Obituary of Alveta McBride

Alveta McBride, 81, died Sunday, September 22, 2013 at her home in Boulder City, Nevada. Born December 31, 1931 in Big Springs, Texas to Steve and Orpha Bowman, Alveta and her parents moved to California's San Joaquin Valley during the Great Depression. As a child living among the farms of Salinas, Alveta would wander into the fields, befriend the migrant Mexican workers, and then bring them home for lunch. Her mother, Orpha, always fed them. Shortly after World War II Alveta and her family moved to the mining town of Randsburg, California where Alveta graduated high school in 1949. A few months after her graduation Alveta and the family moved to Las Vegas. When the Nevada Test Site was established in 1951 both Alveta and her father were among the first employees hired to work there by the Reynolds Electrical and Engineering Company [REECO]. Alveta worked at Mercury as a telephone operator and was one of few people alive who witnessed above-ground atomic bomb blasts. Her stories of that experience were rich and vivid. Alveta was engaged three times until she met Ray "Joe" McBride who lived in Boulder City, Nevada. On April 10, 1954 Alveta married Joe in the Hotel Last Frontier's Little Church of the West. The couple had two sons, Dennis and David. Joe followed construction jobs and the family lived in Bagdad, Arizona; Tonopah, Nevada; Zion Canyon, Utah; and in Page, Arizona where Joe worked to build Glen Canyon Dam. The family eventually settled back in Boulder City where Alveta went to work for Central Telephone Company. Many in Boulder City remember Alveta fondly for her dedication to her work: she often went to customers' homes on her own time to rewire and repair their telephone systems. After her retirement in 1994, Alveta enjoyed gambling with her mother, Orpha, at the Eldorado Club in Henderson and at Railroad Pass Casino near Boulder City. She traveled to Hawaii and Alaska, and visited family in California and Oregon. Remembered for her good heart and generosity despite many tragedies and challenges in her life, Alveta always took better care of those around her than she did herself. Alveta is survived by her brother, Steve [Kathy]; sons Dennis and David [Elizabeth]; grandchildren David John [Amber], Nicole [Juan], Jeremy, and John [Ande]; six great-grandchildren; nieces and nephews; and many devoted friends.