Our grand marshals for the 2001 Nevada Day Parade are all past members of the old committee except Bill Dolan who was still on the current Nevada Day, Inc. Board of Directors. Jean's husband, Ed, was on the committee and was parade chair and general chair for many years.
Ed Blanchard
Ed Blanchard, was born in Reno and came to the Nevada Day Parade every year as a kid. In those days, there were less than 100 parade entries. Everyone went to the big football game between Reno High and Carson High after the parade. It was always played at the old Carson High School, which is now Bordewich School.
Ed has been on the Nevada Day Committee serving in one capacity or another for so many years he is a regular in Bill Dolan’s “Pages from the Past” Column in the Appeal. He began working with the committee 26 years ago, starting as a judge. Ed became a Director in 1980 and was appointed Assistant Parade Chairman shortly after. He held the position of General Chairman for 9 years until retiring in January 1999.
Ed received the Honorary Life-Membership in January of 2001 by the Nevada Day Inc. Board of Directors.
Bill Dolan
Bill Dolan, Publicity Director for fifty years of the Nevada Day Committee, lists his greatest accomplishments as providing an expanded Nevada Day Publicity program and press release kit for some forty years.
Bill was born prematurely, two pounds at Ely, a second generation Nevadan. My Irish Grandfather arrived in 1868. As a rural Nevadan he worked the hayfields in summer, starting in the 7th grade, and lived with relatives in the winter. There were no rural high schools. Due to the depression Bill lived in places from Hobart Hills, California to Virginia City, Nevada and attended the 4th Ward School there.
Bill graduated from the University of Nevada in Journalism in 1950, continued the history column, "Pages from the Past," in conjunction with the Nevada State Library Carson Appeal History Program as part of his Appeal internship. This was allied to the Nevada Day Parade, which he started with in 1947, and became a Director in the 1950's. The Nevada Day Parade was and is a community and state institution, and Bill taught his daughter Sue Ballew, reading, as he taught a one-room school at Cherry Creek, after he had graduated from the University of Nevada
Sue and Bill's
son, Trent, became Nevada Day Directors. Sue was a major factor in the
near impossible publication of the Nevada Day Program. It became a
necessity to
provide a program that reached all of the state and the major media.
That was done over a probably 30-year period at copy set cost, by
integrating Bill's project of a Carson City Appeal Nevada Day tabloid, done all
by the family, with Appeal cooperation. This concept was expanded to
include the Nevada Day Program sales on Nevada Day, Press kit, with Nevada Day
button, and mailing by bulk rate, which was arranged by Bill's wife, Dorothy,
doing the post office messages. Then it was sent off to the major media on
the West Coast, all state and national officials and local tourism boards.
Joe Foster
Joe E. Foster, Senior, was born in Texas, received his bachelor of Music from Texas Wesleyan College, Fort Worth and Master of Music Education from North Texas State University, Denton, Texas. Teaching in Texas for eight years, Joe then moved to Tracy, California and taught at Tracy High School for 22 years. During that time he did further graduate study at the University of Pacific, Stockton, California and the University of Nevada, Reno. He taught at the Lake Tahoe Music Camp for UNR for 12 years and many of his students attended UNR on music scholarships and are still working and teaching in Nevada.
Joe became associated with the Nevada Day Committee in October 1985 as an adjudicator for the bands. Afterwards, being asked to become a member of the committee, he served primarily as coordinator of all school groups, bands, majorettes, twirlers, drill teams, pep clubs, Military units, ROTC and Adult Honor Guards, Color Guards and marching units non-school.
His lovely wife Donna, a son Joe Jr. and a daughter Daneen support Joe. After 46 years in music education and public schools, he is still an active adjudicator and clinician of bands.
Mike Shaughnessy
Mike Shaughnessy, a native Nevadan, has lived in Carson City since 1937. His parents, Jack and Stella, were very involved with the Nevada Day Celebration (then called Admission Day) early on in the event. Mike was entered in the first parade in 1938 as a "Little Daniel Boone." In later years Mike's dad entered him as various characters such as Mark Twain, Robert E. Lee, a prospector with a burro, and a miner with an ore car, just to name a few. Later Mike marched with the Carson High School Band and participated with the Active 20-30 Club. He has also participated with the Carson City Host Lions Club.
Mike joined the Nevada Day Committee in the late 60s and eventually became Parade Chairman for about four years. He was then selected to be the General Chairman, a position he held for 16 years. The Shaughnessy family was very active in the celebration for many years. His wife Dawna, daughters Kim, Marion, and Shannon, and sons David and Patrick, all participated in some way to support the committee and the event.
When Mike retired from the committee has was named Chairman Emeritus and was subsequently named a Member for Life of the Nevada Day Committee. Mike and his family are still avid supporters of the celebration of our great state's admission to the union.
Jean Stokke
Jean Stokke, a native of Montana, attended the University of Denver in Colorado where she met Ed Stokke, a native of Carson City. They were married in Denver and moved to Carson City in 1959. Jean began as a volunteer to the Nevada Day committee alongside her late husband Ed, who was parade chairman and general chairman for many years. She also served as secretary to the committee for six years. Jean has one son, Darrell, a former volunteer with the committee, daughter-in-law Wendy and two grandchildren, Bryan, 6 years and Kara, 3 years. Darrell is in the Army National Guard stationed in Arlington, Virginia. Retired from the Carson City Area Chamber of Commerce, Jean is active in Soroptimist International of Carson City, is a member of Chapter X, P.E.O. Sisterhood and St. Paul’s Lutheran Family, and is immediate past president of Leadership Alumni Association of Carson City and Douglas County. Jean's hobbies include hiking, traveling, bowling and gardening.