[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 129 (Wednesday, November 15, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2052]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   PAYING TRIBUTE TO TONI CLARK-FINUF

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JON C. PORTER

                               of nevada

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 15, 2006

  Mr. PORTER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Mrs. Toni Clark-Finuf 
for her dedication to the community of Las Vegas.
  Toni, known throughout town as ``The First Lady of Las Vegas,'' 
helped her late husband, Wilbur Clark, establish the prominent Desert 
Inn Hotel and Casino. The fifth resort on a 2-lane highway, now the Las 
Vegas Strip, with 300 rooms and a 3-story tower opened on April 24, 
1950. On October 23, 2001, Toni watched as her late husband's hotel was 
reduced to rubble in order for the now-popular Wynn Hotel and Casino to 
be erected.
  In 1958, the Fashion Foundation of America named Toni to its 10 Best 
Dressed Women in America. She was among a small group who helped high-
fashion designs from Paris and New York become stock in the forum shops 
of Las Vegas.
  Toni was also a civic leader who spent seven decades sponsoring and 
promoting cultural arts as well as other philanthropic work in Las 
Vegas. Her and her husband donated land to the Catholic Church, now the 
location of the Guardian Angel Cathedral. Toni and Wilbur traveled 
throughout the world as goodwill ambassadors, praising the virtues of 
Las Vegas to various presidents and kings as well as Pope Pius XII. In 
January 2000, Governor Kenny Guinn presented the honor Nevada Ballet 
Theatre's Women of the Year to Toni during the Black and White Ball.
  Seven years ago, Toni was diagnosed with progressive super nuclear 
palsy, a rare neurological disease. Sadly, on October 4, 2006, Toni 
passed away. She was 91.
  Toni contributed a great deal to her community. She will truly be 
missed by everyone she touched. Her service and care helped shape Las 
Vegas into the thriving metropolitan city known today and we thank her 
for all her service.

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