Join The Team!

Meetings are usually held monthly, except December, on the 2nd Thursday at 7:00 p.m. at:
Palen Hall, Holy Faith Episcopal Church
311 East Palace Avenue
Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501

Frequently Asked Questions

Members enjoy outdoors activities such as hiking, mountain biking, backpacking, skiing and mountaineering. Also, SFSAR can use valuable experience in amateur radio, off-road driving and medical or nursing fields.​

There are a variety of ways you may contribute to the team and to the community. For example, you may:

  • Participate in a “ground pounder” team searching on foot or snowshoes.
  • Be part of a technical team to rescue people who are injured, or
  • Drive a four-wheel vehicle in support of the search.

Or you might participate in operations at the command center, also called Incident Base. In this capacity, you may be involved in radio communications, mapping and tracking of search teams or finding and coordinating various types of search resources.

Incident Command staff will decide what teams will be needed and in what areas they will search.
Search teams will be given assignments based on the strength and fitness of the team’s members. Team assignments may involve hiking between five and ten miles and can be up twelve hours long.

Many searches involve hiking at altitudes of over 9,000 feet.

The majority of our missions are in the Sangre de Cristo and Jemez Mountains (to the east and west of Santa Fe respectively). Occasionally we are asked to participate in missions in other areas of New Mexico. Many searches are initiated in the evening and require searchers to be active in the middle of the night, both in the summer and winter and often in stormy weather.

No, that is not required. But, since there could be some strenuous hiking involved—often in the mountains—it’s important that members be fit and capable of reasonable endurance. And, remember, if hiking is not your thing, there are other ways you may contribute.

In addition to the monthly classroom training, SFSAR has a team field training once a month, usually on the third Saturday. These weekend field trainings focus on the various skills that are important in search and rescue including:

  • Navigation (map, compass, GPS) Radio communications
  • Search techniques
  • Technical rescue skills
  • Medical assessment

Also, when you become a new member of SFSAR, you will be assigned a Mentor who will help answer your questions, assist you in determining clothing and equipment you may need, help with some of the technical details and provide general assistance during your first year.

We know how excited you will be about getting out on that first real mission; after all, that’s why we exist. But, we want to ensure our team members are properly trained, prepared, equipped and dressed for the elements. There will be a process by which you will be included on the “calling tree” , a telephone list used to connect with members to inform them of a mission and solicit their participation.

We understand our members have family and work obligations. As a result, we don’t expect them to attend every meeting, training session or mission. But, remember our objective is to field trained teams, which requires a time commitment of our members.

In your first year, we require you to become certified by the New Mexico Department of Public Safety. This Certification involves taking a short written test on a variety of search-related topics, demonstrating basic use of the compass, and having your equipment checked for completeness (see equipment list). Much of your preparation will come from SFSAR training sessions, the certification study materials we provide, and one-to-one training with your mentor.

You will be expected to have and use basic safety gear, summer and winter clothing and emergency equipment useful in the wilderness. A core list is provided here.

As a supplement to your gear, SFSAR has team equipment you may use on training sessions and/or official searches: snowshoes and poles, communications radios and their wearable harnesses, avalanche transceivers (radios), first-aid kits, rope, and evacuation equipment for injured victims.

Your costs are in three areas:

  • Annual dues for all members are $50 per year. SFSAR is a non-profit organization funded only by member dues, public gifts and donations and grants.
  • You are asked to furnish your own basic clothing and equipment; however, SFSAR will make every effort to assist new members with finding modestly-priced equipment and clothing to minimize these expenses.
  • You will furnish your own transportation to the meetings and missions. The New Mexico State Police will reimburse the cost of fuel when significant distances are involved in reaching a mission site.
  • Since SFSAR is incorporated in New Mexico and designated by the IRS as a Non-Profit 501(c)(3) organization, you may be eligible to take selected tax deductions.

The Santa Fe Search and Rescue Group does not provide health, accident, or life insurance for its members. The Department of Public Safety does provide an accident and disability policy for Search and Rescue Team members participating in a designated search mission or a sanctioned training—when either has been issued a mission number by the State Police Search and Rescue Resource Officer. Other than this coverage, a Team member must rely on his/her own insurance and resources for medical coverage.

A list of local and national equipment and clothing companies providing reasonably-priced or discounted goods is in the membership packet.
Once you become an Associate Member, you may purchase goods from selected Santa Fe outdoor retailers at a modest Search and Rescue discount. You may also purchase goods at deep discounts from well known national gear and clothing manufacturers; these “pro-purchases” can only be made through a team member who handles such buys for SFSAR.

A searcher is expected to carry a pack with enough food for 24 hours, even though search periods are usually limited to 8 to 12 hours. Remember, we operate year round, so temperatures in New Mexico—even in the mountains—can vary greatly from winter to summer, and thus require different clothing.
The list below covers only the basic equipment needed to respond to a typical search; you will probably supplement the list with your own ideas. If you spend much time in the outdoors, you probably have much of this gear already.

Clothing

  • Hiking boots and two pairs of wool socks
  • Head cover
  • Gloves or mittens for the season
  • Work gloves
  • Poncho or rain jacket with hood (outer layer)
  • Wool, synthetic or silk middle clothing layer
  • Inner layer of non-cotton material
  • Backpack of sufficient size

Safety/Emergency Equipment

  • Plastic whistle
  • First-aid kit
  • Space blanket
  • Compass
  • Flashlight or headlamp with spare batteries
  • Knife
  • Fire starter
  • Signal mirror
  • Twenty feet of one-inch wide tubular webbing
  • Helmet

​Other Items:

  • Food for 24 hours
  • Two quarts or more of water
  • Pencil/pen and paper

We recognize all this could be a bit much. So, as soon as you join, we will assign you a personal Mentor. Your Mentor will help you throughout your first year by answering your questions, ensuring you are receiving the proper training and preparation, eliminating any obstacles and making sure you have fun. We do serious work for our community, but we enjoy ourselves while we are doing it!

You can learn more by:

  • Using Resources and Gear and Equipment Sources lists provided by the Group
  • Complete and send a Contact Form for additional information. Mention you are interested in joining the team.
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