ORO VALLEY, Ariz. (KGUN) — The Wild Wild West Steampunk Convention (WWWC) is open for its 14th and final year March 19-22 at the Westward Look Wyndham Grand Resort and Spa, marking the end of an era.
The convention gives people the space to celebrate a common interest in Victorian science fiction. Attendees can expect costumes, dragons, art, books and so much more.
Many people, like Alexander Cervantes, said they are sad that this convention will no longer be a yearly event.
"It's very saddening. I've got to find some other outlet to put my creativity into," Cervantes said. "Again, I do all these other conventions, so now I have to pull what I've learned from here and put it into other parts of my life."
Deena Drotman, co-owner of the WWWC, says she loves the support but it's time to evolve.
"It's been a long fun ride, but we have some secret plans in the making to do maybe some smaller events in the future, something a little bit more manageable and to reach more people," Drotman said. "Maybe do some up in Phoenix, do some down here in Tucson and other places."
According to Drotman, about 300 to 400 people come to the convention. It offers a safe space for people to be themselves, get creative, and connect with others.
Cervantes has been working security for the convention since its third year and loves to be in character.
"So I've created this character called Cervantes the chupacabra Hunter. I've been searching for my goats for many years," Cervantes said.
Brittany Colell also came dressed to impress, ready to indulge in all the convention has to offer.
"I love it. I love the art. I love just the community. I love all the weirdos. We're all a bunch of weirdos and I just, I love that so much," Colell said.
Colell says the event is such a vibe and it's unfortunate the convention won't be continuing.
"It's sad because I felt like I was just getting started. I feel like I was just getting used to the environment and getting comfortable and so I am a little sad. I was hoping next year I could participate and help out," Colell said.
Over 50 vendors lined the rooms with merchandise including swords, costume pieces, monster boxes, collector items, illustrations and so much more
Noa Moquin is one of the vendors, an independent illustrator and graphic novelist — owner of Thronoai. They are working on putting a book together.
"So I have a number of small art books that I have put out already. One is Monster Boyfriends, this is Monster Girlfriends, and I have a non-binary edition in the works. I sell t-shirts, I sell prints, I sell stickers and bookmarks. I do commissions and I have been an artist full time since 2018," Moquin said.
Moquin has been a part of the WWWC for at least four to five years and loves the energy it brings.
"You just meet so many quirky, unique people who put so much love into their costumes and outfits, and you get this sense of community, like hands on community, that I feel is very valuable," Moquin said.
The convention also provides workshops with different activities. For example, teaching how to create origami and envelope junk journals.
"So each day, especially Thursday, Friday, Saturday, we have panels going on that go over costuming, leather work, Victorian history," Drotman said.
Drotman says this isn't the first time the convention has taken place at the resort, but it will be the last.
"We were here about three or four years ago and then we switched venues and then we came back. We're ending it here, which is, it's kind of surreal. We got our start at Old Tucson Studios before the pandemic and then when Old Tucson unfortunately got sold during the pandemic, a lot of businesses didn't really survive the pandemic unfortunately. This venue reached out to us and offered us a home," Drotman explained.
Yana Pargas, Westward Look Resort front desk supervisor, says the property is really true to its own original western theme of 1912 and always brings in good communities.
"So the conference that we have here on property right now, they bring a lot of fun and a lot of good energy. Everyone dresses up to the nines of their group and conference," Pargas said. "So it's really amazing to see their steampunk western theme to be on a property that is traditional western themed of it being a homestead to a dude ranch to now just a beautiful property with horseback riding, so it kind of fits the property itself."
The event is also about giving back, helping raise money for the nonprofit organization, Bikers Against Child Abuse (BACA) with a silent auction and 50/50 raffle.
Gem Gilbert, Pima County BACA member, says their entire goal is to empower children that have been abused and are living in fear to not live in fear.
"It's amazing because everything in BACA, 100% of our profits go to the children. So to bring in a child into our organization, I mean they get a blanket, they get a cut, they get backpacks," Gilbert said. "So everything that they do is funded exactly for the kids. We pay for therapy for kids if they don't have access, and we have parties twice a year that we pay for them to come to completely free."
If you would like to attend the final WWWC, check out their website for the times, tickets, and schedule.
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Vanessa Gongora is KGUN 9's Westside reporter.. Vanessa fell in love with storytelling by growing up in sports. She was fascinated by how sports reporters go beyond the x's & o's to tell players' stories, and how sports bring people together, inspiring Vanessa to provide the same impact as a journalist. Share your story ideas and important issues with Vanessa by emailing vanessa.gongora@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, Instagram, and X.
