MISSION STATEMENT

The commission’s mission is to preserve and develop the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad, a historical nineteenth century railroad “museum on wheels,” for the education, enlightenment and enjoyment of future generations.


COMMISSION STAFF

Leo Schmitz, Executive Director

Lon Carpenter, Commission Chairman (Colorado)

Peter Foster, Commissioner (Colorado)

J. Leonard Martinez, Commissioner (New Mexico)

Randy Randall, Commissioner (New Mexico)


STAFF BIOGRAPHIES

LEO SCHMITZ, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.  Leo Schmitz was named executive director of the commission in December 2005.

LON CARPENTER, COLORADO.  Lon lives in Grand Junction, Colorado and is employed at American National Bank as a Regional Operations Officer and includes budget management, project cost accounting, risk analysis and strategic planning. He is a Colorado history buff and a 20+ year member of the Colorado Railroad Historical Foundation. He is also working with a group of volunteers in conjunction with the Museum of the West on an operating scale display representing historic Denver and Rio Grande operations in the Grand Junction to Minturn corridor. Lon was appointed a commissioner in 2006.

PETER FOSTER, COLORADO.  Peter Foster was appointed a commissioner in 2006. He is a resident of Durango, Colorado.

J. LEONARD (LENNY) MARTINEZ, NEW MEXICO.  Lenny Martinez joined Sandia National Laboratories in January 1995, where he currently holds the position of Vice President of the Enterprise Transformation Division. Prior to his employment at Sandia National Laboratories, Lenny worked for Digital Equipment Corp. (DEC) for 19 years in a variety of functions, primarily in manufacturing.

In 1998, he was selected for the Hispanic Engineer National Achievement Award in Executive Excellence. In 2003, he was awarded the Defense Manufacturers Excellence Award and selected in 2004, 2005 and 2006 as one of the top 50 Hispanics in Information and Technology. He is a board member for the National Council for Advanced Manufacturing, the Hispanic Engineer National Achievement Awards Hall of Fame Advisory Board, the Next Generation Economy Initiative Advisory Board, where he chaired the Microsystems Initiative Committee, is a member of the Hispano Chamber of Commerce E:Mercado Board, and a past member of the ASU College of Engineering Dean’s Advisory Board. He has co-chaired the United Way/ECP Campaign at Sandia, raising over $18.7 million in nine years. He and his wife foster children from third-world countries in the Heal the Children program.

He was selected as a Sloan Fellow and attended the Business School at Stanford University, where he received a Masters of Science Degree in Management. He completed the Digital International Management Education Program offered by the Institute Prive de Enseignement Superieur (INSEAD) in Fountainbleu, France in 1993. After completing coursework at night and on weekends, he received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix. Lenny is also a graduate of the DeVry Institute of Technology and has completed a Graduate level certificate in Management of Technology from the Anderson School of Business at the University of New Mexico.

RANDY RANDALL, NEW MEXICO.  Randy is a retired executive in the tourism and hospitality field. From 1994 to 2004 he was general manager of Eldorado Hotel, a four-star hotel in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Prior to this, he served as Senior Vice President of Operations at Richfield Hospitality Management based in Denver, Colorado; Director of Operations for Palmas Del Mar Resort in Humaco, Puerto Rico; manager of the Hilton Head Inn; and a variety of other management positions at the Sea Press Resort in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.

Within the tourism industry Randy serves on the boards of directors of the American Hotel and Motel Association, the AHMA Resort Committee, the New Mexico Lodging Association, the New Mexico Restaurant Association, and the advisory board for the Hospitality and Tourism Department at New Mexico State University. He was appointed to the New Mexico Tourism Commission in 1996 by Governor Gary Johnson, and continues to serve on this commission under Governor Bill Richardson. Randy is also active in community affairs, currently serving on the boards of the Santa Fe Opera, the Santa Fe Fiesta Foundation, and the Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta.

Randy is a 1968 graduate of Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration. He lives with his wife Suegy in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and was appointed a commissioner in 2006.