Sunrise Auxiliary founder Lahr dies

Becky Lahr devoted more than 30,000 hours of volunteer service to projects of the Sunrise Hospital Auxiliary that she co-founded 38 years ago.

Along with serving as the organization's longtime treasurer and the buyer for the hospital's gift shop, she volunteered to work as the shop's clerk several days a week dating back to when Sunrise opened more than 40 years ago.

On Dec. 6, while reaching for an item on a shelf at the shop, Lahr collapsed -- the victim of a heart ailment. She underwent open heart surgery at Sunrise Hospital, which her late husband, banker Harry Lahr, helped finance and build.

Rebecca Isabelle Gwin Lahr, a longtime Las Vegas socialite who was recognized by the state government and Congress for her work as a volunteer, died last Thursday at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center while recovering from what had been a successful operation. She was 89.

Services for Lahr, who lived in Las Vegas 42 years, were last Saturday at Palm Mortuary Downtown. Burial was in Palm Memorial Park.

"She died (as a result of) doing something she loved," said Bill Scoble, who along with his wife, Nancy, have been close friends of Lahr for more than 30 years. "Becky was a classy lady -- a grand lady -- who, after losing Harry, threw herself into her volunteer work at the hospital."

Ironically, Harry Lahr, co-founder of the Bank of Las Vegas and Nevada National Bank and a partner in Paradise Development, which built Sunrise Hospital and the Las Vegas Country Club, also died doing something he enjoyed.

In 1979, while playing golf at the Las Vegas Country Club, Harry collapsed and died of a heart attack on the 17th green.

Becky, also an avid golfer, was a charter member of the Las Vegas and Desert Inn country clubs. She gave up the sport two years ago after breaking her hip.

"Becky had a sense of humor even under the worst of circumstances," said Patty Gwin, a niece, who teaches art at Newcastle (Pa.) High School, from where Becky graduated in 1927. "Losing Harry devastated her. But she had a great instinct for survival that helped her go on and accomplish her goals."

Judy Sonner, director of volunteer services for Sunrise Hospital, knew Lahr for 20 years and was impressed with her ever-positive attitude.

"She was always up, and she really cared about the work she did," Sonner said. "Becky was very proud of the fact that in all of the years she was treasurer of the Sunrise Auxiliary we never operated in the red.

"When we hit the $1 million mark in contributions (in June of 1996), she was absolutely thrilled. You won't find as many volunteers as dedicated as Becky was."

Born Rebecca Gwin on Oct. 19, 1909, in Sharon, Pa. While working in Pittsburgh in the late 1930s, she met Harry Lahr. They married in 1941 and moved to Las Vegas in 1956 shortly after he opened a bank in Reno.

They played significant roles in support of the local medical industry. He was president of the Nevada Association for Mental Health.

In 1960, Becky and a half-dozen other local women founded what was then called the Sunrise Hospital Ladies Auxiliary. It's initial purpose was to raise funds to send local residents to UNLV nursing school.

Today, more than two dozen applicants are chosen annually to receive Sunrise Auxiliary-generated pre-med, radiology and nursing scholarships to UNLV.

The auxiliary also has assisted numerous charities including the Nevada Childhood Cancer Foundation, Nevada Special Olympics, the Lions Club Sight Conservation Program, Candlelighters and Easter Seals.

In 1992, Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., honored Lahr for her volunteer work by reading her accomplishments into the Congressional Record. She also has received similar honors from the Nevada Legislature and other organizations.

Donations: In Lahr's memory to the Sunrise Hospital Auxiliary for nursing scholarships.

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