always thought I'd be more urban. I would live in a downtown city. I wouldn't have a car. I would walk around. I would work on these big skyscrapers.” At one point in his life, architect Craig Galati dreamt of designing large buildings in some of the nation’s biggest cities. Instead, he was drawn back to his childhood home of Las Vegas, where he created projects meant to preserve the city’s integrity, such as the Grant Sawyer State Office Building and the first building at the College of Southern Nevada Charleston Campus. He speaks to his work in preservation at the Las Vegas Springs Preserve and in welcoming visitors to Mount Charleston with his Spring Mountains Visitor Gateway design. In this interview, Galati talks about his parents’ decision to move from Ohio to Nevada and what it was like growing up in Las Vegas. He recalls his first teenage jobs in the Las Vegas of his youth and his studies in architecture at the University of Idaho. He recounts the dilemma of struggling to find architecture work he enjoyed and how that vision drew him back to Vegas. He describes various projects in his portfolio from his early years to the present. He speaks highly of his partnership with Ray Lucchesi and the basis for their vision: “We wanted to be a place that everybody liked to work for. Buildings were just tools to do something grander. They weren't an object. We had a philosophy that was not object based, it was people based.”

On March 13, 1981, Dana Jamerson interviewed Harold McKay (b. July 27th, 1903 in Dresden, Kansas) about his life as a teacher in Las Vegas, Nevada. McKay speaks about his education, his move from Chicago, Illinois to Las Vegas and how he began his career in education. McKay focuses on how and why he founded the Teacher’s Credit Union, his time working in administration and his business school, as well as the problems related to segregation and integration in the educational system. Lastly, he talks about the growth of the gaming and entertainment industry in Las Vegas, and his volunteer work with the Senior Citizen Center.

S. Charles Snavely, a long-time Las Vegas pediatrician, arrived in Nevada in 1965 with his wife, Ann, and two children courtesy of the United States Air Force. The family lived at Nellis Air Force Base while Charlie completed his Barry Plan commitment to the military. In separate interviews, Charlie and Ann discuss their arrival in Las Vegas, their first house in the Glen Heather area of Ward 1, and their current house in the Scotch 80s (pictured above). Charlie and Ann met at a small private hospital in Lebanon, Pennsylvania, where Ann was working as a nurse. The two University of Pennsylvania graduates, now married 63 years, raised their children in their Scotch 80s house and so far have not been tempted to move elsewhere.

Charles T. "Blackie" Hunt, born in Pottstown, Pennsylvania in 1930, started accordion lessons at age five. He recounts learning from experienced musicians, then teaching others at age twelve because his teacher was drafted. He attended West Chester State Teachers College where, among other accomplishments, he put together a group with Nick Carlino as tenor sax player. Blackie shares detailed memories of the many musicians with whom he worked and toured. They played in venues that included Harrisburg, Toronto, and Montreal, and eventually were offered a booking at the Sahara Hotel in Las Vegas. The group that Blackie worked with in Las Vegas, Tahoe, and Reno came up with the name "The Characters" (backward 'e'), and the show featured comedy and music. It was during this time that he met Lorraine (stage name Lauri Perry), who had her own group. They were married after a couple of years and Lauri joined The Characters. Blackie and Lorraine Hunt opened Blackie's Bar on Tropicana and Eastern Avenues in the seventies. He talks about the jazz sessions that took place and the musicians who sat in on them, and how he and Lorraine eventually decided to bow out of show business themselves. The Hunts went on to open the Bootlegger, a restaurant/piano bar on Las Vegas Boulevard. They started a little comedy/music session called "Off the Cuff', in which local or touring musicians, comedians, and singers often participate. Blackie and Lorraine have been part of the vibrant history of Las Vegas and the state of Nevada for many years, and continue to make their home here.

Chelsie Campbell is a Cuban-American attorney and lobbyist. Born on October 4, 1979, Chelsie is a native Nevadan and grew up in Las Vegas. Her mother, Norah Campbell, came to Las Vegas after the Cuban Revolution and works as an elementary school teacher. Her father, Alan Campbell, was a former teacher and hotel manager. An advocate for the Latino community, Chelsie has dedicated her life to advocacy. Her involvement began at UNLV where she found her voice through the Student Organization of Latinos (SOL). During her time with SOL, she advocated for the elimination of the social security requirement in UNLV’s admission process and lobbied for the retraction of Las Vegas Review Journal’s racist article on Latino students. Her activism in SOL also helped established additional SOL chapters across Las Vegas high schools and at the College of Southern Nevada. After earning her Bachelors in Broadcast Journalism and Spanish Literature from UNLV, Chelsie attended William S. Boyd Law School where she graduated in 2005. Chelsie also attended University of Nevada, Reno where she received her master’s in Management and a graduate certificate in renewable energy. Chelsie worked for Mach One Group as Editor-In-Chief of its two publications, Nevada Family Magazine and La Familia de Nevada. After law school, Chelsie began working at NV Energy as a spokesperson and worked her way up to government affairs. Chelsie is currently working as an independent lobbyist and choses her clients. Her clients include Clark County School District and NV Energy. Her work as a lobbyist includes helping agencies prepare for Nevada’s legislative session, conduct public policy research, and help with educational outreach. Through her activism, Chelsie has worked for former Senate Majority Leader, U.S. Senator Harry Reid. Chelsie is also part of the inaugural class of Emerge Nevada, a political leadership-training program for women in Nevada. Chelsie is on the Board of Trustees for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Southern Nevada, the Chairwoman for the Nevada Advisory Board for CPLC Southwest, Board Member for the Advisory Commission on law-related Education for the State Bar of Nevada and serves on the Governmental Affairs Committee for the Latin Chamber of Commerce. She is the former President for the Boyd Law School Alumni Chapter and the Board of Directors for the Gray Plunkett Jydstrup Living Facility. Chelsie would like to dedicate her oral history to her parents: Without them, I wouldn’t be here.