State’s first female federal probation officer will be honored Thursday
Everyone likes to talk about how busy they are, but few can compare with Helen Holly.
Working full time while raising 10 children, she earned a bachelor of arts in psychology in 1971.
She then began her second career as the first female federal probation officer in Nevada in 1974 at the age of 51. Her assignment: supervise the probation of drug dealers.
She earned her master's degree in counseling in 1980. During that time she was practically a single mom because her husband, George, was working full time at the Nevada Test Site, only home three nights a week.
When Nevada's Chief U.S. Probation Officer Christopher Hansen said Helen was being honored on Thursday, I remembered the motherly redhead who was always so pleasant and kind when I was a young federal court reporter. I wasn't the only one.
Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman spotted her at a previous event, hugged her and said, "I'll never forget how good you were to me when I was a young lawyer."
Funny how we always remember the people who were good to us when we were young nobodies, the ones like Helen who are genuinely helpful to young reporters, young attorneys and even young drug dealers.
Helen is 86 now, and on Thursday at 9 a.m. at the Lloyd George Federal Building in Courtroom 6B, she'll be recognized for her place in Nevada's history at an event open to the public.
Hansen explained in an e-mail why he initiated honoring Helen.
"We live in a disposable society that rarely values its history. I did not want to see that happen with Helen. I wanted my officers and the public to see what a trailblazer Helen was, how she juggled her everyday family responsibilities with those of the job. She made a positive impact on her clients and coworkers. Not too many people can actually say they changed a life, I believe Helen has changed many."
Hansen said 43 percent of the officers in the Nevada office are female today. "It could not have been possible without Helen taking on a male-dominated profession and setting the bar high for those who followed."
Helen was born in New York and married George during World War II. He was in the Navy and when he retired, they came to Las Vegas in 1960. She was a nurse, who worked nights so she could care for her children in the day. In 1965, she went to work at the Las Vegas Police Department as a "jail matron." She had an interest in drug and alcohol addiction and was hired as a federal probation officer in January 1974, working there for 13 years.
She chose not to carry a gun, but she said the drug dealers treated her respectfully because she was nonjudgmental. Only one made her feel as if he would like to hurt her.
Making a difference with drug dealers was a challenge because of the high rate of recidivism with those who abuse drugs and alcohol. She can't claim a huge success rate. "If you can help 5 percent who are on alcohol and drugs, you're doing great," she said.
At that time, probation focused on counseling, so she decided to get her master's in counseling at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. "I never got more than four hours sleep a night." She was up at 5 a.m. to study, at work by 8 a.m. then to UNLV until 9:30 p.m. The older children cared for the younger ones.
She certainly set an example for work ethic and her kids got the message. Her oldest son, George, was killed in Vietnam. Another son is a North Las Vegas police officer, a daughter is a doctor, another was the first woman pit boss and first assistant casino manager at the Las Vegas Hilton. Three are in real estate, two are in education, and one's an office manager. Four served in the military, she said proudly.
None of her 10 children had any problems with drugs or alcohol. And how many families can say that?
Honoring Helen Holly sounds like a movie title. Come to think of it, her story inspires, and is far more admirable than the tabloid trash of Octomom.
Norm Clarke can be reached at (702) 383-0244 or norm@reviewjournal.com. Find additional sightings and more online at www.normclarke.com.