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Holiday loneliness affects thousands in Nevada as many face Christmas away from loved ones

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Holiday loneliness affects thousands in Nevada as many face Christmas away from loved ones


LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Loneliness has become a significant health issue for people everywhere, and the holiday season sometimes intensifies those feelings. For many, December looks like family gatherings, matching pajamas and bustling homes. But this time of year can also be very difficult for those who may be battling distance, work commitments or recent life changes.

Marc Valli, an Army veteran who served in Vietnam, has lived in Las Vegas since 1988. He moved to Nevada to join a ministry and be closer to his wife’s parents.

WATCH| Shellye Leggett talks to an army vet who’s recently moved into Escalante at the Lakes assisted living facility

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Holiday loneliness affects thousands in Nevada as many face Christmas away from loved ones

“I wanted to come and join ministry here. Also my wife’s parents lived here,” Valli said.

Valli’s wife Barbara, known to friends and family as Bobby, passed away in 2018 after 54 years of marriage.

“I’m still counting the years. We’ve been married 54 years,” he said.

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His children moved him into Escalante at the Lakes assisted living facility in June, making this his first holiday season in his new home.

“People are very nice, they treat you good,” Valli said.

Come Christmas Day, the facility’s common room will be filled with residents ready for holiday activities, but Valli hopes to get outside these walls to see his family that still lives nearby.

“I have grandkids. One goes to Cal Poly. He’s here right now, but he’s on vacation, and then I have two little granddaughters, one’s 11, one’s 7,” Valli said. “I don’t know if they’re gonna come for Christmas or I’m going there.”

Gus Farias, the executive director of Escalante at the Lakes Assisted Living, says many of his residents don’t have family nearby. Keeping their spirits high throughout the holidays is an important task.

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“We can tell when our residents are feeling down. There’s a lot of pressure during the holidays because some of our residents don’t have families that are nearby, but they have us,” Farias said.

The organisation A Mission for Michael released a study showing just how many people are expected to spend the holidays alone this year. Nevada ranked 43rd on the list of loneliest states, with more than 212,000 people expected to spend Christmas by themselves.

“It’s pretty surprising that there’s so many Nevadans that are gonna spend the holidays by themselves,” Farias said.

He says combating loneliness will take a community effort.

“When you’re at the grocery store or whatever, reach, look back and ask them, you know, wish them a merry Christmas or happy holidays and ask them how they passed their holidays in the past because we, we as a younger generation than our seniors, we can learn a lot from that,” Farias said.

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It’s an effort that Valli says makes the holidays a little brighter.

“Oh, it makes a big difference,” he said.





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Oregon lands commitment from Nevada punter

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Oregon lands commitment from Nevada punter


Oregon has found its next Australian punter.

Bailey Ettridge, who averaged 44.66 yards on 47 punts at Nevada this season, committed to transfer to the Ducks on Sunday. He has three seasons of eligibility remaining.

From Lara, Australia, Ettridge had 15 punts over 50 yards and 18 inside opponents’ 20-yard lines this season. He also had two carries for 26 yards, both of which converted fourth downs.

Ettridge replaces James Ferguson-Reynolds, who is averaging 41.64 yards on 33 punts for UO this season. Ferguson-Reynolds and Ross James are both out of eligibility after the season.

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Ettridge is the first scholarship transfer to Oregon this offseason and his addition gives the Ducks 81 projected scholarship players in 2026. He is the lone punter presently on the roster.



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‘Winnemucca Day’ helps fuel Backus, Wolf Pack to 58-40 win over Utah State

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‘Winnemucca Day’ helps fuel Backus, Wolf Pack to 58-40 win over Utah State


RENO, Nev. (Nevada Athletics) – Nevada Women’s Basketball returned to Lawlor for the first game of 2026, hosting Utah State.

The Pack picked up its first conference win of the season with the 58-40 victory over the Aggies.

Freshmen showed out for the Pack (5-9, 1-3 MW) with Skylar Durley nearly recording a double-double, dropping 12 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Britain Backus had five points to go along with two rebounds and a season high four steals.

Junior Izzy Sullivan also had an impactful game with 17 points, going 6-for-11 from the paint and grabbing five boards. She also knocked down Nevada’s only two makes from beyond the arc, putting her within one for 100 career threes.

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The Pack opened up scoring the first four points, setting the tone for the game. It was a close battle through the first 10 as Utah State (6-7, 2-2 MW) closed the gap to one.

However, Nevada never let them in front for the entire 40 minutes.

Nevada turned up the pressure in the second quarter, holding Utah State to a shooting drought for over four minutes. Meanwhile, a 5-0 scoring run pushed the Pack to a 10-point lead.

For the entire first 20, Nevada held Utah State to just 26.7 percent from the floor and only nine percent from the arc, going only 1-for-11.

For the Pack offense, it shot 48 percent from the paint. Nevada fell into a slump coming out of the break, only scoring eight points.

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It was the only quarter where the Pack was outscored.

The fourth quarter saw the Pack get back into rhythm with a 6-0 run and forcing the Aggies into another long scoring drought of just under four and a half minutes.

Durley had a layup and jumper to help with securing the win.

Nevada will remain at home to face Wyoming on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.

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EDITORIAL: Nevada’s House Democrats oppose permitting reform

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EDITORIAL: Nevada’s House Democrats oppose permitting reform


Politicians of both parties have promised to fix the nation’s broken permitting system. But those promises have not been kept, and the status quo prevails: longer timelines, higher costs and a regulatory maze that makes it nearly impossible to build major projects on schedule.

Last week, the House finally cut through the fog by passing the Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development Act. As Jeff Luse reported for Reason, the legislation is the clearest chance in years to overhaul a system that has spun out of control.

Notably, virtually every House Democrat — including Reps. Dina Titus, Susie Lee and Steven Horsford from Nevada — opted for the current regulatory morass.

The proposal addressed problems with the National Environmental Policy Act, which passed in the 1970s to promote transparency, but has grown into an anchor that drags down public and private investment. Mr. Luse notes that even after Congress streamlined the act in 2021, the average environmental impact statement takes 2.4 years to complete. That number speaks for itself and does not reflect the many reviews that stretch far beyond that already unreasonable timeline.

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The SPEED Act tackles these failures head on. It would codify recent Supreme Court guidance, expand the projects that do not require exhaustive review and set real expectations for federal agencies that too often slow-walk approvals. Most important, it puts long-overdue limits on litigation. Mr. Luse highlights the absurdity of the current six-year window for filing a lawsuit under the Environmental Policy Act. Between 2013 and 2022, these lawsuits delayed projects an average of 4.2 years.

While opponents insist the bill would silence communities, Mr. Luse notes that NEPA already includes multiple public hearings and comment periods. Also, the vast majority of lawsuits are not filed by members of the people who live near the projects. According to the Breakthrough Institute, 72 percent of NEPA lawsuits over the past decade came from national nonprofits. Only 16 percent were filed by local communities. The SPEED Act does not shut out the public. It reins in well-funded groups that can afford to stall projects indefinitely.

Some Democrats claim the bill panders to fossil fuel companies, while some Republicans fear it will accelerate renewable projects. As Mr. Luse explains, NEPA bottlenecks have held back wind, solar and transmission lines as often as they have slowed oil and gas. That is why the original SPEED Act won support from green energy groups and traditional energy producers.

Permitting reform is overdue, and lawmakers claim to understand that endless red tape hurts economic growth and environmental progress alike. The SPEED Act is the strongest permitting reform proposal in years. The Senate should approve it.

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