Marion D. Bennett, Sr. was born May 31, 1933 in Greenville, South Carolina to a family of eleven. He graduated from Sterling High School and went on to Morris Brown College. After graduating in 1957, he later matriculated at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, Georgia where he received a Master of Divinity in 1960. Reverend Bennett came to Las Vegas, Nevada on July 7, 1960 to be the pastor of the Zion United Methodist Church. Reverend Bennett fought hard to get the Equal Rights Commission established in Nevada.
Person
Jay Poster was born October 16, 1954 in Brooklyn, New York. He grew up in San Diego, California.
Music brought Jay Poster to Las Vegas for a brief time in 1974. Jay wanted to pursue a musical career and his cousin was a professional musician with the Nat Brandwynne Orchestra at Caesars Palace. Poster left Las Vegas to return home to San Diego and his studies at San Diego State University. It would be over a decade later before Jay returned to Las Vegas to live and this time it became permanent.
Person
Las Vegas Jewish Film Festival was founded around 2001 by Joshua Abbey. It shows international films, including dramas, comedies, documentaries, and experimental films. The 14th LVJFF was held January 10 to 25, 2015 and was produced by Desert Space Foundation and the Adelson Educational Campus. Major support was provided by the Adelson Family Foundation, the Jewish Federation of Las Vegas, and the Israeli American Council.
Corporate Body
Interviewed by Marcela Rodriguez-Campo. Laurents Bañuelos-Benites, Maribel Calderón, and Barbara Tabach also participate in the questioning. Moises "Mo" Denis is a Cuban American born in Brooklyn, New York. He served as the first Latino Majority Leader in the Nevada State Senate and has been involved in public service for over 30 years. As a leader in the Church of Latter Day Saints and his involvement with supporting Latinx initiatives, Mo has been able to increase the representation of Latinos in politics and support educational reform. While early on his family moved around a lot, they finally settled in Las Vegas and have continued to grow their family. Mo is a Rancho High School alum and went on to graduate from Brigham Young University as a music major. He first started his career by opening a music store, but later began working in the tech industry. Eventually, through his involvement in the PTA, Mo was appointed to serve on the Clark County Library Board. There he was involve
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Joshua Nathaniel Abbey was born in 1956 to artist Rita Deanin Abbey and author Edward Abbey. While much of Joshua?s early childhood was spent in the southwest following his father?s job, Hoboken, New Jersey, was where he attended elementary school and where his Jewish foundation took shape with his maternal grandparents. In 1964, the Abbey family moved westward again to Las Vegas. Though his father moved on and became a distant influence on Joshua?s life, his mother, Rita, remained and became an artist and art instructor at UNLV. Upon graduating from Las Vegas? Valley High School, Joshua set his sights on an acting career. His creative and industrious energies would inspire him to move about: from Los Angeles to New York and back to Las Vegas. He traveled the world, met the love of his life Yve Eiholzer-Abbey, a fellow Thespian. Eventually the couple made Las Vegas their permanent residence. In this interview, Josh recalls his life?s journey and the many career steps, friendships and accomplishments he has experienced along the path. Among Josh?s local contributions is the creation the Las Vegas Jewish Film Festival, which began in 2001. He also was founder of CineVegas Film Festival in 1998; a member of the Nevada Arts Council, City of Las Vegas Arts Commission and Director of the Desert Space Foundation, a local non-profit foundation committed to assisting emerging arts groups. He has also worked with Blue Man Group, for Jewish Family Service Agency, had a brief speaking part in the movie, The Natural, and been an activist opposing the Yucca Mountain waste repository-and much more. Joshua is a graduate of University of Nevada Las Vegas (Theater Arts 1980) and American Film Institute (1993).
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In 2015, Todd S. Polikoff was named the President & Chief Executive Officer of the Jewish Federation of Las Vegas. (The organization is now known as Jewish Nevada). Todd is a graduate of Stockton University and earned his MBA at Cleveland State University. He has three children: Samuel, Shira and Jordan. Born in 1971 to a steelworker and hairdresser, Jack and Judy Polikoff, Todd grew up in Philadelphia, became a bar mitzvah there, and shocked his mother when he explained he was putting college on hold to move to Israel. In addition to stories about these life memories, Todd also traces his career path to decision-making to a meaningful trip to Moscow a where a defining moment helped him understand his own relationship with Judaism. To the time of this interview, Todd has invested over twenty years in leadership of Jewish Federation and AIPAC in states that include New Jersey, Delaware, Texas, Ohio and Nevada.
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