Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot national monuments welcome cultural demonstrators Marvene and Nuvadi Dawahoya to the parks during Labor Day weekend. They will be selling some of their crafts and demonstrating how they create.

Marvene Dawahoya is a Hopi basket weaver from the village of Polacca on First Mesa. Marvene will demonstrate traditional basket weaving, hand-made using raw yucca. The process entails weaving the yucca then tying baskets to a traditional wood frame, such as sumac or willow branches, and using commercial dye to paint intricate designs.

Nuvadi Dawahoya, from Hopi’s Second Mesa, is a wood carver and will be demonstrating animal figurine carvings made from cottonwood root. These figurines are hand sanded, stained, textured, and painted with natural pigments and acrylic paints. Each figure is completely unique from one another and no two are ever alike. 

They will be at Tuzigoot National Monument on Saturday, Sept. 3, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. They will then be at Montezuma Castle National Monument on Sunday, Sept. 4, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Cultural Demonstrations are presented with the aid of NPS cooperating partner, Western National Parks Association. WNPA funds products, services, and programs that enhance the visitor experience. Aid is a direct result of consumer purchases. Learn more about WNPA at wnpa.org.

Learn more about Montezuma Castle at nps.gov/moca. Learn more about Tuzigoot at nps.gov/tuzi.