By Alan Blaine
On Saturday, October 12, 2024, The Verde Valley Archaeology Center & Museum (VVAC) hosted an Indigenous Peoples’ Day Celebration. We took the opportunity to schedule our field trip on this day so we could join in on these festivities in addition to experiencing the VVAC’s exhibits & artifacts. The VVAC is located at 460 Finnie Flat Rd in Camp Verde, AZ.
For the Indigenous People’s Day celebration there was a Native American speaker – more on her in a minute – docents available throughout the museum, behind the scenes tours and a Native American art market in front of the museum featuring around 20 Native American artists and vendors.
The city of Camp Verde was celebrating Camp Verde Days on the same day that included a parade which was setting up directly behind the museum so there was a lot of activity on this beautiful, warm sunny day.
The VVAC is skillfully led by Executive Director Monica Buckle, an involved board of directors which now includes AZMN Cohort 3 graduate Brian Harrington and a friendly and knowledgeable team of volunteers. The museum showcases regional archaeological heritage with artifact exhibits and a hands-on kids’ area. The exhibits include pottery, artwork, clothing, tools and weapons, geological displays and much more.
The featured speaker was an Apache elder named Barbara McCabe who spoke eloquently of her life growing up on the reservation. Raised by her grandparents and extended family, her dedication to tribal culture and history are quite apparent. She possesses many positive qualities including patience, perseverance, compassion and courage. Very impressive!
Unfortunately, we only had a small number of attendees from the AZMN organization but for the couple of hundred or more visitors on this day, it was an exciting and memorable event. I recommend planning a day to visit the VVAC for yourself.