Silver Dollars and Wooden Nickels: HopeFest all about providing hope

The Nevada Appeal’s Silver Dollars & Wooden Nickels feature recognizes achievements from the capital region and, when warranted, points out other acts that missed the mark.

SILVER DOLLAR: To all those involved in HopeFest, a most worthy cause for the Carson Tahoe Regional Medical Cancer Center. We especially salute Ruth Merriner, who made a $2 million donation to complete the Merriner Cottages at the center and to Dr. Rex Baggett, who was presented with the Champion of Hope Award.

SILVER DOLLAR: A tongue in cheek Silver Dollar is given this week to Joey Chestnut, who’s restored American superiority in one of the most basic American activities — eating hot dogs. Chestnut has dominated Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest on the Fourth of July in recent years and has been just as dominant in the Sparks Nugget Rib Eating contest, winning his eighth straight title in that event last week.

Maybe it’s a little much to ask everyone to stand at attention with hands over their hearts for the national anthem in honor of Chestnut (competitive eating isn’t an Olympic sport, yet), but we can still recognize Chestnut with a rousing chant of USA! USA!

SILVER DOLLAR: On a more serious note, the Salvation Army was just one of several organizations this year to provide much needed school supplies to under-priveleged students. Last week it was reported the Salvation Army provided an impressive 467 backpacks for local students.

SILVER DOLLAR: To David Krueger, Justin Mitchell and Morey Tresnit for their recognition by the Carson High Football Hall of Fame.

WOODEN NICKEL: Maybe Harry Reid deserves a Silver Dollar for being so concerned about the state’s image, but we don’t think it’s too becoming of a U.S. Senator to refer to his state’s legislators as “cowards.” Regardless of where you stand on the issue of prostitution, we think Reid has more pressing issues as the majority leader of the U.S. Senate. And Reid also needs to be more concerned with is own image after his remarks at an Asian Chamber of Commerce event in Las Vegas. Reid did own up to the remarks and apologized, but we’re still giving him two wooden nickels for his recent statements.