Biographies
Gallup Solar was formed in 2007 as an idea among a small group of Gallupian women; be sure to read the history of Gallup Solar's Founders. Today, Gallup Solar's membership is a diverse group of citizens of Gallup New Mexico; feel free to read the details about our members:
Be Sargent
BFA, San Francisco Art Institute 1962
Be was born in NYC in 1940, lived in Albuquerque from 1948 to 1958, until 1979 was a graphic designer and partner at Publishers’ Design and Production Services in Boston, a front end house for many local area magazines.
In 1980 she heard Helen Caldecott speak and became an activist. In 1990 she became a public muralist limiting her work to socially responsible themes. Her murals and landscapes can be seen at:
besargent.com
In 2005 she created Work in Beauty, Inc., a 501c3 organization dedicated to creating jobs that sustain, heal and harmonize with the environment. Since Gallup Solar was formed, Work in Beauty has been its fiscal sponsor.
Today Be lives off the grid in Pine Hill, New Mexico painting landscapes. She spends two days a week in Gallup, New Mexico at the Work in Beauty House working for Gallup Solar.
She has two dogs, Peewee and Jaja.
Bill Bright
Masters Degree in Special Ed & Industrial Sciences, Adams State College
Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy, Colorado State University
Bill Bright is the former Secretary of the Gallup McKinley County
School Board and President of the UNM-Gallup Advisory Board. He is the
President of the Charter Middle College High School Governing Council
& Treasurer the Bahá’í Community of Gallup.
He has served on the Health Advisory Committee of Gallup Head Start,
UNM-Gallup Project Success, and the KGLP Board of Directors. He is
currently or has been an active member of: the Board of Habitat For
Humanity of Gallup, the McKinley Community Health Alliance, the
Coalition for Healthy and Resilient Youth, the Strategic Alliance
Against Substance Abuse, the Gallup Water Board, the High School to
College Articulation Task Force, the Early Child Advisory Council, The
Gallup McKinley School’s Wellness Advisory Council, the McKinley County
Juvenile Justice Advisory Board, the NM Behavior Health Local
Collaborative, the Tobacco Education Advocates of McKinley County, the
Downtown Neighborhood Association, the Gallup Main Street Steering
Committee, the Chess Rules! Association, the Annual Whole Child
Conference Planning Committee, the Annual Youth Water Awareness Day
Committee, the Annual Celebrating Youth Street Festival Committee and
the Annual Bilingual Conference committee, and the Gallup Solar
Association.
Mr. Bright has owned and managed a small business
for 10 years, and is a US Air Force Vietnam Veteran. He is currently a
landlord/property manager, small business owner, Social Entrepreneur
and has lived in Gallup for 15 years.
David Brunt
Masters of Science, Agricultural Economics, The University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 1974
Masters of Science, Urban Planning, The University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 1975
Mr. Brunt began career at Mountain Bell, a subsidiary of AT&T,
forecasting local exchange growth as part of the budgeting
process. Later, he forecasted revenues, line growth and traffic
volumes for the seven-state Mountain Bell Region. Following the
break up of AT&T, duties expanded to include the 14-state region in
the US WEST franchise. In 1987 is worked with the Carrier
Marketing Division to develop pricing strategies and to manage
development of the division’s annual business plan. This work
involved analysis of complex data relationships for decision makers.
He
served as Chief of Budget Review for The Navajo Nation, Office of
Management and Policy Analysis in Window Rock, Arizona in 1977 through
1979. There he was responsible for developing a budget review
process for PL93-638 programs contracted by the Navajo Nation for the
federal government. This involved coordinating budget requests
with the BIA, OMB and the House Interior Appropriations
Committee. The process met all expectations and deadlines and
established a continuing process for communicating Navajo program
objectives to federal authorities.
He received a Fellowship by the Untied States Department of Housing and
Urban Development (HUD) to study regional economic development with
course work covering a broad spectrum of planning topics and
projects. He was a commissioner, Navajo Tax Commission, 1987-93.
and an entrant: Marquis Who’s Who in the West, 20ed. 1986-87.
Rick Kruis, M.D.
Doctorate, Wayne State University School of Medicine (Detroit)
Dr. Kruis grew up in Navajoland. He is a graduate of Rehoboth
Christian High School, Dordt College (Iowa). Dr. Kruis completed a
residency in Family Medicine and a fellowship in Family and Behavioral
Medicine. Rick and his wife, Dr. Mary Poel, and their three
children live in Gallup. They are members of Gallup Bethany
Christian Reformed Church.
Dr. Kruis was formerly Chief Medical Officer for the Navajo Nation
Department of Behavioral Health Services and Chief Consultant in
Addiction Medicine for Navajo Area Indian Health Services. He is
certified in Addiction Medicine and Family Medicine. Dr Kruis
currently works as an emergency physician at Gallup Indian Medical
Center and is Medical Director for McKinley County EMS and Gallup Fire
Department, and McKinley County Metro Dispatch.
Rick dabbles in
his hobby of “promoting by implementing” examples of environment
friendly projects. He is sole proprietor of Desert Highland
Earthships, a construction / consulting business for building
earth-sheltered, solar heated homes in McKinley County (we have built
three). Part of his work includes solar stills, solar ovens, and
a solar clothes dryer (clothes line).
David Mikesic
Master’s of Science – Zoology, Southern Illinois Univ. at Carbondale
Bachelor’s of Science – Biology, Univ. of Pittsburgh at Johnstown
Mr. Mikesic has conducted many independent studies and published
numerous papers in zoology. Since October 1994, David Mikesic
held the position of Zoologist for the Navajo Natural Heritage Program,
Navajo Nation Department of Fish & Wildlife, in Window Rock,
Arizona. There he was awarded the 2003 Employee of the Year, and
2007 Supervisor of the Year, by the Department of Fish and Wildlife.
In
that position he perform surveys and research to determine locations
and populations of rare animals and maintained the zoological portion
of a Heritage Database with records of endangered species on Navajo
Nation. He also maintain peer-reviewed animal portion of Navajo
Endangered Species List via field research, data and literature
reviews. He had developed, and assisted in, development of
policies to assist land developers in avoidance of sensitive habitats
and raptor protection policies. He provides education on native and
listed species in oral and written presentations, and provides
technical help to project sponsors and consultants for Federal Law and
Tribal Code compliance.&
He served as Zoologist Curator
of the Navajo Nation Zoological & Botanical Park from March to July
2007. There he acquired general-base funding to allow
continuation of the park, recruited and hired well-qualified Zoo
Curator to manage daily zoo operations and supervise a staff of five,
organized & coordinated three special events to recognize sponsors
and educate public on zoo issues, and developed budget & objectives
for 2008.
He has fluency in general and specialized computer applications.
Mr. Mikesic has ‘good standing’ membership in the following
professional societies: Mexican Spotted Owl Recovery Working Team
(Co-chair 2000 to 2004), National Wildlife Society, Native American
Fish & Wildlife Society, Raptor Research Foundation, and several
others.
Chuck Wade
Bachelor’s of Science in Civil Engineering, New Mexico State University, 1968
Mr. Wade was born in 1939 and raised in Corona, New Mexico. He
graduated from Corona High School in 1957 and served on active duty
with the Naval Seabees from 1959 to 1963. Chuck continued as a Naval
Reservist for the next 26 years, retiring as a Civil Engineering Corps
officer in 1989.
He
worked with a large general contracting company from 1969 to 1977 as a
field engineer, estimator, superintendent, and assistant project
manager on several multi-million dollar jobs. He operates his own
general contracting company, Wade Building Company, in Gallup, New
Mexico from 1978 through 1999, at which time I retired.
Chuck
traveled to several countries on four continents and to forty-eight of
the United States doing physical work in thirty-five states. He
met his wife, Nancy, at New Mexico State University and has been
married for forty-two years. Their daughter is also an NMSU graduate,
while our son graduated from the University of New Mexico.
Mr.
Wade has been interested in alternative energy for many years, having
had a franchise for a solar heating system in the late 1970’s. He feels
it is imperative that we wean ourselves off oil. He is pleased to be
associated with Gallup Solar, with a quest to have a demonstration 40
mega-watt Consolidated Solar Power (CSP) generating plant located near
Gallup, New Mexico.
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