News Pic Archives • Page 43 of 50 • Reno News & Review

Residents visiting the Department of Motor Vehicles encounter a group of signature gatherers who help people register to vote or seek signatures on initiative petitions. This democratic process has been conducted with few bottlenecksor inconveniences.

Democracy in action

by Staff September 17, 2008

At a community picnic in Golden Valley last weekend, children played at a fountain made from two barrel halves and an old fashioned hand water pump.

Water play

by Staff September 10, 2008

Neighborhood “viewing parties” were held around the valley last week to watch Barack Obama accept the Democratic presidential nomination. This group is watching the speech at a home on Prater Way in Sparks.

Viewing history

by Staff September 3, 2008

Back to school

by Staff August 27, 2008

Video Maniacs on Fifth Street, one of the few remaining independent video stores, is closing its doors and selling off the stock. A spokesperson said, “There are easier ways to get movies, where you don’t have to get in your car.” The company’s second store remains open.

Out of business

by Staff August 20, 2008

Location apparently isn’t everything. The Savoy Motor Lodge’s sign is still standing, but the motel is gone in spite of its location at a freeway ramp four blocks from the Reno arch. It was located on North Virginia between Seventh and Maple and had been there since 1961. The property was previously the site of the Phi Sigma Kappa fraternity.

Sign of the times

by Staff August 13, 2008

For 77 days in Vietnam in 1968, a U.S. post at Khe Sanh was under siege, prompting comparisons to the monumental French defeat at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. The world watched to see if history would repeat itself. The peril to the U.S. presence in Vietnam was so great that officials in Washington considered using nuclear and chemical weapons. But though U.S. forces were isolated at times, troops assisted by a massive bombardment (39,179 tons of bombs dropped during the siege) held out. More than 250 Khe Sanh vets held a reunion in Reno last week. George Owsley, left, and Dave Tonick looked over 1968 editions of Newsweek and Life magazines that carried the siege on the covers.

Siege recalled

by Staff August 6, 2008

Vietnam veterans, from left, Smokie Burgess Charlie Speights and Mike Zimmer talked over old times at a reunion in Reno this week. The reunion brought together veterans of the 299th Combat Engineers who served in and around Dak To.

Looking back

by Staff July 23, 2008

The children’s fountain in downtown Sparks got a good workout over the July 4 weekend, with crowds of kids taking advantage of the respite from the heat. Letti Rodriguez chose to stay out of the crowded main cluster of water streams (rear of shot) in favor of one of the small outlying streams that was more her size.

Sign of summer

by Staff July 9, 2008

On May 21, 1906, Catholic officials purchased the Sol Levy home at the corner of Second and Chestnut (now Arlington Avenue) for $10,000 as the site of a church, possibly a cathedral. The cornerstone was laid in June and on Sept. 15, Father Thomas Tubman returned to Reno from Grass Valley where he obtained the Sacramento bishop’s approval for a cathedral (Reno was then in the Catholic Diocese of Sacramento). St. Thomas Aquinas Cathedral was dedicated June 21, 1908, and was one of the city’s most striking architectural features. A Dec. 21, 1909, fire collapsed the ceiling and did other major damage. The building was salvaged and reopened the next year. In spite of the hard times of the Depression, a school building behind the church was added and dedicated in October 1931. A cathedral renovation in the 1950s added the dominant interior feature, a wraparound mural that surrounds the altar, and new stained glass windows were added in the 1960s. Since that renovation, the interior has become a bit worn and fundraising is now going on to upgrade it, but St. Thomas remains a work of art.

Cathedral centennial

by Staff June 17, 2008

Cameron Chase tapes together the base for a totem pole, which he’s creating from recycled materials for an art project at Camp Invention at Elizabeth Lenz Elementary School. The camp, a national program from Invent Now Kids, is for children entering first through sixth grade. It’s taking place this week, June 9-13, at both Elizabeth Lenz and Rollan Melton elementary schools. Kids at the camp helped clean up a polluted environment, built art displays and explored Mars in hands-on activities.

Inventive minds

by Staff June 11, 2008

At Sierra and Fourth last week, 51 protesters lined up across the street from where Sen. John McCain was speaking and waved signs at passing cars. Ron Paul Republicans, antiwar activists and senior citizens objecting to McCain’s Social Security stance were in the group. They had a bigger audience than normal because a casino had closed Virginia Street.

McCain brings them together

by Staff June 5, 2008