Included in this oral history are reminiscences of Sonja Saltman's personal non-Jewish heritage in Austria, the importance of her grandmother in her life, and how she recalls becoming part of the Jewish community.

Sonja Saltman is a psychologist and philanthropist in Las Vegas, Nevada. She is executive director and co-founder of the Existential Humanistic Institute, a non-profit organization based in San Francisco, California that offers training in existential-humanistic therapy and theory. In 2003 Sonja and her husband Michael Saltman founded the Saltman Center for Conflict Resolution at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) William S. Boyd School of Law. The Saltman Center is focused on research, teaching, and public service related to "the advanced study of the nature of conflict and how to resolve it." A native of Austria, Sonja Saltman also serves as the Honorary Consul for Austria in Las Vegas. The Saltmans are involved with multiple charitable organizations and initiatives, both locally and abroad. Sonja Saltman has served on the boards of the Anti-Defamation League, Nevada Women's Philanthropy, and the Black Mountain Institute. Projects that the couple has supported include the rebuilding of homes and bridges is Bosnia, and Streetball Hafla, a basketball program to improve relations between Jewish and Arab teenagers in Israel. In 2014 Sonja and Michael Saltman were recognized as Distinguished Nevadans by the Nevada System of Higher Education. Included in this oral history are reminiscences of her personal non-Jewish heritage in Austrian, the importance of her grandmother in her life, and how she recalls becoming part of the Jewish community.

In this interview, Letizia discusses her career, and breaking gender barriers in both broadcasting as well as in advertising. She also talks about how her family ended up settling in Las Vegas, and the evolution of her relationship with Judaism from childhood to adulthood, eventually leading to her leadership roles with Congregation Ner Tamid as well as Jewish Federation, where she is on the Board of Directors.

Marla R. Letizia is the founder of Big Traffic Mobile Billboards in Las Vegas, Nevada. The company operates mobile billboard advertising trucks and employs brand ambassadors to carry WOBI? walking billboards for retail, gaming, and entertainment clients such as Caesars entertainment, Tropicana, and Cirque Du Soleil. Letizia founded Big Traffic in 2001 after leaving a successful broadcast journalism career to raise her two children. She met her husband, Tom Letizia, while working at KLAS-TV Channel 8 as an assistant production manager. She later became the first female director of live television news broadcasts in Las Vegas at Channel 8. She also developed a TV show called "Las Vegas Turnaround" and a syndicated production called "The Parenting Network." Letizia grew up in Las Vegas, and is a former president of Congregation Ner Tamid and a founding member of the board of trustees of the Meadows School in Las Vegas. In this interview, Letizia discusses her career, and breaking gender barriers in both broadcasting as well as in advertising. She also talks about how her family ended up settling in Las Vegas, and the evolution of her relationship with Judaism from childhood to adulthood, eventually leading to her leadership roles with Congregation Ner Tamid as well as Jewish Federation, where she is on the Board of Directors.

Paul and Sari Aizley discuss their many accomplishments as residents of Las Vegas, including those in education and with Jewish Family Service Agency.

In this interview, Rabbi Malcolm Cohen speaks about observed differences between British and American Jewish communities as well as new Temple Sinai initiatives to build community and engage younger congregants. Rabbi Cohen and his wife have two children, Elijah and Rachel.

Rabbi Malcolm Cohen was born on October 7, 1973 in London, England. He describes having the typical Reform Jewish upbringing of a second generation Londoner. His mother worked as an office assistant, and his father ran a bookshop and also prepared youth for their bar and bat mitzvahs. It was his father?s dedication to Jewish education and service that greatly influenced his career path. After earning a degree in psychology from Southampton University, Rabbi Cohen went on to get a professional qualification in youth and community work. He subsequently became the British Reform movement?s first outreach officer, leading the efforts to engage 20- and 30-year-olds to Judaism. At his wife, Sarah?s, encouragement, Rabbi Cohen enrolled in Leo Baeck College to become a rabbi. Upon finishing his studies in 2006, he got a job at West London Synagogue, a large Reform congregation, where he worked with a team of rabbis. In 2009, Rabbi Cohen took the position as Temple Sinai?s rabbi, where he has served ever since. In this interview, he speaks about observed differences between British and American Jewish communities as well as new Temple Sinai initiatives to build community and engage younger congregants. Rabbi Cohen and his wife have two children, Elijah and Rachel.

In this interview Glusman discusses his early memories of being raised in Vancouver, Canada and how he ended up in Las Vegas. He reflects on how he first got his start in the town and his early dealings with casinos and their owners while he was working as a carpet and drapery salesman and while working for Fabulous Magazine. Glusman explains how he started his restaurant and tells about the people he encountered while doing this that where significant to both the Jewish community and Las Vegas as a whole. He recounts stories that include such people as Meyer Lansky, Al Sachs, and Moe Dalitz.

In this interview, Rosencrantz discusses at length her involvement as a founder of the city?s Jewish Federation?s Young Leadership Program, including other local leaders she worked with to promote Jewish community engagement in Las Vegas. She also talks about her spiritual journey as an adult, leading to her participation at Stillpoint Center for Spiritual Development.

They've been referred to as the two Jewish mothers who own a funeral home. At first glance that seems too simple a description. However, it is how they arrived at this description that tells a story of two women who moved here in the late 1990s and whose paths crossed as they became part of the Jewish community of Las Vegas. Laura Sussman arrived first. It was 1997. The Jewish Community Center, a JCC without walls as Laura puts it, hired her as its first executive director. She was from Ohio where there was a robust Jewish tradition. She was director for eight years; then executive director at Temple Beth Sholom. Wendy Kraft moved to the valley in 1999. She was a stay at home mom from Boston, who was accustom to volunteering in the Jewish community. Knowing no one and on the brink of divorce, the Jewish community became her life, a way to build a network of friends and keep her occupied just as it had been in Boston. The two women met through their work with the JCC and love followed. Several years later, in 2009, so did their new business, Kraft-Sussman Funeral and Cremation services. By February 6, 2015, Laura and Wendy had married. They had already formed a family with each other and their three daughters, Leah Sussman, Emma and Elyse Kraft. In this interview they discuss their joint sense of purpose that includes love of family, dedication to the Jewish community, pride in the LGBT identity, and providing caring services to those at the time of funeral services. They talk also of Jewish traditions related to death, the Jewish burial society known as Chevra Kadisha, and challenges of their industry. They share feelings about nonprofits and how they value being actively involved in the community.