Hidden in Plain Sight

Seven Warriors Stories

Hidden in Plain Sight

Sent to VVS parents on September 3, 2026

Dear VVS Families,

As we begin another school year, we’ve been reflecting on our first year as VVS parents. Now entering our second year, we’ve come to see that Verde Valley School goes far beyond an exceptional high school education. It is the friendships the students build, the confidence and sense of possibility they carry with them, the experiences that challenge and inspire them, and the deep relationships they develop with trusted adults who guide them through these formative years.

We all have a moment or journey that brought us here. For our family, VVS became an anchor during a time of tremendous change. After evacuating and ultimately relocating because of the Eaton Fire in Altadena, California, we were looking for an IB community where our daughter May could feel grounded and connected, and we found that at VVS. Then, after we had already chosen Sedona and May had enrolled, we discovered an unexpected connection to the school. While sorting through the belongings that had survived the fire, we came across a vintage newspaper we had owned for years, with an original 1948 advertisement for Verde Valley School on the back. It felt like a remarkable thread connecting our old home to the new one we were beginning to build. Read our full story →

Over this past year, we’ve loved becoming part of the life of the school through parent gatherings, celebrations, and simply getting to know the people who make VVS what it is. What we value most is how deeply VVS shapes our students. It encourages young people to become well-rounded, curious, and compassionate individuals who can think for themselves and see this complex world from different perspectives. We believe this kind of education is worth preserving, now more than ever, as our children need to be dynamic enough to be well prepared for a world that is evolving so rapidly around us.

That is why we believe in VVS, and we hope you will join us in supporting the Seven Warriors Fund.

With gratitude,

Claire Wavell and Mark Turner P’29
Parent Warriors

The full story

Hidden in Plain Sight

When the devastating Eaton fire in Altadena swept through Southern California in 2025, Claire and her family experienced a loss that reshaped their lives. The massive fire destroyed most of their property and nearly all of their belongings, leaving the family to navigate both the emotional and life altering challenges that follow such a sudden tragedy.

Even in the midst of loss, the family found themselves drawn toward a place that had quietly been part of their lives for years, Sedona.

Claire and her family had found respite in their second home in the red rocks, a place they visited often and had grown to love. Over the years, the landscape, the slower pace of life, and the sense of community had become incredibly comforting to them. When the time came to consider what the next steps were and where they might begin to rebuild their lives, Sedona felt less like a new destination and more like a natural next chapter.

As they prepared for a more permanent move, they began exploring schools for their 8th grade daughter, May. Through word of mouth and positive stories their search led them to Verde Valley School. They found that the school’s focus on experiential learning, environmental stewardship, and global citizenship immediately resonated with them. And they felt the need for community now more than ever.

Then came a discovery that felt almost impossible to script.

While sorting through the few items that had survived the fire, May’s dad, Mark Turner, came across a framed vintage magazine advertisement that had hung in their Los Angeles home for years. On the visible glass side of the framed piece was a Jeepster advertisement that they had looked at time and time again. But the frame was damaged and was covered in soot from the fire. While the exterior frame was too dangerous to keep they decided to carefully remove the poster to reframe it for their Sedona home. Once the poster was removed and flipped over, another piece of history appeared on the reverse side. What came as a complete surprise was seeing an advertisement for Verde Valley School from 1948, from the era when the school first opened as an all-boys boarding school.

For years, this small piece of history had quietly hung on their wall, unnoticed of its deeper significance.

Now, after the family had chosen Sedona and had enrolled May at VVS, the discovery felt like a remarkable moment of alignment.

The connection to Verde Valley School had been present in their home all along, hidden in plain sight, long before they could have imagined the role the school would one day play in their lives.

What once seemed like a simple vintage advertisement suddenly felt like something more. It was a quiet reminder that their path to Sedona and Verde Valley School had been unfolding long before they realized it.

Today, May has settled comfortably into life at VVS and has quickly found her place within the school’s close-knit and supportive community. For Claire and her family, Sedona has become more than a place to rebuild after loss. While the trauma of the fire is still something the family continues to work through, there is comfort in the feeling that perhaps this place, and this community, was meant to be part of their journey.

In honor of the discovery, Claire gifted Verde Valley School a copy of the historic advertisement, which will be displayed in the Admissions Office. It reflects something many members of the VVS community have come to understand. Each family arrives here by a different path. Some hear about the school through friends, some through time spent in Sedona, and others through moments of unexpected connection.

Sometimes the most meaningful paths are the ones we only recognize in hindsight. For Claire and her family, a small framed page that once quietly hung in their home now tells a much larger story, one that came full circle at exactly the right moment.

“For our family, VVS became an anchor during a time of tremendous change.”

Claire Wavell and Mark Turner P’29, Parent Warriors

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