National Rural Funders Collaboratve Case Study, No. 2

BUILDING FAMILY SELF-SUFFICIENCY IN NOR THEASTERN NEW MEXICO

The National Rural Funders Collaborative (NRFC) believes that rural poverty is persistent due to decades and generations of envir onmental and economic disinvestment, cultural and social isolation, and barriers of race and class. This article is one in a series that highlights community transformation to address rural poverty. Strategies include: creating community wealth, transforming leadership through civic participation, and increasing self-sufficient families. NRFC seeks to over come disparities of poverty and race in rural communities through support for asset-based rural economies in which all persons can participate, benefit and lead.

As the income gap widens between what average families earn and what they need to support themselves, both urban and rural families are forced to make choices about where they will live and what they must sacrifice to strike the right balance. For urban families, it often is a matter of having to work several jobs to support the cost of living in the city, many times at the sacrifice of the environment that supports quality of life. For rural families, more often the issue is one of finding any job that will pay enough to provide the essentials and enable them to continue living in an environment of shared values and quality family time. Carla's story is about the dynamic between choosing a certain lifestyle or quality of life and at the same time maintaining some measure of family self-sufficiency.

A Weaver's Story – Choosing a Simple Way of Life

Carla Gomez and her talent for weaving have changed the fabric of her region.

When Carla Gomez began weaving many years ago, it was a creative pursuit as well as a practical skill. Weaving enabled her to produce useful goods for her young family— sweaters, blankets, and household furnishings—and it provided an outlet for her artistic talents. Born into a family of means and regional prominence, Carla chose a path not often taken—one of "self-sufficiency" in the sense that she was committed to living of f the land and what she could make with her own hands. A life of poverty was a choice for Carla, a choice to lead a simple life without ambition for riches or power.

The impact of the mill goes far beyond creating local mill jobs and sustaining the work of T apetes weavers; it also helps to bring back and expand a growing niche market for special and unique wools. At the end of the day, Sangre de Cristo will be a "worsted" spinning mill. This describes a higher-level process where the fibers are lined up parallel around an axis. It provides a luster and a luxurious feel, and is the most desirable for socks and suits and fine clothing. "We will be working with weavers in the store and the products will be sold nationwide," says Mike. "There's 80,000 pounds of alpaca wool waiting from 2003 that is stored elsewhere. We will be processing that. We’ll produce dif ferent types of yarns, from silk and buffalo to angora rabbit and sheep."

The custom processing mill is creating a renewed regional interest in wool growing.

Moreover, the mill is spawning a revitalizing of wool growing. "This region used to be a place where sheep were grown, but then it changed to cattle," says Mike. "The mill may bring sheep back to this area." Heifer International, a nonprofit that provides animals to families around the world as a strategy to end poverty and increase self sufficiency, is helping with funding. They will provide sheep to local residents, with the understanding that the recipients will eventually pass on the gift of an animal to others. Farmers, ranchers and families who raise fiber -producing animals like sheep, goats and rabbits will then be able to sell their wool to the mill. The Lincoln Sheep Association and other sheep associations, the Navajo Nation and the National Alpaca Fiber Co-op are all looking forward to the new market provided by the Sangre de Cristo mill.

Poverty, Choices and a Better Way of Life

Sangre de Cristo and Tapetes de Lana are holding out hope to an area of deep-seated poverty, where families have struggled for years to make ends meet. "People are grateful to have an opportunity to stay in the community and make a living," says Carla. "There are few opportunities for work here, so they are very appreciative. I feel confident that the mill will be a profitable business and provide opportunities to many local residents. When I look at the future, I also see the theatre opening, and the culinary arts center bringing people to our community and making a powerful impact. Maybe we'll even have a tortilla factory! Also, there used to be a small hotel within the building, and this will provide space for workshops as well as residences where artists can stay."

Tapetas de Lana is providing local job opportunities for residents of the Mora region.

Mary Jo Cordova, production manager at Tapetes de Lana, does payroll, administration and grant writing. She has worked in the Mora studio of fice for several months. "I’m a native of Mora, and am a single parent," says Mary Jo. "I have two boys, 12 and 13 years old. This job has made a big dif ference for me, in my finances and also in quality time with my children."

"Carla gives everyone a chance. She doesn’t hesitate to help anyone from the community. The mill and T apetes de Lana are giving people a chance to improve their lives and it's a family-friendly place to work."

Rosa Gallegos now weaves out of her home so that she can better care for her grandchildren. But her need to be self-suf ficient and build a better life for her family provided the early spark that caused Carla Gomez to create T apetes de Lana and everything that has followed. Carla was emboldened, empowered and inspired by the need to help. As Carla says, "If people become empowered, they will find something that can change their life and change their community."

The tapestry that Carla is now weaving goes far beyond a small business; she is creating a culture-based industry that promises a better life not only for its weavers but for others within the region and beyond. "We now have 20,000 square feet of space in Mora, part of which will become a culinary arts center and a theatre for the performing arts and cinema," says Carla. "We also have 11,000 square feet of space that used to be a mercantile that has been converted into a spinning mill for yarn.” The mill is called ‘Sangre de Cristo,’ and it operates as a for-profit business. The new mill houses all the processing steps: the washing of the wool and fiber, carding, drafting (lining up the fibers), spinning and plying (doubling or tripling the strands). Everything that is woven at Tapetes de Lana will be spun by Sangre de Cristo.

Sangre de Cristo opened in the fall of 2005 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and community celebration.

The mill will run at half capacity initially. Spinning machines from a mill in Taos, NM, have been moved to the Mora facility. Robert Donnelly, part-owner and manager of the 15-year-old Taos Wool Mill, has been working on training mill workers for Sangre de Cristo. "The Taos Wool Mill has been sold, and now it is becoming part of Sangre de Cristo, in Mora," says Robert. "We are a custom processing mill, converting wool to yarn. Right now we sell to yarn stores, knitting shops and directly through the internet. Knitting is a growing industry. There will be 10 machinery operators in Mora. It only requires about one day to learn how to operate the machines, but the spinning formulations take about one month to learn. It really requires about six months to a year to get comfortable. I'm doing the training and Carla is hiring the employees."

With the installation of the mill, Tapetes has now grown far beyond the original apprenticeship program and is moving beyond its current reach as an area small business. In time, the mill and the cultural arts center built around it will establish Tapetes de Lana as a movement, propelling the rebirth of an ancient craft and the cultural reshaping of a geography long forgotten.

Institutionalizing Family Self-Sufficiency and Alternative Livelihoods

Carla’s vision, as it has evolved, has been to create the human and cultural support systems to foster an alternative lifestyle, and also to create the financial, technological and institutional infrastructure to sustain it as an economic engine for the region. As a result, what began in a one-room schoolhouse is now taking on many other dimensions.

The mill itself will not only make Tapetes de Lana completely self-sufficient and profitable, it also will create new jobs in the area. Ten men worked on construction, and they are training to eventually become mill operators. Mike Sanchez, one of the construction workers who will become a mill operator, lives 13 miles from Mora, in Chacon, NM. "I started by doing framing and electrical work," says Mike. "I was in the Air Force prior to working on the mill. I've never done anything like mill operation, and I traveled to Taos to learn the work from Robert Donnelly. It can be dangerous, with the machines' gears and rollers – there is a safety aspect to learn. I'll operate several machines at the mill and then train and oversee the work of others. There will be three other trainers, in addition to me, and eventually there should be 20 employees at the mill."

Mike appreciates that the mill and related commerce will create badly needed job opportunities for local residents. "There aren't many jobs around here," he says. "Most are in construction and they are at least a one- or two-hour drive away. I'm only 20 minutes from the mill. Lots of people from the community will be employed here. The store up front will have 15 employees who will be weaving. This will be in addition to the employees who work in the mill itself. There are now options here for people—they can begin to work at one job and have the chance to move up."

Living in Las Vegas, NM and raising her family as a single parent, Carla was employed for several years as textile curator for the Golondrinas Museum of Living History in Sante Fe, a special place that captures and presents the rich cultural history of New Mexico and showcases those indigenous crafts and livelihoods that have shaped and defined "the land of enchantment." She continued her weaving and eventually began to exhibit her work at regional and national textile shows—gaining recognition and acclaim as a prized artisan. But even as her avocation claimed more and more of her time and interest, Carla never dreamed that her weaving would set in motion an economic development strategy for her beautiful but poor region in northeastern New Mexico—a strategy that one day would enable other residents to support their families and build financial security and stability.

Teaching the Craft as a Means to Independence and Self-Respect

In 1998, while Carla was weaving on handmade looms in a rented one-room schoolhouse with no running water, she was approached by a local woman, Rosa Gallegos. Rosa, also a single parent, supported her family by cleaning houses, but longed for work that was more creative and meaningful. She asked Carla to teach her to weave, hoping the craft would provide a better life—a life of greater independence for her family and one that would boost her self-confidence and pride.

Moved by Rosa’s strength and determination, Carla investigated options for establishing an apprentice program. The New Mexico Department of Labor was willing to provide an initial apprenticeship grant—but only to a nonprofit organization. Carla was not deterred. She borrowed the articles and bylaws from a local animal-rights nonprofit, copied the language, and changed the animal-related references to people references. She completed the rest of the government paperwork and requirements, and incorporated “Tapetes de Lana,” meaning “weavings of wool.”

Partnerships with the New Mexico Arts division of the Department of Cultural Affairs, the welfare-to-work program, and an alpaca ranch soon followed, and Carla, Rosa, and other apprentices were on the path to an unexpected new life.

From Master Weaver to Small Business to Micro-Industry

Mora, New Mexico, provides a picturesque setting for Tapetes de Lana and the new Sangre de Cristo mill.

Tapetes de Lana remained in the one-room schoolhouse for about a year, then Carla moved—first to a rented space in downtown Las Vegas, and eventually to a studio on the plaza. She expanded her operations to a second location in Mora, NM in 1999. Mora is a small town about 30 miles north of Las Vegas, NM, and it—like Las Vegas—is beautifully situated on the edge of the Sangre de Cristo (“blood of Christ”) Mountains and the Santa Fe National Forest. A 2002 grant allowed Carla to buy the property in Mora, and it is now Tapetes de Lana’s main headquarters.

“In Las Vegas we train weavers and have gallery space. In Mora, the facilities are more expansive,”explains Carla. “Now, after seven years, we have more than $1 million in assets. Our growth has been faster and greater than we expected. When I wasgrowing up, my father owned businesses, so I had some familiarity with business ownership. Of course,the most difficult aspect is the financial part. We are stretched by payroll and the ups and downs of sales.And management is always a challenge, trying to create and maintain a team environment.” Her threechildren are grown and independent now, and her daughter runs the operation in Las Vegas while Carlaspends her days in Mora.