Tribute to a friend
Musicians, comedians to perform at Craig memorial
WHITERIVER, Ariz., April 30, 2011
(Times file photo)
Family and friends of the late Vincent Craig will honor his legacy with a two-day tribute on May 13-14 at the Hondah Casino and Resort in Whiteriver, Ariz. A long list of noted performers will share their time and talents in remembrance of their friend.
This official event will celebrate the first anniversary of his passing.
The event will begin Friday with an evening of entertainment by Native musicians and comedians Paul Ortega, James Bilagody, Charlie Hill, Keith Secola, Drew Lacapa and others.
On Saturday morning a Walk Against Cancer will be held, followed by a ceremony, feast and entertainment that will last throughout the day and into the night. Many groups and performers have already volunteered their services and many more are expected as word gets around, said Knifewing, who is bringing his sound system and will perform with Native Stars.
"The purpose is to bring family, friends and fans together to bid the traditional Apache mourning period of one year farewell and to acknowledge that Vincent will always be with us as we celebrate his legacy," said his wife, Mariddie Craig, White Mountain Apache.
"All of us will always miss him, but the closure of the first year is very important to all who loved him, especially the family who endured much in the past year," she said. "It was not easy, but here we are.
"We remember our loved one who passed on and we take this time to thank all who helped us with prayers, encouragement, support and just being there. Indian Country and the different churches acknowledged and prayed for my late husband's recovery, but that was something that was beyond us all since the Creator had something else in mind for Vincent."
In his cartoons, stories and songs, Vincent Craig created a pantheon of characters who continue to live on and who will always be remembered: Mutton Man, Rita, Chizzy, Joe Frybread, Billy Beans...
Walk against cancer
The Walk Against Cancer will begin at 7 a.m. Saturday, May 14, at the Craig home in the Whiskey Flats neighborhood of Whiteriver. After a prayer by LDS church leader Tinker Nez, participants will walk one mile to the tribal Memorial Hall, built in honor of all veterans and dedicated to Apache veterans.
"Vincent Craig was a very dear friend of mine," said Ellis Tanner of Ellis Tanner Trading Co. in Gallup, who is scheduled to speak at the event. "Anytime that I had anything that needed to be done for Native Appreciation Day, or any event on the reservation, all I had to do was pick up the phone and Vincent was there. He cared a great deal about the youth of the Navajo Nation. I sure do miss him. I still can't believe he's gone.
"It gets really frustrating when I see cancer take away a lot of my friends - especially Vincent," Tanner said. "We need to do whatever we can to get cancer eliminated. In this day and age, we should be able to find a cure and eliminate it.
"That cure won't come soon enough for Vincent, but he'll be with us on that walk - just like he was at the funeral," Tanner said. "I know he was there; I could feel him there. He's our guardian angel now. He watched over us when he was alive and now he is in the heaven, watching over us all he can.
"For him - please come and Walk Against Cancer."
Those who wish to pre-register for the walk are invited to contact Jessie Gushoney at 928-338-2519, or by e-mail at jessegushoney@wmat.us. There is a $10 registration fee.
After the walkers reach Memorial Hall, a wreath will be placed in Craig's memory. The ceremony will then move to Hon-Dah, where a special program of remembrance will be held from 11 a.m. to noon. The local veterans group will conduct the flag-raising ceremony and White Mountain Apache Tribal Chairman Ronnie Lupe will give the opening remarks.
Acknowledgement will be given to the many people who helped the family during Craig's illness and afterwards and to the thousands of well-wishers who left messages on his Facebook and Myspace pages.
A traditional Apache barbecue will be served from noon to 1 p.m. Glorianna Dayaye, a cattle owner with the North Fork Livestock Association, will be the head cook.
After the feast, Knifewing and Native Stars will begin the afternoon entertainment, which will continue until about 10 p.m. Ortega, Hill and all the performers from Friday night will return and perform again. There will also be many local Apache performers, such as Joe Tohannie, Ramon Riley and First Born, among others.
"Vincent was on Native Stars," Knifewing noted. "More than anything else, he was considered to be family among all the performers. They will do whatever they possibly can for his family."
Knifewing expressed admiration for the way Craig could connect with and electrify an audience and enjoyed performing with him, but also liked to just sit with him and talk. They talked not only about music and performing, but about many other things as well, he said.
"He had been a police officer and I had been a police officer. We would share our stories," Knifewing said.
He also noted that Native performers used to be considered kind of a novelty act by the mainstream, but this has changed and many are now seasoned veterans of performing with major stars.
"Our sound and production will be as good as it gets. This is going to be incredible!" he promised.
Honored to know him
Craig shared the stage with popular cowboy singer and songwriter Michael Martin Murphy, who recalled, "I was honored to know Vincent Craig. I was always overwhelmed by his natural charisma as a performer. He was compelling on and off stage, because he was a consistent bright spirit that brought people to him like a magnet.
"Vincent was a truly a man of great character, and a brilliant artist," Murphy said. "His greatness was in his ability to frame the struggle and pride of being a Native American with humor and entertaining, positive thoughts.
"Vincent Craig's art and music was epic in scope, ultimately revealing spiritual meaning in the foibles and triumphs of life. What other people saw as tragic and unjust, Vincent saw as part of the human comedy; he seldom took the path of anger, choosing as often as possible to walk in beauty. He was a 'man's man', yet a sensitive artist," Murphy said.
"He was a protecting husband, a strong and loving father, a loyal friend to untold numbers of people, a soldier, a cowboy - a warrior for freedom and right action - a man who always made sure everyone understood that a life of working hard for the good things and justice, and serving others with cheer and grace, is far more desirable and rewarding than falling into a life of evil and degradation."
Mariddie Craig said the list of those to thank is endless, and includes Ellis Tanner, Tom Arviso of Navajo Times, Lorene Tapahe of Phoenix, Tribal Chairman Ronnie Lupe, Vice Chairman Timothy Hinton Sr., the White Mountain Apache Tribal Council, tribal court staff, KNNB radio station, Knifewing and Native Stars, Radmilla Cody, Charlie Hill, Keith Secola, Drew Lacapa, Paul Ortega, the Plateros, Keith Basso, Overseas Aircraft Support, Navajo Nation President Ben Shelley, the Fort McDowell Tribal Council and community, James and Ernie Comedy Duo; Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints at Pinetop/Lakeside and Fort Apache.
"Vincent's fan mail on the Web site also received thousands and thousands of well wishers, we thank them also," she said.
Typical was Kirkson Tsosie's comment: "It was an honor to know Vincent Craig, he was a blessing and brought us joy. He roamed around native lands as the famous "Mutton Man", blessing us with laughter, teachings and some of his great songs.... We will miss him dearly!"
Updates on the memorial will be posted on the page, www.facebook.com/pages/Vincent-Craig-Fan-Page/328863484726