Tradiciones – Unsung Heroes

Twenty-First Annual Honrar A Nuestros Hé�oes

DAVID ELLIOT 2021 CITIZEN OF THE YEAR

UNSUNG HEROES CONTENTS

Kathryn Herman | 16

Benito Concha

|

20

Judy Weinrobe

|

24

Bette Myerson

|

26

Roels ‘Roy’ Cunnyngham | 30

Lisa Abeyta-Valerio | 34

Anita Bringas

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38

Malaquias Rael

|

44

Pauline Mondragon

|

48

Valdemar DeHerrera

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52

6

DAVID ELLIOT

2021 Citizen of the Year

By John Miller

STAFF ROBIN MARTIN owner, CHRIS BAKER publisher, JOHN MILLER editor, TAYLOR HOOD magazine editor, CHRIS WOOD advertising director, MARY CHÁVEZ business manager, SHAWN ROBERTS circulation director, KARIN EBERHARDT creative director, SKYE HILL digital editor, LYNNE ROBINSON Tempo editor, WILL HOOPER reporter, MICHAEL TASHJI reporter, NATHAN BURTON photographer, MEGAN JONES copy editor, SHANE ATKINSON sales manager, CINDY BOISVERT, KATIE DENHAM & EMILY LEE media specialists, GABRIELLE SANCHEZ classifieds assistant manager, LYLE PADILLA circulation assistant manager, PAUL GUTCHES production manager

| 226 ALBRIGHT, TAOS, NM 87571 | 575-758-2241 | TAOSNEWS.COM

2 TRADICIONES OCT. 7, 2021

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UNSUNG HEROES

Love.

Hope.

Success.

Family.

Security.

Some things we all have in common. There’s nobody like me to protect the things we all value.

Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.®

Wanda Lucero

575.737.5433 wanda@wandalucero.com

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 3

UNSUNG HEROES FROM THE EDITOR / PAST HONOREES

Tradiciones: Past Honorees 2001

Irene Párraz

Citizen of the Year:

Corina Santistevan

Citizens of the Year:

Luis Reyes

Michael and Sylvia Torrez

Randall Family

Unsung Heroes:

MORGAN TIMMS/TAOS NEWS

SINGING THEIR The 2021 Unsung Heroes Selection Committee honors the best of us

raises P

Shelley Bahr

Walter Allen

Paul Bernal

Citizens of the Year:

Mary Ann Boughton

Beatríz Gonzáles

Cid and Betty Backer

Carl Colonius

Nancy Jenkins

Unsung Heroes:

Liz Moya Herrera

Ida Martinez

Crestina Armstrong

Melissa Larson

Celina Salazar

Mario Barela

Addelina Lucero

Larry Schreiber

Art Coca

Bruce McIntosh

Stephen Wiard

Mike Concha

Thom Wheeler

Fred Winter

Rose Cordova Jeanelle Livingston

2016

2002

Christina Masoliver

Citizen of the Year:

Citizen of the Year:

Jake Mossman Sr.

Eloy Jeantete

Nita Murphy

Elizabeth Crittenden Palacios

Unsung Heroes: Paulie Burt

2009

Martha Dick

Citizen of the Year:

Shawn Duran

Rebeca Romero Rainey

Lucy Himes

Unsung Heroes:

Palemón Martinez

Billy and Theresa Archuleta

Theresa and Rúben Martinez Mary Olguin

Mary Trujillo Mascareñas

Becky Torres

John Randall

Connie Ochoa Marie Reyna Lawrence Vargas

Citizen of the Year:

Citizens of the Year:

Frank Wells

Kate O’Neill

Nick and Bonnie Branchal

2010

Juan Abeyta

Unsung Heroes:

Vishu Magee

Brian Greer

Unsung Heroes:

Max Ortega

Bruce Gomez

Candido Domínguez

John Romero

Jane Mingenbach

Esther García

Jimmy Stadler

Patty Mortenson and Terry Badhand

Michael Hensley

Larry Torres

Cherry Montaño

Connie Tsosie-Gaussoin

Unsung Heroes: Charlie Anderson Connie Archuleta Stephen Cetrulo Victor Chavez

Mish Rosette Patrick Romero Charlene Tamayó Feloniz Trujillo

Francis Córdova

Malinda Williams

Unsung Heroes: Jill Cline

2011 Citizen of the Year: Jim Fambro Unsung Heroes: Benjie Apodaca Patrick Delosier Cyndi Howell Alipio Mondragón

Clay Farrell

Chavi Petersen

Dee Lovato

Siena Sanderson

Jeannie Masters

Mary Alice Winter

Rosemarie Packard

2012 2005

Citizens of the Year:

Citizens of the Year:

Jim and Mary Gilroy

Art and Susan Bachrach

Unsung Heroes:

Unsung Heroes:

Marilyn Farrow

Mardoqueo Chacón

Dennis Hedges

Juan “Johnny” Devargas

Pat Heinen

Carmen Lieurance

Judy Hofer

Ernie and Frutoso López

Phyllis Nichols

Roy Madrid

Loertta Ortiz y Pino

Betsy Martínez

Dolly Peralta

Isabel Rendón

Lillian Romero

Dr. Bud Wilson

2018 Citizen of the Year:

Ernestina and Francis Córdova

It is worth noting, however, that we just couldn’t make that final cut. So, instead of nine Heroes, as in years past, this year we have 10. Enjoy!

Francisco Guevara Lucille and George Jaramillo Deacon Donald Martínez Jesse Martínez Andrew Montoya Polly Raye Angel Reyes Janet Webb

2019 Citizen of the Year: Art Abreu Jr. Unsung Heroes: Dave Córdova Virginia Couse Leavitt Russ Driskell Mary Alice Martínez Julianna Matz Sharon Nicholson Rob Nightingale Bennie and Edna Romero

2020 Citizen of the Year:

2013

Ted Wiard

Citizen of the Year:

Unsung Heroes:

2006

Patricia Michaels

Citizen of the Year:

Unsung Heroes:

Gayle and Peter Martínez

Jenny Vincent

Edy Anderson

Florence Miera

Unsung Heroes:

Cynthia Burt

Nickie McCarty

Francisco Córdova

John Casali

Telesfor González

Maria Cintas

Kathleen Branchal Garcia

John Holland

Father William Hart McNichols

Vishu Magee Juan Martínez Luís C. Martínez Becky Miera Gabriel Romero Snider Sloan

2007 Citizen of the Year: Jake Mossman Jr. Unsung Heroes: Chilton and Judy Anderson

4 TRADICIONES OCT. 7, 2021

Claire Cote

Elizabeth Gilmore

So a big thank you from all of us at Taos News to the 2021 Unsung Heroes Selection Committee: Joseph Quintana, Ernestina Cordova, Stella Mares-McGinnis, Sonya Struck, Kathleen Cornbringer, Elizabeth Crittenden-Palacios, Marilyn Farrow and Ernie Ortega. Their job was especially tough this year considering the everyday heroics of Taoseños throughout this pandemic, but they somehow managed to narrow it down.

Taylor Hood, magazine editor

Citizen of the Year:

Unsung Heroes:

Richard Archuleta

Johnny Sisneros

Sincerely,

2017

2003

Citizen of the Year:

Enjoy this year’s issue of Tradiciones: Unsung Heroes!

We look forward to another great year in this special place we call Taos.

Ernesto Martinez Sonny Spruce

Tony Reyna

Of course, special recognition for this publication needs to be extended to publisher and Tradiciones creator Chris Baker, advertising manager Chris Wood, creative director Karin Eberhardt, and the editing magic of John Miller, Megan Jones, and Virginia Clark.

Judge Ernest Ortega

Eddie Grant

2004

While some of the names in this year’s group may be well known around town, for the most part, the committee is really looking for folks in our community who do good work everyday, but are somehow under-the-radar. Maybe it’s the Bataan Death March survivor, proudly displaying his uniform at local events, or the educator who is overloaded but still finds time to coach a champion cheer squad, or the woman who has dedicate every free moment to feeding the hungry, but whichever story moves you, know that there are dozens more like it that we just couldn’t fit in the pages.

Paul Figueroa Carl Gilmore

Joleen Montoya

Ted Wiard

And what is the Taos News doing during this process?

Sitting and watching and enjoying the outpouring of love these locals have for the people of Taos.

Benton and Arabella Bond

Medalia Martinez

Bernie Torres

For all the newcomers out there, here’s the deal: Each year, the Taos News selects a group of community organizers, historians, and all-around great Taoseños to get together for a little lunch, some friendly banter, and the nominating (and voting on) the year’s Unsung Heroes.

Unsung Heroes:

Carolina Dominguez

Guadalupe Tafoya

This is the 21st year for Unsung Heroes here at the Taos News and it is only getting more difficult to narrow down the choices. Of course, that isn’t a problem that we at the newspaper have to deal with. That’s an issue for the Unsung Heroes Selection Committee.

Unsung Heroes:

2008

Cynthia Rael-Vigil

From the Editor

2015

David Mapes Mary Romero

Mark Ortega

Luzita Trujillo

JoAnn Ortiz

David Maes

Effie Romero Fabi Romero

2014 Citizens of the Year: Ernie Blake Family Unsung Heroes: Valorie Archuleta Jane Compton Tina Martinez

Cindy Cross

Alex Medina

Shirley and Jerry Lujan

Jean Nichols

Albino Martínez

Lisa O’Brien

Max Martínez

Louise Padilla

Ted Martínez

Mary Spears

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UNSUNG HEROES

Golden Willow Retreat & Golden Willow Counseling congratulate each of this year’s honorees.

We are humbled by the difference you make in our community every day.

Golden Willow Counseling and Golden Willow Retreat are here to support those dealing with loss and grief during this difficult time and always.

Contact our office for information on free weekly Grief Groups and on all our other services.

Golden Willow Retreat goldenwillowretreat.org 575-776-2024

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Golden Willow Counseling https://www.gwc-nm.com/ 575-425-3274

Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 5

UNSUNG HEROES

‘In this challenging time of the pandemic for our community, there are certain people who stand out, who give of themselves so much to the community, and it shows and it’s appreciated by the community. He’s one of those people.

It was a difficult situation for everybody, especially those in the medical field, but he took it head on and did a super wonderful job for our community.

He didn’t shy away from the challenge.’

— JOE QUINTANA

6 TRADICIONES OCT. 7, 2021

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UNSUNG HEROES

2021

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DAVID ELLIOT

Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 7

CITIZEN OF THE YEAR DAVID ELLIOT

By John Miller | Photos by Nathan Burton

n Aug. 22 of this year, Uvaldo V. Lopez went missing, but before his body could be found two weeks later in a remote part of Carson National Forest, the Taos County Sheriff’s Office and Taos Search and Rescue would have to find a way to work together on the mission, when doing so hadn’t always been easy in the past.

That’s where David Elliot comes in.

As the field coordinator for New Mexico State Police District 7, it was Elliot’s job to command the search and rescue team on the mission, but it was also his job to help facilitate cooperation between these two groups, helping them to set aside their past disagreements so that they could get their job done.

“Sometimes other things that are going on in the environment affect otherwise well-intentioned people,” Elliot said.

It’s a problem he encounters all the time, and sees getting in the way of community organizations accomplishing what they really would like to achieve. In all the roles he plays in Northern New Mexico – Holy Cross Medical Center emergency response coordinator, regional emergency preparedness coordinator for the New Mexico Regional Healthcare Coalition, disaster response instructor, board and committee member – Elliot always seems to turn back to this one special skill: connecting people to help them make big things happen. That’s why, after many years spent honing that skill, Elliot was uniquely well-suited to galvanize a community response when the pandemic reached Taos County in early 2020.

When Taos Needed a Leader, David Elliot Stood Up Thank you to David and all the Heroes that make our community a better place.

~Mayor, Dan Barrone

Paid Political Advertisement Paid for by Dan Barrone

8 TRADICIONES OCT. 7, 2021

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UNSUNG HEROES

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 9

CITIZEN OF THE YEAR DAVID ELLIOT

Not long after a public emergency was declared

Game on 10 TRADICIONES OCT. 7, 2021

on March 11 that year, Elliot and several members of the Local Emergency Planning Committee for Taos County branched off and formed a new organization: Enchanted Circle Community Organizations Active in Disaster (EC-COAD).

They organized under the philosophy that the rapid spread of SARS-CoV-2 would have to be met with an equally fast emergency response, which would be facilitated through safe and open communication about what the community needed most, Elliot explained.

This little fledgling emergency response organization would change the course of how community leaders were able to respond to the public health crisis as it spread across Taos County.

“Leaders were in a room for multiple hours per week, every week, asking questions like, ‘Who needs what? What do we know? How do we do this? How do we support each other?’ ” Elliot said. “It wasn’t like, ‘Cement this paperwork,’ or, ‘Give us a report on how this is going to work and we should plan on having a meeting about this next Thursday. It was like, ‘Let’s do this now. Right now.’ ” The COAD’s list of partner organizations quickly grew to include Taos Ski Valley, Taos Land Trust, Kit Carson Electric Cooperative, UNM-Taos, Centinel Bank, Holy Cross Medical Center, Taos Community Foundation, Taos Whole Health, El Pueblito UMC, the Taos County Chamber of Commerce, and representatives from the town and county government.

With support from the town of Taos and connections Elliot had developed as a regional emergency preparedness coordinator, the COAD began working with FEMA to secure the types of emergency supplies that were particularly hard to get ahold of during the pandemic, especially for small rural communities.

“We started moving huge amounts of stuff, like semi trucks full of food, on that first go round,” Elliot said. “I’m going to guess four semi trucks of stuff went to the Santa Fe Food Depot – refrigerated food, frozen food, dry goods.

We got half a million fabric masks in Taos. We got 50-something pallets of hand sanitizer here.”

Through his work at Holy Cross, Elliot had already arranged to make the hospital a point of dispensing site for free flu shots, which provided the model the county would rely on when COVID-19 vaccinations became available in late 2020 and early 2021. Using that model, additional vaccination sites were set up at Taos Middle School and the Sagebrush Inn & Suites on Paseo del Pueblo Sur. “Here we go,” Elliot thought to himself as their action plan started coming together. “Here’s an opportunity to actually do something useful. This was my quest through college all the way until now. This is what I’ve always wanted to be doing. I was like, ‘Game on.’

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UNSUNG HEROES

623 PASEO DEL PUEBLO NORTE • TAOS WWW.CIDSFOODMARKET.COM • 575-758-1148

“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, What are you doing for others?”

– Martin Luther King, Jr.

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 11

CITIZEN OF THE YEAR DAVID ELLIOT

“That’s always what made my family life better – when we would do these sorts of things and help people,” he said.

He worked for a time on a local farm in Las Cruces, where he and his crew traded free concerts they hosted on their land in exchange for work from the people who would attend. But pretty soon he set his sights on somewhere new: Missoula, Montana. He made it about 350 miles before stopping in a little town called Taos, which, like for a lot of other people, got its hooks in him immediately.

His original plan to stay for a couple months turned into several years, as Elliot found work as the manager of the Nambe Store on Taos Plaza, and later, as the manager of Letherworks, which relocated to Santa Fe in 2019. Then an opportunity came his way that he didn’t expect.

“One day my best friend Shiloh asked me, ‘You want to be a firefighter?’ ” Elliot remembers.

He agreed right away, and in late 2012, joined a ragtag crew of some of the first firefighters to organize in the tiny desert community of Carson west of the Río Grande Gorge. “We didn’t even have a building at that time,” Elliot said. “Our gear must have been from the 70s or the 80s.”

He was quickly promoted to be the assistant chief of the department, but still knew little about how to do the job, so he approached Taos Volunteer Fire Department, which eventually took him on. Elliot went on to attend the New Mexico Firefighters Training Academy in Socorro, where his company officer was Michael Córdova, the current fire chief for Taos County.

“He is a go-getter,” Córdova said, adding, “he just doesn’t know how to slow down in a good way. He is always willing to help out and go above and beyond for everyone at any time. Being in charge of him at the academy, I knew he was going to do some special things in regards to public safety and helping out the community.”

Elliot became a fully-accredited firefighter in 2015, taking on numerous emergency service calls in the years that followed. Eventually, he took up residence in the apartment at the Taos firehouse on Cam de la Placita. Like other firefighters, he could put on his gear in the pitch dark and rattle off every piece of equipment on a truck, noting its proper place and purpose. When he’d get onboard the firetruck in the middle of the night to take a call, he said, he didn’t always know where they were headed, but he trusted that his fellow firefighters did, and they learned to trust him, too.

“Something in me said, ‘This is the most important and most valid and most authentic thing I’ve ever done in my entire life,” Elliot said of his start in the fire service. “Immediately we were helping people.”

‘What else can I do?’

A legacy of community work Elliot grew up in Neenah, Wisconsin, in a single-parent family run by his mother, who raised him and his four sisters and instilled in them a philosophy of community service from when they were young.

“She had us involved in community work before we could read,” Elliot remembers.

Elliot’s mother had herniated several disks in her back when she tried to prevent a patient from rolling out of bed while working as a night nurse in Chicago. A car accident she was involved in later in life further debilitated her.

Unable to work, the family grew up supported by her disability pay, Elliot said.

Despite those limitations, however, he said his mother was a constant presence in their small town, and always had her children in tow. He remembers passing out campaign literature and volunteering around Anita as a child.

He eventually left to pursue a business degree at St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota, which he thought would help him earn the extra money his family never had. But on Sept. 11, his focus changed.

“I was a sophomore in college, and on Sept. 11 the business school was the only one that didn’t close,” he said. “Everybody else took a moment to pause and reflect on what was going on, when we didn’t necessarily know what was going on the day after Sept. 11. The business school didn’t, so I dropped out.”

He took a sharp turn into political science, political theory and sociological studies. He became active in the environmental and LGBTQ groups at school.

His undergraduate thesis, he said, focused on the importance of the First Amendment and the right to free assembly.

After he graduated, an opportunity arose for him to attend graduate school at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, where he planned to pursue a Masters in Democracy Security Studies and Government.

From Las Cruces to Taos Elliot completed 34 of 36 credit hours at NMSU, but said he remained hungry to get out into the real world, where he could get his hands dirty putting the theories of higher education to the test. He wanted to make a tangible difference, he said.

Pretty soon, Elliot said the wheels started turning again. “What else can I do?” he remembers asking himself.

The answer, as it turned out, is: An incredible amount — so much so, in fact, that listening to Elliot talk about the many roles he plays now is like hearing someone talk about their whole career. All of his jobs, however, have a common thread, the same one his mother gave him to follow when he was a child: service.

In 2015, he volunteered to become chairman of the Enchanted Circle Regional Fire Protection Association. He also worked from November of that year through March 2016 as the deputy emergency manager for Taos County. After that, Elliot joined Holy Cross Medical Center as its emergency response coordinator. In 2017, he became a disaster response instructor for Team Rubicon, a veteran’s-based disaster response organization formed after the 2019 earthquake in Port Au Prince, Haiti.

While still working for Holy Cross, from June of 2016 through February 2018, Elliot headed south again to serve as the emergency management coordinator for the Santa Fe County Fire Department, where he worked with Martin Vigil, still the department’s assistant fire chief and emergency manager. Elliot remembers his most important piece of advice like a mantra: “Little things are big things.”

In 2019, Elliot came back to Taos and took his last call with Taos Volunteer Fire Department, a fatal blaze that overtook a home in El Prado and killed a retired archeologist who lived there. His time as a first responder, he said, gave him an understanding of the lifelong impact tragedies have on the people who are directly affected by them.

“It’s this thing where you would never go up and talk to them about that day,” Elliot said, “but when you’ve had contact with someone who you’ve had these sorts of experiences with, you can tell there’s something. You don’t push on it, though, but there’s a shared humanity there.”

He said this is a unique aspect of working in emergency services in a small town.

“When something affects one person here, people do feel it – or at least hear about it – in a different way than they would in the Midwest, where I’m from,” he said. “Emotion is sort of secular from community in other parts of the country compared to here. People are more intact here, I think, spiritually, in that way. At least that’s how I feel. I mean, part of the reason I decided to stay here is because I feel like the work works. You can do stuff here and it has an effect, you know?”

Much of Elliot’s work now takes place behind the scenes, in meetings few people hear about and over lunches and coffees no one sees as extraordinary when they pass by his table, but some people have taken notice, like Joe Quintana, who nominated Elliot to be the 2021 Citizen of the Year.

“In this challenging time of the pandemic for our community, there are certain people who stand out, who give of themselves so much to the community, and it shows, and it’s appreciated by the community,” Quintana said. “He’s one of those people. It was a difficult situation for everybody, especially those in the medical field, but he took it head on and did a super wonderful job for us.

He didn’t shy away from the challenge.”

Little things are big things.

12 TRADICIONES OCT. 7, 2021

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UNSUNG HEROES

I do more than sell houses, I’ll find your forever home.

DAWN GRAINGER

Your Third Generation TAOS Realtor BHHS TAOS REAL ESTATE, 314A PASEO DEL PUEBLO NORTE, TAOS 575-758-1924 • 575-770-8481 • TAOSLOCAL.COM • TAOSLOCAL@GMAIL.COM

CAV is inspired by our Together We community supporting Create A Safer Community this work – thank you to our Heroes!

Call CAV for help when you or someone you love needs support – Free, confidential services for ALL survivors of child abuse, domestic violence, and sexual abuse.

What You Can Do… Make a financial gift — once or over time

Help with a shelter or program “wish-list” item

Volunteer for maintenance and thrift store support

Include CAV in your legacy planned giving

Donations from the community provide services for survivors 24-hours a day.

COMMUNITY AGAINST VIOLENCE 24 Hour Help Line

575 758 9888 Hablamos Español For breaking news, sports and entertainment, visit taosnews.com.

Office 575 758 8082 Textline 575 770 2706

www.TaosCAV.org

@TaosCAV Community Against Violence

Thank You Taos Heroes Ours is a community that cares deeply for one another. I'm proud to call Taos home — I was born and raised here and have built my businesses here — but we can no longer wait for livable wages, improvements to infrastructure, or real solutions for public safety and the housing crisis.

TOGETHER LET'S BUILD A LIVABLE TAOS LEARN MORE ABOUT THE CAMPAIGN FOR A LIVABLE TAOS AT GOFORMAYOR.COM

PAID POLITICAL ADVERTISEMENT | PAID FOR BY THE CAMPAIGN TO ELECT GENEVIEVE OSWALD, LIZ FOX, TREASURER

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 13

UNSUNG HEROES

Funeral Home & Crematory 1 866-657-4019

14 TRADICIONES OCT. 7, 2021

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Bette Myerson page26 taosnews.com/magazines/heroes-tradiciones

Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 15

UNSUNG HEROES KATHRYN HERMAN

Helping handsfor homeless women

By Michael Tashji | Photos by Nathan Burton

Kathryn Herman co-founded the women’s shelter HEART of Taos in 2016 after hearing about a woman who was living in her car and died a week before Christmas. Herman asked herself, “Am I supposed to do something about this?” and then received a reply from the universe, “If not you, who?”

16 TRADICIONES OCT. 7, 2021

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UNSUNG HEROES

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 17

UNSUNG HEROES KATHRYN HERMAN

Herman was born an Air Force brat in Germany,

Kathryn Herman

where her father was stationed. She was one of 10 children – eight girls and two boys.

There are few places that Herman has not lived: New Jersey, Georgia, Florida, Massachusetts, Indiana and Oregon and more.

She first came to Taos in 2006, when her late husband Joe Herman was hiring general managers in Albuquerque for his car company in Houston.

He suggested she fly down from Oregon for the weekend.

“We did a day drive up here, and I saw the gorge and thought: Wow,” Herman said. The two bought property, and after her husband passed away in 2014, she decided to relocate to Taos.

When Herman read in the paper about the woman who died in her car in front of the library in December 2015, she questioned why there was an animal shelter and a men’s shelter, but nothing for women.

She started the community funded nonprofit HEART of Taos, and a 15-bed homeless shelter called HEART House on Lower Ranchitos Road.

“Until COVID-19,” said Herman. “A couple of the clients got COVID and gave it to two of our staff members. So we realized that this isn’t going to work.

We’ve got to change it.”

HEART of Taos joined forces with the teen emergency shelter DreamTree Project, and began a hotel program for homeless families. “We have 16 hotel rooms for 16 families,” said Herman. “The good part is, now we can include spouses and male children and keep the whole family together.”

“And we have a waiting list. My last count was 24 families on the waiting list,” she said.

There are many reasons why families find themselves homeless: mental illness, low income, high rents, and substance abuse, to name a few. Herman said her hotel program is strictly sober, with on-site counselors to enforce the rules.

HEART of Taos funding comes primarily from private donations, and Herman gets the word out to the homeless through advertisements in the Taos News. She said she sometimes pays for the ads herself.

“I think as long as COVID-19 is an issue, we’ll get funded, because the funds are coming through DreamTree. They are federally funded, state funded,” said Herman.

“And we will start looking at state funding in the future, where we’re changing course about supporting and moving forward with affordable housing – sustainable, affordable housing – with other organizations in town.”

Herman said she has created emergency shelters before, in Miami and Houston. She (and a few of her sisters) came close to homelessness, due to a divorce.

“I just have a sensitive spot for that situation that women fall into often.

They get into dangerous situations, or if they’re being abused, and they’re too fearful to get out,” said Herman. “They just need someone to go to.”

If not you, who?

18 TRADICIONES OCT. 7, 2021

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UNSUNG HEROES

Congratulations to Bette this year on being an Unsung Hero!

Bette is everywhere in TENT: doing many of the hard and often thankless jobs steadily, patiently, and with her trademark sly grin that speaks of quiet progress. She is a cofounder of TENT and continues to this day as secretary, ace grant writer and fund raiser.

Bedrock is the descriptive adjective that comes to mind!

YOU ARE OUR HEROES! OUR COMMUNITY NEEDS YOU AND WE ARE SO GRATEFUL!

Congratulations to our Heroes!

CONGRATULATIONS! Surf • Stream • Work • Play

chwi.mobi/Tradiciones

Thursday isn’t complete without the Taos News.

Paid Political Advertisement Paid for by Ortez for NM, Amanda Dean, Treasurer.

Thank you to all of our Heroes for their Service “Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.” – John F. Kennedy www.taoscounty.org taosnews.com/magazines/heroes-tradiciones

Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 19

UNSUNG HEROES BENITO CONCHA

20 TRADICIONES OCT. 7, 2021

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UNSUNG HEROES

Feeling theCall of the land

By Will Hooper | Photos by Rick Romancito

Though Benito Concha spent the first 16 years of his life in Colorado Springs, his connection and calling to Taos Pueblo overtook him, and at the height of his teen years he decided to return to his ancestral home, which has since been his home base while embarking on worldwide travels.

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 21

UNSUNG HEROES BENITO CONCHA

Concha found himself drawn to his grandparents

Benito Concha

home at Taos Pueblo and began his family’s migration from Colorado back to their roots. Showing up in Taos from Colorado, things were different. One thing he noticed immediately was a lack of soccer – a sport Concha had grown to love.

“One of the first things I did was introduce soccer. That’s how we got to know each other,” he said.

Concha is not necessarily known for his initiation of a soccer team, but rather for the work he went on to do after graduating from Taos High School.

With his parents active in the Colorado Native American community, Concha was no stranger to dancing, drumming and other traditions. “I grew up dancing since I was walking,” he laughed.

Two dances he has been doing his entire life are the Red Willow Hoop Dance and the Eagle Dance, which he said both teach important life lessons. “With red willow hoops, they become so fragile … As in life and as in dance, if you manipulate or try to bend it to fit your need, it’ll break.”

Concha said the dancing took him on many journeys around the country.

“That’s what the hoops did – and so did the wings – they took me to all these places. I learned a lot and I always brought that back home. I was taught to talk to our leadership about where I’ve been and what I’ve learned.”

But it wasn’t just dance that showed him the world. With the addition of drums, Concha has found another powerful tool to connect and teach people.

Concha has taken the drumming, dancing and spiritual practices he learned in Colorado Springs and Taos Pueblo around the country and the world, sharing his love for the earth and his native land with all who will listen.

From playing a Native American drum set in a widely acclaimed rock band to traveling to Japan to perform with Kodo, the famous drumming performance group, Concha has been on a worldwide journey to share his belief that “each and every one of us are a walking symphony.”

“In all of my travels, I would always somehow come upon … someone that was the local healer or person that came around and, you know, helped the community out,” he said. The knowledge and connection gathered from these experiences has helped him grow spiritually.

As Concha saw how other cultures used music, drumming and dancing to tap into different aspects of community, spirituality and creativity, he realized something. “It was in this time that I started formulating and understanding that we have this exact thing as a whole community at Taos Pueblo.” He had travelled the world to realize everything he was searching for was back at home.

This is when Concha’s interest turned towards bodywork. Back at Taos Pueblo, he began to take interest in the healing work his uncles were doing.

“They had solutions from our ancestors, and they always shared that with me,” he said. As he learned little by little from his uncles, he came to the realization in 2012 that there was a lack of bodywork services offered on the Pueblo, and felt called to fill that void.

He travelled back to Colorado, this time in search of a degree in massage therapy. After graduating at the top of his class and spending some time working in Denver, he returned to Taos Pueblo in 2016. This is when Medicine Mountain Massage was born, a name that “became a very special and respectful honoring of bodyworkers and massage healers at the Pueblo.”

At his practice, Concha provides services for all residents of Taos, not just Taos Pueblo – though he does focus on offering free sessions to Pueblo elders, as is tradition. He offers many different kinds of body work, including deep tissue, craniosacral, reiki, “but not specifically any of that. I kind of work around these different modalities.”

Along with bringing spiritual music, teaching and massage to those seeking help, Concha has also spent time working in a more official capacity at Taos Pueblo, where he served in the Tribal Government for four different terms, as well as part of the War Chief’s staff.

Concha said he is appreciative of all those who have helped him achieve his goals, including his late grandparents Joe Cruz and Teresena Concha and Benito and Manuelita Marcus, and his parents Mike Concha and the late Celestina Concha.

Looking to the future, Concha said he hopes to find someone to mentor, but admitted it isn’t easy. “It’s a calling – or more than a calling; something that’s already been in you and you just need to push forward …” He also acknowledged it wasn’t always an easy job: “pretty much, a lot of this work that is good for the land and the people is thankless.”

It’s a calling — or more than a calling; something that’s already been in you and you just need to push forward.

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UNSUNG HEROES

Taos is full of unsung heroes,

and the LOR Foundation is proud to support their work—from Taos Behavioral Health’s free summer camps for nearly 400 Taos youth to 100% Community’s work to ensure Taos residents have access to all of the services they need.

Rocky Mountain Youth Corps-New Mexico helped deliver firewood from a forest thinning project to Taos seniors like Gilbert Santistevan this summer.

We want to uplift the unsung hero in you! Reach out to Sonya Struck to share an idea for how to make Taos even more special at lorfoundation.org. taosnews.com/magazines/heroes-tradiciones

Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 23

UNSUNG HEROES JUDY WEINROBE

Planting Seeds

in the community

Judy Weinrobe

By Taylor Hood | Photos by Rick Romancito

Judy Weinrobe didn’t begin life’s journey in Taos,

but few people have had as much of an impact on this community. Originally from Dallas, Judy moved to the Enchanted Circle a little over ten years ago and dove right in to community organizations. She was an avid gardener back in Texas (where she also worked in the banking industry for 35 years,) so Judy decided to try Los Jardineros, the Garden Club of Taos.

“Well the weather in Dallas is so different,” she says. “There is a lot more humidity, so I originally went to the [Garden Club] meetings just to learn. But then everyone was so wonderful and I got involved with the annual

Taos Garden and Home Tour.”

And “get involved” she did, promoting the organization everywhere she went and even serving for a year as the Los Jardineros president.

“I think a lot of people think the Garden Club is just a bunch of old ladies getting together and sipping tea and admiring each other’s rose bushes,” says Judy. “But the Garden Club here has been very successful and the money we make goes back into the community in the form of grants.”

Los Jardineros gives out grants to local nonprofits in Taos and the surrounding areas. For example, they have given grants in the past to the Taos Center for

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the Arts, the Taos Youth and Family Center, and various schools. When Taos High School wanted to put in a garden/orchard area, the Garden Club gave them a grant to help put in a greenhouse.

“There are a lot of things that [the Garden Club does] that the general public just doesn’t see,” she says.

That seems to suit Judy just fine (not to mention her husband Michael, their lovable little 11 year-old pup, Oliver.) After all, Judy is used to being the behindthe-scenes organizer.

Shortly after moving to Taos, she got involved in various political campaigns, from local to presidential.

“Right before I moved [to Taos], I got a call from the Obama campaign asking if I would help them out and I said, ‘sure’,” Judy explains. “It was a wonderful experience and it really was the best thing for me, because I probably met every man, woman, and child in this town.” That, naturally, led to her next experience.

“Well, this couple came in [to the Taos Obama campaign office] and said they were the Cordovas and they asked me for help. Turns out they were starting this organization called Taos Feeds Taos and their [bookkeeper] recently left and they really needed me. So I went over there and it has just been an amazing experience. The Cordovas have been wonderful mentors.”

Since then, she has been involved in everything from small bookclubs to the Taos County Historical Society.

When asked what she does for fun, she just laughs and points right back to her work in the community. Because for Judy, being involved in her community and planting the seeds for a bright future are about as fun as it gets.

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UNSUNG HEROES

live • love • be safe

Second 8-week classes begin October 18

Heroes Start your career Nursing Emergency Medical Services Holistic Health & Healing Arts

taos.unm.edu

Carson National Forest – Working With You

Taos County and Carson National Forest Sign Good Neighbor Authority Agreement Over the past several years the Carson National Forest has developed relationships within our local communities to find ways to better support the need for fuelwood gathering, while meeting forest restoration objectives. This work is modeled after acequia management, with lañeros cutting the trees and working with a mayordomo on assigned blocks of land.

This past year the Carson National Forest signed an agreement with Taos County using the Good Neighbor Authority. This authority makes it easier for small businesses and individuals to remove fuelwood on National Forest System lands, reducing the process sometimes needed when working with the Federal government.

“Using the Good Neighbor Authority to sign this agreement with Taos County continues to promote shared stewardship opportunities across state, private, and federal boundaries.”, said Carson National Forest Supervisor James Duran, “These specific projects help us meet both the ecological needs of the forest and the economic needs of our local communities. We look forward to continuing to provide service and maintain traditional uses on the Carson National Forest.”

For more information about the Carson National Forest, visit: www.fs.usda.gov/carson

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.

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Top: Cerro Negro lañeros, left: harvesting wood., right: fuelwood mastication - USDA Forest Service photos

Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 25

UNSUNG HEROES BETTE MYERSON

Life after retirement is different for everyone.

It could mean traveling, catching up on years of missed sleep or finally working on that delayed home improvement project.

To Bette Myerson— retirement means embracing and serving the community of Taos.

Finding ways to be of

Service

By Sol Traverso | Photos by Nathan Burton

e c i v r e S r u o Y r Thank You Fo ! y t i n u mm o C r u O to

Thank you to our community’s HEROES! 575.776.3333 sabrosotaos.com Located on Ski Valley Road 470 State Highway 150 in Arroyo Seco

Since 1969 - Founded Here, Focused Here 575-758-6700 | www.centinelbank.com

26 TRADICIONES OCT. 7, 2021

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UNSUNG HEROES

Bette Myerson ‘I retired for the third and final time in Dec. 2015.

It took a while to make it stick,” said Myerson.

Since Myerson moved to Taos in 1984, she has always volunteered and been willing to help others in need. Over the past 10 years volunteer work has been increasingly demanding and has been openly available and thoroughly involved every step of the way. After being roped back to work she finally retired as the finance director for Mountain Home Health Care after nearly 30 years. Mountain Home is a non-profit organization that provides nursing care and home services, as well as Hospice care. She works for a plethora of different organizations.

“I’ve worked for nonprofits my whole life. My father used to call them do-good organizations.” said Myerson about keeping busy, especially after retirement.

Myerson is a founder and board member of Taos Elders and Neighbors Together (TENT). A group of elders and neighbors that assists each other with transportation, caregiver relief home repair, shopping and other services. Her and others began talks of starting an elder organization in 2016 in Myerson’s living room. The organization then took off in 2018.

She is a member of the St. James Empty Bowl Committee, which is part of a national grassroots effort to distribute food to community members. Empty Bowl was canceled last year due to COVID. Other food pantries she has participated in include the one at El Pueblito Church.

Myerson has always been involved in the Jewish community of Taos. She has been involved in the Jewish Center for years and is a treasurer of B’nai Shalom Havurah, a local Jewish organization that fiscally sponsors charitable groups.

Apart from her involvement in the Jewish community, she is also a recognizable figure in the interfaith community. Every year in December, she directs an interfaith service that brings together members of different religions in Taos.

Her proclivity for helping others is informed by “tikkun olam” a concept in

Judaism that can translate to “to repair the world.” Her interfaith and Unitarian beliefs are also central to her volunteerism.

“I’m really an interfaith person who believes that all people need to understand each other and realize that we’re really not that different— no matter what our background is,” said Myerson.

That led her to become a member of the Unitarian Congregation about 10 years ago.

“Unitarian principles are about the unity of all people and this is quintessentially an interfaith community,” said Myerson.

She assists with Taos Immigrant Allies, a group that supports immigrant families in Taos educationally, financially and emotionally. The group B’nai Shalom Havurah is a fiscal sponsor for Immigrant Allies and helped raise $80,000 for the group, a dollar figure she is very proud of. In college Myerson had ideas of working for the United Nations as a Spanish translator. Instead, she poured her efforts into helping Spanish speaking groups in Taos.

When Myerson is not either physically laboring as a volunteer, directing services or trying to fundraise and navigate treasury funds for a non-profit— she is singing. Without any background in singing, after years of living in Taos she began singing in choirs and now sings in the Threshold Choir at the bedside of Hospice patients. In addition, she has been singing with the St. James Choir and the Taos Community Choir (both of which are on hiatus due to COVID) since the 1990s.

She reads for two book clubs and reads to her 101 year old mother who no longer has the ability to read for herself. They are currently reading books from Julia Kerr Conway.

Since the pandemic last year, the cancellation of events have not been too difficult for Myerson, who spends almost all of her free time being active in some capacity for the greater Taos community.

“I’m really an introverted person,” said Myerson. “I like my time with people and I like my time to myself.”

Myerson is grateful to be safe from COVID, and have some time to herself but also to maintain connections with others via Zoom and telephone.

Myerson was born and raised Jewish in a suburb of Chicago. The house she grew up in was nearby the park where the Chicago Symphony would hold concerts, and the possible start for her passion for music, particularly classical music.

She would later move to California and quit a job she did not care for. She checked out several places in the southwest on the suggestion of a friend and found her High School Spanish teacher from Illinois who had moved to Taos over a decade ago. Her former teacher showed her around Taos and introduced her to people. After that experience she never thought twice about leaving Taos.

“As I say the mountain reached out and grabbed me,” said Myerson about her instantaneous love affair with Taos. “I’m just glad that the mountain didn’t spit me out.”

Myerson does not care for winter sport activities, but appreciates all four seasons of Taos.

“One of the most beautiful sights and one of the most beautiful kind of days that I appreciate here is a...sunny winter day—the day after a big snowfall— when the world is white and the sky is blue and the sun is shining—I feel like I died and went to heaven,” said Myerson.

By next year, Myerson will have lived half of her life in Taos supporting the community every step of the way.

WE’RE PROUD OF YOUR DEDICATION TO OUR COMMUNITY

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 27

UNSUNG HEROES

Valdemar DeHerrera

Heroes are ordinary people who make themselves extraordinary

Malaquias Rael Jr

A special thank you to our two Heroes from Questa and Costilla

Photo: Geraint Smith

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Anita Bringas page38 taosnews.com/magazines/heroes-tradiciones

Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 29

UNSUNG HEROES ROELS ‘ROY’ CUNNYNGHAM

AF ighter for the people of Taos

By Michael Tashji | Photos by Nathan Burton

Roels “Roy” Cunnyngham and his forefathers helped put Taos on the map in the town’s early days, and through land donations and other community assistance, has made a difference in the lives of countless Taoseños.

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UNSUNG HEROES

YOUR MORNING UPDATES ARE JUST A FEW CLICKS AWAY.

S D N A ST Y T I UN F M O M N O C O OUR OUNDATI F A N s r O e th o

or f g n i car

THANK YOU TO THE heroes WHO GIVE THEIR TIME SELFLESSLY. KELLIE A. HARRIS, DDS & KAYCI M. HARRIS, DMD

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1337 GUSDORF RD, SUITE A | TAOS, NM 87571 (575) 751-9661 | KELLIEHARRISDDS.COM MOST INSURANCE ACCEPTED

Is there a bigger need than housing our own women and children?

Due to COVID-19, HEART of Taos transitioned out of HEART House to HEART’s Hotel Program in October 2020 for the safety and health of the guests and staff.

As of December 31, 2020, HEART of Taos partnered with DreamTree Project to add an additional 12 hotel rooms through CARES Act funding known as Taos CARES Crisis Housing where HEART of Taos is the lead s ervice agency provider and DreamTree Project is the fiscal sponsor. In addition to the four (4) hotel rooms HEART is directly funding, HEART is now overseeing 16 hotel shelter rooms for men, women, and families.

Since October 2020 to August 2021, HEART’s hotel program has provided 39 individuals (22 Adult Women, 4 Adult Men, 13 Children) with emergency housing and support services.

Services provided for Taos’ homeless: • • • • • • • •

Emergency and transitional housing Access to housing resources Case management Counseling referrals Life skills training Education referrals Job readiness Health and wellness referrals

Since December 31, 2020 to August 2021, HEART has provided 82 individuals (41 Adult Women, 27 Adult Men, and 14 Children) emergency housing and support services through the Taos CARES program.

If you need a place to stay, please call (575) 425-1738.

HEART of Taos needs your help to continue providing emergency shelter and support services to the Taos community.

Ad paid for by an anonymous donor.

To donate, mail a check payable to “HEART of Taos,” P.O. Box 613, Taos, NM 87571. Donate online at www.heartoftaos.org/how-you-can-help

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 31

UNSUNG HEROES ROELS ‘ROY’ CUNNYNGHAM

Roels ‘Roy’ Cunnyngham Cunnyngham was born in 1962, and grew up in Taos,

There’s nothing like The Box. 32 TRADICIONES OCT. 7, 2021

attending Taos Middle School and Taos High School. “That’s ironic, because our family donated property to Junior High – and I got to go there.”

His ancestors moved to Taos from Germany more than a hundred years ago, and his great grandfather built the first bank and ran a general store and a dairy farm.

Cunnyngham’s family owned a lot of property in Taos – Albright and Gusdorf streets are named after his great grandfathers.

Years ago, Cunnyngham tried to sell land for a Walmart Supercenter and Lowe’s, but the town of Taos wouldn’t allow him to rezone it for commercial use.

“Both would have been on my property, producing one-and-a-half to $2 million a year at this point. Instead, it’s a goat farm,” he said.

He and his wife Joni raise pigs, goats and chickens, and grow kale, carrots, onions and more. They donate food to Taos schools, and promote healthy eating and local farming in Taos.

The two worked with Albertsons grocery store to reclaim discarded produce and redistribute it to the community. Cunnyngham said a lot of food goes to the town of Carson, because “there’s a lot of people with food insecurity there.”

He has also donated land to Holy Cross Medical Center and Taos Eco Park soccer field, and 18 acres on Salazar Road to the workforce training nonprofit Rocky Mountain Youth Corps for a ropes course.

Cunnyngham said he loves the outdoors – he studied forestry in college and worked as a raft guide on the Río Grande for 14 years. “I still love The Box. That was a huge part of my life,” he said. “There’s nothing like The Box.” He also worked as a crew supervisor with Rocky Mountain Youth Corps. “I got to be the first one to take recruits to the Pueblo. That was kind of an honor.”

Cunnyngham has strong opinions about a lot of what is happening in Taos, including Taos Ski Valley, the Taos Regional Airport and the town leadership.

He said the county planning department’s recent enforcement against travel trailers was outrageous.

“Not everybody can afford a million dollar home,” he said. “There’s a lot of people that would be homeless without their campers or their Airstreams.

We’re gonna have to make spaces for them.”

He said he wants to see new leaders in Taos who “would like to see it prosper, grow properly and be a wonderful place to live still.”

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UNSUNG HEROES

“A house is made of walls and beams; a home is built with love and dreams.”

– unknown

Habitat for Humanity of Taos congratulates all of the Unsung Heroes!

NORTHSIDE

SOUTHSIDE

#16 HIGHWAY 522 EL PRADO, NEW MEXICO CALL (575) 776-2165

206 PASEO DEL CANON EAST TAOS, NM 87571 CALL (575) 999-6437

On being recognized as one of Taos’ Unsung Heroes!

We sing her praises unto the Lord!

St. James Episcopal Church is so proud of our choir member, Bette Myerson, and all of the multi-faithful ways she serves the community of Taos!

St. James Episcopal Church

208 Camino de Santiago • 575-758-2790 www.stjamestaos.com

D

OUR TAO F ST O

!

ER IG

PR OU

Thank you Lisa Abeyta–Valerio and all the Unsung Heroes for their great work in this community!

Lisa Abeyta-Valerio

Taos Municipal Schools. Where Education Matters 505 758 5205 • taosschools.org

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 33

UNSUNG HEROES LISA ABEYTA-VALERIO

Cheering for theFuture

By Taylor Hood | Photos by Nathan Burton

34 TRADICIONES OCT. 7, 2021

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UNSUNG HEROES

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 35

UNSUNG HEROES LISA ABEYTA-VALERIO

In 2021, wearing a lot of hats and spinning a lot of plates is sort of a given in our jobs. We are all asked to do a lot. But then there is Lisa Abeyta-Valerio, who takes the term “multitasking” to a whole new level.

To start, Lisa is a Taos native who graduated from Taos High School and went on to attend New Mexico Highlands University (where she, naturally, was on the cheer team.) After graduation, she returned to her hometown and began coaching and teaching. Now she is the assistant principal at THS. That in and of itself is quite the accomplishment and worthy of her status as a 2021 Unsung Hero. Everyday, she is positively impacting the lives of the nearly 800 students under her care.

Lisa Abeyta-Valerio This year, it is especially important to recognize

Lisa’s hard work. Handling COVID and dealing with remote learning, safety of the children, and making sure everyone’s development stays on track were all extra important and meaningful this year. From a pure logistics standpoint, Lisa and the Taos Municipal Schools team cleared an enormous hurdle. But she was happy to help. Lisa has been involved in teaching and other aspects of the Taos education system for 23 years and made it her personal mission to guide THS through the pandemic (with a ton of help from the staff, teachers, and students, of course.)

But that isn’t where Lisa’s service to her alma mater and her hometown ends.

She is still passionate about cheerleading (a skill that has come in especially handy with the desperation and melancholy of the last year) and it shows. For the past 11 years, Lisa has been the head coach of the THS Varsity Cheerleading Coach (plus a six-year stint from 1997-2003.) In that time, her squad has won

the State Cheer Championship a total of seven times. Lisa has won state titles more years than she has lost. That includes 2020, where the Tigers finished on top of the cheer-pyramid to take home their seventh title.

“I have been coaching for many years here in Taos and can truly say it is my passion,” she says. “Working with Taos youth has been a joy and highlight of my career as an educator. I am proud to be a member of this amazing community and I am always amazed at the fierce athletes that come from this beautiful town.”

That isn’t even the end of Lisa’s involvement with cheerleading, much less her involvement with the community. She is also the head coach of Taos Xtreme All-Star Cheer, a local branch of a national organization that promotes cheerleading competition (and fun) in kids ages 6-15.

Yes, Lisa is a teacher, an administrator, a coach, a mom, a mentor, and a Taoseña. But at the end of the day, we have another word for her: hero.

Coaching is my passion.

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UNSUNG HEROES

ON NEWSSTANDS AND ONLINE @ TAOSNEWS.COM/MAGAZINES/LAND-WATER-PEOPLE-TIME

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 37

UNSUNG HEROES ANITA BRINGAS

A Leader for the next generation

By Will Hooper | Photos by Nathan Burton

Being good at organization, connecting the dots and many things others aren’t exactly sure how to accomplish, often lands one with a vague title like “strategic support manager.” Such is the case for Anita Bringas, who currently holds the title at the University of New Mexico-Taos.

Those looking for an example of leadership born from the available community efforts should look no further than Bringas. From pursuing her own studies at the campus to learning how to help others reach the same goal, Bringas has worn many hats – and still does.

38 TRADICIONES OCT. 7, 2021

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UNSUNG HEROES

“Faith, Hard Work & Talent”

JR goes above and beyond for his community.

We thank you for all you do!

Questa Lumber & Hardware is here to support the needs of our customers!

Heroes Start at Home

More than a year-and-a-half into navigating the Covid-19 Pandemic, one thing has become clear: Leaders start at home.

Here’s to the front line workers who’ve worked tirelessly to serve us, businesses that have toiled to stay open and serve their customers and families that have worked so hard to keep work, kids and school all running smoothly.

Roberto “Bobby” J.

Gonzales

State Senator, District 6 Democrat Paid Political Advertisement

Paid for by the Committee to Re-Elect Roberto “Bobby” J. Gonzales, Roberto “Bobby” J. Gonzales Treasurer

“It is our privilege to congratulate Bette Myerson on being an Unsung Hero of Taos this year.

We know that Bette does the Good Work needed in our community.

We are so grateful for the 26 years that she gave to Mountain Home Health Care.”

HEALTH CARE 630 Paseo del Pueblo Sur, #180, Taos 575.758.4786 www.mtnhomehealth.com

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 39

UNSUNG HEROES ANITA BRINGAS

Anita Bringas Growing up in a small suburb of Chicago, Bringas was far away from Taos, but her connection to the area and community runs deep – her mother was born here and her grandparents have been in the area as long as she can remember.

One of 15 kids, Bringas grew up coming to visit Taos, and remembers her mom always telling her that one day after the kids were all out of the house, she planned to move back in her later years. As Bringas was figuring out what to do after leaving Chicago, she came to spend time with her mother in Taos.

As with many who find themselves in the area, “a few weeks turned into a few months and I thought I probably should start working a little bit,” Bringas said.

Her plan was to start a chocolate truffle business (something she called a “crazy idea”), so she began looking at classes she could take to help her with entrepreneurship, and ultimately began taking one-off classes to help her get her business started.

It was during this time when she was offered a summer internship at the Taos Chamber of Commerce, where she worked for a number of years. “That's really when I started to get kind of more rooted in the community and really involved with advocacy efforts and support for the local business community.”

Through her work with the chamber of commerce, she became more familiar with the movers and shakers in Taos, and heard about an administrative position opening at UNM-Taos. In 2010 she applied for the position and became an administrative coordinator.

Though Bringas was still pursuing her chocolate company throughout this time, it ultimately didn’t work out. “But what did happen is I started taking a few more classes here and there and ended up getting my two-year degree.”

From there she went on to receive a bachelor's degree and ultimately a master's degree in Public Administration.

In 2019 Bringas moved into her current position as “strategic support manager,” which she said is a title somewhat unique to UNM-Taos, but operates

similarly to how a chief of staff would at a four-year college.

At UNM-Taos, Bringas looks for ways to help the administrative team by looking for community opportunities for collaboration and partnerships, “and really seeing how we can be most effective.” In the most basic sense, Bringas said her job description is “trying to keep the ‘community’ in community college.” She also calls herself “the eyes and ears” of the campus community.

Several initiatives she is proud of include the college’s Commercial Driver’s License and Certified Nursing Assistant Program, as well as her identification of the need for shorter-term programs to help the local workforce get on their feet post-pandemic.

Bringas said the CDL program has been aimed at helping people who may have been affected by the Questa Mine closure in 2014, and they have seen solid results. She also said their CNA program graduates see a near 100 percent placement rate post-graduation.

On top of all of her work with the community, Bringas is also her mother’s caretaker. She feels a deep sense of connection to her family and the local community, which she hopes to protect and preserve. “If I can somehow honor my mom and my ancestors by preserving that culture which makes Taos such a destination for so many people, that’s really important to me.”

One thing is clear: Bringas is a connector of people, time and tradition. Be it through her work with the UNM Taos, the chamber of commerce, or helping her family, she is always looking for ways to bring people together to make positive change, all while recognizing the importance of the past. Bringas credited everyone she works with as well. “All of us are there with the sole and primary mission and focus to meet the unmet needs of our community.”

Bringas hopes she will be remembered for working “to have made a positive difference, and to have found solutions that are impactful and sustainable. If my existence here makes someone else's life a little bit better or a little bit easier then I feel like I'm putting the gifts and the skills that I've been given to good use.”

Connector of people, time and tradition.

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UNSUNG HEROES

Taos Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) serves the citizens and landowners of Taos County by promoting the wise use of land, water, and natural resources.

The District traces its beginnings to the Taos County Project.

Initially, this historic community planning project was made possible by a grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Subsequently, the University of New Mexico provided additional monies via the Harwood Foundation. It was during these early public meetings that the idea of forming a soil & water conservation district was first proposed. On November 8, 1940, the first staff meeting was attended by 33 agency personnel from 16 organizations and 56 residents from 22 communities.

Local conservation programs are operated under the principles of transparency, integrity and accountability. The District board of supervisors believes that this is essential to maintain public trust.

Taos SWCD is committed to a productive and sustainable environment for present and future generations.

Blas Chavez of Los Cordovas with his dog. He served on the board of Taos SWCD beginning in 1941. Photograph by John Collier and archived in the Library of Congress American Memory Collection.

1931

Severe drought hits the Midwestern and Southern Plains of the United States.

1933

The Civilian Conservation Corps opens the first soil erosion camp in Clayton County Alabama.

By September of that year, there were 161 soil erosion camps. The drought continued.

1934

The drought is the worst ever in U.S. history, covering more than 75% of the country and affecting 27 states severely. Approximately 35 million acres of formerly cultivated land have essentially been destroyed for crop production.

1935

President Franklin D. Roosevelt approves the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act, which provides $525 million for drought relief, and authorizes creation of the Works Progress Administration. Congress establishes the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) in the Department of Agriculture.

1936

The SCS publishes a soil conservation district law, which, if passed by the states, would allow farmers to set up their own districts to enforce soil conservation practices for five-year periods.

1937

FDR transmits the “Standard State Soil Conservation District Law” to state governors. USDA assistant secretary of agriculture M.L. Wilson advocates that Soil Conservation Service activities be carried out through locally organized conservation districts.

1941

Taos Soil & Water Conservation District is established. One of the few grassroots organizations set up by the New Deal still in operation today, the soil and water conservation district program recognized that new farming methods needed to be accepted and enforced by the farmers on the land rather than bureaucrats in Washington.

“The history of every nation is eventually written in the way in which it cares for its soil.”

President Franklin Roosevelt, March 1936

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 41

UNSUNG HEROES

SINGING THE PRAISES OF QUESTA’S UNSUNG HERO MALAQUIAS RAEL, JR. Malaquias “JR” Rael is a cornerstone in the community. Through his everyday actions he is building the future of Questa by fortifying the strong foundation built by generations of Raels before him.

ith, a f g n i r e wav n u . n a a t es u Q With to d e t a c i d JR is de

His dedication to Questa’s economic development and entrepreneurial diversity are only eclipsed by his strong ties to family and his unwavering faith.

One of his family’s businesses is NorthStar Tire, and in the community, Malaquias is a North Star leading Questa to a bright future.

Thank you,

JR, for all you have done and continue to do for Questa: • • • • • • • • •

Historic Preservation Agricultural Innovation Championing the Questa Lodging Project Business Park Development & Creation of Jobs Growing Local Commerce & Entrepreneurship Fostering Village Beautification & Local Arts Marketing and Promotion of Questa Trails Development & Outdoor Recreation Questa High School Welding Lab & Entrepreneurship Class

• A Legacy of Leadership

Photo by Joshua Duplechian, Trout Unlimited

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Pauline Mondragon page48 taosnews.com/magazines/heroes-tradiciones

Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 43

UNSUNG HEROES MALAQUIAS RAEL

atural N leader A

in Northern New Mexico

By Michael Tashji | Photos by Rick Romancito

Anyone who’s ever spent any time in the Village of Questa knows Malaquias Rael.

The business owner and community and civic leader has spent his life putting down roots and lifting others up in “The Heart of the Río Grande.”

Rael was born on his father’s birthday in Taos in 1962. “So they gave me his name,” he said.

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UNSUNG HEROES

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 45

UNSUNG HEROES MALAQUIAS RAEL

Malaquias Rael His parents opened Questa Lumber and Hardware in 1953. Growing up, Rael would help out in the store. He earned a degree in accounting from the College of Santa Fe, and began to balance the books for his parents. Once he began helping customers in the front of the shop, Rael discovered he was a natural salesman.

He now helps run three businesses, with more than 20 employees; Questa Lumber and Hardware, Northstar Tire & Auto, and Carquest Auto Parts.

Rael got into politics, and served as a village councilor before becoming mayor of Questa in 2006. “There was a lot of work that needed to be done,” he said. “And that’s the best place to be if you want to get something done.”

Questa had been a mining town for nearly 100 years, digging up molybdenum.

The silver metal is used to make steel alloys – for engine parts, drill bits and saw blades.

“We wanted to see how we could diversify our economy, so that we weren’t solely dependent on mining,” said Rael, who worked with Chevron to create an Economic Development Fund to help transform Questa into a post-mining economy.

In 2014, the mine shut down. Some miners left to find work in neighboring states, and some stayed behind and found work reclaiming the mine.

Questa now hosts a Kit Carson Electric Cooperative solar array that provides 100 percent renewable energy during daylight hours, and an industrial park where Taos Bakes produces snacks for outdoor adventurists from coast to coast.

The town hosts studio tours and farmers’ markets, and recently expanded its library. Rael said these kinds of community efforts attract other communityminded people, and serve the long-term interests of the region.

“If you’re blessed to be able to live here, you have to be able to participate in what goes on,” said Rael, who lives in Questa with his wife Danette. Their three kids are grown, and live in Questa and Albuquerque.

“I love challenges. I love being able to try to fix things. I think that that’s important – helping your neighbor,” said Rael. “Trying to do God’s will is important.”

He said making change is a group effort. “One person can do very little. But when you get a few people together, you can really accomplish a lot. I’ve been blessed to be able to be part of that.”

Trying to do God’s will is important.

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UNSUNG HEROES

NOW ENROLLING

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR HEROES...

Always taking applications!

JUDY, ANITA & PAULINE

AGES 3-5 !

Early Childhood Education & Family Development Division

Judy Weinrobe

FOR ALWAYS MAKING SURE EVERYTHING IS READY AND RUNNING SMOOTH

Early Head Start Pre K Programs Anita Bringas

FOR ALWAYS PROVIDING SUPPORT

YDI provides FREE high-quality preschool and child care for children ages 6 wks - 5 yrs in Bernalillo, Rio Arriba & Taos Counties.

Pauline Mondragon FOR ALWAYS GIVING WHOLE-HEARTEDLY

WE SALUTE THEIR DEDICATION AND COMMITMENT TO TAOS FEEDS TAOS

TAOSFEEDSTAOS.ORG 575-758-4556 • 575-758-3425 and ydinm.org

100 Years, 3 Generations,

One Family.

After 100 years building Taos, you could say our roots run deep.

An honest day’s work, a firm handshake, and a fair price. That’s what we believe in.

Thank you to The Taos fire Department, Taos Police Department, Rio Fernando Fire Department, All of our local law enforcement and fire stations. Also to all of our medics and EMT’S who support our community on a daily basis. “the home experts”

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315 Paseo del Pueblo Sur

575.758.2271

www.randalltaos.com

Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 47

UNSUNG HEROES PAULINE MONDRAGON

A Warrior

with a smile and a helping hand

By Taylor Hood | Photos by Nathan Burton

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UNSUNG HEROES

Pauline Mondragon is a fighter, though you might not know it by looking at her. She is a slight woman with slender shoulders, but her small stature and cherubic face hide the fierce fighter beneath.

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 49

UNSUNG HEROES PAULINE MONDRAGON

Pauline Mondragon Pauline is a cancer survivor, or more accurately, she is surviv-

ing cancer, or more accurate still, she is beating cancer. Pauline was diagnosed in 2016 with a form of cancer of the uterus and she has been fighting ever since.

“The doctors haven’t said I am in remission,” she says. “But they are telling me I don’t need to come in to get check ups as often, which is great news.”

Pauline fought her way through 11 rounds of chemotherapy and dozens of doses of radiation to get her to her positive prognosis.

But Pauline is used to fighting the good fight. She has had to fight for everything in her life, starting at 11 years old, when her father was killed in a logging accident.

“It was devastating for [my mom],” she recalls. “She was very young and it was just us. That’s when we moved from Arroyo Seco into Taos.”

Pauline is also the wife of Leroy Mondragon, to whom she has been married for nearly 60 years (their anniversary is this Dec. 30). Anyone who has been married knows that it can sometimes be a battle.

But her real fights come in the form of fighting off hunger and sickness in Taos. As an active member of the local Catholic Parish, she is constantly helping

shelters and organizing fundraising events. She is on the board of Taos Feeds Taos and volunteers her free time in the Holy Cross Medical Center ER. These are the things she has devoted her life to, and her career is no different.

Pauline, now long-retired, worked for decades for Taos Municipal Schools and for over 10 years for Kit Carson Electric, both in the bookkeeping department.

Perhaps most Taoseños know her best, however, as the smiling face behind the counter at the Holy Cross Medical Center gift shop. She can often be found there, offering kind words and a helping hand to customers. Despite it being a gift shop, she says, people don’t typically come into the shop on their best day, so she makes it her goal to give them a bright interaction to help them along.

Now, with her not-quite-beaten cancer status, and the continuing pandemic, Pauline’s efforts have been sidelined. “I told [Holy Cross and my church] that I want to come back as soon as I can, but I can’t leave [my home] until COVID is over.”

COVID and cancer aside, Pauline says she loves her hometown—whether it is Arroyo Seco, Taos, or her current home of Ranchos de Taos—and plans to never stop fighting for it.

Never stop fighting.

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UNSUNG HEROES Rio Grande ATP, Serving Northern New Mexico for 43 Years

ONGRATULATIONS TO UNSUNG HERO CONGRATULATIONS TO UNSUNG HERO

TED WIARD DAVID ELLIOT

OUR CUSTOMERS ARE OUR HEROES BEST WARRANTY IN THE ENCHANTED CIRCLE!

2 YEARS OR 24K MILES

Ted helps make Taos a better place to live”

“Thanks David for leading the pandemic battle!”

ADULT SUBSTANCE ABUSE CENTRAL INTAKE ADULT SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER TREATMENT

START YOUR ROAD TO RECOVERY NOW 105 Paseo del Canon West, Suite A, Taos | (575) 737-5533 | www.riograndeatp.org

1314 Paseo Del Pueblo Sur, Taos NM 87571 • (575) 758-1658 • metricmotorstaos.com

R I V E R A F U N E R A L HOM E & G OL DE N W I L L OW

Together 20 Years of Caring for Taoseños During Their Most Difficult Time

S OMO S FA M I L IA Proud to be Taos’ ONLY family owned Funeral Home and Crematory *WE ARE NOT PART OF A FUNERAL HOME CHAIN*

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 51

UNSUNG HEROES VALDEMAR DE HERRERA

A warrior

By Will Hooper

for us all

Rick Romancito

Valdemar DeHerrera will turn 102 on Oct. 8th, making him one of the oldest surviving members of the Battle of Bataan. Born in Costilla in 1919 to Meliton and Lupita DeHerrera, Valdemar was one of 14 children who learned the value of a hard day’s work on a ranch at their homestead. He also spent three years and seven months as a prisoner of war in the Philippines during World War II.

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UNSUNG HEROES

Service Above Self

Taos Milagro Rotary Club congratulates Kathryn Herman on her well-deserved selection as an Unsung Hero.

She epitomizes the Rotary principle of “Service Above Self.”

Our community is a better place to live because of these Unsung Heroes’ service.

Thank you, community members, for paying it forward, keeping our community safe and well.

TA O S C O U N T Y www.taoschamber.com

Congratulations Congratulationsto to Anita AnitaBringas Bringas and andall allof ofthe the2021 2021 Unsung UnsungHeroes!

Heroes!

Our OurFamilies’ Families’ Hero Hero Valdemar Valdemar DeHerrera DeHerrera

Love Lovealways, always,the theLewis LewisFamily, Family,Chavez ChavezFamily Familyand andyour yoursister sisterMaxine Maxine

Sangre Sangre DeDe Cristo Cristo Photos: Photos:Nancy Nancy

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Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 53

UNSUNG HEROES VALDEMAR DE HERRERA

DeHerrera said the values instilled in him at an

Courtesy photos

early age in Costilla helped him get through the most intense experience of his life – the Battle of Bataan, and his ensuing capture that led to three years in a Japanese prison camp.

DeHerrera served as a member of the U.S. Army in WWII, when he ended up serving in the Battle of Bataan in the Philippines in 1942. He was one of approximately 1,800 New Mexicans who served alongside Filipino soldiers. Less than half of those New Mexicans made it home.

DeHerrera found himself among those lucky enough to return, and is currently one of around a dozen survivors of the Battle of Bataan.

DeHerrera didn’t have intentions of going to war. In fact, his first step away from his home was when he moved to Wyoming at the age of 17 for work. Shortly after his move north, he found himself facing a draft letter from the Army.

After being transferred to Fort Bliss for official training at the age of 22, DeHerrerea was transferred to New Mexico National Guard due to a lack of service members, where he found himself quickly shipped off the the Philippines to fight against a previously unknown enemy. What began as a National Guard training mission overseas quickly turned into something far more sinister.

Just months after DeHerrera had landed in the Philippines, he quickly saw his training duties become manifest. As the Japanese dropped bombs on Pearl Harbor, war was declared, and DeHerrera’s aim quickly changed to fighting the Japanese and other ‘Axis’ forces that existed in Asia at the time.

This began the three month Battle of Bataan, in which Filipino and American soldiers faced Japanese bombers, doing their best to stand their ground.

Eventually, American and Filipino forces surrendered, leading to the infamous “Bataan Death March,” in which the captured soldiers were forced to walk and so many died. Around 600 American and 5,000 Filipino soldiers perished in the march.

DeHerrera was not one of those forced to march, however, and was among a small group of men who chose to stay and fight, even as they ran out of weapons and resources. While hiding in a bunker with several other soldiers, they were eventually found by Japanese forces and taken as prisoners of war.

DeHerrera said he was close to death twice during the ensuing years, but thanks to people he called his “guardian angels,” he survived. One was a Japanese commander who ordered for his men not to shoot DeHerrera and others; the other was a fellow soldier who carried DeHerrera when he couldn’t keep up during parts of smaller marches they were forced to do.

If what he had experienced so far seemed tough, it was nothing compared to the three years and seven months he was about to face in a prison camp, where he was malnourished, beaten and forced to do manual labor. It was his days growing up in Northern New Mexico that he said helped him through, and that knowing the value of hard work kept him going.

In February of 1945, Bataan was finally reclaimed by American and Filipino forces and DeHerrera was honorably discharged. He returned home to Costilla where many family members presumed him to be dead.

It was then that the happier side of DeHerrera’s life began, with a marriage to Consuelo “Connie” DeVargas in 1979. The couple started a family that has grown in size over the generations, with eight children, 18 grandchildren, and 28 greatgrandchildren. Before Consuelo’s passing in 2019, the couple enjoyed spending their summers at their ranch in Costilla where they would work the land, and spending winters in Alamogordo, each year attending the Bataan Memorial Death March at White Sands.

During his postwar life, DeHerrera worked for the New Mexico Highway Department for three years before becoming the general foreman at Moly Corp Mine for the next 26 years.

With DeHerrera lie some of the last few original tales of the most infamous days of World War II.

Knowing the value of hard work.

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VALDEMAR DEHERRERA UNSUNG HEROES

Valdemar DeHerrera Morgan Timms/Taos News

We would like to take this opportunity to thank our advertisers for investing in this year’s Tradiciones section Your generous support made this year’s Tradiciones section one of our biggest ever.

Above the Fold

Double D Ranch

Dawn Grainger, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Taos Real Estate

El Pueblito United Methodist Church

Carson National Forest

Golden Willow Counseling

Centinel Bank of Taos

Habitat for Humanity HEART of Taos

Chevron Environmental Management Company Choice Wireless

Holy Cross Medical Center Northern New Mexico Center for Cosmetic Dentistry, Dr. Kellie Harris

Questa Lumber & Hardware Randall Lumber Rio Grande Alcoholism Treatment Program

Taos Mainstreet Taos Milagro Rotary Club Taos Mountain Casino

Rivera Family Funerals and Cremations

Taos Municipal Schools

Sabroso

Taos Soil & Water Conservation District

Salon Marjorie St. James Episcopal Church

Taos Tennis

Kit Carson Electric Cooperative

Wanda Lucero, State Farm Agent

UNM-Taos

Knight Financial Limited

Taos Community Foundation

Village Of Questa

Community Against Violence

Lewis Vending LOR Foundation

YDI Headstart

Campaign to Elect Genevieve Oswald

Taos County Chamber of Commerce

State Representative Kristina Ortez

Mountain Home Health Care

Taos Elders & Neighbors Together

Mayor Dan Barrone

Nusenda Credit Union

Senator Roberto “Bobby” Gonzales

Phoenix Mechanical

Taos Feeds Taos Taos Lifestyle

DeVargas Funeral Home & Crematory Of Taos

Questa Economic Development Fund

Cid’s Food Market Coldwell Banker Mountain Properties

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Metric Motors

Taos County

Taos Living Center

Oct. 7, 2021 TRADICIONES 55

UNSUNG HEROES

2021 Taos Pueblo War Chief Fred L. Romero

To visit Taos Pueblo is to walk in a sacred place where life continues from the earliest of human existence.

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.

COVID-19 UPDATE: In these unprecedented times, we’ve been proud to respond swiftly to the Covid-19 crisis. Taos Pueblo remains closed but we look forward

to welcoming you when it’s safe. Taos Mountain Casino is proudly open, keeping you safe with masks and temperature checks.

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