Member
Spotlight:
Paul-Baptiste & Eveliina Baca
From the October 2003 Issue of Trail Tales
by Joan Wolf
Four
wheeling in Finland? Eveliina Baca’s mission is to find out before her next
visit home. The Baca’s spent their first married years in Finland, but weren’t
into 4-wheeling. They’ve since caught the bug and plan to check out the
4-wheeling scene in Finland someday.
How did an Albuquerque, NM boy and a Petäjävesi, Finland girl meet up? Through the all-American (or so I thought) institution--the 4-H club. Paul-Baptiste grew up in the Northeast Heights and belonged to 4-H throughout his childhood. At age 19, he went to Finland through the 4-H’s International Exchange Program.
Meanwhile, Eveliina grew up on a horse farm and was active in 4-H horse and sewing programs. They met at a Finnish 4-H Club and became friends. When Paul-Baptiste’s six-month exchange program ended, he returned to New Mexico. The two 4-Her’s became pen pals for three years, graduated to phone calls, and eventually visits back and forth.
During Eveliina’s first trip to New Mexico in 1995 they became engaged. Paul-Baptiste soon quit his job and headed for Finland. They were married in a quaint, 1700’s-era Finnish Church. His family and good friend/NM4W member Eric Finch traveled to Finland for the event. After Eveliina graduated from college a year later, they moved to Albuquerque. They consider both Finland and New Mexico “home”, with Albuquerque being “permanent until they move back.”
What is Finland like? Well, the town where they married sounds idyllic. Petäjävesi (means Pine-tree Water) is surrounded by farms and some of Finland’s 188,000 lakes. Paul-Baptiste says, “To a boy from New Mexico, Finland is like a story-book paradise. I never realized there were so many variations of GREEN. Seventy percent of Finland’s land area is covered with forests (mainly pines and spruce). It is a wonderful place filled with wonderful people.”
After marriage, the Baca’s lived in Jyväskylä, a lakeside university town of 80,000 residents. Eveliina completed her degree in Social Counseling and Paul-Baptiste studied the Finnish language, taught art classes, and painted. Eveliina reports that Paul-Baptiste mastered the notoriously difficult Finnish language very well. She had studied English since 3rd grade and hasn’t had language problems in the U.S.
Eveliina loves living in New Mexico and has grown fond of the scenery, western riding, state fairs, and rodeos. What’s different? New Mexico is much warmer than Finland! Eveliina works as Assistant Director of an Albuquerque pre-school. Her time is divided between administrative duties such as enrollment and the classroom. She enjoys being with boisterous pre-schoolers and then retreating to the computer for some quiet time.
Paul-Baptiste (his first name is hyphenated and he prefers to be called Paul-Baptiste, many call him PB, and he’ll certainly answer to Paul) is a Graphics Designer with Gannett Fleming. He makes the engineering/planning firm’s proposals and presentations look good. He also prepares architectural renderings for public works projects such as the Louisiana Pedestrian Bridge over I-40.
The
Baca’s like to head off in their red 2002 Jeep TJ for long weekends of camping,
hiking, biking, and wheeling. Their good friends Jason and Sara Lavy introduced
them to off-roading a few years ago. The early stuff they did seemed “huge”
until they upgraded from a ’98 TJ to the ’02 and tackled more advanced trails at
the Chili Challenge and Avalanche Ranch.
Their “baby” TJ’s only modification is a 2-inch suspension lift. They expect it to “grow up” starting with more lift and bigger tires. The TJ has taken them to the Moab Easter Jeep Safari and NM4W runs including the Christmas Tree Run, Sagebrush Flats, and Cedro Peak. They especially enjoyed a Jemez run that was supposed to be easy but ended up “hard” because of snow and ice.
Their two older dogs (a Pomeranian named Pippen and a mutt named Dinki) love Jeeping. As for six-month old puppy, Topsi, Paul-Baptiste says, “We’re working on not vomiting”.
The
Baca’s manage to squeeze in time for other interests. Eveliina loves western
riding and anything horse-related. She sometimes helps an outfitter friend by
packing supplies to elk-hunting camps in the Pecos. Eveliina also enjoys
sewing, scrap-booking, wreath-making, and knitting.
A self-taught and gifted artist, Paul-Baptiste does airbrush paintings of cloudscapes, landscapes, and portraits for enjoyment. He took a TVI welding class with Jason Lavy and Eric Finch (his class‑project rear bumper is sitting in the garage). Paul-Baptiste enjoyed the welding class so much that he may integrate welding with his other artwork.
Future off-roading plans? “Doing more of it!” exclaims Paul-Baptiste. They want to try trails in Arizona, northern California, and other areas they haven’t traveled. The Baca’s thoroughly enjoy being part of NM 4-Wheelers and appreciate the club’s warm welcome. “We like learning the nuances of four wheeling. Members are helpful, but not condescending”, notes Paul-Baptiste, “and they’re fun to hang out with.”
NM4W is glad to have this young, worldly couple as members. The Baca’s have more stories about Finland than space here allows, so feel free to ask them. PB said something about doorknobs vs. door handles, salmiaki, and cloudberries. And maybe someday we’ll see a windshield sticker that says ”Se on Jeeppi juttu, et ymmärtäisi.” Translation: “It’s a Jeep thing, you wouldn’t understand.”