Board Officers
President
Darlene Southern
Darlene Southern
Darlene has been a member and volunteer of the Cave Creek Museum since 2012. During her time with the Museum, she has worked in all areas of the Museum as a docent with exhibit preparation, collections, and archaeology. Her leadership was evident in her position as co-chair of several Home Tours, working as the Museum’s office assistant, creating special events such as the ‘Cave Creek Presents’ series, and heading up the Artifact of the Month to name a few. Darlene is President of the Museum’s Board plus the manager of the Museum’s Gift Shop. She is dedicated to the Museum’s future and its ability to continue in preserving and sharing the unique history of the Cave Creek Mining District and the Sonoran Desert.
Vice President &
Recording Secretary
Tammy Causey
Tammy Causey
Tammy is a local psychologist PhD in private practice. Previously, she was an university professor and a clinical supervisor. Tammy has held officer and board positions with the American Psychological Association (APA) and the Arizona Psychological Association, and she served as President of the Psychologists in Independent Practice Division of the APA. She has been a speaker for the United Way Speakers Bureau and presented numerous national training workshops in leadership development, the business aspects of building an organization/practice and how to motivate/recruit volunteers. Tammy looks forward to bringing her education and experience to Cave Creek Museum for its continued growth.
Treasurer
Pam DiPietro
Pam DiPietro
Pam joined the Board of Cave Creek Museum in 2002 and has been with the Museum ever since. During her years as a Board member, she served as Treasurer and as President. Since 1968, Pam has accumulated years of experience as a member of various not-for-profit boards, all of them with educational, historical, and social welfare focus. We best know her in the Desert Foothill’s area as the former Executive Director of the Foothills Food Bank where she grew a small organization into an expansive, thriving operation that serves a variety of North Valley communities today. Pam recognizes that she’s had a full and busy life, but there is more to do. With pleasure, she steps up once again to shepherd Cave Creek Museum into a new era.
Board Members
Joe Dollison
Joe Dollison
In 2000, Joe retired as VP and Treasurer of Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc. where he worked 33 years. His educational background (BS in accounting from Drake University, MBA from Harvard Business School) and experiences in business taught him the principles of business and financial management. Joe managed several employees in his area of responsibility plus management training of employees. His strengths are planning and development, financial management and personnel management. He told his managers and trainees that his job was to train them to take over his job.
Joe and his wife, Diane, live in Arizona about five months during the winter. They are active members of the community while they’re in Arizona. Joe and Diane volunteer, participate in many organizations and both attend the Desert Foothills Presbyterian Church. They’re active and concerned members of the Cave Creek Museum. Joe has been a docent since 20005 and Diane is involved in fundraising for the Museum.
Joe says that he sees a lot of opportunity for Cave Creek Museum and that he’ll dedicate himself to helping Cave Creek Museum reach its potential. He believes this will happen with strong leadership from the staff and the Board. Strong leadership is achieved when the direction is clear and the plan takes you to the next level.
Steve Greenberg
Steve Greenburg
Steve Greenberg is a long time Cave Creek area resident. He is the founder and President of Thin Client Computing, a leading data center virtualization company. He is a musician and composer, and he has been active in charity and not-for-profit organizations for many years. Together with his wife Lori, they recently purchased the land of Harmony Hollow and the historic Stamp Mill site to preserve the natural beauty and history of Cave Creek.
Colin “Buck” Columna
Buck Columna
Colin “Buck” Columna has extensive experience in marketing and fundraising in the non-profit sector. His career with Arizona Opera, Arizona Theatre Company, San Francisco Opera and Tucson Symphony Orchestra provides our Board with a unique perspective into the business of arts management. He is a long time resident of Cave Creek (albeit below Carefree Highway) with an intense curiosity of the history of the area’s land and those who lived upon it. In addition to Buck’s commitment to the Cave Creek Museum, he has volunteered with Arizona Equine Rescue, the Cave Creek Rodeo, Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art and the Pioneer Living History Museum.
Chris Kempster
Chris Kempster
Chris has been a resident of North Scottsdale for over 15 years and a friend of Cave Creek Museum for most of that time. He believes in giving back to the local community and cannot think of a more deserving place to offer his time and abilities than at the Museum.
Chris has served as a past Board Member and past Board Chairman of the Cave Creek Carefree Chamber of Commerce and now enjoys working with our Museum Board to enhance programs and broaden the Museum’s reach in our community. His financial planning background lends itself to work alongside other Board members to sustain a solid fiscal foundation now and for years to come.
Nina Spitzer
Nina Spitzer
Nina brings her skill set from her career, as a middle school teacher of English, Career Skills and Mass Media, for use in program development at the Museum. Over the years she has managed the Cave Creek Tourism Bureau with its 30+ volunteers and runs the Cave Creek Information Center. Nina is also the editor of an e-newsletter, ‘Cave Creek Corner’, for the Cave Creek Merchants Association. She founded the Phoenix Celiac Support Group and has served in that organization for 14 years as its president, secretary, and committee head. Nina joined the Board of Cave Creek Museum serving on both the “The Nugget” Newsletter committee and the Communications committee. She is dedicated to the longevity of the Museum and its mission.
Molly Tufts
Molly Tufts
Molly was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, where she lived until 2007 when she and her husband moved to Big Sky, Montana. For 14 years, they split their time between Montana and Arizona before becoming full-time Arizona residents in 2021.
Her college degree is Special Education, concentrating in Learning Disabled and Mentally Handicapped students. She taught school for several years in Ohio then began a second career for a technology company. Molly has served on several boards utilizing her skills in logistical coordination and management resulting in successful projects.
She enjoys volunteering at Cave Creek Museum for the last several months working on the Membership database and responding to contributors.
Museum Staff
Executive Director
Evelyn Johnson
Evelyn Johnson
Evelyn’s arrival in the Cave Creek area was an opportunity to put her lifelong commitment to educational opportunities, for all, in the not-for-profit world. She holds an Associates degree in Museum Administration from the Virginia Piper Trust and Museum Association of Arizona. Evelyn, as a former Executive Director of the Cave Creek Museum, put her networking talents to work with the Carefree, Cave Creek Chamber of Commerce and the Cave Creek Merchants- Events Association, serving each organization as its President. She is an active member of the Desert Foothills Woman’s Club and has served on their board. Evelyn’s priority is creating historical materials for Home Schoolers, Boy & Girl Scouts, and summer camp experiences.
Museum Administrator
JoAnn Stuckey
JoAnn Stuckey
JoAnn moved to Cave Creek in 1995. Her career involved the non-profit world of service organizations and museum management. JoAnn holds a B.A. in Business Administration and a Nonprofit Management Certificate from ASU. Her expertise is in overseeing board governance, conducting trainings in development and strategic planning projects, and coordinating volunteer programs. She served on the boards, as member and officer, of the Museum Association of Arizona and the Central Arizona Museum Association. JoAnn was instrumental in helping to establish the Arizona Heritage Project, 2003, in partnership with SRP, MAA and CSHS with Barbara Hatch, who transitioned the project into the Veterans Heritage Project.
