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2010/05/07 - Reno, NV, Estatu Batuak

Nazioartean Euskal Ikasketen arloan ia aitapontekotzat har daitekeen William 'Bill' A. Douglass antropologo estatubatuarraren ama hil da Estatu Batuetan, Nevadako Renon, 98 urte zituela. Hau da Reno Gazette eta bertako egunkarietan, eta Legacy.com atarian argitaratua izan den oroitzapen idazkia. Goian Bego Barbara Josephine Douglass. Doluminak Bill, familia eta adiskideei.

Some still remember, and others of us simply trust in the memory of, a time when Reno really was the "Biggest Little City," a time when Caughlin Ranch really was a ranch and Plumb Lane was the end of town. An entire generation of men and women has been passing away, some with much fanfare, others quietly, and with their passing a time of old families and old Nevada ways has given way to new ones, new traditions. Those old Nevadans who lived during those times and shaped our immediate present and perhaps our collective future are few among us anymore, and indeed as of May 7th, at the age of 98, one more of the Grand Dames of Reno's past passed away.

Barbara Josephine Douglass, daughter of Grace and William French, was born in Roanoke, Virginia, January 14, 1912, although she spent much of her adolescence in Los Angeles, California. She is preceded in death by her parents, her sister, Augusta, and her husband, Jack. Once she relocated to Reno, Barbara Jo met her husband, Jack Raymond Douglass originally of Tonopah, Nevada. They were married on November 10, 1936, and began a journey that would last 65 years. Together they raised four sons: William (Julie), John (Carol), David (Jeanie), and Daniel. She had twelve grandchildren: John William (Shauna), Ana (Steve), Mathew (Catherine), Stacey (Steve), Amy (Eric), Jack Daniel, Benjamin, Katya, Deanna, Anthony, Michael, and Sam. She also had seven great-grandchildren: Joseph, Kelly, Josie, Lauren, Elyse, Montgomery, and Marshall. She is also survived by many nieces and nephews.

Just as importantly, Barbara Jo leaves behind a number of dear friends and the children of dear friends who up until the end would meet her for lunch or bring coffee and discuss the state of global politics or the latest book to make the New York Times Bestseller List. Barbara Jo was famous for "doing lunch," and could often be found in local eateries holding court with the other Grand Dames, doing their monthly first Wednesday Girls' luncheon or discussing the latest plans for the Women's Twentieth Century Club, for which she served as president at one point in her life. While most of her friends have preceded her in death, it was amazing how many individuals were a part of her life and kept her social calendar full and meaningful even in the last weeks of her life. The family particularly wants to acknowledge the special friendship and relationship Barbara Jo had with her caregivers, Charlene and Mett Gilbert, two exceptional women who lived with her and cared for her needs for almost nine years, and of whom she often said were like her daughters.

The book has yet to be written about the women behind the men who started the casino business in Reno. It is an oversight of local history, and one that that generation of women trusts more recent generations of women won't forget. But when someone writes that book, it will be full of stories of glamour and visiting celebrities, boom and bust times, galas and glitz, love and hardships, men and women to be trusted and those with whom to do business and nothing else, but above all it would be about the friendships and the sense of community and the old fashioned value that one took care of one's neighbor as a matter of course. Barbara Jo's stories of those days were priceless. She would tell of the plays she and others put on at the Hidden Valley Country Club and for the Reno Little Theater. She spoke with some pride about her local radio show. She would talk of Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr., and other visiting dignitaries who used to make the rounds of Reno's showrooms once upon a time. And she would tell of the miracle of snow falling the night before the start of the Squaw Valley Olympics and of crossing the Bay Bridge the day it opened. Barbara Jo traveled far and wide and made friends wherever she went. For decades, she and Jack had a house in Kihei, Maui, and counted among their dearest friends a number of families from the islands.

And so, another light goes dim on Reno's strip. Barbara Jo was one fabulous, irreplaceable lady, and we are left to ponder what it means to walk in her footsteps. In her final days, Barbara Jo expressed great concern for the economic downturn in our community. She was heard to say that she had lived through the Great Depression and that she could not stand to see people suffer again in the same ways. Therefore, in lieu of flowers, the family would ask that donations be made to one of Barbara Jo's favorite charities, the Food Bank of Northern Nevada (550 Italy Drive, McCarren, Nevada 89434). In accordance with her wishes, there will be no service.