Ardell Galbreth’s legacy of employing Southern Nevadans will live on

Ardell Galbreth made employing Southern Nevadans his life’s work.

The 67-year-old executive director of Workforce Connections died from an extended illness on Friday, but his impact on residents of Clark, Lincoln, Esmeralda and Nye counties will continue to grow.

That’s because Workforce Connections will expand its One-Stop Career Center from a single location to more than dozen during the next 18 months, director of business engagement and communication Kenadie Cobbin-Richardson said.

Galbreth, who had led the agency since September 2012, opened the first of the career centers in 2013. He also spearheaded the expansion.

“He was truly a great man with a clear vision on how to empower job seekers to gain the skills and qualifications needed for a lasting career,” Cobbin-Richardson said. “He made a tremendous impact on thousands of Southern Nevadans.”

Workforce Connections’ consortium of local elected officials are expected to meet next week to pick an interim executive director, Cobbin-Richardson said.

Consortium chairman Lawrence Weekly remembered Galbreth as a leader who could navigate federal funds to local service providers so that they could aid Southern Nevada’s communities.

“He covered the gamut to help ensure that dislocated workers and the underserved youth community would have resources to help individuals get adequate job training and get back to work,” Weekly said. “He gave them resources to help them get into a position to help themselves.”

Prior to joining Workforce Connections, Galbreth served in the U.S. Air Force for 28 years before retiring as a chief master sergeant. For five years he was deputy director for Nevada’s Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation.

A public funeral will be held at Unity Baptist Church in Las Vegas at 9 a.m. May 30.

Contact Michael Scott Davidson at sdavidson@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3861. Follow @davidsonlvrj on Twitter.