Berkley Delivers Remarks on House Floor
in Memory of the Late Manny Cortez

(Washington, DC -- June 21, 2006) In remarks delivered today on the floor of the United States House of Representatives, Congresswoman Shelley Berkley (D-NV) memorialized the late Clark County Commissioner and Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) President Manny Cortez. Berkley’s prepared remarks are as follows:

Mr. Speaker,

I rise today to pay tribute to the late Manny Cortez.

I am profoundly heartbroken by the untimely loss of my dear friend who passed away last Sunday. I adored Manny Cortez and will be forever grateful for his help, support, love and friendship. He was a wonderful human being and a true gentleman.

Manny was more than just a family man and dedicated public servant. He was a visionary who helped shape the Southern Nevada we know today and who worked tirelessly to turn Las Vegas into the world’s most famous travel destination.

Manny earned worldwide respect as a visionary leader for Nevada’s tourism and hospitality industry. Under his leadership, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitor’s Authority not only thrived, it became the gold standard against which all others in the business are judged. His lasting legacy will shape Southern Nevada as it continues to grow in the 21st Century.

Whether as a public servant or as a private citizen, Manny was dedicated to making Southern Nevada a better place to raise a family, to run a business or to visit on vacation. Las Vegas would not be the city it is today without the hard work, vision and dedication of Manny Cortez.

My deepest sympathies go out today to the Cortez family and I know I speak for countless others when I say that our community has lost not only a remarkable man, but a true leader who left his own unique mark on Southern Nevada and its top industry.

I am truly blessed to have been able to call Manny Cortez my friend. And I was lucky enough to share in his pride as a father when Catherine, his daughter, announced recently that she would follow in his footsteps and seek election to public office as Nevada Attorney General.

More than any of the truly remarkable accomplishments that Manny could claim over the course of his political and professional career, I know that his family meant more to him than all the accolades or money in the world.

And come this November, I know he will be smiling, knowing that same call to serve, and the same desire to give back to the community that motivated him to seek a seat on the Clark County Commission, was at the very heart of his daughter’s campaign.

Manuel J. “Manny” Cortez was born April 29, 1939, in Las Cruces, N.M., the oldest of two children of Edward Cortez, a baker, and the former Mary Tapia, a retailer.

The Cortez family moved to Las Vegas in 1944, and as a youngster, Manny attended St. Joseph's grade school and graduated from Las Vegas High.

Manny attended Nevada Southern University, which later became my Alma Mater, UNLV, and received an honorary degree from the Community College of Southern Nevada.

Elected in 1976 to the Clark County Commission, he served four terms. During his tenure, he served as chairman of that body, as well as chairman of the Clark County Sanitation District and the Clark County Liquor and Gaming Licensing Board.

Manny was also on the governing boards of the University Medical Center and the Las Vegas Valley Water District and on the Fiscal Affairs Board of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.

Prior to his election as county commissioner, Cortez served as administrator of the State of Nevada Taxicab Authority. His background included employment with the Clark County District Attorney’s office and the Clark County Public Defender’s office.

Manny began his service on the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) board of directors in 1983, and would go on to lead that agency at a time of rapid growth for Southern Nevada, the Las Vegas strip and our tourism industry.

By 1991, Manny had earned the title of President of the LVCVA -- the largest convention and visitors organization in the United States.

That year, Southern Nevada welcomed more than 21 million visitors. By the time of his retirement, that number had grown to more than 37 million visitors annually.

Travel Agent magazine named Manny Cortez the United States Person of the Year for 1999, calling him “one of the most astute marketers in the tourism industry.”

And during his tenure as President of the LVCVA, the organization came to be regarded as the travel industry’s leading destination marketing organization.

Manny was a participant in the White House Conference on Travel and Tourism in 1995. And in 2003, the United States Department of Commerce appointed him to the then-newly created U.S. Travel and Tourism Promotion Advisory Board. His role on the board included representing Las Vegas and the U.S. travel and tourism industry.

Manny is survived by his wife of 45 years, Joanna Cortez; daughters Cynthia Cortez Musgrove and Catherine Cortez Masto; a sister, Patricia Snider; and two grandchildren, Andrew Musgrove and Christina Musgrove, all of Las Vegas.

There will never be another Manny Cortez, but every time I return home to Las Vegas, his legacy is on display for the entire world to see and admire.

Manny was a dear friend and mentor to many, many southern Nevadans now serving in pubic office. We mourn him, we miss him and we love him.

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