New Carefree Desert Gardens Setting for Cultural Events

Writer Donna Kublin

 

 

The journey that led to Carefree Desert Gardens being listed on the national registry of the American Public Gardens Association, all started with two women who thought downtown Carefree needed “a little sprucing up.” The four-acre Gardens located in the town center are now a spectacular showpiece with hundreds of cacti and plants, many unique including several rare species.

 

It all began in October 2010. Carefree resident Marilyn Maloney contacted Mayor David Schwan to discuss her concern that the garden was looking a little tired after its 2001 debut, and that she wanted to help improve it. June Reilly, also a resident, had talked with the Mayor and several members of the Town Council expressing the same sentiment. Mayor Schwam put the two women in touch with each other and they soon met for coffee.

 

Maloney and Reilly really hit it off and found they had a similar passion for plants, enhancing the town center, and getting things done. Maloney, a master gardener in South Dakota, and Reilly were originally planning on sprucing things up themselves since there was no funding available for the project. However, realizing their limitations, they decided to contact the pros, the local landscape companies.

 

Early on, they had coffee at the Sundial with Mark Wdowiak of Desert Foothills Landscape. He was very excited about the project and after consulting his wife, Juanita, and others in the company, he offered to take it on. After meeting with Mayor Schwan, they took the proposal to the Town Council, who approved the project.

 

The Wdowiaks feel very strongly about community and they donated plants, time and labor valued at a million dollars to bring the vision to reality. They, along with five co-designers, created a visual and emotional masterpiece that was a year in the making.

 

“The end result is gorgeous!” exclaimed Maloney. “In addition to the plants and re-sculpting of the gardens, the concrete and paint were freshened up.” The Gardens weave their way along Carefree’s Easy Street among features that include the world-famous Carefree Sundial, which received a facelift in August, the Carefree Amphitheater, a waterfall, art and sculpture, a giant gila monster slide, plus numerous shops and restaurants.

 

The Gardens boast of some of the best specimens in the Valley including a rare Boojum tree and a crested saguaro. The rare crested saguaro with the fanlike or lumpy top is said to occur in only one in 20,000 saguaros. It took two months to gain approval from the Arizona Department of Agriculture for the boxing and replanting of the crested saguaro. It was privately owned and has been donated to the garden. The curious-looking Boojum tree is a skinny tree that can reach 65 feet in height and resembles a spiny, upside-down carrot.

 

Many people helped bring the project to fruition. For the Wdowiaks the experience is just one of a number of philanthropic projects in which they have been involved. They also generously contributed landscaping to the Carefree Rural-Metro Fire Station and the Desert Foothills Library in Cave Creek. As the Gardens continue to evolve, the Wdowiaks will provide maintenance and will work to keep making it better.

 

“We are so pleased with how it turned out and the growing interest for the Gardens,” said Reilly. “We believe that this treasure helps instill community pride and will inspire people to take care of their surroundings and keep the downtown beautiful.”

 

Ensuring that the Gardens will be a destination for years to come, a self-guided map with labels on the plants is available. Part of the vision is that in addition to being beautiful, the Gardens can be educational. Garden enthusiasts looking for beautiful sites to visit will now find Carefree Desert Gardens on the map at www.publicgardens.org. Vision, determination and hard work has made a dream come true.

 

This month, the Carefree Desert Gardens will be the setting for its first-ever cultural event, the Carefree Indian Market and Cultural Festival.

 

The three-day event will run from February 17 – 19 and include award-winning Native American art, music and dance. It will feature live hoop dancing and musical performances, along with Native American arts and crafts made by tribal member artisans from throughout the country. Admission is free.

 

The juried exhibit and sale features arts and crafts including jewelry, pottery, baskets, carved stone fetishes, woven rugs, bead work, Kachina dolls, clothing, drums, flutes and more.

 

All arts and crafts at the Carefree Indian Market and Cultural Festival are recognized under the Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 to ensure authenticity, quality and collectability. All artists are members of federally or officially State-recognized tribes or are certified as Indian artisans by the governing body of an Indian tribe as a non-member Indian Artisan.

 

A specialty food market will provide Native American and festival favorites such as Indian-made fry bread with the full variety of toppings, Indian home-baked goodies and more, plus a full offering of typical fair and festival foods.

 

 

 

World champion hoop dancers Brian Hammill and Tony Duncan are scheduled to perform in the lineup that also includes Native American flute players Alex and Melissa Maldonado and Randy Kemp. Other artists include Damian Charette and Dina Huntinghorse. Many of the performers are also participating artists at the festival. Live performances are slated for 11a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m., daily.

 

Tony Duncan of the Apache and Arikara/Hidatsa nations is a four-time world champion teen hoop dancer. He is consistently ranked in the top ten in the world and was recently invited to entertain the First Lady in Washington D.C.

 

Duncan also won the 2011 World Hoop Dance championship in Arizona. In addition, he is also a world-class musician and has been nominated for a Native American Music Award. He is recognized for his smooth and soft melodies of the Apache cane flute.

 

He began playing the flute at age ten and was hoop dancing since the age of five. Tony, now 28 years old, plays the flute and hoop dances during the same performance.

 

“I enjoy doing both (dancing and playing flute) during performances,” he said. The approach he uses is not traditional. “Unique” is the term he uses. This approach shows the range Tony is capable of.

 

Using both forms of art are incorporated into his performances. “I miss one when I’m doing the other.” he said. The combination includes the tradition of Hoop dancing which represents the circle of life by creating images of life forms such as rattlesnakes, the eagle, butterflies and other forms.

 

Alex Maldonado will perform music and sell his handmade instruments. His work has been shown at art shows including the Heard Museum Indian Market, Santa Fe Indian Market, Eiteljorge Museum, Navajo Nation Fair, Red Earth, Jackson Hole and Totah Festival. Alex is also an award-winning Native American flute maker.

 

The Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C. has also purchased his art.

 

More recently, Alex and his son, Nick, have been working on metal art, specifically sculptures that make music. Some of these he hopes to preview at the Carefree Indian Market and Cultural Festival.

 

Through the Native American flute, Alex Maldonado has been able to discover more about his Yaqui heritage, share his music publicly and perform with his daughter, Melissa, and son, Nicholas. “In playing the flute, I feel a connection to finding out more about my people and myself. One of the many victories in life is knowing who you are and being proud of it,” he said.

 

This sharing of music along with his artistic talent has gained Alex, a tribal member of the Pascua Yaqui Nation now living in Mesa Arizona, national recognition.

 

With three recordings released, one collaborated with daughter Melissa, he has been recognized by Native American Music Award nominations for two of his three recordings.

 

“We are honored to present the first Indian cultural event in downtown Carefree. We feel privileged that such talented and world-renowned Indian artists have agreed to participate in this first-of-a-kind event for the town. The serenity of the new botanical gardens and the beautiful backdrop of Black Mountain create a special environment of intimacy that we believe the artists and attendees will cherish,” said Roberta Toombs Rechlin, president of Magic Bird Festivals, the event producer.

 

Carefree Mayor David Schwan agrees. “Our new cactus gardens are the perfect setting for this type of authentic cultural event, recognizing the diverse people that make Arizona great,” said Schwan.

 

For more information:

Carefree Desert Gardens >> 101 E. Easy Street, Carefree, www.carefree.org 480-488-3686

Open every day - Free Admission

 

Carefree Indian Market and Cultural Festival >> www.magicbirdfestivals.com, 480-488-2014

February 17–19 from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m., Live performances are slated at 11 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m., daily. Free Admission

 

American Public Gardens Association >> www.publicgardens.org