Living and Working in Northern Nevada - Veteran's Day

As Veteran's Day approaches tomorrow, my family is especially touched by the tributes to those that have and are protecting our country. Thank you to everyone that sent there concerns and inquiries during last week's horrific events!

My son-in-law Nate is stationed in Texas. I was out with clients showing houses totally unaware of the developing tragedy at Fort Hood when I received the first call from my step mom. She asked in a panic, "Where's Nate? Is he OK?" Since he was on leave visiting us here in Northern Nevada, I laughed and said, "he was sitting on my coach watching TV when I left this morning, why?" She proceeded to give me sketchy details about a mass shooting in Texas, at the time she was not sure where, only that it had been on an Army base.

Nate and my daughter Kelly had been at a movie with their phones off so they were shocked when returning home they turned on their cells to find over 20 messages each. As we all tuned in to hear what was happening, we soon discovered with relief that the shootings did not occur at Nate's home base of Fort Bliss.

That relief was quickly replaced by a terrible sadness and empathy for those families affected. The entire Army family has been deeply wounded, and Nate's squad felt a disconcerting uneasiness, since they had just been through the processing center last week in preparation for their coming deployment.

Yesterday, Nate left Reno to head back to Texas. His unit leaves for somewhere in Iraq next week. I helplessly watched my daughter say goodbye to her husband whom she is unlikely to see for a year or so. I can only pray for his and every other military personnel's safety, abroad and here at home!

The debt we owe to all that serve should not be remembered only one or two days a year, but tomorrow, try and take a moment and really think about the sacrifices made by the brave men and women of all branches of the military. And give thanks!

Business Growth In Northern Nevada

As a member of the Reno Sparks Chamber of Commerce Diplomats, I attended two ribbon cuttings over the past couple of weeks for two new hotel offerings here in Northern Nevada . The Hyatt Place and Hawthorn Suites both offer a great new options for travelers to the Reno Area.

Living and Working in Northern Nevada - Wet Windy Weather in the High Desert

Typhoon hits Northern Nevada.....Well, kind of. The Northern Nevada area had some very unusual weather the past few days. A warm, wet storm hit and dropped over an inch of rain. That's almost record setting for this area, this time of year. I know....all of you in Seattle are wondering what the big deal is, but the high desert has been particularly dry so the rain and snow (at the higher elevations) were welcomed! Of course the 60 mph winds we could have done without. The gusts over the ridges in the Sierras were expected to reach 130 miles per hour. Yes those are Typhoon or Hurricane force winds in most areas of the world, here in Northern Nevada, we call them gusts!!

With the unusual weather, my dog and my daughter's dog and cat took drastic measures to stay cozy.

I love living and working in Northern Nevada.

Living and Working in Northern Nevada - Race for the Cure

My daughter and I participated with some great folks in the Susan G Komen Race for the Cure , this morning. The Keller Williams team walking in the event in Reno was depleted due to some flu season casualties, but our group still represented and had a great time doing it.


This great event was held this year at the University of Nevada at Reno campus and thousands braved the fall cold to support this fabulous cause. While the morning was brisk, the weather ended up being much milder than forecasted, which had called for cold, wind and snow!

The Race for the Cure is part of the nation wide activities for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and it raises money to fund breast cancer research. The survivor stories were heart wrenching, but the overall atmosphere is one of hope and energy!!! While Reno is really a tiny city, it never fails to move me to see it open it's tremendous heart to help.

Quality Of Life In Northern Nevada - Truckee River

I took one of my dogs down to play in the Truckee River for probably the last time this year.

As the last days of September pass by, it's still been in the 90's so we have been enjoying a fabulous Indian summer. I could tell you this is pretty common, but living in the Sierras, the one thing you can count on is that the weather is always unpredictable. This is clearly demonstrated by the fact that the temperature is supposed to drop over 30 degrees by Tuesday. Because the ice cold Truckee River is much more enjoyable when the outside temperature is in the 90's than in the 60's, we wanted one last excursion to enjoy it.



We headed to one of our favorite hidden treasures, Mayberry Park. It's another one of those places you find hidden in Northwest Reno. 5 minutes from downtown, but removed from city life.

The park has nice open grass areas and picnic tables, but the best thing is the direct access to the Truckee River.

If you have a dog like my big guy, the only thing better than fetching a tennis ball in the field is fetching a plastic stick in the river! Dogs are welcomed in the park, but they must be on leash. Of course I do not have to worry about letting him free while playing, because his focus on his stick is absolute, there is NOTHING (even food does not work) that can distract him from that plastic stick!!

What a great way to say goodbye to summer. Geez I love living and working in Northern Nevada!

Cutest Dog Competition

Quality of Life in Northern Nevada - Small Business

You all know by now I love living and working in the Northern Nevada area, this week, I spent some time meeting a couple of business owners that are dedicated to contributing to this great area!

I just joined the Diplomat corps with the Reno Sparks Chamber of Commerce and part of the duties is to participate in Ribbon Cuttings. These events really help to celebrate the business members of the chamber and this week I went to two ceremonies that typified the great diversity of the businesses belonging to the Reno Sparks Chamber of Commerce.

The first was at Hutchinson Business Valuation and the second was at Tahoe Burgers.


Mari and Derek at Hutchinson Business Valuation both have accounting backgrounds and numerous valuation certifications. They have the formidable job of assessing the monetary value of businesses. That means not just the nuts and bolts of buildings or machinery, but the business in its entirety. This was first anniversary of their opening as Hutchinson Business Valuation an offshoot of Hutchinson Valuation.

Tahoe Burgers celebrated its grand opening this weekend with a huge crowd and fun and games for all. From the Iconman show, Greg London was on hand, Sunny 106.9 was there and there was even a mechanical bull for the brave hearted. The menu has a variety of offerings including burgers, chicken sandwiches, pulled pork sandwiches and salads. You can also get crispy fries and onion rings! The nice folks opening Tahoe Burger are dedicated to contributing to the community, utilizing local vendors whenever possible and partnering with Billinghurst Middle School and the American Cancer Society.