Lowriders converge on El Santuario de Chimayó for community fundraiser
Jul. 20—CHIMAYó — Eppie Martinez ran his hand over a 1953 Chevrolet Bel Air with Chimayó plates and legacy diamond-tuck upholstery — a low-riding rig his father once drove around Los Angeles.
His hand inside the old car, he pulled out a photograph of his parents seated at a table.
"That's my mom and dad, God rest their soul. They ride with me wherever I go," he said.
"We're surrounded by the holy land," Martinez added, gesturing toward the grounds of El Santuario de Chimayó.
El Santuario de Chimayó is considered to be one of the most significant Catholic pilgrimage sites in the Southwest, with thousands of pilgrims descending each spring for Holy Week. This Saturday, near the shrine in northern Santa Fe County, the engines of modified convertibles purred. Dozens of lowriders, many with lurid paintwork, were packed into a parking lot.
An event aimed at raising money for upgrades to the grounds of El Santuario, Holy Family Parish held its inaugural Chimayó Community Day on Saturday. The first-of-its-kind summer event drew crowds who moved to live music, browsed a walkway flanked by vendors and were wowed by a vintage car show.
The profits from the afternoon will be put toward some of the shrine's infrastructure priorities. The Rev. Sebastian Lee, a priest at the shrine, said one of their hopes is to build a roof for an outdoor space where parishioners sit and listen to services. He would also like to plant more trees.
"People can follow many things, but I like the way of Jesus. Not many people will tell you love your enemies. For me, this place is symbolic. People want to follow His ways more than my way," said Lee, gesturing toward a statue of Jesus Christ carved into a tree.
"I hope they come here and find that value," he added.
Beneath a tent, Eva Deaguero and Elaine Yardman, who works for the parish, were selling shirts with the image of El Santuario de Chimayó and Psalm 133:1.
"It talks about bringing people together and unity," Yardman said.
Martinez is the president of Chimayó's chapter of the Viejitos Car Club. The bond members of the group have helps them overcome adversity, he said, including losing family members. When he started the local club about two years ago, which has roughly 30 members, he said it opened up a new chapter in his life.
He said some of the guys were up until 5 a.m. preparing their vintage rides to be on show Saturday. It's cars like this, he said, that lift people up and give them the opportunity to look back on fond memories.
Checking the oil in a blue 1942 Chevrolet, Ted Romero, of Las Vegas, N.M. — a self-styled "nomad" in the Viejitos Car Club — said it's about the close-knit atmosphere more than the cars. What he appreciates is pinging around this part of New Mexico on the weekends, meeting people and enjoying community.
"We were so poor when we were kids, it was all we had," Romero said. "We kept fixing cars. You've got to keep them on the road. It's a good hobby. It keeps you out of the bars.
"We're trying to keep the kids interested, off the streets," he said.