Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

HAROLD ‘HAL’ OBER, 1926-2007

Harold "Hal" Ober came to Las Vegas in 1977 as a homebuilder, but for decades he devoted his time and energies to the needs of children , their education and their environment.

When then-Gov. Richard Bryan appointed Ober to the State Environmental Commission in July 1986, the governor said he recognized how the developer cared about the community. Ober served on the commission for nine years.

"Hal Ober was a homebuilder who recognized the industry's responsibility to offer a quality of life to the residents of Southern Nevada," said Bryan, who went on to become a U.S. senator.

While Bryan was governor, he said , he accompanied Ober and his wife, D'Vorre, to Houston, where they lured the National Home Builders Association convention to Las Vegas.

"What a wonderful guy," Bryan said. "A nice man, a good man, a dear friend, and the community will miss him."

Ober, 81, died Wednesday in Las Vegas.

Born May 6, 1926 , in Pittsburgh, Ober moved to Las Vegas with his wife when he was a division president for U.S. Home Corp.

Ober became president of R.A. Homes in 1980 and was president of Ober Homes, a development company he created in the early 1990s.

He developed nearly 30 communities in Southern Nevada, including the Desert Shores master-planned community in the northwest Las Vegas Valley.

He served as a member and an officer of the board of directors of the Southern Nevada Home Builders Association, becoming president in 1985 and again in 1991.

He also served as a board member of the National Association of Home Builders.

The D'Vorre & Hal Ober Elementary School - "Home of the Ober-Achievers" - was named for the couple because of their dedication to community involvement and to children.

Ober's son, Scott, is principal of the elementary school.

Ober and his wife were particularly devoted to projects that benefit disabled children.

Ober served on the Clark County School District's bond oversight committee to raise funds for two school bond campaigns.

He was co-chairman of the construction committee for the Nevada Association for the Handicapped.

He also served as past chairman of St. Jude's Ranch for Children.

In October 1989 Ober was named the Las Vegas Nate Mack B'nai B'rith Distinguished Man of the Year. He received the award for "exemplary devotion of his time and resources toward enhancing and maintaining the quality of life in Las Vegas."

Ober was a long time member of the Nate Mack Lodge of B'nai B'rith .

He served as a director of Continental National Bank and as president of the Jewish Federation of Las Vegas.

Ober is survived by his wife, D'Vorre ; sons Scott of Las Vegas, David of Las Vegas, Ron of Paradise Valley, Ariz., and Ed of Phoenix; a daughter Jami Gan of Tucson ; and 14 grandchildren.

Funeral services are scheduled for 11 a.m. today at Temple Beth Shalom, 10700 Havenwood Lane, near Town Center Drive and Desert Inn Road.

Palm Mortuary is handling burial arrangements.

The family requests that donations be made in his memory to the Hal Ober College Scholarship Fund, c/o Jewish Family Services Agency, 4794 S. Eastern Ave., Las Vegas, NV 89119, or the Hal Ober Literacy Fund, c/o Ober Elementary School, 3035 Marigold Lane, Las Vegas, NV 89135.

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