Las Vegas native and graduate of Clark High School; son of Mexican and Salvadoran immigrants. High school English teacher at Rancho and former student worker on the Latinx Voices project.
The Billie Mae Polson Photograph Collection, approximately 1948 to 1978, consists of fifty-one color postcards from Las Vegas, Nevada, the Hoover Dam, and surrounding areas. Also included in the collection are original black-and-white and color photographs of the Valley of Fire Nevada State Park, an Easter parade in Las Vegas, and the Las Vegas 5th Street School prior to demolition. There are also ten negatives included in this collection that correspond with select postcards and the photographs from the Valley of Fire Nevada State Park.
Interview with Jerry Eppenger conducted by Claytee D. White on September 14, 2011. Eppenger's family moved from Arkansas to Las Vegas in 1953. Joining the Marine Corps in 1964, he was among the early combatants in the Vietnam War. After a brief time in Alaska, he returned to Las Vegas and found work as a security guard at Bonanza Hotel and Nevada Test Site before attending dealer school. Eppenger recalls local black leaders and describes episodes in segregation and racial relations of 1970s Las Vegas. He shares memories of his beloved Cadillac and the fast and lucrative lifestyle of a dealer.
Dr. John Richard Shepherd was born November 25, 1936 to Harley and Mary Shepherd and was raised in southern Illinois. He married his wife, Nancy Shepherd, on June 22, 1963 in Pana, Illinois. His army experiences in Chicago, Illinois and Alabama convinced him and his wife to look for a warm dry climate in which to live, and they relocated to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1968.
Sandy Mallin grew up in New York and graduated from New Rochelle High School. She moved to Las Vegas, Nevada from Westchester County, New York in 1977 with her first husband, who wanted to expand his wholesale seafood business. The couple had three children but were later divorced. Mallin was a leader in Las Vegas’ Jewish community and the first female President of Temple Beth Sholom.
Rabbi Felipe Goodman was born January 04, 1964 in Mexico City, Mexico. Rabbi Goodman was previously assistant Rabbi at Mexico City's Comunidad Bet-El de Mexico, one of the largest conservative synagogues in Latin America. He was a member of the Executive Committee of The Rabbinical Assembly and the AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee) National Leadership Council He also served as president of the Board of Rabbis of Southern Nevada.