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.

Adelaide was born in Manhattan, New York to a father who was a pianist and arranger and a mother who was a dancer on Broadway. She grew up as an only child in the theater district where she was exposed to the arts from a young age. Her parents insisted she be well rounded. To that end, she began piano lessons at age six and was frequently taken to museums. Adelaide was always drawn to music and began working professionally by the age of 12. She attended the High School of Music and Art for four years along with others who went on to great fame. While in high school, she earned awards for composition. Her knowledge and abilities of the bass earned her a full scholarship to the Eastman School of Music. All of the jobs she had during high school and college were music related; playing gigs or teaching. While working towards a triple major at Eastman, she felt over-extended and eventually transferred to the Manhattan School of Music who was honored to have a transfer from Eastman. Also because of the extra credits from Eastman, she was able to obtain a master’s degree inside of a year. Adelaide went on the road with Buddy Rich’s band where they played in Chicago and Los Angeles before finding their way to Las Vegas. Adelaide was always the only woman in the band, and there were difficulties of being a woman in the field of mostly male musicians. The band found their way to Las Vegas in 1967. She never realized how well known she was until she arrived in Las Vegas. Adelaide came to Las Vegas on a trial run and ended up staying. The first job she had in Las Vegas was playing solo piano at Guys and Dolls before moving on to playing as a rehearsal pianist for a Broadway show. Over the years, Adelaide played many venues with many famous musicians. She is not hopeful for the future of musicians in Las Vegas, feeling the casino owners would rather replace live musicians with canned music. However, Adelaide’s career is not over as she is still performing for a variety of events. With her two degrees from very prominent music schools, Adelaide feels she may have gone further in career if she had stayed in New York, but she has no regrets about coming to Las Vegas.

Interviewed by Barbara Tabach. Monserrath Hernández and Maribel Estrada Calderón also participate in the questioning. Born in Mexico, came to live in Las Vegas in 1985. Graduate of UNLV in Journalism and a reporter of Public Safety for the Las Vegas Sun. Ricardo covered the 1 October shooting, the killing of two police officers and other traumatic news of the community.

Interviewed by Elsa Lopez. Born in Belize, Director of AARP, speaks English, Spanish and Creole. Specialist in senior affairs.

On March 3, 1979, William Hawley interviewed Oliver Crickman (born 1933 in Apex, North Carolina) about his experiences from living in Nevada and working in restaurants. Crickman first describes his background and his first occupations prior to starting as a cook in Las Vegas restaurants. He then explains how he gradually moved from the position of cook’s helper to sous chef and his then-current position of executive chef at the Royal Inn. Crickman goes into detail about the operation of those restaurants and other Las Vegas Strip and Downtown Las Vegas properties, and he describes the demographics of cooks as well as how the hospitality industry has changed over time. The latter part of the interview involves a discussion of Crickman’s various residences in Las Vegas over time, the extent of crime, the first places to shop, and a brief discussion on mobile homes.

On March 3, 1978, Monica Lehman interviewed Clark Crocker (born 1920 in Westfield, Massachusetts) about his experiences while living in Nevada. Crocker first talks about his family and educational background before describing his experiences from going to school in both California and Massachusetts. Crocker then describes what he knows about the building of Hoover Dam and later talks about his career as a teacher and school principal. The two also discuss Crocker’s hobbies and volunteer work, including that for the fire department in Pahrump, and they later discuss Crocker’s experiences as both a frogman and navigator for the United States Navy during World War II. The interview concludes with some of Crocker’s thoughts and philosophies on how curriculum should be structured in schools.

Laralee Nelson and her four sisters were born and raised in Provo, Utah. She was raised in a Mormon household, her parents worked at Brigham Young University and she attended BYU She was .nearly thirty years old when she moved to Las Vegas with her husband. The move was the first real move away from her Utah home base. She fondly recalls summers at an archaeological dig in Israel while studying for her undergraduate degree. But these were nothing compared to relocating to Las Vegas. Laralee's mother was a librarian at BYU and an obvious inspiration to her career choice. Once she arrived in Las Vegas, she applied for a cataloging position at UNLV. From 1982 to 2010, it was her first and only position. From that span of years, she witnessed monumental changes in the library. Changes in leadership, a move from the old Dickinson Library to the new Lied Library, and the impact of technology. Laralee's anecdotes, especially one about the professor with the red wagon and another about her father clearing a rocky path on a family trip, reveal core success of a library built to serve the university community.