The Helldorado Days festival began in 1934 as a tribute to the Old West. The festival, which included a rodeo and parade, took place annually until 1997, and then was brought back by the city of Las Vegas in 2005. The proceeds from the festival help fund local children’s charities through the Elks Lodge.
Source: Sonya Padgett, “Raising Helldorado,” Las Vegas Review-Journal, May 13, 2010. http://www.reviewjournal.com/entertainment/raising-helldorado
The Sin Sity Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence are a Las Vegas chapter of men who dress outrageously as nuns in drag and do charity work to promote HIV/AIDs awareness. According to the Las Vegas Weekly they "The Las Vegas chapter of the Sisters — a vocational order of mostly male nuns in drag, with 30 chapters and missions around the country — take no government money and vow to help those in need, without judgment.
"The Shade Tree was established in 1990 as Jubilee Ministries and, at the time, had little more to offer than safety, shelter, and cots in the basement of Saint Luke’s Episcopal Church. In 1990, diocese members, Junior League of Las Vegas, and the City of Las Vegas collaborated to establish a permanent shelter. In December of that year, The Shade Tree opened in a building owned by Catholic Charities.
The Beda Cornwall Collection on the Citizen's Library Association of Las Vegas consists of material gathered by Beda Brennecke Cornwall that documents the activities of the Citizen's Library Association of Las Vegas during the years 1941 to 1973. Most of the materials document the efforts by the citizens group to raise money in the community to build and sustain a new public library in Las Vegas, Nevada. The remaining part of the collection relates to local and statewide libraries and biographical materials on Beda Cornwall and her husband through various documents and scrapbooks of newspaper clippings.
The Jess Mack Papers document the professional life of burlesque agent and comedy writer Jess Mack from 1916 to 1988 in Las Vegas, Nevada. In addition to contracts, correspondence, engagements, and newspaper articles, the collection contains five boxes of jokes, scripts and scenes used in various burlesque productions. Other material includes photographs of entertainers and burlesque stars, joke booklets, and issues of Mack's magazine, Cavalcade of Burlesque, dating from 1951 to 1954.
The Claudine Williams Papers (1956-2009) contain awards, contracts, personal and business correspondence, newspaper clippings, and photographs pertaining to Las Vegas, Nevada businesswoman and philanthropist, Claudine Williams. The collection also includes extensive information on her hotel and gaming properties, including the Silver Slipper Gambling Hall, Holiday Casino, and Harrah's Hotel and Casino, as well as her honorary doctoral degree, medals, and audiovisual materials of interviews, news reports, and events.
The Las Vegas Founders Club Records (1983-2013) consist mainly of photographic prints of players, general operations, and events surrounding golf tournaments in Las Vegas, Nevada. The tournaments include the Invensys Classic, Las Vegas Senior Classic, men's and women's Collegiate Championships, and the Las Vegas Invitational. Materials also include media press reports, newspaper and press clippings, and scrapbooks created by the Founders Club. The collection also contains digital photographs from various tournaments in Las Vegas.