This is a photo of the west-facing porch of the Juan de Jesus Bernal and Jacinta Romero Bernal family home. The home was inherited by their daughter, Gregoria Bernal, who married Antonio Jose Arellano. According to Estevan Rael-Galvez, the photo includes Antonio Jose and Gregoria on the far right, with unknown family members on the porch. According to other Arellano family members, this is actually not... but Juan de Jesus Bernal.
A 1980s cassette recording by Los Paisanos de Santa Fe (Antonio Rivera, mandolin; Jose Medina, violin; Robert Gonzales, guitar) of "Sobre Las Olas," a waltz that was very popular in New Mexico before the 1960s. From a digitization given by santafesino mandolinist Tomas Maes (Antonio Rivera's cousin) to Jordan Wax
This photograph is of women quilters of Questa, New Mexico. We were not able to identify everyone, but hope we can do that now. (Blank Spaces are unknown).
Sitting from L-R: Delfina Mandonado Rael; __?___, Marinita Garcia; Irene Rael; Eufrecinia Vigil; Esther Rael; Celia Rael; Anita Velasquez; and little girl?
Standing from L-R: __?___; Simona Gomez; Eufemia Gonzales; __?___; Andrellita Rael; __?___; Eloisa Sanchez; Isabelita ___; __?___; Stella Quintana Rael; Kate Vigil Laforett; Teodorita Vigil Ortega; Little Boy; Eulogia Cordova; Floripa Valdez; __?___ (face obscured, but there); Ursulita Rael-Herrera; Dora Wisehart.
Loveida Quintana Cisneros shares bottles of whiskey infused with camphor from her mother used for common ailments. Estevan Rael-Galvez is the second speaker.
The invitation sent by mail and online platforms to invite people to a community workshop - Gathering Memory: Sound, Object, Photo and Story, July 8, 2018, Questa VFW Hall
Jaqueline recalls her experience when she was about 6 years old with her grandmother driving an old Model T; she remembers fun rides until her grandmother was told that she needed a driver's license and then never drove again. (Jaqueline, originally from Ohio, was a long time resident and business owner in Questa - she had a sewing business, and had two different cafes and different times. At the time she wrote down this story she was visiting Questa for the summer.)
Monica recalls what her grandmother said to her, her siblings and cousins when they came to her for comfort from a scratch or cut, and how what she said seemed to make the "boo-boo" feel better.
Kate was born and raised in Cerro, NM, went to school in Cerro, then Questa High School, was married at 18 and soon after became a mother of two children. She worked as a cashier for much of her life and then went into cooking, which she loves. She takes seriously her responsibilities as a mother and with her volunteer work in her community. At the time of the interview, she was the co-director of the North Central NM Food Pantry. In this interview she describes childhood memories and talks about her experiences with food growing up. She also talks about the communities of Questa and Cerro, then and now and how important she feels it is to be involved in the community.
Various photographs illustrating the setting of the Questa Stories' first Women's Tea, at La Sala, Questa, NM, November 16, 2019, co-hosted by Esther Garcia, Claire Cote and Gaea McGahee. A comfortable setting and appealing food and drink were important to setting the tone of the event.
Story-sharing and discussion at Questa Women's Tea, November 16, 2019: Loveida Cisneros - Woodcutting and picnic lunch; Monica Ortega – they had a way of sharing lessons without saying it directly; Judy Rutledge – details of stories important to share with our youth; Esther Garcia – Winter Bus Rides with Felix Quintana; Martha Rael Nimon – Memories of Esther’s dad driving the bus; Maria Gonzales – Memories of her Grandmother
Discussion and story sharing at Women's Tea at La Sala in Questa on November 16, 2019. Maria Gonzales, Martha Rael Nimon, Irma Cisneros and Esther Garcia share and discuss on a variety of topics including personal life experiences, spirituality and religion, ancestors (particularly female ancestors), Questa history and more.
Connie Long's experience at the Questa North Star Texaco in Questa in 1973 or 74, in which Norbert Ortega kindly told her to pay him when she was next passing through the village, when she was nearly out of gas, stopped and then realized she had no money. Comment at the end is from Monica Ortega.
Story Sharing from Gaea McGahee about her mother's pottery chickens (that Gaea was given), which had come from Guatemala, purchased by her mother (Dava Davy) when she was a 21 year old anthropology student in that country. The chickens we special objects to her mother and she held on to them even as they sometimes got damaged by her growing five children because all the people she had visited, the makers of the chicken pots, had died as a result of a volcanic eruption. These objects had become somewhat sacred to Dava, imbued with this memory.
