Wild Rivers Fire Ecology Day Brings Art, Science, Stories & Community Together in Questa Communities
A full day of exhibitions, hands-on activities, research, storytelling, music and food explores fire, disturbance and renewal in Northern New Mexico
Saturday, November 7, the PASEO Project, Del Fuego, Forest Stewards Guild and LEAP will present Wild Rivers Fire Ecology Day, a free day of art, science, stories and community at the Wild Rivers Visitor Center near Cerro, located at 1120 NM-378, Questa, NM 87556 (also listed as Cerritos Road or Cerro Road in Cerro, NM)
The Paseo Project, Del Fuego and the Forest Stewards Guild present Disturbance programming that connects art, ecological knowledge, fire science and community experience across Northern New Mexico.
Wild Rivers Fire Ecology Day brings together artists, scientists, educators, students and community members to explore the many ways fire and ecological disturbance shape the forests, watersheds and communities of Northern New Mexico.
From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., visitors can experience exhibitions, interactive art, family activities, watershed education, music, food and conversations with researchers and local storytellers. The day offers opportunities for all ages to engage with fire not simply as a destructive force, but as part of a larger story of adaptation, renewal, resilience and relationship to place.
“Wild Rivers Fire Ecology Day creates a space where art, science and lived experience can come together,” says the PASEO Project. “We’re inviting people to explore disturbance from many perspectives — through the eyes of young artists, researchers, cultural practitioners, local families and community members whose lives are connected to this landscape.”
“We’re excited to engage our Northern Taos County Communities in public dialogue with this interdisciplinary event on the increasingly important topic of fire,” says Claire Coté, director of LEAP.
“It’s been seven years since we sunsetted the NeoRio event at Wild Rivers. We are thrilled to be bringing innovative art and ecology back to Wild Rivers through this multi-faceted, collaborative pop-up event!”
A Day of Art, Ecology and Community The day’s programming includes:
10 a.m.–2 p.m.— “Drawing on Earth” Chalk Activation with Mark Lewis Wagner Artist Mark Lewis Wagner invites visitors to participate in a drawing activation inspired by the landscape. The hands-on activity offers an accessible way for visitors of all ages to draw, observe and connect with place.
10 a.m.–5 p.m. — “The Medicine of Disturbance” Exhibition The Garcia, Gonzales and Santistevan families present The Medicine of Disturbance, a pop-up exhibition inspired by post-fire ecological monitoring. The exhibition reveals the beauty, abundance and “medicine” that can emerge through disturbance, offering new ways of understanding fire and the landscapes that follow.
10 a.m.–5 p.m. —Disturbance, A Forest in Motion: A Youth Art + Ecology Event — Questa Edition Young artists from Alta Vista, Roots & Wings and Red River Valley Charter Schools invite the public to explore forest disturbance and renewal through their artworks. The exhibition combines art and ecology with hands-on family activities, offering a window into how young people are observing and interpreting the changing forests around them.
10 a.m.–5 p.m. — Rio Grande Watershed Scroll + Puzzle by Scott Sutton Artist and educator Scott Sutton presents an educational 3D puzzle of the Upper Rio Grande Basin subwatersheds, alongside his Natural Pigments Rio Grande Watershed Scroll. Visitors can explore the watershed through tactile and visual experiences that connect geography, water and place.
11- 12 p.m. —Communities of Questa Mariachi led by Rachel León, will play traditional music in the amphi theater.
12–1 p.m. —Shifting Mosaics: Ellis Margolis and Manny Lopez, with Special Guests Researchers and local voices explore centuries of ecological and human influence on the Rio Grande del Norte, revealing a landscape shaped by disturbance, adaptation and enduring relationships. This outdoor conversation brings scientific research into dialogue with local knowledge and experience.
1–2 p.m. — Community Lunch + Music by Michael Rael A free lunch will be provided by the Friends of the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument, accompanied by music from local musician Michael Rael.
2–4 p.m. —Voces de Nuestro País: Fire Stories The day concludes with a community story gathering hosted by Michael Rael and Claire Coté. Marking 30 years since the Hondo Fire, this edition of Voces de Nuestro País invites community members to share fire stories, memories, and experiences. Bring your story to share onsite and add to the Voices of the Northern Rio Grande digital community archive at QuestaStories.org. Each Voces de Nuestor País Event and Podcast Episode is featured on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts
Part of Disturbance: Art Exhibitions & Community Programs
Wild Rivers Fire Ecology Day is part of Disturbance, an ongoing series of art exhibitions and community programs presented by the Paseo Project, Del Fuego and Forest Stewards Guild. The program brings artists, scientists and communities together to consider disturbance as a powerful ecological and cultural force.
Through exhibitions, youth programs, public conversations and community gatherings, Disturbance explores the cycles of fire, change and renewal while creating opportunities for people to share knowledge and imagine new relationships with the landscapes they call home.
Wild Rivers Fire Ecology Day is free and open to the public. Dress warmly and bring your chair.
Saturday, November 7, 2026 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Wild Rivers Visitor Center located at 1120 NM-378, Questa, NM 87556, also listed as Cerritos Road or Cerro Road in Cerro, NM near Cerro, New Mexico
Location is subject to change due to weather. For the latest information, including any location changes, visit: paseoproject.org/disturbance2026
About the Paseo Project
The Paseo Project is an arts nonprofit based in Taos, New Mexico, transforming Community with Art and Art with Community. Through free, community-based programs, PASEO brings artists and communities together to explore ideas, places and experiences through art.
On Wednesday, April 20th over fifty Junior-Senior High School Students, volunteers, a Village of Questa Councilor, and leaders from LEAP, Forest service, Taos County Solid Waste and Roads all gathered for a community-wide clean-up and beautification effort. The group fanned out across the Questa area, along all major roadways, Eagle Rock Lake and at Questa Park.
Students and volunteers removed invasive plants, picked up trash, filled holes, reburried irrigation lines and pruned trees at Questa Park, guided by Claire Coté of LEAP.
At Eagle Rock Lake, mentored by Forest Service and LEAP personnel, they dug holes, installed new posts and fishing line receptacles, refinished picnic tables and other maintenance tasks.
Teams of students walked along road ways throughout Questa collecting trash, supported by Taos County Solid Waste and Roads Department. Special thanks to all the students and teachers who spent their morning beautifying our community. We appreciate you!
Students and volunteers enjoyed a wonderful lunch at Questa Youth Center catered by Rosie’s Smokehouse, sponsored by LOR Foundation, and organized by teacher and Questa Junior-senior Honor Society leader, Santana Santistevan.This year’s effort was made possible by collaborators Questa Junior-Senior High School Honor Society, LEAP (Land, Experience and Art of Place), Village of Questa, US Forest Service, Taos County Solid Waste and Roads Department, Localogy, and Community Volunteers. LEAP’s clean-up and beautification efforts at the Questa Park was funded by Chevron Grants for Good and the IMPACT Grant through Taos Community Foundation as well as individual donors.
The Earth Day clean-up was organized in solidarity with the Village of Questa Beautification Committee, spearheaded by Village Councilor Jason Gonzalez. Let’s keep the momentum going; if you go fishing at Eagle Rock Lake, put your used or tangled fishing line in the new green receptacles around the lake; if you see trash in our community, pick it up; if you have trash to throw, find a trash can or dumpster. Together, we can prevent litter, protect wildlife and keep our community clean and beautiful.
The room felt different the moment you walked in: brighter, and unmistakably alive. The “Kids Express Art Show” transformed the Questa Youth Center into a vibrant celebration of imagination, where every wall pulsed with color, experimentation, and heart.
From bold acrylic paintings and watercolor self-portraits, to playful monoprints and a joyful collaborative mosaic, the exhibit reminded us that creativity is always ready and it shows up when kids are given the space to explore. The evidence was in the details: fresh color choices, inventive textures, and ideas from favorite virtual games, architecture, emotions, and landscapes explored through clay, wood, and paint. Genuine expression manifested.
What made the show even more meaningful was the collaboration behind it. Students, teachers, and community partners came together to create something bigger than any one program. On Thursday April 16, the opening reception brought it all together with Mariachi music, a wonderful turnout of families, community members, and young artists witnessing their work being celebrated. The exhibit and musical performances exemplified the power of art to build connection, confidence, and belonging.
Kids Express was a joyful reminder: when young voices are given space, they don’t just fill it, they transform it.
Gratitude to the young artists for your beautiful artwork, and to art teachers Maya MacDonald (Alta Vista), Gaea McGahee (Roots & Wings), and Lorie Hawkes (Red River Charter); your work and creativity was at the heart of this event! Thank you to Rachel León and all the Questa Community Mariachi performers for your wonderful playing at the opening reception; you brought the house down!
Thanks to Claire Coté for coordination of the event and to Kristie Ritchlin (Vida del Norte Youth Coordinator and onsite Questa Afterschool Program Leader) for many logistics and overall support, Mary Jo Kelly (QCC) for installation assistance. Gratitude to event partners Questa Creative Council (QCC), Village of Questa, Harwood Museum of Art, Vida del Norte Questa After School Program and for grant funding support from Chevron Grants for Good and the IMPACT grant through Taos Community Foundation. Thank you to all who made this youth art show show possible!
Let’s continue to celebrate creativity, beauty, expression and the perspectives of young people in our community!
An arts-based collaboration of schools & programs in Northern Taos County A first-ever, five-day art exhibit featuring young local artists will be held at the Questa Youth Center, April 16–20. The event is hosted by a collaborative team from Questa Creative Council (QCC), Village of Questa, Vida del Norte Afterschool Program, Harwood Museum of Art, LEAP, and local schools (Alta Vista Elementary & Intermediate School, Roots & Wings Community School, and Red River Valley Charter School).
A reception for the artists, their families, and the community will take place Thursday, April 16, from 4:30 to 6:30 pm. The show offers open hours Friday and Saturday, April 17–18, from 12 to 6 pm.
“Supporting youth artistic expression and bringing together students and teachers across programs is what this show is all about,” says coordinator Claire Coté, who is also a QCC board member and LEAP director. As a Harwood Teaching Artist she leads a weekly art project at Vida del Norte’s After School Program at Questa’s Youth Center.
“We empower kids with tools for healthy minds and drug-free lives, and art is part of that,” says Kristie Ritchie, youth coordinator for the Vida del Norte Program.
Art teacher Maya McDonald adds, “Alta Vista is excited to be part of an event that showcases the excellence and expression of our students!”
“We at the Harwood Museum of Art believe in the transformative power of arts experiences. We’re grateful to Claire Coté for leading this and honored to support the creativity of Questa youth,” says Gwendolyn Fernandez, Curator of Education and Public Programs.
The exhibit features a variety of mediums, including clay works created by youth in QCC’s seasonal Ceramic Café, back in session Thursday evenings from 5–9 pm at the Youth Center Art Room.
Come support budding artists at their reception on Thursday, April 16, from 4:30 to 6:30 pm at the Questa Youth Center!
For more information contact: Claire Coté, 575-224-9066, clairecote575@gmail.com
On Monday, April 20th from 9:30 am – 2:30 pm, community members are invited to join Questa Junior-Senior High School Students, Village of Questa, LEAP, US Forest Service and Taos County Solid Waste for a community-wide clean-up and beautification effort. All are invited! Let’s come together alongside thousands of other communities around the world taking action for Earth Day.
Students at Earth Day Clean-up with collection trailer, 2025. Photo Courtesy of Lorenzo Gutierrez.
Volunteers are invited to Questa Municipal Park at 9:30 AM for spring cleaning and beautification. There will be trash pick-up, invasive plant species removal, tree pruning and other beautification efforts. Lunch for volunteers and students will be provided midday. Please bring a water bottle, layers for weather, hat and sun protection, and if you have them, work gloves, and yard cleaning tools; we’ll have additional tools and trash clean-up supplies on hand as well.
Students will simultaneously participate in other Earth Day efforts; trash collection along Questa roadways supported by Taos County Solid Waste and the installation of fishing line recycling receptacles at Eagle Rock Lake supported by US Forest Service. Cleaning and beautifying our community is our goal, but equally important is staying safe, having fun, strengthening friendships, and coming together to shape the collective future vision we want for our community. The Earth Day clean-up is also in solidarity with the Village of Questa Beautification Committee.
Also in honor of Earth Day and to encourage spring cleaning, the Village of Questa will be providing roll away dumpsters for disposal of large items and deep cleaning. Join in these clean-up days for two weekends: Friday 1-3 and Saturday 9-2 April 24th and 25th and May 8th and 9th. Let’s all do our part at home too!
The first Earth Day was celebrated 56 years ago on April 22, 1970. This day of education and action was created by US Senator Gaylord Nelson, to mark the importance of keeping our planet healthy and clean, and for people to renew their commitment to make positive changes in their communities. According to nelsonearthday.net, Senator Nelson suggested April 22, a week day, as an ideal day to hold the teach-in, as a weekday event would mean students would be involved. On the first Earth Day, Nelson, spoke to a large crowd in Denver, Colorado:
Today we are continuing to work towards Nelson Gaylord’s vision in Questa with students at the core of the Community Care & Connection Day event. Community Care & Connection Days are collaborative, intergenerational days of community give-back and celebration in and around Questa, initiated by LEAP and collaborators in 2021. Each gathering is an opportunity to connect with friends and make new ones, to care for and improve our public spaces and envision together what we want for our community. LEAP has been hosting collaborative Earth Day events in Questa Since 2015.
This year’s effort is made possible by collaborators Questa Junior-Senior High School Honor Society, Taos County Solid Waste, LEAP, Village of Questa, US Forest Service, Localogy, and Community Volunteers. LEAP’s clean-up and beautification efforts at the Questa Park is funded by Chevron Grants for Good and the IMPACT Grant through Taos Community Foundation as well as individual donors.
We look forward to beautifying Questa with you on Monday, April 20th! Thanks to all involved for making this community effort possible.
Village of Questa: 575-586-0694 Questa Junior-Senior High School: Santana Santistevan, 575-779-5601
LEAP: Claire Coté, 575-224-9066
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Photo Captions:
2025 Earth Day clean-up group photo: Questa Junior Senior High School Students, Community Members and Taos County Solid Waste. Photo courtesy of Claire Coté.
Students and Jr/Sr. Honors Society Sponsor Santana Santistevan at 2025 Earth Day Clean-up with collection trailer. Photo Courtesy of Lorenzo Gutierrez.
We wanted to give you all a little summary update on what LEAP has been up to in 2025 (and a little bit from 2024 too)! Read on to find out…
LEAP expanded its art and nature programs this year while continuing stewardship efforts at Questa Park. A major spring focus was the community-wide Earth Day clean-up in April, where over sixty Questa Junior-Senior High School students, volunteers, and local partners joined together to pick up trash, remove invasive plants, and beautify the area. Nearly 1,000 pounds of trash were collected, and participants celebrated with lunch at the Questa Youth Center. The event was made possible through collaborations with local organizations and funded by Chevron Grants for Good and individual donors.
Throughout the summer, LEAP expanded its creative, nature-centered workshop offerings. At Columbine Campground, Vida Camp youth took part in a “Printing with Nature” workshop, where they learned about local plants while creating leaf prints on paper and fabric. LEAP also co-facilitated the first experimental PEAR Workshop Series (People and Plants, Education and Environment, Art and Restoration) organized by Maggie Gaddis, Executive Director of the Colorado Native Plant Society, and Lee Lee of the historic Taos Distillery, an emerging arts-and-ecology initiative. As part of PEAR, LEAP hosted a plein-air art day at the Taos Land Trust, where volunteers from the Taos Chapter of the Native Plant Society of New Mexico developed plant cyanotypes, printed leaves and flowers and sketched botanical shadows, surrounded by the species they help protect and promote.
Voices of the Northern Rio Grande The Voices of the Northern Rio Grande Project continues to grow its story-gathering work through interviews with elders and community members of all ages, field recordings, and partnerships with the Questa Public Library, the Questa Farmers Market, local schools, and other community groups.
A big highlight was the launch of Voces de Nuestro País – Voices of our Area in the fall of 2025, a monthly story-sharing event curated and hosted by Michael Rael, where community members – especially elders, nuestros tesoros – share their memories, humor, struggles, and life experiences. These events are now also available as audio and video podcasts on major platforms, and all recordings, photos, and videos are added to a growing digital community archive developed with the library and the Manitos Community Memory Project. By sharing stories both in person and online, the project strengthens connections across the Northern Rio Grande and helps keep our shared history alive for the future.
The Community Memory Lab at the library is growing, and we’re excited to share that our fleet of Story Boxes is expanding as well. Featuring rotating, locally voiced stories, these interactive installations are bringing people together in creative ways and helping our community preserve and celebrate the unique stories and culture of North Central New Mexico.
LEAP was also invited to participate in a Manitos Community Memory Project Cohort with the Shift Collective & History Pin in an exploration of decentralized digital storage strategies for community-based archives. It was an educational and insightful experience and we love History Pin! Check it out, make an account and start pinning!
The project is also opening up new, creative ways for people to share their stories. Last year (2024), students at Alta Vista Elementary participated in an immersive art-and-story workshop led by Claire Coté and Cat Gilliam, in collaboration with art teacher Maya MacDonald. Students created reflective cyanotype prints and shared heartfelt stories, which were later sewn together by Joan Long and Claire Coté into two youth story quilts, now on display at Questa Library as part of their permanent art collection.
We’re deeply grateful for the opportunity to work with community members of all ages – youth, elders, and everyone in between – on meaningful projects that celebrate art, nature, culture, and the stories that connect us. Your support keeps this work thriving.
Please help us continue our work by making a donation today!
Donate to LEAP’s community art, nature, and story sharing projects!
2025 Earth Day clean-up group photo: Questa Junior Senior High School Students, Community Members, and Taos County Solid Waste. Photo courtesy of Claire Coté.
On Wednesday, April 16th over sixty Junior-Senior High School Students, volunteers, folks from the Village of Questa, LEAP and Taos County Solid Waste all gathered for a Community-Wide clean-up and beautification effort. The group fanned out across the Questa area, along roadways and at Questa Park to pick up trash, remove invasive plant species and beautify the area. Special thanks to the senior students who helped at the Questa Park; and to all students who spent their morning beautifying our community. We appreciate you! Lorenzo Gutierrez, from Taos County Solid waste kindly hauled the trash collected and reports that the group picked up 980 lbs of trash. Students and volunteers enjoyed a wonderful lunch at Questa Youth Center catered by Erica Apodaca and Joyce Archuleta.
2025 Questa Seniors helping with clean-up at Questa Park. Photo courtesy of Claire Coté.Students clean-up along roadways at Earth Day Clean-up, April 16, 2025. Photo Courtesy of Lorenzo Gutierrez.Students at Earth Day Clean-up with collection trailer. Photo Courtesy of Lorenzo Gutierrez.
This year’s Earth Day clean-up was made possible by collaborations with Santana Santistevan and Questa Junior-Senior High School Honor Society, Taos County Solid Waste, LEAP, Village of Questa, Localogy, and Community Volunteers. LEAP’s clean-up and beautification efforts at the Questa Municipal Park is funded by Chevron Grants for Good through Taos Community Foundation as well as individual donors.
Let’s keep the momentum going; if you see trash, pick it up or if you have trash to throw, find a trash can. Together, we can keep our community clean and beautiful!
Celebrating 55 Years of Earth Day Community Connection and Beautification in Questa
Student-Led Community & Village of Questa Clean-up Days On Wednesday, April 16th from 9 am – 2 pm, community members are invited to join Questa Junior-Senior High School Students, Village of Questa, LEAP and Taos County Solid Waste for a Community-Wide clean-up and beautification effort. All are invited! Let’s come together in solidarity with thousands of other communities around the world to celebrate Earth Day and Community Connection.
The day will include garden bed improvement and trash pick-up in the center of town and around Eagle Rock Lake, with the Questa Junior-Senior High School Students and Taos County Solid Waste. At the Questa Municipal Park there will be trash pick-up, invasive plant species removal, irrigation repair and more, led by LEAP. Cleaning and beautifying our community is our goal, but equally important is staying safe, having fun, strengthening friendships, and coming together to shape the collective future vision we want for our community. The Earth Day clean-up is also in solidarity with the Village of Questa Beautification Committee’s efforts.
Volunteers are invited to meet at the Questa Park at 9 am. Lunch for volunteers will be provided midday. Bring a water bottle, layers for weather, hat and sun protection, and if you have them, work gloves, and yard cleaning tools; we’ll have additional tools and trash clean-up supplies on hand as well.
Also in honor of Earth Day the Village of Questa will be providing roll away dumpsters for disposal of large items and spring cleaning. They will also be offering green waste and tire collection. Join in these Village of Questa Clean-up Days for two weekends: Friday 1-3:30 and Saturday 9-3 April 25th and 26th and May 2nd and 3rd. Let’s all do our part at home too!
The first Earth Day was celebrated 55 years ago on April 22, 1970. This day of education and action was created by US Senator Gaylord Nelson, to mark the importance of keeping our planet healthy and clean, and for people to renew their commitment to make positive changes in their communities. According to nelsonearthday.net, Senator Nelson suggested April 22, a Wednesday, as an ideal day to hold the teach-in, as a weekday event would mean students would be involved. On the first Earth Day, Nelson, spoke to a large crowd in Denver, Colorado:
Today we are continuing to work towards Nelson Gaylord’s vision in Questa with students at the core of the Community Connection Day event. Community Connection Days are collaborative, intergenerational days of community give-back and celebration in and around Questa, initiated by LEAP and collaborators in 2021. Each gathering is an opportunity to connect with friends and make new ones, to care for and improve our public spaces and envision together what we want for our community. LEAP has been hosting collaborative Earth Day events in Questa Since 2015. The first was a multi-media youth art event held at OCHO Art & Event Space.
This year’s effort is made possible by collaborators Questa Junior-Senior High School Honor Society, Taos County Solid Waste, LEAP, Village of Questa, Localogy, and Community Volunteers. LEAP’s clean-up and beautification efforts at the Questa Municipal Park is funded by Chevron Grants for Good through Taos Community Foundation as well as individual donors.
We look forward to beautifying Questa with you on Wednesday, April 16th! Thanks to all involved for making this community effort possible.
Deatails:
What: Earth Day Clean-up and Beautification
Where: Questa Municipal Park, Eagle Rock Lake & Questa Village Center
When: Wednesday, April 16th, 9 am – 2 PM
Who: Everyone welcome!
Cost: Free
Village of Questa: 575-586-0694 Questa Junior-Senior High School: Santana Santistevan, 575-779-5601LEAP: Claire Coté, 575-224-9066
with Questa Stories: Voices of the Northern Rio Grande Spring 2024
These collaborative youth quilts are glimpses into the inner worlds of our young community members responding to the question: Who Am I Now?
In Spring 2024, Questa Stories: Voices of the Northern Rio Grande educators Claire Coté and Cat Gilliam spent a month and a half working with 2nd, 3rd and 5th grade students at Alta Vista Elementary School. Through this Art and Story Workshop 62 students shared fascinating and tender stories and created reflective cyanotype artworks including the identity portraits in these quilts.
Cyanotype is an early photographic process that uses sunlight to develop prints. In this project students created “negatives” by drawing on transparencies that we then printed onto cyanotype fabric. Each student took home a print and contributed to the collaborative quilt project. These quilts are also a community invitation for reflection; they invite you to ask: Who Am I Now?
Guest Youth Artists: Simon Sisneros, Olivia Coté and Amber Coté
“Who Am I Now?” Art and Story Workshops facilitated by Claire Coté, Cat Gilliam (Questa Stories: Voices of the Northern Rio Grande) and Maya MacDonald (Alta Vista Art Teacher). Quilt designed and assembled by Claire Coté and Joan Long (LEAP) with guidance from Sharon Nicholson (Questa Public Library Head Librarian). Gratitude for patient guidance and collaboration from Alta Vista Art Teacher Maya MacDonald, Alta Vista Principal Deyhle Adkins, and Alta Vista School Administrator Lisa Romero. This project was made possible by funding from the LANL Foundation and Taos Community Foundation Chevron Grants for Good and in-kind personal donations of time and supplies.
April 20th Honor Student-Led Questa Community Clean-up and Beautification
On Thursday, April 20th from 9:30 am – 2:30 pm, community members are invited to join Questa Junior-Senior Honor Society Students, Village of Questa Beautification Committee, LEAP and local Churches in a Community-Wide clean-up and beautification effort. All are invited! Let’s come together in solidarity with thousands of other communities around the world to celebrate Community Connection and Earth Day.
The day will include trash pick-up along Hwy 522, Hwy 38 and around Eagle Rock Lake, led by the Questa Junior-Senior High School Honor Society and members of the Questa Beautification Committee. At the Questa Municipal Park there will be trash pick-up, invasive plant species removal, irrigation repair and more at the Questa Municipal Park, led by LEAP. Cleaning and beautifying our community is our goal, but equally important is staying safe, having fun, strengthening friendships, and coming together to shape the future we want for our community. This clean-up day is one of many local events and efforts organized by the Questa Junior-Senior High School Honor Society this spring. The Village of Questa Beautification Committee will host regular clean-up days once a month throughout the summer and fall.
Part of the March 1 Questa Beautification Crew: Councilwoman Gonzales and her 2 kids, Amalia Gonzalez, Robert (Robbie) Ortega, Kingston, and Casey (Soupman) Eason at Questa Veteran’s Memorial Park, photo by Councilman Gonzalez
Lunch for volunteers will be provided midday (soup, sandwiches etc.). Bring a water bottle, layers for weather, hat and sun protection, and if you have them, work gloves, and yard cleaning tools; we’ll have additional tools and trash clean-up supplies on hand as well.
The first Earth Day was celebrated 53 years ago on April 22, 1970. This holiday was created by US Senator Gaylord Nelson, to mark the importance of keeping our planet healthy and clean, and for people to renew their commitment to make positive changes in their communities.
Questa Park Volunteers taking a break and surveying their accomplishments from the day, April 30, 2022, photo by Claire Coté
Community Connection Days are collaborative, intergenerational days of community give-back and celebration, taking place in and around Questa. Each gathering is an opportunity to connect with friends and make new ones, to care for and improve our public spaces and envision together what we want for our community.
This effort is made possible by collaborators Questa Junior-Senior High School Honor Society, Village of Questa, Taos County Solid Waste, LEAP, Localogy, Local Churches, North Central Food Pantry, and many Community Volunteers. The Questa Junior-Senior High School Honor Society activities are sponsored by the LOR Foundation. LEAP’s clean-up and beautification efforts at the Questa Municipal Park is funded by Chevron Grants for Good through Taos Community Foundation as well as individual donors.
We look forward to beautifying Questa with you on Thursday, April 20th! Thanks to all involved for making this community effort possible. Next month, join in the May Community Connection Day in downtown Questa preparing the Questa Farmers Market, Visitor Center and Village Center for opening Memorial Day weekend.
Please insert these details in an info box:
What: Honor Student-Led Questa Clean-up and Beautification
Where: Eagle Rock Lake, Hwy 522 and 38, Questa Municipal Park
Councilman Gonzalez, Village of Questa Beautification Committee, 575-741-5013
Santana Santistevan, Questa Junior-Senior High School Honor Society, 575-779-5601
Claire Coté, LEAP, 575-224-9066 – Questa Municipal Park
Photo Credits and Captions:
Questa Park Volunteers taking a break and surveying their accomplishments from the day, April 30, 2022, photo by Claire Coté
Part of the March 1 Questa Beautification Crew: Councilwoman Gonzales and her 2 kids, Amalia Gonzalez, Robert (Robbie) Ortega, Kingston, and Casey (Soupman) Eason at Questa Veteran’s Memorial Park, photo by Councilman Gonzalez
NeoRio 2020: Home is made possible by individual donations, local business and media sponsorships as well as grant support. This project is supported in part by New Mexico Arts, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs, and by the National Endowment for the Arts, Taos Community Foundation and Drawing on Earth, with additional sponsorships from Questa Economic Development Fund, Questa del Rio News, Questa Visitor Center, Taos Public Library, Zia Event Design, North Star Toys, Questa Lumber and Hardware, and generous individual donors and volunteers.
