MARIE WUJEK MORE COLUMNS Advertisement

Kudos to the PV Chamber of Commerce and the Pahrump Nugget Hotel and Casino for another great Biz Expo held last Friday and Saturday in the Nugget Event Center.

The event was packed with vendors displaying their products or discussing the services they provide to a steady, and at times overwhelming, flow of folks making their rounds.

It takes a lot of time, dedication and hard work to put an event like this together. A special round of applause to Nancy Evans, Julia Lawrence and Lucy Ivins from the chamber as well as the Biz Expo committee composed of Dave Uthoff and Tonya Brum.

Community promotions like the Biz Expo don't come to fruition without the dedication and devotion of the staff where the event is held. Lori Dollar, event coordinator for the Nugget, is a visionary. You tell Lori what you want or need and you know, without a doubt, she and the staff at the Nugget will pull it all together.

Thanks one and all for a job well done.

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PVT Editor Mark Smith and I spent a few hours visiting with Pahrump Town Manager Bill Kohbarger last week. We talked about all kinds of issues and topics, both good and bad, that a town the size of Pahrump faces now and will face in the near future.

Bill mentioned that he and his staff are talking about writing a monthly newsletter informing residents of town issues, projects, events and other interesting tidbits. Mark and I both thought this is a great idea. One of the biggest problems in Pahrump is getting the word out, involving the community in problem-solving and letting folks know in advance what is going on in town.

We both look forward to working with Bill and his staff on the newsletter. Watch for it in the not-so-distant future.

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"For the love of animals."

On occasion you have a chance meeting with a truly spectacular person. I experienced this last week when I met Terre Desjardins at the surgery center at the Pahrump Animal Shelter. No doubt in my mind God's holding a special spot in heaven for her.

She volunteers at the shelter and also works for Dr. Herr at the fairly new Homestead Animal Hospital. What makes Terre special is her love, understanding, devotion and knowledge of pets and their human families. She knows our pets are like one of our kids; she has a calming influence and takes the extra time to put us two-legged creatures at ease. She is indeed a blessing.

I also visited Homestead Animal Hospital with another of my four-legged kids. Terre's special qualities are also apparent in the entire staff there.

Dr. Herr -- himself very compassionate and caring -- has added a few services not previously offered in Pahrump. He makes house calls to eliminate the added stress for pets and their owners that a trip to the vet can cause and he is on call 24/7 for emergencies. If you are new to Pahrump, or your pet gets sick or injured and your regular vet is unavailable, give them a call at 727-0700.

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SNAPS (spay/neutering all pets and strays) provides a great service to the Pahrump community. Operated by volunteers, it is totally funded through donations. The goal is to provide spaying and neutering of cats and dogs for a reasonable cost/donation. The objective is to control the overwhelming population of unwanted pets in Pahrump.

Call 751-2088 to inquire about its program or to make a donation. SNAPS is having a yard sale at Sunflower Fashions, Highway 160 and Loop Road, Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Stop by and show your support for this great program.

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I have a great idea to present to President Obama, all senators and members of Congress.

Want to stimulate the economy? How about stimulating the bank accounts of all taxpayers making less than 250K a year that have -- through blood, sweat and tears -- paid dearly for all the mistakes, corruption, greed, lies, bailouts and poor judgments made by our government and big corporations/businesses during the last decade?

Send 100K to all taxpayers that filed married or head of household tax returns, followed by checks for 50K to all taxpayers that filed single, married filing separately or widowed.

This will aid those losing their homes through foreclosure by catching up past due payments and buying down mortgage balances so they can refinance to a payment they can afford. Car dealerships will sell new cars by the trainload.

Credit card companies and banks will have consumers paying off or paying down their credit card or personal loan balances releasing additional money to lend. Student loans can be paid off.

Displaced or unemployed workers will have the money for retraining or schooling needed to help them find employment. People will invest in the stock market again or replenish their depleted savings accounts. Construction and building will start up again, health care and medical bills will be paid. Those facing bankruptcy will get a reprieve and may be able to pay their debts instead of filing bankruptcy.

Families will be able to send their kids to college, purchase appliances, furniture and other necessities they have been doing without. The tourism industry will get a huge boost as some will be able to take much needed vacations. Just think for a minute about what this could accomplish. Different people have different needs.

If our government is going to continue to write checks the taxpayers can't cover, why not help out those who will be paying this debt off for years? Just a thought.

As always, bless you one and all.