During the club season, a docent from the newest museum in Scottsdale, “Western Spirit – Scottsdale’s Museum of the West,” spoke to Four Peaks Women’s Club.

Six of the club members were so impressed with the docent’s enthusiasm and knowledge that they decided to take a tour after club activities slowed down during the summer.

This is the first year of operation for the museum.

“It is truly a wonderful experience,” states Barb Hansen, “a magnificent building and unbelievable displays.”

The museum is unique in that all exhibitions are on “loan” and not permanent. It will be a museum that will continually have new exhibits for people to enjoy. As pointed out by the docent, visitors of all ages and cultures can envision themselves as westerners.

The museum’s brochure states that visitors can explore the color, imagination, and vibrancy of western art and history through compelling, multi-media exhibitions.

It goes on to explain that visitors can engage with authentic storytelling through interactive experiences and first-person accounts of people who have shaped the West’s cultural heritage.

The Gallery Guide lists 12 areas of interest for the visitor. The brochure states, “We invite you to experience the creativity and stories of the West’s diverse peoples, as seen through their eyes, the work of their hands, and the sound of their voices. We hope you will be inspired – as they were, and are – by the romance and the realities that make the American West truly unique.”

The first part of the docent-led tour covered the inspirational journey of the Lewis & Clark Expedition featuring the artwork of Charles Fritz. The docent made the period come alive and the artwork and bronze sculptors that accompanied the pictures were beautiful.

In addition, the group went to the movie theater to watch a presentation and ran into a couple dressed in western garb; the gentleman truly was a John Wayne look-alike and the lady was a four-time national champion yodeler.

The yodel, a form of singing or calling marked by rapid alternation between one’s normal voice and falsetto, was beautifully demonstrated by the young lady for the Four Peaks women.

“John Wayne” informed the ladies that the yodeler was the “fastest” in the world. There was no doubt in the minds of the gals.

After a morning at the museum, the ladies headed to the Sugar Bowl in Scottsdale for a refreshing lunch. The ladies are all eager to return to the museum and see the areas that that could not be seen because of lack of time. They highly recommend this tour to all.