Brody's Notes... Gay Pride Taos Founder Dies

Robert Quintana Photo By Taos Experience

By Brody Levesque (Washington DC) AUG 11 | In a press release earlier today, spokesperson Heather Rowley announced that Robert Quintana, the 29 year old founder and chief organiser for the nascent Gay Pride Taos had unexpectedly passed away on Monday, August 9th, just a week shy of the organisation's Pride in the Park event kick-off, scheduled for Friday, August 20th. Quintana, originally from Questa,  New Mexico, was in the midst of planning the weekend-long Gay Pride event in Taos, the first of its kind.

During a meeting held at El Pueblito Methodist Church in El Prado Tuesday, Taos Police Chief, Rick Anglada, told Quintana's friends and supporters that there is no evidence of foul play surrounding his death and that it was not a hate crime. The New Mexico State Office of the Medical Examiner has yet to determine a cause of death pending autopsy results, however, a preliminary analysis, according to a spokesman for the Medical Examiner, indicates that an underlying medical condition common in Quintana's family may have contributed to his sudden death.

During a recent interview with correspondent Chandra Johnson from The Taos News, Quintana was quoted as saying:

"This event is not  for me, or even the people who have worked so hard to put in together, it's for the kid growing up in Taos or any other small community who is having a hard time coming to terms with being gay and then he or she sees our events and the support from the community they benefit from and realizes that it's OK to be exactly who he or she is."

Spokesperson Heather Rowley, who is president of Albuquerque, New Mexico based Rowley Enterprises LLC, also stated in the press release: 

"Robert has been an inspiration to so many of us – friends and family alike – that we want to be sure that his dream, his vision for Taos Pride, lives on,” according to one of Quintana’s sisters. “We are working closely with Gay Pride Taos to ensure that the entire community stays connected and part of this amazing event he’s organized.”

The Taos News released the following video today: