New Mexico’s Conversos and Crypto-Jews in Santa Fe

Ron Duncan Hart is a cultural anthropologist, writer, editor and translator who has focused his studies on Jewish folklore and Sephardic traditions. He has taught anthropology at universities around the world including Georgia State and the University of the Andes in Bogotá, and has worked in South America with UNICEF and the Ford Foundation. The author of more than a dozen books on religion and social change, Ron has received awards from the National Endowment of the Arts, the National Science Foundation, and Fulbright, among others.

Maria Apodaca’s family arrived in what is today's New Mexico in 1598. She is a descendant of the B'nai Anusim, Spanish and Portuguese Jews who were forced to convert to Catholicism in the 15th century. Maria is a member of Congregation Albert; a founder and board member of the Sephardic Heritage Institute New Mexico; a board member, Society for Crypto-Judaic Studies; and a board member, Jewish Genealogical Society of New Mexico.

Omar Villanueva holds a master's degree in classical guitar performance from the University of New Mexico. He is a multifaceted guitarist who performs classical, Spanish and popular music. His repertoire includes renaissance, baroque, classical, romantic and Latin music arrangements for solo guitar. He is also an accomplished and awarded singer of music from Latin America and New Mexico. He has been performing in New Mexico and surrounding states since 2004.

Kris Herbst is a storyteller and interpretive leader who enjoys exploring and studying the Southwest's cultures and natural history from his home in Santa Fe. He has edited a guide to the Abiquiu region’s geology and has led groups to archaeological sites on a cattle and guest ranch near Salida, Colorado. An experienced journalist, Kris serves as chief editor for Ashoka, a global organization that identifies and supports the world's leading social entrepreneurs. Kris received his Master's degree in city and regional planning from Harvard.

Schelly Talalay Dardashti, a native New Yorker, has lived in Teheran, Tel Aviv, New Mexico. She is the US Genealogy Advisor for MyHeritage, and has traced her Ashkenazi, Sephardi, and Mizrahi families across Iran, Spain, Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine. An early proponent of DNA for genealogy, she created the award-winning "Tracing the Tribe - Jewish Genealogy on Facebook." She is a Board member of the Society for Crypto-Judaic Studies; founding member, Sephardic Heritage Institute New Mexico; and President, Jewish Genealogical Society of New Mexico.

Isabelle Sandoval is a retired teacher and school administrator with a bachelor’s degree in Spanish from the University of New Mexico, a master’s in curriculum from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, and a doctorate in educational leadership from the University of Wyoming. A poet, speaker, and writer, she has researched family history, genealogy, DNA, and traditions of her New Mexico ancestors. She holds citizenship in Portugal based on her Sephardic origin.