50 States 50 Stories...I Never Thought I'd Live Here: Enjoy Real Stories

By Lynn S. Rosenberg

Upon moving to Las Vegas more than twenty years ago, Lynn Rosenberg was immediately struck by the eclectic range of residents she met. Throughout the years, Rosenberg was intrigued by stories of how other people, including many of her colleagues, ended up moving to Las Vegas. She became even more interested in what attracted each person to ultim

• Language: English
• Publisher: Palmetto Publishing
• Release date: Oct 2, 2020
• ISBN: 9781649901088

Lynn S. Rosenberg

Lynn Rosenberg and her husband, Ron, have lived in Las Vegas, NV for over 20 years. Originally from New York, Lynn taught elementary school then followed her career path to become an assistant principal, honing her organizational and managerial skills through education. She wrote and published a collection of true stories entitled 50 States 50 Stories...I Never Thought I' d Live Here, which was published in 2020. Writing became a new avocation, one that encouraged her to facilitate a class that can be found on YouTube entitled, "So You Wanna be a Writer?" helping both aspiring and experienced writers to develop their craft.Thelma & Lou: A Circular Love Story is Lynn's first novel, loosely based on her parents' marriage and divorce, and is an attempt to rewrite history. The Rosenbergs have enjoyed traveling throughout Europe, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, as well as hiking through most of America's national parks. Visiting the couple's three children and six grandkids in both Nashville and Los Angeles rounds out their busy lives.lynnsrosenberg.com

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ALASKA

Fun Facts about Alaska

Alaska has the longest coastline in the United States—6,640 miles. It is greater than that of all the other states combined. —Fifty States and Fifty Fun Facts

Dennis grew up and was educated in Brooklyn and Long Island, New York. At eighteen he trained for the US Air Force in Texas. He had a long and exciting career, retiring as a major in 2000.

Dennis was stationed at Nellis Air Force Base from 1985 to 1988. What he remembered about early Las Vegas was a remote but fun city, countrified with nickel slots. In 1997 his reason for moving here was the great climate. They had a family meeting three months prior to the move, at which time his family hated the idea, but they agreed to move to Las Vegas because that's what Dennis wanted. After they moved here, his son went to UNLV.

Dennis's time in Alaska was quite memorable and could not have been more different from his life now in Las Vegas. In 1983–84 he was stationed in the remote area in the Aleutian Islands called Cold Bay, close to Russia. He worked radar to spot and intercept unknown aircrafts that appeared on his screen, namely Russians. He lived there without his family, as it was too isolated.

He had some unique experiences when he returned to Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage from 1988 to 1994 with his family:

He intercepted Russian aircrafts that were going to the United States, even though the Cold War had ended.

He became accustomed to seeing bald eagles, blue-green glaciers, the northern lights, Denali Park, wolves, Dall sheep, bears, lynx, caribou, moose, and puffins. He fished for trout, halibut, and salmon.

His son had a newspaper route, and there were mornings he could not deliver the papers because moose blocked his way!

Riding on the gondola to get up the mountain from one station to another, he experienced whiteouts where he could not see an inch in front of himself. Very scary!

After retiring from the air force in 1997 as a major, he started a second career with Clark County School District as a middle school teacher and coached Junior ROTC. Dennis was very surprised at how differently the school district was run compared to the air force. He expected more organization and order, and he was disappointed.

In his opinion, the best that Las Vegas offers is great weather, golf, hiking, and access to swimming at the beaches of Boulder City and California. One can reach all climates within four hours. He says that the worst thing about the city is that it has grown too big since his initial time in 1979, and there is too much traffic. While visiting the Neon and Mob Museums, he realizes how much Las Vegas changed in his four decades in Las Vegas.

Dennis experienced some interesting opportunities living in Las Vegas. When he was stationed at Nellis, he flew six F-16–connected emergency missions, following the coastline below the clouds.

As a part-time usher at MGM while he was teaching, he met some famous people, including Charles Barkley, Muhammad Ali, Paul McCartney (whose hand he shook), Simon and Garfunkel, Cher, and Madonna.

He commented, To succeed in Vegas, you need to have a goal, a focus on something, whether it be a job or a passion for something. Dennis has had and still has this passion for his life, in his career in the air force, his travel experiences, teaching, ushering, and most recently just enjoying his life and his very connected family.

ALASKA

ARIZONA

Fun Facts about Arizona

Arizona is a state full of natural wonders. It is a land of red rocks, canyons, monuments, mountains, and rivers. The saguaro cactus blossom is the official state flower. It is the largest American cactus, and it blooms during May and June.—50 Astonishing Facts You Never Knew about the 50 States

The Castilian and Burgundian flags of Spain, the Mexican flag, the Confederate flag, and the flag of the United States have flown over the land area that became Arizona.—50 Astonishing Facts You Never Knew about the 50 States

This was a human interest story highlighting notable Las Vegans which was reported in the Las Vegas Review Journal on May 28, 2019 by Al Mancini, entitled Henderson -based Group Assists Valley's Seniors . The story intrigued me, so I included excerpts from it in my book.

Favil was a former military and commercial pilot who was the college roommate in Arizona of Ken Gragson in 1957. Ken, the son of Oran Gragson, a past mayor of Las Vegas, brought Favil to Vegas to visit often during their college years. Afterward, Favil completed fighter pilot training and worked on a special project for an airline here in 1991, but he then returned to Arizona. He remembered how much he liked the excitement of the city and the many outdoor opportunities in Las Vegas, so when it was time to retire, he moved