Loveida Quintana Cisneros brought these bottles to a Community Memory and Story Sharing Event on July 8, 2018. The event was organized by Questa Stories and the Questa History Trail and held at the VFW Hall in Questa. In this audio recording, Loveida talks about the bottles of whiskey infused with camphor from her mother used for common ailments.
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.
Date of Interview: June 14, 2018
Interviewers: Gaea McGahee and Claire Coté
Location: Home of Kate Cisneros, Questa
Topics: Life story, family, food pantry, community, traditional foods, family traditions, local traditions, traditional foods, food preservation, early memories, school, then and now, creativity with food
Carrie has lived in Questa for the past 25 years, where she works as an archaeologist. An active member of the community, she participates in annual acequia cleanings, trash pick-ups, and volunteer days, and likes taking photographs of nature and community happenings like the Healing Fields and the restoration of St. Anthony’s church.
Date of Interview: April 20, 2018
Interviewers: Gaea McGahee and Claire Coté
Location: La Sala, 2331, Hwy 522, Questa
Topics: Seasons, seasonal events and rhythms, acequias, archaeology, trails, Kiowa Trail, Forest Service, Earth Day, St. Anthony’s Church, El Magre
Flavio Cisneros is a retired history teacher, veteran, community leader and wonderful cook, committed to recreating traditional foods from his childhood in Questa.
Date of Interview: May 31, 2018
Interviewers: Gaea McGahee and Claire Cote
Location: Home of Flavio Cisneros
Topics: Life story, family, local oratorio, 1918 flu pandemic, traditional foods, local traditions, early memories, military service, education, life philosophy
(1 hour 24 mins)
Questa Stories 