Laughlin Buzz: Laughlin Leadership Forum

Update:
At the beginning of the forum a short time has been set aside for community members to give their input on the new, proposed River Park in Laughlin.

It is important to get ideas and input while this is in the design phase. If you cannot make the meeting, you can vote and submit your ideas for features in a poll here.

Secretary of State, State Senator visit set for Oct. 26 for Laughlin Leadership Forums

Contact jimmaniaci@centurylink.net or 505-879-3142
For immediate use
Contributed

LAUGHLIN -- Nevada Secretary of State Barbara K.Cegavske is expected to make a major announcement concerning Laughlin voters, and 12th District State Senator Dr. Joe Hardy is expected to talk about how he has helped Laughlin projects, when they speak at the (Thursday, Oct. 26) Laughlin Leadership Forum at 5 P.M.

The public is invited to hear and visit with them at the Richard Springsten American Legion Post 60 meeting hall. The Post is located on Bruce Woodbury Drive, a half-mile east (downhill) of Needles Highway, in Upper Laughlin.

Cegaske also is expected to explain the multiple functions of her office. Dr. Hardy, whose district includes Laughlin, also is expected to talk about the next session of the Nevada Legislature. Under the Nevada Constitution, the two houses meet for 120 days from early February to early June of odd-numbered years.

Cegavske, Nevada’s 17th Secretary of State, assumed her office on Jan. 5, 2015. Before that she was the 8th District State Senator for 12 years.

Previously, she served in the Nevada Assembly from 1996 to 2001. According to her legislative biography, she was educated in Rochester, Minnesota, and what is now College of Southern Nevada.

“I have lived in Nevada since 1974. Even though I came from a humble background (born in 1951) in Faribault, Minnesota, I have long considered Nevada my home. I am immensely grateful for the many opportunities that have presented themselves since I moved here,” she said.

She and husband Tim have 2 sons, Adam and Bret, who were born and raised in the Vegas Valley, and graduated from Clark County high schools, UN-R and UN-LV, respectively, and are now raising their own families in the Vegas Valley. The Cegavskes now have 6 grandchildren.

“My parents were small business owners. After school and during my summer vacations, my brothers, sisters and I all helped in the family business. This was my introduction to business and the free market system. The first-hand knowledge I learned was to be a tremendous asset when Tim and I became owners of a 7-Eleven franchise. During the 13 successful years we ran the franchise, we faced the same challenges that all small business owners face on a daily basis. It was an amazing and enjoyable experience. We also learned of some of the onerous regulations in place that put burdens and disincentives to grow and thrive,” she said.

Senator Hardy was born in 1940 in Reno. He began his state legislative career in November 2002 as a member of the Nevada Assembly, moving to the Senate in 2010. His first elected office was as the Student Body President of Sparks High School. His next step was to be elected to Boulder City’s City Council where he served as Mayor Pro Tempore.

In his state career he has become a champion of Laughlin’s interests.

In the 2017 legislative session, Senator Hardy served on the Commerce, Labor, and Energy; Government Affairs; and Health-Human Services Committees.

After earning his bachelor’s degree at the University of Nevada-Reno, he earned his Doctor of Medicine at Washington University (St. Louis, Mo.) in 1976. He was honored as the Nevada Family Physician of the Year in 1998 and 2010. He also has taught at Touro University Nevada’s School of Medicine, and been Chief of Internal Medicine and Family Practice, as well on the Board of Directors of St. Rose Dominican Hospital in Henderson.
Dr. Hardy has served on the Southern Nevada Health District Board of Trustees. A member of Boulder City’s American Legion post, he also has been active in the Boy Scouts of America, and the Boulder City Chamber of Commerce where he sponsored the LEDC as a member.

Retired from the U.S. Air Force as a major, he returned in early October from a reminiscing visit to France where he had served as a missionary for the Mormon Church.

Hardy and wife Jill have eight children including Clark County District Court Judge Joseph Paul Jr., Nicole, Emily, Leah, Spencer, Dane, Jack, Ryan, along with 20 grandchildren.