Former Nevada State Assemblyman Bernie Anderson has died. The Washoe County Democrat represented District 31 and was a retired Reed High School teacher. He served from 1991 through 2010, in several key positions including chairman of the Assembly Judiciary Committee and was a staunch supporter of children and education. His family says he had been…

On Sunday, December 7, George “Skateboard George” Spinner passed away at 68. Born in Queens, N.Y., Spinner’s life took him on a journey from the bustling streets of New York to the sunny landscapes of California’s San Fernando Valley. It was there that he spent his formative years before the family relocated to Tucson, Arizona.…

It has been 50 years and $20 trillion since President Lyndon Johnson announced his War on Poverty to bring education, health care, and jobs to the underprivileged and downtrodden so they could live the American Dream. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a landmark piece of civil rights legislation that outlawed major forms of…

A valuable mineral specimen stolen in April 2013, from a mining museum at the University of Nevada, Reno was returned anonymously, 24 days later. The mineral, worth about $30,000, was left on the steps of the building. The specimen was inside a crate, wrapped in a plastic bag and didn’t appear to be damaged. The mineral is…

The Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles estimates 75 percent of applicants have failed the written test needed for the card under a new law that made the state the 11th nationally to offer driving privileges to people in the country illegally.  Applicants must correctly answer 80 percent of 50 questions to pass the test and…

The plaque honoring the 70 people who died in the Galaxy Airlines flight 203 crash near Meadowood Mall, has been stolen from Reno’s Rancho San Rafael Park. The two-foot-by-two-foot brass plaque was removed from a large rock to which it had been bolted. The Lockheed L-188 Electra 4-engine turboprop was returning to Minneapolis from a Super…

In January, Barack Obama was inaugurated for a second term as president of the United States. Also in January, cyclist Lance Armstrong confessed after years of denial that he had used performance-enhancing drugs to win the Tour de France again and again. March saw white smoke at the Vatican — and word of the election…

From a historic expulsion, training deaths, a school shooting to the approval of drone development, the year 2013 saw Northern Nevada in the spot-light several times. Assemblyman Steven Brooks, D-Las Vegas, became the first legislator expelled in Nevada since statehood after a string of public incidents, bizarre behavior and arrests. Brooks was formally expelled from…

Barbara Jean Smith passed away peacefully, December 10, 2013, following a short illness. At 81, she was the eldest child born to Jack and Leola (Hufford) Olivera, February 14, 1932 in Rohnerville. I knew her best as Aunt Barbara. She is preceded in death by three of her siblings, Gary, Leora, and Margery, with Leona…

As I reflect back on the many Christmases of my lifetime, I recall several that were memorable. From new bicycles, to model airplanes and cars, to the last as a complete family in Klamath, there is something to be said about such reminiscences. Many Christmas gifts were truly a surprise as I had a hard…