Nyla was born in Melrose, New Mexico, at her grandmother's house, the tenth of eleven children! She attended school at Melrose all twelve years. She graduated from NMSU in 1977 with a BS degree in Home Economics. She taught in San Juan, Mountainair, Albuquerque Highland, and Rio Grande before deciding to change careers. She worked for Mountain Bell in Denver but returned to New Mexico after marrying her high school crush and college love, Rick Walter. They lived in Las Cruces for eight years, where Russell and Dawna were born. Nyla returned to teaching, commuting to El Paso for two years and then teaching in Las Cruces for the next three. The family moved to Animas in 1993. Nyla taught in Lordsburg for three years and then was hired to teach fifth grade here. She completed her K-8 certification and has taught all levels the past three years. She's taken classes to enrich her use of technology. Rick currently makes "Classic Creations" in his embroidery shop at Road Forks.