Extension hanging in there

It didn't occur to me until Thursday morning that budget cuts for the university could affect the Cooperative Extension in Gardnerville.

Dean of Cooperative Extension Karen Hinton said the $1.7 million in cuts won't have too much effect in the field.

"We're trying not to affect people at the local level," she said. "There are some positions around the state that we won't be able to fill."

One spot that they will be filling for western Nevada, including Douglas, is the western area horticulture specialist.

"We're trying to keep other functions going with soft funding," she said. "Our funding is from county, state and federal sources. It's the state piece where we've had reductions."

Bill Broquist sent me a letter Sertoma received from a Carson City woman who wanted to thank the club for covering the cost of her hearing aids.

The mother of six said the club covered the cost of her hearing aids about a month ago.

"I have lived with hearing loss my entire life, and when three of my children needed hearing aids, the doctor pressed me as to why I myself didn't have hearing aids, I tried to brush her off, and laugh it off, even convince her I didn't need them, since I had lived with this all my life anyways," she said. "Of course, the truth was that I could not afford them. She figured that out for herself and suggested to try the Sertoma club."

Within a few weeks, the doctor had her hearing aids, paid for by Sertoma.

The full letter is going into the Sertoma newsletter.

Former Nevada Magazine Publisher Rich Moreno will be at Borders 1-3 p.m. Saturday to sign his new book, "Nevada Curiosities." Rich hired Joyce Hollister from The Record-Courier and was briefly my boss while I was toying with the idea of a state job.

He's also the author of "The Backyard Traveler" and "The Backyard Traveler Returns."