Friday, April 19, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.
SUN STAFF REPORTS
Bruce Adams, chairman of the Nevada Mental Health Commission and the founder of a highly successful Las Vegas day treatment center for chronically mentally ill veterans, died Thursday of complications of leukemia. He was 47.
Adams received a bone marrow transplant April 2 from his twin brother, District Judge Brent Adams of Reno. The process went smoothly at UCLA Medical Center, but last week bleeding occurred in his brain and could not be stopped, his brother said.
Adams was born June 3, 1948, in Las Vegas. He graduated from Las Vegas High School in 1966 and received a bachelor's degree in philosophy from UNLV in 1970. He obtained a master's degree in social work from the University of Utah in 1978.
After a stint as a teacher in Belle Fourche, S.D., Adams went to work as a psychiatric social worker for the Veterans Administration in Las Vegas.
In 1994, he opened Arville House, a day treatment program he designed for chronically mentally ill veterans. It was the first such program in the VA system and the first in Nevada. Today, there are more than 300 such programs nationwide.
The program takes mentally ill veterans out of hospitals and gives them household responsibilities and a social environment that encourages self-sufficiency.
Arville House started with 15 members and has grown to 70 members today. During its existence, only two members have required subsequent hospitalization.
Brent Adams said his brother often was frustrated by bureaucracy and programs that wasted taxpayer dollars. "He always believed that direct, meaningful service was the most important thing."
Adams was named chairman of the Nevada Mental Health Commission by Gov. Bob Miller in 1991 and was serving a second term before his death.
He also was past chairman of the Las Vegas Historic Preservation Commission, and played a role in saving the Huntridge Theater.
Adams was healthy at the time he decided to undergo the bone marrow transplant, but he chose the risks involved knowing that he could fall ill, his brother said.
He wanted to save his own life, but he also wanted to save other lives, Brent Adams said. His complications following the procedure provided "very valuable information that will reduce the risk for others," the judge said.
In addition to his brother, Adams is survived by his mother, Nelda S. Adams, and his sister, Marlene Rangel, both of Las Vegas.
Services are pending at St. James the Apostle Catholic Church and Davis Funeral Home in Las Vegas.
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