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In this oral history, Gary explains how the family came to live in the United States?Cleveland and Los Angeles. In 1957, he married Noreen and they eventually came to live in Las Vegas where Gary worked for Sears selling washing machines, had a repair business and an importing business with Noreen. Gary was an entrepreneurial soul and inventive much like his father. He owns three patents.

On August 25, 1931, Augusta and Herman Sternberg welcomed their second child, Gerd (aka Gary), into the world of Cuxhaven, Germany. Augusta was a devout Christian of Polish ancestry who had fled Russian persecution. Herman was a German-born Jew salesman and inventor. The couple fell in love and had two children, Gary and Ruth who was a year and half older. By 1938, German politics were targeting Jews and Herman was ripped away from his Christian wife and children and sent to a concentration camp. Fate and friendship rescued Herman with the option to go to China. And so begins the history of the Sternberg family and how they all would eventually live together during World War II in the confines of a Jewish ghetto in Hongkew, China from May 1939 to July 1948. Gary had an extraordinary career as a dealer. He was not the stereotypical young dealer-to-be: he was in his 40s when he signed up for the Michael Gaughn Dealing School in the mid-1970s. Gary?s charming wit and ease of making friends soon gained him a position at El Cortez and then Caesars Palace. It was the same personality that would sustain his stellar thirty-one year career at Caesars. He was employed there from April 1974 until his retirement May 8, 2005. Though Jewish tradition would identify Gary as Christian, he self-identified as Jewish, officially converted and has been an active member of the Jewish community. Among his anecdotes-and he has many-is one about securing a $30,000 donation from Frank Sinatra and Jilly Rizzo for Congregation Ner Tamid.

The fascinating life of David Dahan began in Casablanca, Morocco where he was born to Mathilde and Isaac Dahan in 1957. After a hasty departure in 1970 the family came to America and to Las Vegas. Isaac became an administrator for Yellow Cab and Mathilde was a server at the Stardust Hotel/Casino. David evokes a tale of growing up a teenager in a strange culture and then heading out on a solo adventure to learn about the world. By 1977, he fell in love and married an engaging Israeli nurse named Yaffa (1954-2007). Her legacy is the Yaffa Dahan Nursing Education Fund established to assist outstanding PhD nursing students in their dissertation research. Leadership and the energy to always say yes are among David?s many characteristics. He has served on numerous local boards, such as: Nevada Restaurant Association, North Vista Hospital, Touro University, Las Ventanas, Henderson Chamber of Commerce, and the Nevada Law Foundation. He has been the recipient of many awards and acknowledgments for his tireless efforts throughout Las Vegas. Among those is being named the 2005 Person of Influence by In Business Las Vegas. From 1997 ? 1999, he served as President of the Jewish Federation during which time he led a trip to Russia. He is past chair of AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs) Committee. In 2007, David was honored as Mensch of the Year at Congregation Ner Tamid. In this interview he recalls his family?s escape from Morocco, learning to adjust to life in Las Vegas and his early jobs in the restaurant business. With his roots firmly planted in Las Vegas, David has built strong relationships within the Jewish and general Las Vegas communities. David is the Chief Executive Officer of Orgill/Singer Insurance. His life experiences have fueled passions for his faith, cooking, photography, poetry and his daughters, Shana and Michelle.

Esther Toporek Finder is a professor of psychology and has lived in Las Vegas, Nevada since 2010. She was born May 28, 1953, in Chicago, Illinois, and moved to Washington D.C. in 1979 after graduating with her Masters from the University of Chicago. While in Washington D.C, Finder was able to jump start her career as an oral historian recording Holocaust survivor stories with the U.S Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Shoah Foundation. Esther Finder is a second generation Holocaust survivor. Her passion for Holocaust education and its representation in society has led her to many opportunities to teach, facilitate, educate, create and contribute to many survivor oriented groups such as The Generation After where she was President for 15 years, the Holocaust Era Assets Conference as representation of the American survivor community, as well as the creation of the Generations of the Shoah International group in October 2002. When Finder moved to Las Vegas, she quickly and deeply involved herself in the Las Vegas Holocaust survivor community. She has been integral with Nellis Air Force Base?s Days of Remembrance, the opening the Generations of Shoah Nevada Chapter, and partnering with the World Federation of Jewish Child Survivors of the Holocaust and Descendants to bring conferences to the Las Vegas Valley. In addition, she has been an organizer of commemoration programs for students attending UNLV and schools within the Clark County School District. Her involvement with the Governor?s Advisory Council on Education Relating to the Holocaust and the television series Eyewitness to History have highlighted the Holocaust survivors living in Las Vegas. In this interview, Finder discusses her childhood as well as the paths that led her to realize her passion for the Holocaust survivor community and her deep association with the community. She shares her experiences interviewing survivors and second generation survivors giving a deeper insight into the stories that they have shared with her over the years. In addition, she reflects on her long reach within the survivor community and brings to light the foundation of family being a survivor gives. Finder highlights the traveling, teaching and community service opportunities she has had over the years while enlightening people about the importance of countering hate through education.

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

On February 24, 1975, Kathleen Kasmir interviewed Marion Brooks (born 1913 in Santa Ana, California) about his life in Southern Nevada and his work as a mining engineer. Brooks first talks about his background before talking extensively about his early work in mining. Brooks also mentions some of the professional mining societies of which he was a part, and the two then move on to discuss gambling, recreational activities, and the atomic testing. Other topics covered during the interview include the price of groceries and food, the El Rancho Vegas, social changes, population growth, and environmental changes. The end of the interview then shifts back to Brooks’ work in mining at Blue Diamond and then a discussion on the possible locations of three lost mines.

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.