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Happy Thanksgiving, Santa Fe—it’s about time you put a face to the name that’s been appearing at the top of the staff box the past two months. People who know me well could only smirk when they learned about my move to Santa Fe. The smirkers knew this move was, at least in part, driven by a long-simmering obsession with chile, specifically those fully matured and sun-dried in Chimayo.
But I didn’t come for chile alone.
Yes, the weather is great, the art culture’s amazing and Zozobra? Well, he’s just sublime. Sure, I’m now four hours from my daughter, a school teacher in Durango, Colo., instead of 12. But the job is the thing that brought me here.
More specifically, the need to do my part as a journalist for 34 years. I can’t believe the country has abandoned its democratic principles as easily as it has since 2016, but then I didn’t foresee the Internet. Building back faith in journalism starts at the local level, and I’m here to focus on Santa Fe and its residents. I’m fortunate to do it under the banner of a 50-year-old alternative weekly with the best calendar in the nation and a history of journalistic excellence—in a town with a soul derived, at least in part, from chile.
Three months after “The Whole Chile Book” by Dave DeWitt and Nancy Gerlach was published, I started as a journalist for The Oklahoman in Oklahoma City. That was December of 1990. Over the next 32 years, seven were spent in the toy department (Sports), 10 years in News and I was Food Editor for the Arts & Culture section for 13. Becoming either Conductor of the Lunch Train or Minister of Potlucks in previous stops helped land that gig.
My time as Food Editor brought me to Santa Fe in 2011. That’s when I met chef Estevan Garcia. He was overseeing kitchens at the Hotel St. Francis and across the Plaza at the Hotel de Chimayo. Estevan’s conviction for Chimayo chile fortified the sacred space it occupies in my heart to this day.
This week, designated for voicing what we’re thankful for, I’m not only thankful for this opportunity but for the predecessors who made it possible. People like Julie Ann Grimm and Julia Goldberg. I’m also thankful for the talented staff at SFR, long may they continue to keep you abreast of the news and all the coolest things to do in the City Different.
As its new steward, I’m tasked with ensuring SFR continues that mission while we work together to bail out any bilge water coming from the Red sea that’s swallowed up so many rural states. But we’re gonna need your help. Need some answers. What local issues most concern you? What voices need to be heard? Where can I find the best green chile cheeseburger? Are there any shortcuts in this town? New Mexican pozole or pozole ala Mexicana? Who should be the next mayor? Are tourists really that bad? And will I ever get used to the intensity of afternoon rush hour sunsets?
I welcome your feedback, and have the inboxes to prove it: editor@sfreporter.com and dave@sfreporter.com.
