Year in review: highlights from southwest Las Vegas

2011 was full of outstanding individuals and organizations in the southwest and Spring Valley areas of town. View caught up with them to see what's ahead for the new year.

Staying strong

A 25-year-old battling cancer is undergoing treatment in Salt Lake City. Meagan Brammer was diagnosed with cancer in her left leg shortly after graduation from high school in 2004.

Brammer's family raised more than $11,000 at a carnival in October at the Local 1908 of the International Association of Firefighters. The money is helping to support her trips to Utah.

"She's going through chemotherapy now," said Michael Lawrence, her future brother-in-law. "She's been sick and not feeling well."

Lawrence said Brammer seems to be in good spirits, though, anticipating her wedding in April. Brammer, an Overton native, is engaged to Lawrence's brother, Joseph.

Donations can be made at meaganspage.com.

Playing ball

The Challenger Little League of Southern Nevada finished its 20th season this summer. The league gives youngsters with disabilities a chance to play baseball. The league serves kids ages 5 to 18 who have physical or intellectual disabilities.

Tim Taycher, a Spring Valley resident, started the league in 1991 with four teams and 40 kids. The league had seven teams and 110 participants in 2011. The International Little League awarded Taycher the 2011 Challenger Little League Award in August at the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa.

Parents can register their kids for the 21st season beginning in January. The season runs from March through June.

For more information visit challenger-little-league-of-southern-nevada.org.

Looking ahead

A 48-year-old insurance agent and southwest resident was expected to represent the United States in September in the 2011 World Sprint Triathlon Championships in Beijing. Although he qualified, Bruce Balch withdrew a month before the competition because of complications getting clearance with his medications.

Balch survived testicular cancer at age 24 and was diagnosed with Type One adult onset diabetes four years ago.

He is training for 10 triathlons in 2012 and will try again to qualify for the WSTC in New Zealand. In a typical week, Balch said he cycles more than 200 miles, runs about 20 and swims more than 5,000 meters.

He plans to compete in the RAGE Triathlon in April at Lake Mead. He also plans to participate in the Las Vegas Tour de Cure April 14 in Henderson.

For the Kids

The Southern Highlands Boys & Girls Club opened its doors in July. The 28,000-square-foot club is the largest of the five Boys & Girls Clubs of Henderson.

The club offers kids leagues in soccer, volleyball and basketball. The facility also has a game room, an arts and crafts facility, computer labs and on-site tutoring services from Andson Academics.

The club is open from 3 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Clark County also broke ground on a new 36-acre park at the northwest corner of Tropicana Avenue and Decatur Boulevard. Construction of the Charlie Frias Park is about halfway complete, a county official said, and is expected to open in May or June.

It will have two playgrounds, picnic pavilions, walking paths, a horseshoe area, dog park and four multi-use playing fields. The main areas will be on the northeast and southeast corners of the park, allowing for a flood control detention basin in the middle.

For the Kids at Heart

If you're single, 55 or older and looking to travel, try the Singles Travel and Social Club. The club's more than 40 members travel around the world in groups large and small.

They meet every fourth Tuesday at the Tap House, 5589 W. Charleston Blvd. Some, like Spring Valley resident Beverly Lodge, prefer backpacking for weeks at a time. Lodge has been to every continent but Antarctica. Others prefer luxurious cruises or traditional destination vacations.

The club does not set an itinerary, and members are free to choose their own travel buddies and destinations.

Rollergirls in full swing

The Sin City Rollergirls started their sixth season in September with four local home teams and an all-star traveling team. The All-Stars begin national competition in February.

The newest addition to the Rollergirls is a junior league for girls 7 to 17, coached by southwest resident Melanie Long, aka Stardust Dunes. Applications to join the junior and adult leagues can be found at sincityrollergirls.com. The next new member orientation is scheduled in January.

City on a Hill

Rural residents in Blue Diamond came out strong this year to oppose the construction of a town on top of Blue Diamond Hill. Developer Jim Rhodes is seeking county approval to build more than 7,000 homes on the mesa in Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area.

County Commissioner Susan Brager has verbally opposed Rhodes' request for waivers on development restrictions for the land at community meetings. The county commission has scheduled a hearing and vote on Jan. 18.

For more information, visit saveredrock.com.

Contact View education reporter Jeff Mosier at jmosier@viewnews.com or 224-5524.