It is the end of an era and the beginning of a whole new chapter for Matt Luis, as he will soon be officially retiring from his longstanding position as Pahrump Buildings and Grounds manager.
Luis’ more than two decades in the buildings and grounds department will come to a close on Friday, August 2. In honor of his retirement, both the town and Nye County officials recently took the time to give special recognition to the longtime employee and send him off with a fond farewell.
During its July 16 meeting, the Nye County Commission said its goodbyes to Luis with a plaque presentation.
“In appreciation of your 23 years of service to the residents and visitors of Pahrump, our town is what it is today because of your service, dedication and commitment. We wish you the best in retirement. Our town will miss you,” Nye County Commission Chairman John Koenig told Luis as meeting attendees burst into applause.
In addition to the traditional plaque to honor service to the community, the commissioners also bestowed Luis with something a little extra special, an engraved fishing reel, which, with Luis’ future plans in mind, is sure to come in handy.
“The future holds a lot of traveling, my wife and I in our RV,” Luis told the Pahrump Valley Times. “The Friday following my last day, we are leaving and we are not planning on coming back until the first part of October. We’re going to a family reunion in California, then from there we’re going to Oroville to meet my buddy and his wife up there, for 10 days of family fishing. Then on to Oregon, Idaho, we’re just going to point the RV in a direction and go!”
Luis reflected upon some of his favorite memories of working for the town, highlighting projects that were near and dear to his heart.
“Simkins Park, that was one of my first major projects,” Luis recalled. “And the Veterans Memorial at the Chief Tecopa Cemetery, that was another one that I was really proud that we completed. Another accomplishment was getting the Movies in the Park events started. That was kind of a fight but it’s grown into one of the town’s favorite little summertime weekend things. Another thing I have really enjoyed is working with all of the volunteers on the advisory boards and that. It’s been really nice and a lot of fun.”
Luis will certainly be missed by his fellow town employees, who gathered together at the Bob Ruud Community Center to hold a special farewell party on July 24 in celebration of his retirement.
“Matt’s an amazing guy and huge part of the town of Pahrump. He is a huge part of this community,” town of Pahrump Executive Assistant Alexandra Crow said. “From the fairground to our beautiful parks, he has done so much for everyone in this town. The town of Pahrump will miss him dearly.”
While Luis does plan to spend some time roving around the country and enjoying the freedom of adventure, he assured that the town is not losing him altogether. Luis said Pahrump is the place he calls home and he intends that to remain the case for many years to come.
“I’m not leaving town, I plan on living in Pahrump for the rest of my life,” Luis concluded. “I’ll be involved on projects when I get back, volunteering. The community has been really, really good to me and I love Pahrump, I care what happens, so I am going to be involved.”
Luis’ replacement will be announced in the coming weeks.
Contact reporter Robin Hebrock at rhebrock@pvtimes.com