Afghanistan

RENO – President Obama told members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars today that he has fulfilled the promises he made four years ago to make America safer, strengthen jobs programs for returning military personnel and fight homelessness, suicide and posttraumatic stress disorder among the nation’s veterans.

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Andrea Moore
900 N. Roop St
775.887.2244 x 1019
awmoore@clan.lib.nv.us

Explore the World @ Your Library: Serbia

CARSON CITY, NEVADA-Carson City Library will present Explore Serbia @ Your Library on Thursday, July 26th, at 6:00 p.m., in the library auditorium. Dragan Zivkovic will present this program. Having been born in Serbia, Zivkovic will share his unique understanding of his native country.

SPARKS — An impassioned motion to revoke credentials for more than 300 delegates who arrived after the meeting began. Heated questions about the presence of guests and whether they were voting. An angry motion to remove the convention chairman. And that was just for starters.

More than 1,600 county delegates today gathered at the Nevada Republican Party convention in Sparks in a meeting that fluctuated between contentiousness and relative calm as the hours rolled on.

The transformative effects of fishing a good trout stream are well documented. Trout Unlimited is one of many organizations participating in Project Healing Waters (http://www.projecthealingwaters.org/), which uses the medium of fly fishing to help military service veterans reconnect with the outdoors.

At the urging of Congressman Tom McClintock, R-Calif., a committee has been formed to find an unnamed mountain peak seen from South Lake Tahoe that will be dedicated to fallen U.S. soldiers from the area.
Congressman McClintock's office approached the U.S. Forest Service about opportunities for a memorial. Forest Supervisor Nancy Gibson came up with the idea of naming an unnamed peak as one of the options for a memorial on National Forest System lands.

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Andrea Moore
900 N. Roop St
775.887.2244 x 1019
awmoore@clan.lib.nv.us

Capital City Reads: A Thousand Splendid Suns

CARSON CITY, NEVADA-The Carson City Library would like to invite the entire community to participate in a citywide reading initiative to discuss the timely, and powerful message found in Khaled Hosseini’s best seller, A Thousand Splendid Suns.

Six Nevada National Guard Chinook helicopters belonging to Bravo Company 1-189th General Support Aviation Battalion just did a flyover of Carson City a few minutes ago. They are on their way to Fort Hood, Texas, and eventually to Afghanistan where they will be deployed for 10 months. Godspeed, citizen soldiers.

The film "This Means War," currently on view at the Fandango Galaxy cineplex in Carson City, stars Reese Witherspoon as Laure Scott. Which is good because she almost brings this turkey of a romantic comedy to life all by herself.

In the United States a political party does not become the majority party in this country by becoming ideologically pure. They become the majority by becoming larger, inclusive, and superior to their political opponents not only in size, but should also be anchored in and unafraid of intellectual and discursive dialogue, devoid of reactionary emotionalism. Then and only then, can conservatism present and extend to the electorate our concepts in such a way that we will be accepted by the majority of our fellow citizens.

RENO – From a cheering crowd of several hundred at a brief but energetic Mitt Romney rally to a more subdued event for Rick Santorum hosted by the Republican Jewish Coalition to another well-attended rally for Ron Paul, it was a trifecta of presidential candidates in Reno ahead of the Saturday GOP caucus.

Romney got the balling rolling at the Grove, with an estimated 800 supporters packed inside and standing outside the event center in South Reno. Romney spoke briefly to those standing outside before giving a short but enthusiastic speech to those crowded inside.

Carson City, Nev., native Master Sgt. Max Robertson (right), the field artillery chief with 2nd Battalion, 11th Marine Regiment, stands at attention during opening ceremonies of the St. Barbara’s Day celebration. Robertson wore the St. Barbara’s Medal for his years of work within the artillery field. “It’s a great honor, just like being a Marine,” mentioned Robertson. “It’s a great honor to walk amongst your fellow artillerymen, and they can recognize that you have contributed to the community.”

Sometimes watching a dreck movie and enjoying it can be embarrassing. Such is the case with "New Year's Eve," a multifaceted comedy of sorts playing at the Fandango Galaxy cinema in Carson City. The cast is all-star, from Hilary Swank to Robert De Niro. And while the film is pure twaddle, director Gary Marshall keeps all the balls in the air. And he should be able to; he made the same movie last year on a Valentine's Day theme.

Local schools are celebrating Veterans Day this week. Yesterday, students at Seeliger Elementary talked to Sgt. Brent Peden via Skype from Afghanistan. Peden's daughter Makayla is a second-grader at the school. Today, Carson High School will have a Veterans Day ceremony in Senator Square at 10:30 a.m.

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The Mallory Foundation has given $200,000 this month to Carson Tahoe Regional Medical Center to construct a triage lobby and remodel treatment areas in the hospital's emergency department. According to CTRMC, the money is “appreciated now more than ever” due to treatment provided to uninsured patients.

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Tickets for the V&T Polar Express are nearly sold out, so get yours now.

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A local foster mother is organizing a boot and shoe drive for American Indian youths and foster children. Donations can be dropped off at Rupert's Auto Body, 2800 S. Curry St., or at Stewart Head Start, 429 De Lah E Deh.

U.S. Army Spc. Garrett Fant, 21, a 2008 graduate of South Tahoe High School, died on Sept. 26 in Afghanistan.

The U.S. Army has not sent an official notice of his death but it has been confirmed through the news organization KSAL out of Kansas. Fant's mother is Julia Towle Farell of South Lake Tahoe.

Since returning from Afghanistan in April 2010, Paul Kinsey and Christian Riege both settled into full-time positions of leadership with the Joint Forces Unit of the Nevada Army National Guard i...

— Major Heath Kelly, 35, Reno, decorated field artillery officer, husband and father, commander of Joint Force Headquarters in Carson City, served in Iraq 2004-2005. Avid student of military history, known for his dry sense of humor. See story

— Sgt. 1st Class Christian Riege, 38, Carson City, father of three, served in Afghanistan 2009-2010, also served in U.S Navy for two years before joining the Guard. See story

— Sgt. 1st Class Miranda McElhiney, 31, Reno, owner of a small baking company, well known in the company for providing cupcakes for guard functions. See story

— Florence Donovan-Gunderson, 67, South Lake Tahoe. See story| Video

Additional stories:

Customer shot in shoulder recounts IHOP attack

Four victims remembered

See all stories on IHOP Shooting

One was an Iraq War veteran who loved military history. Another was an Afghanistan war vet and fitness buff. Still another would bring in cupcakes for colleagues when they gotpromotions. All of ...

Names of those killed in yesterday's IHOP shooting are:

• Major Heath Kelly, 35, Reno, decorated field artillery officer, husband and father, commander of Joint Force Headquarters in Carson City, served in Iraq 2004-2005. Avid student of military history, known for his dry sense of humor. See story
• Sgt. 1st Class Christian Riege, 38, Carson City, father of three, served in Afghanistan 2009-2010, also served in U.S Navy for two years before joining the Guard
• Sgt. 1st Class Miranda McElhiney, 31, Reno, owner of a small baking company, well known in the company for providing cupcakes for guard functions. See story
• Florence Donovan-Gunderson, 67, South Lake Tahoe. See story

According to Sheriff Kenny Furlong, the names of those wounded are not going to be released at this time.

One of those wounded is Wally Gunderson, husband of Florence Donovan-Gunderson, who died in the attack.

See all stories on IHOP Shooting

By Cheva Heck
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. — A crew of military veterans who are preparing for future employment while they're helping to protect Lake Tahoe communities from wildfire were visited today by U.S. Forest Service and California Conservation Corps officials.

CARSON CITY – Gov. Brian Sandoval figured the Nevada soldiers serving in Afghanistan appreciated his visit last week when they literally tore the organizational patches off their uniforms and offered them up as keepsakes on his trip to see the country’s military efforts first-hand.
Sandoval, back nearly a full week today, said his eyes teared up when the soldiers made such a heartfelt gesture.
“But it’s all about the soldiers, it’s not about me,” he said.

Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval is witnessing the somber side of war.In a telephone interview Wednesday from Bagram, Afghanistan, Sandoval said the military base learned a soldier stationed there had...

It is heartening to see the support given to our troops deployed in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, those returning from the war zones, and others stationed in remote parts of the world. The backin...

President Obama's decision to withdraw 33,000 U.S. troops from Afghanistan by next summer is unlikely to be greeted enthusiastically by anyone. Those on the far left and right of the political spec...

CARSON CITY – It started out with two individuals sending “care packages” to the troops deployed in Afghanistan but quickly turned into a concerted effort by employees of the Nevada State Health Division to make life a bit brighter for those serving in Operation Enduring Freedom.
Packages were sent with everything from beef jerky to “slightly used” decks of cards and dice from local casinos to the troops based in Kandahar, Afghanistan. One employee contributed hand knitted helmet liners.

RENO - Republican Ron Paul said Thursday that his criticism of U.S. fiscal policy and opposition to wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are much more popular views today than they were during his unsucces...

If thrillers are your favorite kind of movie, there's a new one in Carson City that more than beats most of the recent examples; it's "Source Code" and is at the Casino Fandango Galaxy multiplex.

Two guest speakers will be featured this month at the second Silver Springs social for families with military members and veterans.

The social will be held on Saturday, Feb. 26 at 11 a.m. at the Silver Springs Senior/Community Center, 2945 Fort Churchill Road in Silver Springs. The gathering is for Silver Springs and Stagecoach families of veterans, enlisted and reserve members, and for reserve, active duty, and veterans. It is open to anyone from Silver Springs and Stagecoach with a family member who is or has been in the military. Children are very welcome!

In case anyone has any doubts about the wisdom of keeping troops in Afghanistan to defend the government of President Hamid Karzai, then you should read about one of his latest conversations with top American officials in that country. Meeting with Gen. David Petraeus and U.S. Ambassador Karl W. Eikenberry, Karzai was less than gracious for the hundreds of billions of American dollars and thousands of American lives that have been lost in this war:

The driver of a truck that crossed a center turn lane, striking a car that killed a 19-year-old Fallon woman on Monday faces a felony charge in the woman's death, the Nevada Highway Patrol reports this morning.

Justin Speed, 21, of Fallon was arrested Wednesday and booked on charges of felony driving under the influence that caused death; felony failure to maintain a travel lane and speeding. He is being held on $251,344 bond and remains in the Churchill County jail, said NHP Trooper Chuck Allen.

By Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Gov. Jim Gibbons has ordered the flag at the state Capitol Building to be flown at half staff today to honor United States Marine Corps Sgt. Frank Zaehringer III.