Ortwein, O. Dennis

Dennis Ortwein was raised in a small town in Montana called Harlowton, the second oldest of seven children. He arrived in Las Vegas, Nevada in 1956. Once in Las Vegas, Ortwein taught for a while, served as principal, and was involved in creating programs that helped integrate schools. He was also involved with his church choir, the entertainment industry in early Las Vegas, above-ground testing at the Nevada Test Site, and anti-nuclear protests.

Ortwein served as lab school and student teaching coordinator in Nigeria. After retiring at the age of 53, he acted as consultant to the Esmeralda County school board, executive director for the National Conference of Christians and Jews, and wrote a book.