On March 18, 1978, collector Bill Hitchcock interviewed Della Coates (b. June 17th, 1919 in Birmingham, Alabama) at her home in Las Vegas, Nevada. In the interview, Della Coates discusses her time working for the telephone company. She also speaks about the changes in education and about changes throughout Las Vegas.

Session 1: Interviewed by Elsa Lopez. Rosemary's parents originated from Sonora, Mexico where her father worked in the strawberry fields and her mother was a kindergarten teacher. Her father, in search for a better life, came to Nevada after he heard of jobs available in the Northern Nevada mines. The two met and settled down in Reno after her mother became enamored with the beauty of Lake Tahoe. Rosemary and her four younger siblings grew up in Reno with their parents until the divorce. Her father soon joined the army during the Korean war and felt that it would be best if Rosemary and her siblings lived with their grandmother back in Mexico. There they stayed for two years, and although she missed her family and did not speak much Spanish, she recalls her time there with fondness. She eventually moved back to Reno and finished high school, graduating in the top 20. She married afterwards and had her son as well. After some convincing from her husband, Rosemary enrolled into the University of Nevada, Reno and graduated with a major in Secondary Education with a specialty in Physics and Math. Rosemary became further involved in community outreach and non-profit programs such as Founding Hispanic Youth Image, Co-founding ALITAS, being a board member for the Title XX Commission, and being a Chair for the Latino Youth Leadership Conference. She has two children and is currently working at UNLV with the program Multicultural Education Services Alliance (MESA) as a Family Engagement Specialist. Subjects: Reno Nevada, UNLV, Multicultural Education, Family Engagement, Activism; Session 2: Interviewed by Elsa Lopez. This is a continuation of a previous interview. We have asked Rosemary Q. Flores to tell us more about her work in the Multicultural Education Services Alliance. We also spoke more about her family and early childhood in Mexico while she was away from her family.

Ron Current's heart was always in the right place, with respect to social activism and his dedication to empowering the black community in Las Vegas. Inspired by Black Panther Party founders, Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale, Ron started the Black Panther Party Las Vegas Chapter. He was also the director of public relations for the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression; an organization created to work in tandem with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, NAACP, to eliminate racial inequality. Ron describes the overall atmosphere of the Westside community in Las Vegas during the early days, as chaotic, drug infested, and riddled with daily gang related shootings. He also recalls the historic preservation attempts made by leading members of the Westside community, such as Sarann Knight Preddy. Ron recalls working at the University Medical Center while recruiting for the Black Panther Party Las Vegas Chapter. This interview demonstrates the power of love. As the founder and leader of the Black Panther Party Las Vegas Chapter, Ron was named one of the most influential blacks in Las Vegas by the Sentinel Voice. He recalls utilizing his hands-on leadership approach towards capacity building and the successful implementation of community mobilization strategies and methods. He was a champion for educational equity, equal access to employment opportunities, and economic equality in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Esther Toporek Finder is a professor of psychology and has lived in Las Vegas, Nevada since 2010. She was born May 28, 1953, in Chicago, Illinois, and moved to Washington D.C. in 1979 after graduating with her Masters from the University of Chicago. While in Washington D.C, Finder was able to jump start her career as an oral historian recording Holocaust survivor stories with the U.S Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Shoah Foundation. Esther Finder is a second generation Holocaust survivor. Her passion for Holocaust education and its representation in society has led her to many opportunities to teach, facilitate, educate, create and contribute to many survivor oriented groups such as The Generation After where she was President for 15 years, the Holocaust Era Assets Conference as representation of the American survivor community, as well as the creation of the Generations of the Shoah International group in October 2002. When Finder moved to Las Vegas, she quickly and deeply involved herself in the Las Vegas Holocaust survivor community. She has been integral with Nellis Air Force Base?s Days of Remembrance, the opening the Generations of Shoah Nevada Chapter, and partnering with the World Federation of Jewish Child Survivors of the Holocaust and Descendants to bring conferences to the Las Vegas Valley. In addition, she has been an organizer of commemoration programs for students attending UNLV and schools within the Clark County School District. Her involvement with the Governor?s Advisory Council on Education Relating to the Holocaust and the television series Eyewitness to History have highlighted the Holocaust survivors living in Las Vegas. In this interview, Finder discusses her childhood as well as the paths that led her to realize her passion for the Holocaust survivor community and her deep association with the community. She shares her experiences interviewing survivors and second generation survivors giving a deeper insight into the stories that they have shared with her over the years. In addition, she reflects on her long reach within the survivor community and brings to light the foundation of family being a survivor gives. Finder highlights the traveling, teaching and community service opportunities she has had over the years while enlightening people about the importance of countering hate through education.

Michael Tell, the youngest son of Jack and Beatrice Tell, is the publisher of the Las Vegas Israelite newspaper and the second generation of ownership. He briefly traces his Jewish ancestral roots back to Eastern European grandparents who settled in New Jersey and New York. He became a bar mitzvah in a conservative Jewish synagogue in New York City. At age sixteen, he accompanied his father, Jack Tell, westward to Nevada. The elder Tell was in pursuit of owning a newspaper and Mike was a perfect companion as Jack took over ownership of the Territorial Enterprise. Mike recalls it was a short lived venture and the family settled in Las Vegas, where his father went to work for Hank Greenspun at the Las Vegas Sun and then for Henderson Home News, owned by Morry Zenoff. In 1965, Jack Tell opened the Las Vegas Israelite. Meanwhile, Mike explored the lucrative business of concert promotions and opened a teen nightclub 1961 called the Twin Lakes Twist. He hired such talents of the era as Bobby Darin and Wayne Newton. Soon his business acumen grew and he moved Mike Tell Productions to Los Angeles. He tells the story of his last concert, booking Al Green, and being held at gunpoint. Then in 1979, he returned to work at the Israelite, which had a circulation of about 2000. The Jewish community was beginning to show signs of growth. He recalls running an ad in 1992 for High Holy Days services to be held at the Aladdin hotel. He used the word “Lubavitvh” in the ad and this sparked an interest in Las Vegas from the Chabad movement. He also recalls anti-Semitic episodes in Las Vegas, such as Ralph Englestad’s Hitler birthday parties and the presence of Skinheads. And he reflects on the changes in the community that he has observed over the decades.

On February 11, 1977, collector Lee LaVecchia interviewed Barry V. Holt (born January 20th, 1946 in Las Vegas, Nevada) at his home in Las Vegas, Nevada. In the interview, Mr. Holt speaks about the differences between growing up in Las Vegas in the fifties and sixties compared to how his children are growing up at the time of the interview. He also discusses education and the religious community in the city.