Four authors will speak on successive Wednesdays at 6 p.m. at the Churchill County Museum. Copies of their books will also be on sale.
The May 11 speaker is Michael G. Leonard, a retired U.S. Air Force officer and highly experienced global business executive. He was a USAF Command Pilot with a military career spanning 20 years, including two Vietnam tours in 1965–1966, and 1969–1970.
His “An American Combat Bird Dog Pilot” is a compelling look at the life and times of a member of the Silent Generation. Leonard’s story chronicles not only his breathtaking combat adventures, but the unforeseen perils that nearly sidetracked him during his time as an international sales executive.
Daniel Quinley, who speaks on May 18, learned much about his father as a child from rummaging through containers looking at medals and letters written during the war from his father to his beloved, Margaret. He said his father never wanted to talk about the war.
In his adult life, Dan Quinley took the letters and wrote a book that came out in 2014 — “Forever: A true story of love and war” — which revealed a love affair that began with a blind date in 1936, continued through World War II and into their later years to Fallon.
Steve Ranson, the coordinator of the project, “Legacies of the Silver State: Nevada Goes to War,” has had a longtime interest in World War II veterans. He will wrap up the lecture series on May 25.
Ranson retired as editor/general manager of the Lahontan Valley News in 2017.
Legacies contains more than 70 stories on World War II veterans who have some type of Nevada tie. Ranson, Beaton and former LVN owner David C. Henley have interviewed scores of World War II veterans and learned more about them and how they helped the war effort.
