This introductory talk explores the rich tradition of Curanderismo in New Mexico and the role traditional healing played in the survival and wellbeing of rural and frontier families shaped by Spanish, Mexican, and Indigenous influences. Before doctors, pharmacies, and clergy were easily accessible, families often relied on community healers, herbal remedies, prayer, ritual, and ancestral knowledge to care for the body, mind, and spirit.
Participants will learn about the historical roots of Curanderismo in New Mexico, common traditional remedies using local plants and household ingredients, and healing practices such as limpias, prayer, sacred herbs, and folk rituals passed down through generations. This talk offers a respectful and accessible introduction to the enduring wisdom, resilience, and cultural traditions of New Mexican healing practices.
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Elise Padilla
Elise Padilla is an ancestral and traditional healer, recovery advocate, and community leader rooted in the lands and traditions of New Mexico and Colorado. She comes from a lineage of traditional healers and carries forward the wisdom of curanderismo, honoring ancestral ways of healing that restore balance to the mind, body, spirit, and community.
Through her work, Elise weaves together ceremony, ritual, herbal knowledge, body-based practices, and heart-centered conversation, creating spaces where people can reconnect with their inner medicine. Her approach is grounded, culturally rooted, and deeply relational—bridging ancestral healing traditions with modern recovery and community care.
Elise is the founder of Alma Serena, a community healing and spiritual space, and Soul Recovery Café, a peer-led recovery community centered on belonging and mutual support. She also serves as the founding director of the New Mexico Peer Coalition, advancing ethical, culturally responsive peer support statewide.
With dual master’s degrees in Social Work and Business Administration, Elise brings both spiritual depth and professional leadership to her work—holding a clear belief that healing is personal, collective, and sacred.
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