Christina Salazar, Chief Nursing Officer – Rehabilitation Hospital of Southern New Mexico, is the Chief Nursing Officer for the Rehabilitation Hospital of Southern New Mexico. Christina is a long-life Las Crucen who graduated from Onate High School (now Organ Mountain High School) and received a nursing degree from New Mexico State University. During her tenure, Christina, had the ability to care for her grandmother in the same hospital that she now supports her team to take care of our community.
Gary, Retired, Senior Director, Information Technology and Information Security – El Paso Electric, has more than 30 years of service with El Paso Electric. As the senior director of Information Technology and Information Security, Gary works across the El Paso Electric service area to protect our electrical infrastructure. As an emeritus board member of the Ronald McDonald House, Gary has served our state community for decades. His love for numbers will serve him well on the CFSNM Audit Committee. He shares his spare time at home with his loving wife, Luisa, his daughter, Ana, his son Andrew, his daughter-in-law, Shalini and his adorable granddaughter.
Christopher Salcido, Partner – Beasley, Mitchell & Co., has been with Beasley, Mitchell & Co. since 2008. He is a licensed Certified Public Accountant. Christopher earned his Master and Bachelor of Accountancy from NMSU and was a member of Beta Alpha Psi. He is a member of the American Institute of CPAs, has served as president and treasurer of the Dona Ana Chapter of CPAs, served on the committee for NMSCPA Leadership Academy, a graduate of Emerging Leadership Academy, and treasurer and Vice President of Education of Gene’s Gesters Toastmasters. Christopher provides individual and corporate tax preparation and tax consultation services.
Travis Coker, Chief Operating Officer, HB Construction, is COO of HB Construction and a member of the company's board of directors. A native southern New Mexican, Travis has served as COO since 2019. He is approaching, an owner's representative, and as a 3rd generation general contractor. Travis also served 8 years in the US Navy. This experience has shaped his professional approach and his continued advocacy for people, projects, and communities.
Fayth Gillespie was raised in the small, agriculture community of Hatch, New Mexico. She is a proud to be a fourth-generation New Mexico State University Aggie. In 2017, Fayth earned a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture Business and Agriculture Economics. In 2019, she obtained a Master of Agriculture in Agribusiness. Her research measured and evaluated consumer trust in the food production system, from the farm to the table. The research was funded and utilized by the New Mexico Department of Agriculture. In 2020, her work led to the publication, Examining Consumers' Trust in the Food Supply Chain, in the Journal of Applied Communications.
Fayth began her career as Community Liaison with the New Mexico Oil and Gas Association. In this role, she served as a voice for the oil and gas industry, focusing on communities outside of the Permian and San Juan basins. From there, she joined consulting firm Twenty7Fifty, as the Associate Director of Public Affairs, working on behalf of the American Petroleum Institute. Most recently, Fayth founded a public affairs firm, Tactica Strategies, serving the energy and agriculture industries. Through this, she is privileged to work with a diverse group of clients, building alliances across industries and communities. Fayth is devoted to various other roles. She is active as an NMSU alumna, not only in her position as Chair-Elect of the Sam Steel Society Council, but also by serving as a mentor for students, judging for various competitions, and avidly supporting the NMSU NAMA Team. Additionally, she serves on the New Mexico Farm and Livestock Bureau Foundation Board of Directors, Community Foundation of Southern New Mexico’s 100 Who Give committee, and Girl Scouts of the Desert Southwest Board of Directors.
Having a deep love for the people and culture of southern New Mexico, Fayth still resides in the area with her husband.
Mikko Noopila is a VP and a commercial loan officer for Citizens Bank of Las Cruces. Born and raised in Helsinki, Finland, Mikko graduated High School in 1996 and after his military service he came over to NMSU on a basketball scholarship. In addition to playing basketball, at NMSU he majored in International Business with minors in Finance and Management and graduated (Magna Cum Laude) in 2001 earning his Bachelor of Business Administration degree. After graduation he travelled to Braunschweig, Germany to Play basketball in the Bundesliga. After 6 seasons, in 2007, he moved back to Las Cruces with his wife and daughter and started working in the banking industry. Aer several shorter tenures at other banks he has worked at Citizens Bank of Las Cruces for the last 10 years, in couple of different roles and currently as a commercial loan officer. Mikko earned his MBA with a concentration in Finance in 2010 from NMSU and graduated from Graduate School of Banking at Colorado in 2019. His previous community involvement includes a board position at the local chapter of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America.
Ricardo “Rico” Gonzales, Producer & Vice President in New Mexico for El Paso Electric, is native New Mexican who grew up in Socorro, New Mexico. Gonzales graduated from New Mexico State University and is a proud Aggie. He currently serves as the Vice President in New Mexico for El Paso Electric. His previous roles include serving as the Director of New Mexico/Arizona Government Affairs and Public Relations for El Paso Electric, and early in his career, Rico served the New Mexico State Legislature as a Senate Analyst and Leadership Staff for the Majority Office. Rico treasures spending time with his family. He, his wife, Amber, and their two young daughters call Las Cruces home. Since childhood, Rico has been an avid basketball player. He continues to show his love for the game and his community by coaching a local basketball team.
Savannah Montoya is Vice President/ Retail Banking Manager of Pioneer Bank Las Cruces. Savannah is a graduate of Leadership Las Cruces class of 2022, a committee member of 100 Who Give, planning committee member of Southern New Mexico Diabetes Outreach, board member for Community Foundation of Southern New Mexico, and an active volunteer in the community.
Krystal L. Chavarria is a proud native of Las Cruces, New Mexico, and a dedicated advocate for children, families, early childhood professionals, and the communities she serves. She is a proud New Mexico State University Aggie alumna, earning a Bachelor of Science in Early Childhood Education with endorsements in Bilingual Education and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. She also holds an Infant Mental Health Endorsement through the New Mexico Association for Infant Mental Health.
Krystal currently serves as the Director of the Covarrubias-Aprendamos Foundation and brings nearly two decades of experience with Aprendamos Family of Services. She believes strongly in the importance of planting the seeds of success for the youth of Southern New Mexico. Every child deserves the opportunity to grow, discover their strengths, dream boldly, and have access to the relationships, resources, and support systems that help them flourish. She is continually inspired by the dedication of nonprofit leaders, staff, volunteers, and community partners who give their time and talents to create meaningful opportunities for others. Krystal believes in investing in the potential of our youth, nurturing their dreams, and creating pathways for them to become the leaders, educators, innovators, and changemakers of tomorrow.
Her professional journey began in 2006 as a file clerk while she was a senior at Oñate High School, now Organ Mountain High School. What began as an entry-level position quickly grew into a lifelong passion for supporting infants, toddlers, families, and early childhood professionals.
Throughout her career, Krystal has served in a variety of leadership and direct-service roles, including Lead Family Service Coordinator/Developmental Specialist, Child Care Liaison, Community Education Coordinator, Evaluator, and Program Director for the Early Intervention Program. One of her proudest professional accomplishments was creating the Early Intervention Internship Program, developing partnerships with New Mexico State University, Western New Mexico University, the University of New Mexico, and Eastern New Mexico University to strengthen professional pathways into the early childhood workforce.
Krystal is deeply committed to community collaboration and strengthening opportunities for rural New Mexico. She has participated in leadership and coalition initiatives with the University of New Mexico, the Doña Ana Early Childhood Coalition, and the Gadsden Chapter. Since July 2020, Krystal has served as a board member for the Children’s Reading Alliance. A particularly meaningful accomplishment in Krystal’s community leadership journey was her participation in the Creating Responsive Educational Avenues for Training Environments in Early Childhood (CREATE EC) Leadership Academy. Through this two-year initiative, she collaborated with community leaders and early childhood professionals across New Mexico to advance culturally responsive workforce development and strengthen pathways for educators from rural, Indigenous, and Spanish-speaking communities.
As part of the Gadsden community’s CREATE EC project, Krystal helped champion the development of Wellness Hubs designed to support early childhood professionals in rural communities. The first Wellness Hub was established in Chaparral, New Mexico, providing a welcoming space where early childhood professionals can recharge, access resources, engage in professional development opportunities, and support their well-being. This work was later highlighted in the June 2023 issue of the ZERO TO THREE Journal through the article “CREATE EC.”
Krystal is grateful for the many mentors, colleagues, families, and community partners who have shaped her journey. She believes meaningful change happens through relationships, collaboration, and a shared commitment to creating stronger communities for children and families.
Outside of her professional and community work, Krystal is the proud daughter of Encarnacion and Mary Chavarria and sister to Isabel. She is also the proud mother of her daughter, Avelina Andrea, and enjoys life with her two pugs, Nikolas Aaron and Arturo Antonio.
