The Clarkdale Rocks Gem and Mineral Show will be returning for its 56th year on Friday, Feb. 20, to Sunday, Feb. 22, at the Clark Memorial Clubhouse Auditorium.
Hosted by the Mingus Gem and Mineral Club, the Clarkdale Rocks show features kids activities, demonstrations, raffles and nearly 30 vendors from across Arizona offering minerals, gemstones, crystals, rock slabs, geodes, cabochons, fossils, beads and handmade jewelry.
Raffles will be drawn hourly and daily with the grand prize being drawn at the conclusion of the show. The hourly raffle prizes are items donated from vendors. Previous grand prizes have been amethyst cathedral geodes, and this year’s will be a large piece of brown and white halite.
One of the main features of the show is the kids room, where children can participate in activities and bring home specimens.
“We’re really trying to get younger people more involved in the show and to get the kids involved in rock hounding,” said Peggy Vax, president of the Mingus Gem and Mineral Club and chairperson for Clarkdale Rocks.
Since joining the board a couple years ago, Vax has been trying to make positive changes with getting more youth involvement.
In the kids room, children can view fluorescent rocks under a blacklight, pore over trays of minerals, spin a wheel for prizes and pick out different rocks to fill up their own egg carton.
Vax has also been trying to get more young people involved in the Mingus Gem and Mineral Club. Founded in 1979, the club brings together enthusiasts of rocks, minerals, gemstones, lapidary and geology. They meet the first Thursday of every month at the Community Center in Cottonwood with a general meeting, followed by either a video or speaker. The club also sponsors field trips throughout the year to different destinations across the state.
Many vendors return year after year. One vendor, Emil Yatsko, has had a booth for his business Arizona Rocks for many years at the show.
“At every show the kids come by his booth and he always talks to them and explains anything about the gems or the minerals, and then he always gives them something from his booth,” Vax said. “We have some very knowledgeable vendors that are really adept at speaking with the kids and explaining what they’re looking at.”
Dan and Ruby Shepard of Bigfoots Cabin paint intricate images directly on slabs of rocks. Bob Boyd of Boyd’s Rocks sells petrified wood, fossils and dinosaur coprolites. Another vendor sells strictly turquoise with many old specimens.
There are numerous gem shows held across the country each year and many are held in large convention centers or schools. Vax emphasized that this show is unique because of its location in Clarkdale and in the historic auditorium specifically.
“You can make a day of it,” Vax said. “That’s one of the draws. You can do more than just go to the gem show.”
After exploring the show, Vax suggested walking across the street to the Arizona Copper Art Museum or driving a short distance to get a meal in Old Town Cottonwood. For those coming out of town, there is a lot to see within walking and short driving distances throughout the weekend.
Vax added that the town of Clarkdale has been very supportive of the show.
Many artists visit the show to source materials for their craft. A jeweler herself, Vax began polishing rocks and making jewelry after seeing a man polishing petrified wood near Holbrook.
“I’m looking at him, and I’m thinking, that looks kind of fun,” Vax shared. “We bought one big piece of petrified wood, and then thought, well, this is too fun.”
A retired middle school band director, Vax retired in 2010 and was looking for a hobby.
“I stumbled on this, and I just fell in love with it,” she shared. She likened her craft to a Forrest Gump quote: “It’s like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gonna get when you cut a rock open. Even when you get a slab and you start working it, you really don’t know how beautiful it’s going to be until after you polish it up.”
Vax later bought a shed to store her equipment and work out of, making cabochons and pendants under her business name She Shed Shapes which will also have a booth at the show.
Clarkdale Rocks has previously occurred biannually in February and September, but will transition to being an annual event this year.
The show will run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Admission is free.
The Clark Memorial Clubhouse Auditorium is located at 19 N. 9th St. in Clarkdale.
For more information, visit mingusgmclub.com.
