Toribio Garcia is a lifelong resident of Chamisal, New Mexico and assistant director of finance and administration at the New Mexico Acequia Association. Proud partner to Olivia Chavez and father to Toribio Garcia Jr. and Francisco Garcia. Toribio was raised off of the Acequia del Monte and has been an active peon since the age of 16. Toribio and his family are currently parciantes on the Acequia de Lino where they grow a garden, maintain a large high tunnel, and care for a few fruit trees. Toribio has been an NMAA employee since 2015 and participated in the Sembrando Semillas program since it was created in 2005.
Listen to their story below.
Farmer Toribio Gonzales has been farming his whole life, but he hasn’t always irrigated with drip tape. With help from an NRCS grant, Toribio continues to be an active parciante (member and user) of the Acequia de Lino in Chamisal, New Mexico with the addition of a drip irrigation system.