July Meeting Recap with Janet Geary as the Speaker!

At the July 15th, 2013 meeting, Ms. Janet Geary, publisher of Nevada Magazine, shared her Nevada history with the group.  Some members shared that this was one of their very favorite meetings and speakers ever!  

Marlene Adrian, president of Women of Diversity and founder of the website, Nevada Women's Virtual Center (NWVC) took video of Janet during her talk and in the near future I believe the presentation will available on the website for all of us to see.  I will let you know when that happens.  In the meantime, the NWVC website is a Nevada women's history resource that you should all check out at: http://www.nevadawomensvirtualcenter.org/

Birthdays for the month of July include:  

Lenn Cooper

A.D. Hopkins

Chuck Evans

John Foley

Roger Buehrer

Sam Upton

and....................  John "Buzzy" Ullom who turned 80 on July 16!

 

  

June Meeting with Member Collections

This meeting we did things a bit different.  Instead of having a speaker, it was decided to have our members share their very own Las Vegas history by brining in their collectibles.  Of the nearly 40 members that attended, about half of them brought in photographs, ephemera, pottery, buttons, casino memorabilia, and even an old outfit to share.  It was a great meeting and we got to know our members a little better. 

Here are photographs taken of the meeting.  Enjoy!



Frank Valeri and Lisa Gioia-Acres



Some of the great stuff on display

Phil Hodson and Carey Burke

Fight photos

Casino napkins

Carey Burke and Phil Jensen

Florence and Juel Mayhew check out
Frank Valeri's photographs
 

The very first gaming license in Nevada. 
Dated 1931

Bo Boivert dons goggles he wore when, as a photo
journalist, he witnessed the atomic tests
at the Nevada Test Site

Lenn Cooper

Frank Valeri talks about his photos

Record Breaking Member Attendance for a Field Trip!

Sixty members attended the meeting/lunch/tour at the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health?  60 members! That is a record breaker.  And I missed it!  But Cynthia Cicero kindly stepped in and helped out Don and Gretchen Payne at the door and assisted Rich Friedland as needed while he made announcements. 

Here is Cynthia's recap of the meeting:

Those of us who toured the Ruvo Center were treated to a world class research and treatment center for Alzheimer’s, Huntington’s, Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis.   And I do mean world class since there are Ruvo Centers in Florida and Abudabi with more planned throughout the world.  Every aspect of the clinic was designed to treat clients with the utmost care and dignity.  The story of how the Ruvo Center came into being is just as amazing as the center itself.  From a dinner Larry Ruvo held with close friends and family to honor the memory of his father and donations to Alzheimer’s research, Larry Ruvo’s journey brought him to the construction of this wonderful facility.  No better way to honor his father’s life. 
Thanks to Laura Fritz and Elaine Villanueva Taylor for this wonderful tour and lunch and to Lisa for organizing the event.

Photo Taken:  I understand that a group photo was taken at the event and I have a phone call in to see if I can get a copy.  Perhaps we can have copies made and members can get a copy at the next meeting if they are willing to pay for the cost of the print.  I'll find out how much when I get in touch with the photographer.

TO:

•Bo Boivert

•Mark Massagli

•Phil Jensen

•Joyce Marshall Moore

•Don Payne 

•Betty Bunch

 

Upcoming Meetings:

 

The June Meeting is all about Member Highlights:  Bring in your Memorabilia, Photographs, Hobby Stuff.  That’s right!  Anything you’d like to share with us.  Tables will be set up to share with the group things you’ve collected over the years.  This is an organization about Las Vegas history and you are the history-keepers.  We all can’t wait to see what you have to share.

The July Meeting: Thanks to Member Carl Harley, our next speaker is Nevada Magazine Publisher, Janet Geary.  She is coming all the way from Carson City to share her Nevada life and career story with us. 

April Meeting Recap

Coming home from such a wonderful meeting where friends reconnected or met for the first time and enjoyed one another's company to hear the news of the awful events in Boston (Boston Marathon Explosion)really put a damper on my day. 

It was so nice to hear our speaker, Joyce Moore, recount stories about the "good old days" of Las Vegas when kids spent their free time at the Blue Onion, pulled pranks like picking up a VW Bug and putting it inside the door of a downtown casino, and fearing their parent's wrath (grounded to their bedroom for a month) because they took the car out without permission.  Although I did not live through those experiences, it was so refreshing to hear those great stories; yet, it made it so much harder to hear about the tragedy of today.  I know that our country has gone through so many growing pains; I just wish in my heart that we had found a solution to end these violent acts. 

Anyway, Joyce brought a lot of smiles and laughter as she shared the many memories recorded from her classmates at Rancho High School when they got together for their 50th high school reunion.  I'm sure she'd be glad to hear from you if you have a memory to share, or would like to hear more of the stories.  Joyce works in the Special Collections (a true Las Vegas treasure trove) at UNLV. 

 

Here is a short video of Joyce at the beginning of her talk:

 



 

 

NOTE: for those of you wanting to see the video of Laura Fritz from the March meeting, I still haven't gotten it loaded to You Tube yet.  The video needs to be broken up for easier uploading.  I'm working on it!

We had some brand new members join us today.  Thank you for coming and we hope to see lots more of you.  Jule and Florence Mayhew returned after an extended absence; we are so glad to see you back!  And, poor Murray Westgate, in town all the way from Thailand, messed up the dates of our meeting and missed seeing all his old friends.  The good news is he will still be here in May and will join us for the Lou Ruvo Brain Clinic FIELD TRIP. 

Speaking of the field trip:  I signed up many more that will attend the Monday, May 20 event to the Cleveland Clinic/Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health.  If you wish to go, I need an RSVP by May 10.  If you know a member that doesn't get this message, please tell them to contact me if they want to be added to the list.  Remember, NO MEETING WILL BE HELD AT THE WEDDING ROOM next month; we will be at the CLINIC.  Lunch is, as usual, $17.00 per person.

 

Happy Birthday Wishes to:
Jackie Brett
Jane Pinjuv
Dave Pinjuv
Milt Bozanic
Mary Williams
and Gretchen Payne.

 

Have a wonderful month and see you all soon.

 

March Madness at the Las Vegas Media Group Luncheon

No madness, really - I just wanted to say that! 

What a great meeting we had on March 18th, just like every month! We had some brand new faces that are planning on coming to future meetings, and we had visits with some friends we haven’t seen in a while. 

 

Frank Valeri, Joe Thomson, Felix Silla, and Mike Schaefer

Laura Fritz, a native Nevadan, came to talk about the history of how the Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health and the Cleveland Clinic came to downtown Las Vegas. 

 

Her talk shared the personal story of its beginnings and how it has become a world-renowned medical research center.  The 20 minute video of her talk will be on the Las Vegas Media Group You Tube channel (give it until 3/19 for it to be accessible) at http://youtu.be/93nI3NbPxeA

Our group was so impressed by the talk and Laura with us that she has invited us to the Center for a tour and lunch.  So, MARK YOU CALENDARS. Our May lunch meeting on May 20th will be held at the Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health.  More details to follow, but this will be one event that RSVPs will be a must. 

Joe Thomson got up to tell us about an effort to stop the Searchlight Wind Project, where land near Spirit Mountain in Searchlight will be covered with huge windmills.  For more information and to find out how you can add your voice to this effort, contact Joe at thomsoj2@unlv.nevada.edu

Rollie Gibbs brought in a photo of the monument that has been created and will be placed in front of the Old Las Vegas High School.  To find out more about the project and the alumni association, go to their website at LVHSAA.  Rollie also asked us to attend the coronation of the next Helldorado Rodeo Queen at the Elks Lodge at 4100 West Charleston.  The event takes place on April 6 at 7:00 pm.  For more information, call Rollie at 702 873-7838.

Lisa Gioia-Acres invited the group to attend the book signing and panel to discuss her book, Showgirls of Las Vegas at the Nevada State Museum on April 6 from 4-6 pm.  Lisa will be joined by former showgirls highlighted in the book, Frank Mitrani who shared his photographs, and current showgirls in costume. 

In the photo of the four guys above, Felix Silla might be familiar to some of you (or not!).  Felix played the character Cousin It in the television show, The Addams Family.  Felix came to our meeting as a guest of his friend, Mike Schaefer.  We have asked Felix to come and share his story with us in April.  He's pretty busy right now and said he would let us know if April fits into his schedule. 

 

Here are some more photos from the lunch meeting.

 

Guest Laura Fritz chats with member Mike Pinjuv

 

Guest Laura Fritz chats with member Mike Pinjuv

 

 

Gig Levine and Spike Measer trade baseball stories

 

 

Peggy King, Thalia Dondero and Laura Fritz strike perfect poses

 

 Pat Fitzgibbons
Buzz Floyd
Mike Schaefer
Spike Measer
and Johhny Pinjuv who celebrated 90 years with his family on March 18!

See you next month!