Posted by
M. E. Ward on Monday, August 31, 2009 1:09:29 PM
Ironically, another great man was laid to rest on Saturday, without all the mainstream media love fest and fanfare. Frank Fertitta Jr., a Texas native, arrived in Las Vegas in 1960 with $100 loan from a friend and knowing only two people: an aunt and an uncle. He left this world as an executive at Station Casinos, with 18 Station properties across the Las Vegas Valley displaying messages honoring his life.
His rise from bellman to executive is an inspirational story, but the real story is how he lived his life, how many lives he touched and his belief that “to whom much is given, much is expected.”
Unlike the trust-fund baby Ted Kennedy, who rode his family’s coattails into infamy and used other people’s money to redistribute wealth, Mr. Fertitta Jr. made his own money and used his own money to participate in charitable endeavors like the Bishop Gorman High School Development Corporation and served on the Foundation Board of St. Jude's Ranch for Children.
His son, Frank Fertitta III, said at the funeral, “It’s amazing to see so many people here 49 years later and how many lives he touched.”
In the era of victimization and the word "charity" defined as being generous with someone else’s money, men like Frank Fertitta Jr. are a dying breed. I’m sure he will be greatly missed by all those he touched, but his legacy will live on.
Hopefully, Ted Kennedy’s legacy of being a spoiled rotten brat who rose to become a bully and tyrant in the United States Senate died along with him.