VFW Poker Run to benefit two area women

Local resident Paul Engs and his family are heartbroken.

Engs said his daughter Christina Small is dying of leukemia and he's appealing for hopes and prayers from the community for her well-being.

He's also anticipating a large turnout for tomorrow's VFW Post 10054's "Across the Desert Poker Run," to help cover medical costs for his daughter's treatment.

He said her prognosis looks grim at best.

"She was diagnosed with leukemia about five years ago and we don't even know if she's going to last a month but we are hopeful," he said. "She is 37 years old and married with two kids. She's a great mother."

The poker run, Engs said, will serve two purposes.

Another woman, Tracy Sears, was seriously injured after being struck by a car while riding her scooter.

Engs hopes tomorrow's poker run can be beneficial to both women.

Sears was employed at the VFW at the time she was injured.

"The lady who got hit is working again but she's got a lot of doctor bills and that's one of the reasons why we're doing this poker run."

Registration for the event is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the VFW post on Homestead Road.

Engs said the first stop is a short ride to the Horizon Market on Highway 160 and Mesquite Avenue from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

"From there it goes over to Dennis Hof's Love Ranch in Crystal," he said. "Kathy at Miss Kathy's Short Branch Saloon in Crystal is giving $2 beers to any of the riders. From Crystal we will ride out to Amargosa Valley at the Longstreet Casino."

The final stop on the run is in Shoshone at the Crowbar Café from 2 to 5 p.m., then it's back to the VFW in Pahrump for dinner and drinks and prizes.

"The VFW is also going to have 50-50 drawings and they're going to have a wonderful raffle of different prizes," Engs said. "We've got vendors that have given us a full-blown computer with a monitor and Home Depot is giving us two huge tool kits. Everybody has been so kind and wonderful to support this event."

Engs also noted that his daughter will try to attend the event at the VFW.

"She is on oxygen right now and when I talked to her this week, she didn't even sound like my daughter because that's how bad she is right now," he said. "She's the one that got me riding motorcycles again as a VFW rider, and she's also a Harley Davidson rider herself."

Contact reporter Selwyn Harris at sharris@pvtimes.com. Follow @sharrispvt on Twitter.