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Edi Silverman
- Forever a mentor -
- Teacher -
- An Inspiration -
- Leader who has made her mark on this community -
- Founder & Participant in the local League of Women Voters, the Literacy Council, the Volunteer Action Center, and the American Association of University Women. -
- And at 95 years young she continues to encourage all of us to be a useful part of this world we live in. -
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Mary Tucker
The Nevada County Board of Supervisors honored Mary Tucker for her volunteer work in a ceremony Tuesday. Tucker was instrumental in bringing the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program to Nevada County in 1984. Volunteering “ is just so much fun,” Tucker said. “I worked as a social worker, and the rules were terrible,” Tucker recalled. “ You want to do something, but you can’t, because the law won’t let you. So what do you do? You change the law.”
In college, she learned “there are two sources of power: Through money and through numbers. If you get people together, you can make change,” Tucker said. Her work with seniors stems from a desire to fill gaps in the services that already exist, she said. RSVP matches those who are seeking a volunteer experience with organizations that need volunteers. Started in 1984, RSVP now has about 650 volunteers placed in local nonprofits, at Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital, and county government agencies.
Tucker serves on the RSVP Advisory Council, the Area 4 Agency on Aging Governing Board (which helped establish RSVP), the Nevada County Long Term Care Implementation Council, the Nevada County Adult and Family Services Commission, the Nevada–Sierra Regional Public Authority Governing Board, the Mental Health Services Act Implementation Committee and the Falls Prevention Coalition of Nevada County. (From The Union, 3/30/2009)
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Laura Carr Keranen-Gallagher, loved and remembered by so many, died unexpectedly Dec. 28.
A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Monday, Feb. 15, at the Miners Foundry Cultural Center, Nevada City.
She was born on May 29, 1937, in Cleveland to John N. Carr (formerly Vaccariello) and Catherine Carlozzi Carr.
She was raised in East Cleveland and had a large, extended Italian-American family. Both sets of her grandparents were born in southern Italy.
Ms. Keranen attended public schools in East Cleveland and graduated from Case-Western Reserve University, majoring in journalism. She went to work for the Cleveland Press as a reporter.
Several years later, she moved to California, where she attended the University of California, Berkeley, and graduated with a master's degree in public health.
Ms. Keranen received many national awards in her field as a public health educator. She worked with the American Cancer Society, California division, and taught at the Graduate School of Public Health at UC Berkeley.
She was a consultant and lecturer and worked for a number of agencies in the Bay Area. Her last position was director of health education for Kaiser Permanente, Northern California, while she continued to teach classes at UC Berkeley.
While living and working in San Francisco, Ms. Keranen and husband Desmond Knox Gallagher also maintained a home in Nevada City. She moved to Nevada City permanently upon retirement in 1998.
Ms. Keranen had many passions including music, theater, opera, visual arts, history, literature and cooking.
She served on the board of directors of Music in the Mountains and the FREED Center for Independent Living. She was active in many other local groups including the Celtic Society, Empire Club, League of Women Voters and Causerie Club, among others.
Ms. Keranen is survived by her husband of 30 years, Desmond Knox Gallagher; brother David Carr and wife Leslie of Ferndale; niece Laura (Dan) Adams; nephew Justin Carr and fiancee Margot Wilhelm, all of Windsor; stepson Greg Keranen (son of the late Dr. George M. Keranen), his wife Vicky Grisham and their children, Katy and Laurel, of Santa Cruz; cousin Michael Vaccariello; and many other cousins throughout the United States.
Memorial contributions may be made in Ms. Keranen's name to Music in the Mountains' educational fund, or FREED Center for Independent Living, or the charity of one's choice.
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