanderson Alipio Mondragón
Tony Reyna
2008 Citizens of the Year
Unsung Heroes Charlie Anderson Connie Archuleta Stephen Cetrulo Victor Chávez Ernestine and Francis Córdova Clay Farrell Dee Lovato
Unsung Heroes Crestina Armstrong Mario Barela Art Coca Mike Concha Rose Cordova Jeanelle Livingston
Unsung Heroes Marilyn Farrow Dennis Hedges Pat Heinen Judy Hofer Phyllis Nichols Loretta Ortiz y Pino Dolly Peralta Lillian Romero
2003 Citizens of the Year
Nick and Bonnie Branchal
Unsung Heroes Richard Archuleta Elizabeth Gilmore Bruce Gomez Jane Mingenbach Patty Mortenson and Terry Badhand Cynthia Rael-Vigil Guadalupe Tafoya Bernie Torres Ted Wiard 2004 Citizen of the Year
Jenny Vincent
Jake Mossman Jr.
Cid and Betty Backer
Vishu Magee
Jim Fambro
2012 Citizens of the Year
Mary and Jim Gilroy
Andy Jones
Community help crucial to selection of Unsung Heroes
F
or the past 12 years, The Taos News has annually honored a group of citizens who have made great contributions to the community, under the radar, so to speak. These Unsung Heroes are usually behind the scenes working to create a better Taos County. So how do we go about finding a group of people who seek neither credit nor acknowledgement? For that task, we gather another group of citizens, including notable members of the community (some are past Unsung Heroes and Citizens of the Year) for our annual Tradiciones focus group. Each spring, this committee of citizens convenes on The Taos News offices to nominate candidates to become Unsung Heroes, and Citizens of the Year. The 2013 committee included: Elizabeth Crittenden Palacios, Mary Gilroy, Eloy Jeantete, Stella Mares McGinnis, Kate O’Neill, Dolly Peralta, Kathleen Michaels, Esther García, Shawn Duran, Brian Greer, Gabriel Romero and Michael Trujillo As special sections editor, I attended to take notes. Publisher Chris Baker, editor Joan Livingston and advertising manager Chris Wood were the other members of The Taos News staff in attendance. However, none of the staff members present participated in the selection process during the focus group.
That said, the newspaper’s management team was responsible for the final selection of the Citizen of the Year, chosen from nominees presented by the members of the focus group. Committee members were asked to provided their nominations, first, for Citizen of the Year, and then for Unsung Heroes. Crittenden Palacios facilitated the meeting, calling on each member to submit a name, in a round-table fashion. Each member was expected to provide compelling evidence to backup their selections. Outside of the committee and The Taos News staff the identity of the Citizen of the Year is kept secret until the night of the Tradiciones banguet, which this year was held on Oct. 9. The Unsung Heroes and Citizen of the Year are featured in the final segment of Tradiciones (a four-part series of publications that includes Leyendas, Raíces and Artes as well) known as Heroes. The cultural significance this series of publications has for the community makes Tradiciones my favorite project of the year. The entire staff of The Taos News wants to thank the 2013 Tradiciones selection committee for helping make this section possible. — Andy Jones, special sections editor
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Fabi Romero has made water and land issues the focal point of her activism since returning to New Mexico.
Fabi Romero
A troublemaker for all the right reasons
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By J.R. Logan
abi Romero has been called plenty of names in her life. Leftist. Radical. Communist. Troublemaker. But perhaps the most appropriate moniker is “fearless.” “I think I was born without the fear gene,” Romero says. “Because I’m not afraid of anything. What is there to be afraid of?”
Fabi Romero, tending to one of her horses. Romero’s transition back to life in New Mexico wasn’t always easy, but she’s made the most of it.
She’s irritated plenty of elected officials, but she’s won the hearts of regular citizens who admire her willingness to speak truth to power.
From humble roots in the San Cristóbal valley, Romero left home to join the ’60s vanguard in the struggle for women’s rights, only to return to her native village where she’s been standing up to powerful politicians and fighting for land and water for decades. Whatever her cause, Romero brings a quick wit, a wealth of knowledge and brutal honesty to the battle. She’s irritated plenty of elected officials, but she’s won the hearts of regular citizens who admire her willingness to speak truth to power. Born in 1938, Romero was the seventh in a line of 11 brothers and sisters. The family lived in a small home in San Cristóbal, where they eked out a mostly subsistence existence. Growing up, her father was almost always in Wyoming where he tended sheep, leaving her mother to raise the children and care for their farm. “The people in this valley talk about my mother doing both the work of a man and a woman,” Romero says. “She used to plow the fields with a horse-drawn plow, she dried and she canned. She did everything that she had to do to keep us fed.” Her mother also wasn’t shy. Romero remembers school meetings where parents would get together, and she says her mother was never reluctant to speak her mind. “She’d make speeches and make comments and ask questions,” Romero remembers. “I used to be
Photos by Tina Larkin F The Taos News
humiliated because all of the other mothers sat quietly by their husbands, and my mother had to open her mouth.” While she and her siblings were expected to pitch in on farm chores, Romero also sated her intellectual curiosity by pouring over books in the library of her neighbor, Craig Vincent, who Romero calls “a very educated, very lefty guy.” The ideas Romero pulled from that library planted the seeds for an ultra-progressive attitude with an emphasis on social justice. She doubts other kids her age were writing lengthy papers on the death of the Rosenbergs, or on the Brown vs. the Kansas Board of Education Supreme Court decision. Romero was brought up with a strong work ethic, a sweeping education, and notions that women were every bit as capable as men. So it’s probably not surprising that she wouldn’t have been satisfied marrying young and sticking around the valley her entire life to raise a family. “I grew up thinking that there was another world,” Romero says. “I always wanted to go somewhere.” Out of high school, Romero managed to score a job with an airline and soon went by herself to make a life in New York City. “It was the most exciting thing in the world,” Romero says. “I remember my first subway ride. I went down the stairs and I realized there were more people on that platform than there were in all of Taos County.” Romero says New York gave her a newfound sense of anonymity that was incredibly liberating. She went to the movies. She went to bookstores. She dated. She drank. “Coming from a fish bowl community where everybody knew everything your
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Fabi Romero continued to work for positive change when she returned to New Mexico, after 22 years in New York, during which time she was a prominent voice for women’s rights.
Romero’s radio commentaries were renowned for biting jabs at goofy politicos who were hiring cousins, firing political foes and generally abusing their office.
grandparents had done back six or seven generations, and everybody kept watch on you and told your brothers or parents, in New York I thought, ‘I could walk naked down this street and do somersaults and no one would even look.’” New York offered more than fun. The city was also on the leading edge of social change and women’s rights, and Romero dove in head-first. She became an active in the New York Radical Feminists, organizing “speakouts” where women would bring attention to issues that mattered to them. “We had speakouts where hundreds and hundreds of women came and spoke about their experiences with illegal abortions,” Romero says, noting that the
Radical Feminists were part of the push to have abortion legalized in New York. “We had a speakout on marriage. On childhood. Incest. Motherhood. Prostitution. Rape. Any institution that impacted women.” Romero was also a co-owner of Womenbooks, a bookstore focusing in female-centric literature. She married and had a son, Kim, whom she would bring back to New Mexico to visit family from time to time. Flying home from one of those trips, Romero says her son asked her what a cousin was. “It dawned on me that he didn’t have family,” Romero says. “He didn’t have any group that he knew he came from like I had. So as much as I hated to leave New York, I felt like it was time to come back.” After 22 years in the city, the transition was hard. Her son hated New Mexico, and Romero says she missed the stimulus of cosmopolitan life. To help fill the void, she returned to activism. “I started with land and water issues, and that’s pretty much what I’ve stuck with,” Romero says. She became a member of the domestic water system board and got active with valley’s acequia commission. She’s now working to establish a volunteer fire district in San Cristóbal to protect the community from the growing threat of wildfire. Romero also became a reporter. “I used to do news and commentary, so I had to attend a lot of meetings,” Romero says.
Month X-X, 2010
“It was amazing the stuff you saw happen in those meetings. What [the politicians] were doing was so incredibly stupid. At a lot of the meetings, sometimes I’d have to leave the room out of anger or out of laughter.” Romero’s radio commentaries were renowned for biting jabs at goofy politicos who were hiring cousins, firing political foes and generally abusing their office. Listeners would tune in religiously to hear Romero’s distinct take on local issues. While she’s not afraid to take shots at the powerful, she says the approach to activism in Taos is completely different from that of New York. “I’ve learned to work differently with the acequias and the domestic water systems,” Romero says. “I’ve learned to work on a smaller scale. A more intimate scale. It’s more challenging because there’s so many personalities involved. In New York you could tell someone they were full of [it]. Here you don’t do that. These are people you’re going to live with for the rest of your life.” Relatively speaking, Romero still stands out from the crowd. She still makes family members nervous when she asks visiting politicians about public policy issues. “They see it as me causing trouble or embarrassing them when we’re all just trying to have a nice party,” Romero says. “I see it as my duty. These are the people running our country, and that means they’re running our lives. And they need to be questioned.”
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Father William Hart McNichols
A comfort and a blessing
F
By Joan Livingston
ather William Hart McNichols, or Father Bill as he is affectionately known, recalls sitting in geometry class when he heard the message he should be a Jesuit priest. A high school sophomore at the time, he was stunned. He stayed at his desk after the bell rang and a new class came into the room.
McNichols is both an artist and a priest. He celebrates the holy with his icons. He comforts those who suffer.
“When I heard it, I knew it was real,” he said. McNichols questioned whether he should be a Jesuit, an order he says is on a high level of intellectual pursuit and ability. “I wanted to be an artist,” he said. “God was asking me to be a priest.” McNichols is both an artist and a priest. He celebrates the holy with his icons. He comforts those who suffer. For 14 years, as a priest at San Francisco de Asís church in Ranchos de Taos, he touched the lives of so many, regardless of their religion. It is for McNichols’ compassion and creativity he was selected as an Unsung Hero. Such an honor is especially fitting since Father Bill departed this summer for an Albuquerque parish. Early influences McNichols, who is 64, says the dominant influences in his Denver childhood were poli-
Photos by Tina Larkin F The Taos News
tics and Catholicism. His father, Stephen, was a Colorado state representative when he was born. By the time McNichols was in second grade his father was governor. His grandfather was city auditor for Denver. McNichols noted at the time Colorado was one of the top states for the Ku Klux Klan. “They burned a cross on my grandfather’s lawn for being Catholic and running for city auditor,” he recalled. “At one time the mayor and governor were Klan. For Dad to win governor as a Catholic was extraordinary.” His mother, Marjory Hart McNichols, loved people, especially her family, which included five children. She had a deep inborn faith and a strong devotion to Mary the Blessed Mother. “She always called her that,” he said. “That’s why I call her that.” As a youth, he received a Catholic education. He was the boy who collected cards of the saints and knew by heart the patron saint of each day. He was an altar server but says he
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With the support of the Jesuits, McNichols worked with the AIDS Hospice team of St. Vincent’s Hospital in Manhattan. received a master of fine arts from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Iziah Romero, 6, of Taos Pueblo gives Father William Hart McNichols a blessing at a send-off reception on Aug. 19, at Holy Trinity Parish Hall in Arroyo Seco. wasn’t very good at it because he is “dyslexic about directions.” After his father dissuaded him from going into the seminary, McNichols went to college for one year. Again he heard the message to be a Jesuit while he was painting. The next year, he went to the seminary in Florissant, Mo. He was ordained as a Roman Catholic priest by Archbishop James Casey, in Denver, May 25, 1979. McNichols studied philosophy, theology and art at St. Louis University, Boston College, Boston University, and Weston School of Theology in Cambridge, Mass. In 1983 he
Working with AIDS patients McNichols said about the time he graduated from Pratt, AIDS — then called GRID for Gay-Related Immune Deficiency — was in the news. He received a call from Dignity, a Catholic gay organization, requesting he say Mass for people with AIDS. He had just finished reading a book about Father Damien, who worked with lepers in Hawaii, and given the hysteria then surrounding AIDS, he saw a connection. “I knew when I got the call, this was not just a Mass,” he said. Afterward, McNichols was approached by people who asked that he help people they knew who had AIDS. The first man he visited was so weak his caregiver fed him drops of orange juice from a straw. With the support of the Jesuits, McNichols worked with the AIDS Hospice team of St. Vincent’s Hospital in Manhattan. He met with people of all faiths and learned about their beliefs. Sometimes he saw patients for only one visit, sometimes a week or a year. “I wanted to talk with them,” he said. “This was the very end of their lives.” Father Bill continues on page 14
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Father Bill continued from page 13
The ministry took its toll on McNichols. After seven years, the Jesuits said he had to stop. He could do anything else he wanted. New Mexico McNichols moved to Albuquerque in 1990 to apprentice with Robert Lentz, an iconographer who brings all the races into his art, such as a Navajo Mary or a Black Christ. During his time in New York, McNichols continued his art, illustrating 25 books, mostly for children for the Paulist Press. In Albuquerque, he took three lessons a week for six years with Lentz. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I believed in his multiracial approach to holiness,â&#x20AC;? he said. Father Tim MartĂnez, then pastor of San Francisco de AsĂs in Ranchos de Taos, contacted McNichols to create a painting of the historic churchâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s patron saint receiving stigmata â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the wounds of the crucified Christ. After the painting was completed, Archbishop Michael Sheehan gave him permission to stay in Ranchos indefinitely. His work in the Taos area was again to help those who suffer. He says he could look out into the congregation and know just about each person had a major tragedy in their life. â&#x20AC;&#x153;These people have been through so much,â&#x20AC;? he said. Likewise McNichols says the depth of faith â&#x20AC;&#x201D; over 500 years old â&#x20AC;&#x201D; is greater than any other place he has been. Two years after being at Ranchos, McNichols decided his practice, as the Buddhists put it, was â&#x20AC;&#x153;to listen to anybody where I am.â&#x20AC;? McNichols said he found himself getting stopped by people, even at the grocery store. Perhaps they attended one of the funerals he conducted.
Father McNichols hugs a well-wisher at his Aug. 18 reception. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I try to be a brother to all the religions, to offer and sit with anybody who wanted,â&#x20AC;? he said. He continues to create art, notably icons, of saints, martyrs, and even modern people of note such as Princess Diana. Many of his icons can be found in public places, including churches across the U.S. and in Europe, including the Vatican Museum. Mirabai Starr, a Taos author, translator and teacher, collaborated with McNichols on a book, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Mother of God Similar to Fire,â&#x20AC;? using his icons and her reflections.
Mirabai Starr, a Taos author, translator and teacher, collaborated with McNichols on a book, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Mother of God Similar to Fire,â&#x20AC;? using his icons and her reflections.
Father Bill continues on page 16
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Father Bill continued from page 14
Starr says she remembers hearing about “an incredible new priest at Ranchos.” When she invited him to speak at her world religion class at UNM-Taos, he brought slides of his icons and spoke about the mystics. It was clear, Starr said, they were kindred souls despite their different religious affiliations. “We became spiritual companions in a profound way,” she said. Pat Delozier, a deacon at San Francisco de Asís who worked closely with McNichols, said people responded to him very well, especially the teenagers. “He is probably the most spiritual man I’ve been around,” he said. McNichols created a stir when he was interviewed by Time magazine in May 2002 on the topic of clerical abuse against children. He told the reporter he was enraged priests would prey on children, but being gay does not make one a pedophile. “I felt I had to stand up for gay people and gay priests,” he said. “It turned into a huge thing.” While local people and fellow Jesuits were supportive, he says some people were not. He says he “spoke only for myself” but he ended up leaving the order after 35 years. The archbishop granted McNichols permission to stay at San Francisco de Asís. McNichols says if Pope Francis held that position then, he believes he would still be
Father Bill McNichols and his sister.
a Jesuit. The pope broke ranks when he told reporters in July he would not judge priests if they were gay. Changes Last year, McNichols had a health scare when his heart collapsed in what is called broken heart syndrome. He has since recovered. He says he feels his heart was broken literally by watching the doings of the Catholic Church’s hierarchy in Rome, the elitism he says was prevalent. He says that has changed with Pope Francis, for whom the model of the priest is not to be an administrator but a brother to people, to walk among them. Corina Santistevan, a parishioner, said she admires McNichols for his character and courage. “He is a man among men,” she said Gabriel Romero, a county commissioner and parishioner, says McNichols stands out as an extraordinary priest, one who is beloved by the people of Ranchos. “We were fortunate to have him as many years as we did,” Romero said. McNichols’ stay at Ranchos ended last August. He helped at the Holy Trinity Church in Arroyo Seco before moving to St. Joseph on the Río Grande in Albuquerque. An Aug. 18 reception at Holy Trinity’s Parish Hall drew hundreds of well-wishers. So, what will Father Bill miss the most about Taos? The people, of course, he says. “They’ve become a family to me,” he said.
He told the reporter he was enraged priests would prey on children, but being gay does not make one a pedophile. ‘I felt I had to stand up for gay people and gay priests,’ he said. ‘It turned into a huge thing.’
A special
THANK YOU
to all The Heroes at Taos Mountain Casino for all they do to make Playing and Winning A Pleasure! Yvonne C. Trujillo Andy N Cardenas Ryan Chavez Joni Costello Amy Duran Johnny Gallegos Linda Mirabal Arsene Thompson Diane Montoya Robert Palmer George Ware Nina Apodaca Sage M. Yardley Erissa Concha Vickie Cordova Susana Correa Sara Elarton Bernadette Garcia Rachel Haney Daniel Padilla Patricia S Hayes Michael Kopepassah Annette Maestas Miguel Montoya June Riddle Florence Giron Terrie M Perez Ruby Romancito June R Romero Patrick A. Trujillo
Antonio Aguilera Maria Arellano Debbie Duran John Gonzales John Shourt Orlando Gonzales Belma Joseph Justina Montoya Jose Munoz Christopher Record John Rodarte Rena Rodriquez Paula Trujillo Frederick Roybal Elizabeth L Archuleta Lucy Archuleta Eliazar Arreola Annie J Mirabal Clorinda Mondragon
Henry Samora Jennifer Welty June R. Vigil Norbert Garcia Michael Weaver Reynaldo Gonzalez Joseph Martinez Elmer Young Matilda Garcia Stephanie Appa Patty Garcia Alma Gomez Thomas J Lujan Jose Marquez Melissa Martinez Ethel Trujillo Leroy Archuleta
John Fernandez Marcelino “Ted” Lovato Patsy Fresquez Isaac Garcia Michael Gonzales Anthony Knitter Larissa Martinez Lawrence Martinez Alfred J Montoya Sr Amelia Maestas Jesus Ramirez Jesse Ramos Crucita Romero Everett Romero Cynthia Arellano Gabreil Romero Fidencio Sanchez Victor Tenorio Manuel Trujillo
Joshua Vaughn Sergio Arellano Maryann Casias Ben Gasco Mario Jeantette Joyce Lujan Barbara Mondragon Anderson R Romero Danielle Suazo Miriam Vigil Margaret Appa Jarrott DeMarrias Joann Archuleta Nora M Concha Marie F Svenningsen Michael Bozzuto Vanessa Brito-Ayres Daniella Cohn Gary Fournier Kay Gregory Andrew Medina Lael Knowles Serena Lucero Sara Martinez Dennis Mascarenas Holly Swallow David Meyer Yvonne Millard Connie Romero Jerome Romero
2013
HEROES
Josh Casali and Mark Ortega.
Questa firefighting duo relies on training, passion for the job
I
By Andrew Oxford
t has been a busy year for the Questa Fire Department. “Record busting” is how Deputy Chief Mark Ortega described it. “You can’t point your finger at it and say it has just been an increase in accidents or falls. It’s across the board,” Ortega said one August morning as he returned to the department’s spartan station on State Road 518 after transporting a local resident to Taos for medical treatment. “Last year, we did 450 calls,” the deputy chief said, projecting the department’s volunteers and handful of paid staff would respond to about 550 emergencies in the county’s northern reaches by the end of 2013. “Something has changed,” emergency medical technician and firefighter Josh Casali said. “We are not sure what it is. People are getting hurt a lot. There are more fires out because of the dry weather.” Winter is expected to be even busier, he added, when roads turn icy. Casali and Ortega, Questa Fire Department’s only full-time staff, are certain they can keep up — and that is not just firehouse bravado. “I like challenges,” Casali said as he explained what endeared him to working in a rural community. The Cimarrón native began his firefighting career with the Enchanted Circle Fire Chasers in the fall of 2007. Casali was living in Red River at the time, working odd jobs. When a friend suggested he join the seasonal wildFirefighters continues on page 18
Casali and Ortega, Questa Fire Department’s only full-time staff, are certain they can keep up — and that is not just firehouse bravado.
Questa firefighters Josh Casali, left, and Mark Ortega saved a man’s life this past summer.
Photos by Tina Larkin F The Taos News
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Congratulations to all the Unsung Heroes that make Taos such an extraordinary place to live.
UNM-Taos
Proudly celebrating our ten year tradition of service to Taos County as a branch of the University of New Mexico
, s n o i t a l u t a r g Con Unsung ! s e o r He
2The0Taos 1 N3ews
Firefighters continued from page 17
land firefighting crew, he took the opportunity and drew on an interest he had since childhood. â&#x20AC;&#x153;When I was a kid, I always had an interest in law enforcement, fire and EMS,â&#x20AC;? Casali said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Of course, back then, it was all about the lights.â&#x20AC;? Fighting blazes across New Mexico, Arizona and California, he proved his interest was more than just a boyhood fantasy. Casali advanced in rank from lineman to Type B Sawyer â&#x20AC;&#x201D; a firefighter trained in cutting down trees in the midst of a forest blaze. Though tough work, at least one incident demonstrated his devotion to the mission. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Back in 2010, we were fighting a fire over in the CimarrĂłn Canyon, which is one of the steeper terrains,â&#x20AC;? Casali recounted. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We were coming down one night around 10:30. When traveling on rocks and uneven terrain, it really gets difficult.â&#x20AC;? The descent was made all the more difficult when his headlamp went out. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My foot found a rock,â&#x20AC;? is how Casali described a fall that injured his ankle. A colleague carried his pack â&#x20AC;&#x201D; more than 100 pounds of equipment â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and Casali hobbled the remaining mile to camp. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I never went and got it checked out. Me
and hospitals â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been there way too much when I was a kid,â&#x20AC;? he said. A paramedic told him he had overextended something though it was not clear what. It was suggested he ship out that night but Casali insisted on sleeping off his injury. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Next day I was walking around the camp completely fine,â&#x20AC;? he recounted. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I made it 15 feet up the hill when my ankle gave in again.â&#x20AC;? That was the last blaze Casali fought with the Enchanted Circle Fire Chasers. After another year as a volunteer in Red River, he moved to Questa and was quickly embraced by the local fire department. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I started as a part-time paid employee for EMS,â&#x20AC;? Casali said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Then, after awhile, they had another meeting and got me a position of a full-time EMT and firefighter.â&#x20AC;? In the meantime, Casali said he has seized opportunities to train in everything from structure firefighting to extrication and handling hazardous materials. So what keeps him in Questa? â&#x20AC;&#x153;I probably wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t mind city work,â&#x20AC;? Casali said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The thing I like particularly about rural areas is there arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t very many people that have the training to do the job.â&#x20AC;? Filling that need felt like a good fit, he added. His partner, Ortega, grew up around the fire station.
In the meantime, Casali said he has seized opportunities to train in everything from structure firefighting to extrication and handling hazardous materials.
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The Taos News
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HEROES
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Josh Casali, second from left, and Mark Ortega, right, fraternize with their fellow Questa firefighters.
“My dad’s been in the department since I was a little, little kid,” the deputy chief said. After studying in Albuquerque to become an educator, Ortega returned to his native Questa and began volunteering at the department. “I missed the mountains,” he said. Ortega described the department he joined as completely different from the one it is today. “We were just fire,” he recalled. With the leadership of volunteers like Ortega, the department sought to broaden its mission to include emergency medical services. “I saw the need for that and started taking classes and began to enjoy EMS,” the deputy chief said. In 2005, Ortega was tapped to become Questa’s first paid firefighter and emergency medical technician. The duo’s training in responding to medical emergencies proved life-saving in April when a crewman employed by a Clovis-based
contractor was electrocuted by 7,200 volts as he performed maintenance work on a powerline near the village. Ortega and Casali were first on the scene. “One of the things they pound into your head when you’re in EMS school is to always expect the worst and work up from there,” Casali said. “We were expecting a worst-case scenario and when we got there, that is exactly what it was.” Having worked on maintenance crews in a previous job at Kit Carson Electric Cooperative, the incident was personal for Ortega. “I worked with a couple guys — one while I was working there — who got electrocuted,” he said. “It kind of hit home for me because I know a bunch of guys who do that same job.” When the duo reached the electrical crew, both said training kicked in. Ortega ran up to check the wounded crewman while Casali retrieved a defibrillator from the fire department’s ambulance. Several jolts resuscitated the man whose
Though it was a dramatic incident, the team attributed the success of their response to training and preparedness. ‘You don’t have time to think,’ Ortega reflected. “You just go and do.” heart had stopped when the team first arrived. With the aid of Casali and Ortega, the crewman was flown to a hospital in Albuquerque for further treatment where he survived despite losing both arms. Though it was a dramatic incident, the team attributed the success of their response to training and preparedness. “You don’t have time to think,” Ortega reflected. “You just go and do.”
The duo’s training in responding to medical emergencies proved life-saving in April when a crewman employed by a Clovis-based contractor was electrocuted by 7,200 volts as he performed maintenance work on a powerline near the village.
Mark Ortega and Josh Casali on the job in Questa.
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HEROES
Bear fetish the symbol of the Unsung Hero
I
n 2001, The Taos News unveiled the first Tradiciones series, focusing on the roots and traditions of Taos in an in-depth manner that would be nearly impossible to accomplish in the weekly newspaper. The final installment of the series every year is the Heroes publication, which features our Unsung Heroes and the Citizen of the Year. Two prominent characteristics of our Heroes on an annual basis are passion and wisdom. As was the case in 2001, The Taos News will once again award the honorees with beautiful glass bear fetishes crafted by Isleta Pueblo Indian Tony Jojola. Jojola has said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;To a lot of American Indians [the bear] has a lot of meaning, about strength and courage, power and wisdom â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Â a lot of attributes of the hero.â&#x20AC;? Bear fetishes are unique in the culture of New Mexicoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s American Indian Pueblos, and according to Zuni mythology, the bear fetish is the guardian of the West, with power to heal and transform human passions into wisdom. Jojola made his first bear fetishes in 1986, nearly 15 years before they would become the symbol of the Unsung Hero. The artist has worked with glass
since 1975, when he was a student at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe. Jojola also studied at Haystack Mt. School of Crafts in Maine, on a scholarship as an artist in residency. From there, he went on to intern with famous glass artist Dale Chihuly, whose team of glass artists Jojola was talented enough to join full time. The artist came to Taos in 1996 to teach at the Taos Glass Arts studio at Taos Economic Development Corp. He has also worked as a senior instructor at Chihulyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Hilltop Artists program in Tacoma, Wash. Chris Baker, publisher of The Taos News, and creator of the Tradiciones series, says itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s always a pleasure to see the bears in homes and on desks around town. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The recipients always tell me the same thing, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;I have received a lot of awards and honors, but being named a hero is on the top of that list.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; This is a special award,â&#x20AC;? Baker says. An artist of international acclaim, Jojolaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s works can be found in the permanent collections at the Denver Art Museum and the Heard Museum in Arizona.
2013
Courtesy Photo
Tina Larkin, with the tools of her trade.
Capturing the heart and soul of Tradiciones
B
y virtue, Tradiciones is about stories; the stories of the people, places and traditions that make Taos County a unique place in a world that utterly lacks uniqueness. But none of the stories that comprise Leyendas, RaĂces, Artes and Heroes would be complete without the photography of Tina Larkin Those who have been the subject of one of Larkinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s photo shoots can attest that she takes a lot of photos, working hard to find the right pose to capture the honesty and integrity of the subject at hand. Those individuals who she has photographed can also attest to the fact that she manages to make them feel completely at ease and comfortable in the midst of this shutter-clicking barrage. Larkin is without a doubt one of the most overworked people in all of Taos County. She goes from
assignment to assignment, all over the area, with the same mental approach for each shot. Whether itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s news, features, special sections or advertising, sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s always committed to getting the most honest photo possible. A California native, Larkin has been with The Taos News for nearly five years. During that time, she has put together an impressive portfolio, as artistic as it is journalistic. Her biggest ally in this quest has been the famous Taos light. Larkin says she always tries to schedule her shoots around light (with the exception of breaking news, of course). She uses available light as much as possible and only very rarely uses a flash or artificial light if itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s absolutely neccessary. So as you read this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tradiciones, consider how these images make the stories move. Without Larkin, it wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be possible. â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Andy Jones, special sections editor
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Cynthia Burt volunteering at the â&#x20AC;&#x153;wacky bubblesâ&#x20AC;? booth during this past summerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Touch-A-Truck event.
Cynthia Burt
Paying it back, and then some
C
By Rick Romancito
ynthia Burt is known as a real go-getter. She is one of those rare and dependable people who is ready to chip in when there is a need, whether it be a community or family event (really, though, she considers many people part of her extended family). Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s probably why she was chosen as one of this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Unsung Heroes.
Burt with close friend Josepha Cruz.
â&#x20AC;&#x153;Oh, I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know, you just get into things that you enjoy doing,â&#x20AC;? she said when asked how she finds time for all her activities. â&#x20AC;&#x153;If I say, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;yes,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m there.â&#x20AC;?
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Each year, The Taos News coordinates a community effort to recognize those individuals who go out of their way to selflessly help others. These typically are people who do it because itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not only the right thing to do, but they do it without expectation of reward or acclaim. Burt is one of these people. She served as the first president of the Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Division of the Taos County Chamber of Commerce, and worked with organizations such as Taos Clean and Beautiful, Community Against Violence, the Skating Club, the Girl Scouts, Taos Fiestas and at the Taos Youth and Family Centerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s annual Touch-A-Truck event. Sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also been involved with the Wild Easter and Fish Fiesta celebrations. But, thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s only scratching the surface. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Oh, I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know, you just get into things
that you enjoy doing,â&#x20AC;? she said when asked how she finds time for all her activities. â&#x20AC;&#x153;If I say, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;yes,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m there.â&#x20AC;? As for volunteerism, one would think she came from a background where it was avidly encouraged, but pitching in just came naturally. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My folks volunteered seven kids,â&#x20AC;? she says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;So I would say it basically started there, because I grew up with not only five brothers and a sister, but a whole lot of other guys and some girls. There was always something going on.â&#x20AC;? Like many, when Burt landed here 47 years ago (she was working her way through school in Estes Park, Colo.), she instantly fell in love with Taos and its people. Gone were her plans Burt continues on page 22
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Burt continued from page 21
for college and a different career. She was embraced by a community that recognized something special in her character. But, of course, it has its quirks. She said her late husband Gordon Burt once told her that since she was new to the community here, “you can observe for the first 15 years or so. Then, after about 20 years, you can start giving your opinion.” She laughed as she said this, but offered seriously that “it was good advice.” She met him, incidentally, one day after she arrived in Taos. He asked her to take a ride in his new car. That was “the beginning of a journey that lasted 43 years,” according to a statement following his passing in 2009. Actually, she said she had a hard time being recognized for a while in Taos, but she said all that could change in a second if she mentioned that her husband was “Pauly’s brother.” Longtime locals may remember the late Pauly Burt, a developmentally challenged Taoseño who used to sell The Taos News on the street for decades and was well-known around town. “Sometimes he’d go off on one of his rants and I’d say ‘What are you doing?’ and he’d just laugh and quit,” she said. “Pauly was a master, he always blew me away. He was quite an incredible person. Of course, a lot of people don’t understand that one, and with our kids I raised them to highly respect him.” A retired reflexologist, Burt said she is actually more busy now than before. But,
2013
“We’re all humans and we all are here together and we should make the best of it.” she does have time now to do home canning, furniture refinishing, working in her garden, and planning for the upcoming skating season. Her biggest joy, though, is working with youth. “Sorry, but adults have already had their chance, and if I can make a difference in a child’s life one way or another” their lives can move forward enriched. “The kids truly are fantastic.” In some ways, Burt may be quietly repaying goodwill that has been extended to her in the past. “When I needed help, there was always someone there.” While in Taos, Cynthia Burt has found a real home and family, things everyone desires to be happy. She said that when she first arrived here, the people she met and the way things were here made her believe this was it. “I was on my way back to Michigan State (on a visit to a brother who had recently relocated here) and the people here were just so fantastic. This was where I wanted to live and I just had to figure out how to make it work.” So, she has and we’re all the better for it. “We’re all humans and we all are here together and we should make the best of it.” That’s just the way it is with her.
Burt in her home’s solar room.
Burt can be happy anywhere, even while hanging the laundry out to dry.
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Maria Cintas, center, with a group of volunteers working on the restoration of Questa’s San Antonio de Padua church.
Maria Cintas
Questa teacher leads by example By Elizabeth Cleary
M
aria Cintas’s message to her students is simple: Just because you’re from Questa doesn’t mean you can’t be someone. For this Questa High School teacher, when the dismissal bell rings at 3 p.m., her day is only just beginning. Cintas, who teaches 10th, 11th and 12th grade English, also serves as the honor society adviser, is active in a local program called Community Build, volunteers with her church, acts as the football and baseball “mother” and coordinates blood drives. She’s also a mom to four children.
Maria Cintas inside the San Antonio de Padua Catholic Church in Questa. Cintas has been involved as a fundraiser for the church’s restoration efforts.
Not surprisingly, Cintas, a Questa native, said managing her time is often a challenge. But for her, giving back to the community in which she was born and raised is the most worthwhile way to spend her time. “I don’t want these kids to feel the negativity,” she said. “It doesn’t have to be, ‘You’re from Questa, you’re a nobody.’ ” Cintas said she wants her students to walk away with the idea that not only can they leave Questa and find success, they can also stay in Questa and change the community for the better.
And Cintas knows firsthand this is possible. She grew up the daughter of a roofer, and when her father didn’t have jobs, money was scarce. But Cintas knew from a young age that she wanted to devote her life to empowering children and the community. She originally wanted to work as a school counselor, but she realized that as a teacher, she would be able to reach out to a larger pool of students, as opposed to only the students who came to her office for help. “As a teacher, I can be on the front lines,” she said.
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2013
After high school, Cintas received an associate degree from UNM-Taos, then went on to receive her bachelor’s degree in psychology with a minor in history from Adams State in Alamosa, Colo. She had her first child when she was 18, and juggled motherhood and commuting to Alamosa, which is one and one-half hours away, to attend school. “I missed a lot of my kids’ firsts when I was in school,” she said. She then attended Northern New Mexico Community College in Española, one and onehalf hours in the other direction, to receive her teaching certificate. She took out student loans and used grant money to pay for her education, and her parents took care of her kids while she was in school. She hopes to one day be able to take care of her parents to repay them for their kindness. And now as a teacher in Questa, she sees students struggling and hopes they will find a path just like she did. She says that in Questa, opportunities for employment are often limited, and she’s no stranger to teaching and mentoring students from lower-income families. “Not everyone is going to have that new pair of Jordans, not everyone is going to have the means to have a new set of clothes that year, and it’s very important to be sensitive to that,” she said. She said that as a mother, it’s difficult not to worry about students as she would her own children. She said her role as a teacher extends well beyond just that of an instructor teaching a subject. “It’s not like you come in and you teach a subject,” she said. “You’re their friend, you’re their mom, you’re their counselor, you’re that somebody to give them that positive reinforcement.”
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Maria Cintas is actively giving back to the community in which she was raised. Of the many community service projects she’s participated in, she’s most proud of the work she’s done with Community Build, a local program started by Questa Mayor Esther García. Recently, a group of children from New York City traveled to Questa with Habitat for Humanity. Children in Questa participated in a cultural exchange with the New Yorkers and fed them traditional New Mexican food and played them traditional New Mexican music. She also takes pride in the work she does with the local Catholic church, San Antonío de Padua. When plans were under way to demolish the church, Cintas and others took action, organizing raffles and other fundraisers to pay for its restoration. Even with all the extra work she does, Cintas says she has to have a thick skin in order to deal with the criticism and disrespect she receives at times from students
and parents. “It causes me to question: ‘I’m doing all of these things for free, and is it worth it?’ ” she said. “But if I don’t do it, who will? I do it for the kids.” But that’s not to say she doesn’t see her hard work pay off. She says when students who have graduated come back and tell her what a difference she made in their lives, it makes it all worthwhile. For Cintas, it’s important to lead by example. It’s one thing to tell her students they should be involved in their community, but she wants to show them by the work she does herself. She hopes that if she does this, she can inspire future generations to take an active role in bettering their surroundings. “If you take the lead, then gradually they will let go and become the leaders that we need them to become,” she said.
She says that in Questa, opportunities for employment are often limited, and she’s no stranger to teaching and mentoring students from lower-income families.
26
HEROES
2013
JoAnn Ortiz at the Lama Verde Presbyterian camp this summer, where she is the camp’s cook and mother.
JoAnn Ortiz
A go-getter, just doing what she enjoys
Her career spanned the gamut in Taos Municipal Schools from principal to school-based health center coordinator to VP and At-Risk Coordinator, to home economics and art teacher and most everything in between.
I
By Virginia Clark
ntensely loyal, focused and fun is the best way to sum up 2013 Unsung Hero JoAnn Ortiz. A self-diagnosed “Type A” go-getter, Ortiz’ bonedeep compassion is coupled lock-step with laughter — leavening her overachieving proclivities and probably adding years to her life. “I’ve always been like a steam engine, going a million miles an hour,” Ortiz said last August. “I did five errands before the interview at 3 p.m. today.” Few are the people in Taos who have not been touched by the arc of JoAnn Romero Ortiz (knowingly or not). Community and involvement Besides her extensive educational career, she co-founded Amigos Unidos, Casa de Corazon, Taos County Arts Council, Hispanic Arts Council and Taos Arts Celebrations. She was curator for the Hispanic Arts Council, for Arts in the Park, and for the Northern Network Art Fair.
Besides board affiliations with her cofounded organizations, she has been on boards for Spring Arts New Mexico, The Harwood Foundation, Taos County Lodgers Tax Advisory Council, Hispanic Arts Council, Taos County Young Republicans, Taos County ARC, Taos County Arts Advisory Council and Loma Verde Presbyterian Camp. But wait, there’s more.
to the Celestino Romero Administration Building, unable to deny the synchronicity of events in her and her parents’ lives. “When I looked back at my parents’ life I said I’d never be a teacher. Dad was a principal and a teacher; mom was a teacher, a reading specialist in the Title I program. “Dad taught Spanish, history, was a counselor and was director of special services. He was kind of my mentor — he could do no wrong. I always thought he was so cool. “I look back on what they did and I’ve done the same thing,” she giggled at her youthful hubris compared to today’s reality.
1975-2012 With an master’s degree in educational administration, K-12, and her bachelor’s degree in art, home economics, and secondary education (1969-’86), both from New Mexico Highlands University, she garnered national and statewide awards, including Professional a Students Achievement Award from the activities Ortiz has also been an instructor at National Center of Accountability; statewide the University of Denver, New Mexico recognition for student excellence from Highlands University, Northern New Mexico the secretary of education; was selected Community College in Española, University as “Poster Principal” for RE: Learning NM — as an exemplary elementary principal; of New Mexico, and Taos Institute of Arts. She has been a consultant to Las Vegas and received a New Mexico School Boards Public Schools, Taos Municipal Schools, Association award for student excellence. Her career ran the gamut in Taos Holy Cross Prenatal Services, Taos Cardiac Municipal Schools from principal to schoolWellness Center, Taos County Summer Food Service Program, Taos Parks and Recreation based health center coordinator to VP and Program, Juvenile Justice Advisory RE: at-risk coordinator, to home economics LearningNM, and Vista Grande High School. and art teacher and most everything in And all that is in addition to her Taos between. schools career. Piéce de Educational resistance experience Even with all the accolades, Ortiz says Daughter of famed Taos educators her biggest success is her (foster) daughter Celestino and Dulcie Romero, she followed Kimberly Olson (Doug). Yet another synin their footsteps, despite vowing she chronous legacy from her parents who over would not. Ortiz was with Taos schools for the years took in international students for 29 years. immersion in English and Spanish. Ortiz said “When I was interim principal for Vista there was always a full house growing up. Grande High School, I helped with the move “Since I couldn’t have children I decided to my dad’s building,” Ortiz said referring to adopt a baby. Instead, I became one of the
Photos by Tina Larkin F The Taos News
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“Now she lives on the West Coast in Portland, Ore. She got a volleyball scholarship to Eugene and played in college where she met her husband. “To go from a very troubled child to regional manager of a company, well, she taught me so much about life. She considers me her mom and we’re very close.” Kimberly has two children in high school (Kylie and Eric) and calls her mom every day or so. Pride and joy Ortiz gained another daughter, Melissa (Walker) through her marriage to Robert Ortiz in 2000. They met in 1997 while “Bob” was head of security at THS. Melissa has given the couple two grandchildren, Elijah, 8, and Jazleen, 5, and their greatest joy is to go fishing with the little ones, not to mention getting beat regularly by Elijah at board games. “I’ve had all these beautiful people in my life who taught me everything,” Ortiz says, adding that her mother Dulcie, at age 90, has bounced back from a “complete stroke” and Ortiz stis below a sign that honors her father, Celestino Romero. is doing yoga and tai chi, art classes and bible studies. She even won a Presidential Fitness first single foster parents in the county.” Award in 2012. Kimberly was JoAnn’s first foster child Hugely active in the First Presbyterian through the state. This was followed by shelter Church Taos and occasionally Shared Table, care through Amigos Unidos and treatment fos- Ortiz says volunteering and community ter care through Casa de Corazon (overall, since involvement are the life’s blood of Taos. 1986 she had over 100 girls and a few boys for “If you’re involved you become part of the weekends, to give foster parents a break). community. Tradiciones can show people that “We cooked all our meals — they loved it; everything they do can give meaning to life being busy. (or) we can be a negative part of it and deride “Kimberly is my ‘butterfly.’ She came from it. very difficult foster situations. She came to “Just do what you enjoy. Doing anything Taos with her siblings and lived at San Felipé you enjoy is when you meet God. It’s commundel Río. ing with God. It’s prayer.”
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575 758 9888 Office 575 758 8082 www.TaosCAV.org
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Edy Anderson and her husband Charlie.
Edy Anderson
A lineage of caring for the community
C
By Andy Jones
ommunity service must be in Edy Anderson’s blood. As retired medical professionals, however, it’s likely that Anderson and her husband, Dr. Charlie Anderson, would refute any such non-science-
based claim.
Edy Anderson is an avid skier and has been involved with the annual Ridge-A-Thon charity event at Taos Ski Valley.
Still, it’s hard to deny that lending a hand to others is an important part of the Anderson family’s life in Taos. Dr. Anderson was an Unsung Hero in 2004, for, among other things, his work as the community’s first full-time pediatrician. The couple’s son, Ted Wiard, was honored by The Taos News in 2003 for his work with Golden Willow Retreat Center, and his other efforts to help guide individuals through the process of grief and healing. Anderson herself was a big part of the underlying success of both her husband and her son, but she’s also spent a lifetime filling in where she was needed most and lending a hand whenever asked. In addition to a successful medical career, which included stints as the Holy Cross Hospital director of nurses, Taos Public Schools special education nurse and as director of New Mexico Public Health department’s District II, Anderson found time to involve herself in numerous volunteer enterprises. Perhaps most notable among these endeavors was her role as one of the founders of the Taos Community Foundation. “That was almost like working full-time,” Anderson says about starting the nonprofit organization alongside Polly Raye and Fred Winter. “The three of us sat down in 1998 and asked ourselves, ‘do you think we can do this.’ ”
Anderson herself was a big part of the underlying success of both her husband and her son, but she’s also spent a lifetime filling in where she was needed most and lending a hand whenever asked. Photos by Tina Larkin F The Taos News
At the time, community foundations were a somewhat new concept, as a one-stop shop for individuals who have money to give, but who aren’t sure where to go. “That was one of our goals, because people would say, ‘there are 200 nonprofits in this little town ... how do we know which one is going to be around more than a year or two,’ ” Anderson says. “So by having a place to be able to give a greater sum of money and then have the community foundation have knowledge of the nonprofits in town is a big advantage.” A little more than a year after asking whether it was even possible, the foundation hired it’s first executive director, Daniel Montoya, in August 1999. Current director, Elizabeth Crittenden Palacios, to the helm two years later. “I thought that was pretty good, to get incorporated and get enough people interested in that amount of time,” Anderson says. “I’m just so pleased and excited about how far we’ve come.” Anderson was also instrumental in bringing about some much-needed changes at her various nursing posititions. She concentrated on preventative medcine as director of Nurses at Holy Cross and with the Public Health department. And she also introduced sex-education programs during her time as the special education nurse with Taos Public Schools.
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The Taos News
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â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was the first year in known history that nobody got pregnant,â&#x20AC;? she recalls. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You can get volunteers to help you check eyes, so you can be out there teaching health principles to the students.â&#x20AC;? She says once she had a reputation as someone who might have some new ideas about things, people began to come to her asking for help. â&#x20AC;&#x153;If I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know how to do it, I could at least help them find somebody because I had many contacts,â&#x20AC;? she says. One task she was asked to take on was helping to establish the medical policies for Taos Retirement Village, at the time known as Plaza Retiro. Dr. Anderson, who says his wife is not â&#x20AC;&#x153;unsungâ&#x20AC;? because he sings her praises all the time, notes the significance of his wifeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work with Plaza Retiro. â&#x20AC;&#x153;That was a big deal as it got started and getting the medical center started and functional, and policies written and people hired,â&#x20AC;? he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;And Edy did all of that, which really helped get them off the ground.â&#x20AC;? Nowadays, the Andersons spend a good deal of time traveling to see children and
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Edy Anderson with her husband Charlie and son Ted Wiard. grandchildren who donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t live in Taos. Ted Wiard and his sister Barb are both wellknown locals, but the Andersonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s other children (and grandchildren) live in Oregon, Alaska and Colorado. Still, the couple still finds ways to stay active in the Taos community, including volunteering for Holy Cross Hospitalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Patient Advocate program, which consists of retired doctors and nurses who comfort emergency room patients and help them understand the medical process. The Andersons, both reaching 80years-old this year, also stay busy skiing and hiking, among other activities. In fact, Anderson and her friend Ursula
Berkowitz, started a Grannies on the Ridge team to coincide with the Taos Community Foundationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s annual Ridge-A-Thon event at Taos Ski Valley. Instead of having to do every run on TSVâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s famous ridge, the Grannies on the Ridge promise to do one run, and you have to be over 60 and have at least one grandchild. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We just tapped into a whole different crowd than the young skiers,â&#x20AC;? she says. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just one of many examples, far too numerous to mention in this article, of Anderson seeing a need and doing something about it. For that reason, sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a 2013 Unsung Hero.
Anderson and her friend Ursula Berkowitz, started a Grannies on the Ridge team to coincide with the Taos Community Foundationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s annual Ridge-AThon event at Taos Ski Valley.
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Effie Romero has driven school bus for more than four decades but itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s her work behind the scenes at the Talpa Community Center that has earned her the designation of Unsung Hero.
Effie Romero is a friend of artists and of Talpa
E
By Cody Olivas
ffie Romero loves the local art scene in Taos. Romero does some ceramics, sewing and quilting, but she says she isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t an artist. Even though she might not meet her own standards that she uses to describe an artist, she certainly makes an impact in the local arts community.
The art and crafts shows typically have a little bit of everything on display: photography and woodwork, paintings and quilts, jams, jellies and baked goods.
Romero with the Talpa Community Centerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s summer reading group.
â&#x20AC;&#x153;I love to promote the arts,â&#x20AC;? Romero said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a lot of talent out there that never gets recognized.â&#x20AC;? She helps promote local artists and crafters in more than a few ways, not the least of which is by providing them opportunities to display and sell their work. Romero started working at the Talpa Community Center as a board member in 2000 and she was appointed as the centerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s director in 2005. In 2000 the community center also hosted its first fall arts show. It hosts art shows in the spring and winter too. The art and crafts shows typically have a
little bit of everything on display: photography and woodwork, paintings and quilts, jams, jellies and baked goods. The winter art show in December, however, might be her favorite because she loves kids and kids love the Christmas-themed show, especially since Santa Claus shows up and poses for pictures. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a really fun one,â&#x20AC;? Romero said. The art shows grew out of a symbiotic need: Artists need places to display their work and the community center needed a way to raise money to keep its doors open. So artists can rent a space, which supports the
Photos by Tina Larkin F The Taos News
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The Taos News
2013
HEROES
community center, and then they get to sell their work to a wide audience and keep the profits. The arts and crafts fairs also helped Romero recognize the need for the local artists to have a place where they can display and sell their work year-round. That’s when the Taos Artist Co-op gallery was born. The co-op gallery, which is located in the old county courthouse, gives local artists a place where they can display and sell their work for barely any cost. The co-op doesn’t have a paid staff. Instead, when artists decide they want to display their work, they sign a contract and pick two days a month to work. They also pay a nominal monthly membership of $10 to display their pieces. Currently 24 local artists display their work at the co-op. “It’s been very successful,” Romero said. The Talpa Community Center also helps out artists by hosting sewing and quilting classes and it’s equipped with machines to help people finish their work. It also has basic ceramic classes and a summer reading program designed to keep young people interested in learning. Beyond the arts, the community center provides a safe place for kids to play. There’s a playground outside and computers inside its library. The library features an extensive section on the Southwest. “I love the local history and I love the local art,” Romero said. Romero is joined at the community center by five board members who she described as “very hard working.” Romero moved to the area in 1951 and has
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Effie Romero shares a laugh with her husband, Joseph “Red” Romero. been here ever since. Her family moved from Arkansas to Pot Creek, located across from SMU’s Fort Burgwin campus. Her family eventually moved back to Arkansas, after the Pot Creek Lumber company closed in 1966, but Romero stayed put with her husband, Joseph, and their two children. “I just love Talpa,” she said. “I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else in the area.” Romero has also made it her job to get kids safely to school. Since 1967, she’s been the school bus driver of bus No. 22. Talpa’s community center, coincidently, is where she attended middle school.
Romero with her grandson, Izaah Angelo Vigil.
The arts and crafts fairs also helped Romero recognize the need for the local artists to have a place where they can display and sell their work year-round. That’s when the Taos Artist Co-op gallery was born.
Roberto “Bobby” J. Gonzales
State Representative District #42 Democrat Congratulations to the 2013 Citizen of the Year and Unsung Heroes
Chevron Mining Questa Mine is proud to recognize the dedication and courage of three Questa citizens who consistently demonstrate their dedication to improving the quality of life in their community.
Your hard work and commitment make Taos the special place it is. State Representative Roberto “Bobby” J. Gonzales District 42, Democrat
Thank you Taos County for your ongoing support. If I may assist you please call 575-751-1467. Paid Political Advertisement
Paid for by the Committee to Re-Elect Roberto “Bobby” J. Gonzales, Marcos Gonzales Treasurer
Maria Cintas, Questa High School teacher and volunteer, for her ongoing encouragement to her students and commitment to her community.
A great event inspires more than just the attendees. It inspires the entire community.
At U.S. Bank, we are committed to making the communities in which we work and live a better place. Our commitment means supporting the programs and organizations that enrich the quality of life for our neighbors.
Proud to support <insert organization name here> xxxxxxxxxx
Proud to support <insert organization name here> Proud to Support our Citizenxxxxxxxxxx of the Year and Taos’ Unsung Heroes BranchMain Name Taos Office 120 W Address Plaza Taos, NM 87571 Branch 575-737-3540 Phone Number
usbank.com Member FDIC
Mark Ortega and Josh Casali, two Questa Fire department EMTs, whose immediate response saved the life of an electrical worker caught in high-voltage overhead lines. Photos by Tina Larkin, The Taos News
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â&#x20AC;&#x153;To visit Taos Pueblo is to walk in a sacred place where life continues from the earliest of human existence.â&#x20AC;?
Taos Pueblo Governor, Ernesto Luhan
Photo by Rick Romancito
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.