Las Vegas Has Your Back

I've been here since 2001, but I'm originally from the northwest suburbs of Chicago.

Family. My whole family ended up moving out west, so we followed. But I've been visiting Vegas since the 1980s. Back then we were practically the only kids on the plane. One of my uncles moved out here and opened the Sands, and later he was a pit boss at Treasure Island. Vegas has always been part of our lives.

I married my husband here in 2007. Fun fact, that same year we were on an NBC show called The Real Wedding Crashers, produced by Ashton Kutcher and the team behind Punk'd. It was a wild experience. We have two kids. My oldest is 22, and my youngest just graduated from high school.

My oldest son joined the Air Force about two and a half years ago. He's my firstborn, so him leaving home was a big change. My daughter was starting her last year of high school, and I wanted something meaningful to keep me busy. Another local mom posted in an Air Force group looking to meet other Air Force moms in Las Vegas for coffee, so I reached out.

We got together and realized there was a real need to support active military families. She has kids serving in different branches. When your kids are deployed or stationed far away, you can't always talk to them, and that's a lot of stress on families, especially moms. So we started Las Vegas Military Moms. It started small, but it's growing every day.

We made it a safe, private place for mothers to vent, share, and find comfort. When a service member deploys, there's strict operational security. You can't talk about it, you don't know where they are, and you don't know when they're coming home. You can't share that with just anyone. But another military mom understands. We're there to listen, whether it's coffee or just reaching out to someone who's feeling lonely.

Right. The core group is private, just for the mothers. But so many other people wanted to give back. Dads, aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters, neighbors. We don't want anyone left out, so we started a volunteer page. If you're not a military mom, we'd still love for you to join it. That's where we post upcoming events and donation drives, and we want to hear everyone's ideas on how to look after our troops.

Our goal this summer is to use that volunteer network to put together snack and hygiene bags. We're working with a contact at Nellis Air Force Base, and they told us a lot of the airmen coming into town are very young and away from home for the first time. We want to hand them a little bag that says, welcome to our city, we appreciate you, and we've got your back.

We were invited to speak at a Disabled American Veterans meeting. Our kids aren't veterans yet, but hearing their stories really hit us. Hearing about their struggles with healthcare, or how lonely some of them are in care homes, puts everything in perspective. It reminds you what these men and women gave up for our country.

There are great veteran organizations out there, but very few groups focus on active-duty people here at home, because sending things overseas is so restricted. Our focus is Nellis, letting those airmen know Las Vegas is behind them.

People think I'm crazy, but I love the weather. I was born and raised in Chicago, and I'm done with snow and sub-zero temperatures. My favorite time of year is our long spring starting around March. I drive a Jeep Wrangler, so the top comes off for months. If my husband and daughter didn't complain about riding around in 110 degrees, I'd leave it off all summer.

I wish we had more community events. In the Midwest, every summer weekend had festivals, concerts, and big farmers markets that were free. Vegas tries, but a lot of things here come with a big ticket price. I was PTA president at an elementary school for two years, and finding affordable family activities was always our biggest challenge.

So many families here work odd hours in hospitality and the casinos, or avoid the summer sun, so schedules are all over the place. Summerlin does a great music in the park series, but only in June. We have beautiful weather most of the year. We should be celebrating all year long.

You might laugh, but it's Pancho's in Downtown Summerlin. My husband and I go all the time. The service is great, the food is consistent, and the drinks are fantastic. I'm Italian and my husband is Greek, so we cook big meals at home all the time. When we go out I keep it simple. A carne asada quesadilla at Pancho's makes me happy.

You can't miss me. Bright neon green Jeep Wrangler, top off, aviator sunglasses, an Air Force Mom hat, and I'm probably wearing navy blue. My whole wardrobe has turned navy blue over the last two years to support my son, with a little glitter and sparkle to keep it fun.

Message me on my personal Facebook. Anyone who wants to connect or help out is welcome to reach out.