It’s been more than a year-and-a-half since Maria Gonzalez joined the LOR Foundation as its Questa community officer, and in that time she has helped dozens of Questa locals get their projects off the ground. One recent example: In July, Pastor Gayle Martinez of Living Word Ministries led an effort to distribute school supplies to dozens of Questa students and families before the start of the school year.
At the July 28 event at the Questa Farmers Market, students received free backpacks, pencil boxes, notebooks, pens, and other supplies funded by LOR, as well as free haircuts. The goal of the giveaway, Martinez says, was to support local students and families and help them get off to a strong start to the school year.
“There’s been a consistent, demonstrated need,” she says. “And I think for us, just when we see so many of these grandparents raising their grandchildren and knowing their financial situations, it was like, ‘What can we do to help?

Here at the LOR Foundation we’re also in the business of helping. We support Questa locals like Martinez who want to make a difference for their community. In her time as LOR’s Questa community officer, Gonzalez has fielded many questions about what LOR does and how we work in the community. Because we work in a unique way, we thought it might be helpful to quickly revisit how we support the Questa community.

At LOR, our mission is to lend a hand to locals who are making life better for Questa residents. We do that by funding community projects that locals come up with, and then lead. The projects we support can be related to housing, transportation, water, health, education, community engagement, the environment, and the economy.

As you look around Questa, you might have noticed that the projects we support aren’t enormous. We support many small projects that can have an immediate impact because we believe that many small actions can create lasting change. We also believe philanthropy should be easy and accessible to everyone, which is why we don’t have lengthy grant applications, deadlines, or long waits to receive a check—all of which can be barriers to people who have great ideas. Gonzalez works directly with Questa locals to home in on their specific solutions—sometimes over coffee or a cheeseburger, or just a walk—and often grantees receive funds within just a couple of weeks.

“Questa locals know what our community needs and they’re ready to take action,” Gonzalez says. “We want to lend a hand and help them create the future they want for our community.”

Each Questa community project begins with a simple conversation. To learn more about LOR and share your idea, get in touch with Gonzalez at maria@lorfoundation.org or (575) 665-2001.

LOR works with rural communities
in the Mountain West to enhance livability and prosperity while preserving the character that makes each community unique. LOR supports locally led community projects that improve transportation, housing, the environment, education, civic engagement, water, health, and the economy.