For some Vegas employees, Christmas is a tight squeeze

Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2002 | 8:30 a.m.

'Twas the night before Christmas and all through Las Vegas, not a creature was stirring -- save for casino dealers, slot technicians, bartenders and showgirls.

According to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, an estimated 232,000 tourists will descend on the valley this Christmas.

Expecting a hotel occupancy rate just below 80 percent, it's business as usual for those employed in the gaming industry. There are cards to deal, rooms to clean, guests to serve and audiences to please.

"We're a 24-hour, 365-day town," said the Rev. Tommy Starkes, who ministers to more than 150 employees at 12 casinos.

To help generate the Christmas spirit among those working holidays, Starkes incorporates a Christmas message with his weekly rounds. Starkes meets with hotel workers and performers in cafeterias, at backstage Bible studies and executive staff meetings where he provides motivational speeches.

This Christmas, Starkes said, "My message is that God uses ordinary people: stagehands, porters, maids. Shepherds were ordinary, Bethlehem was ordinary and the inn was ordinary. Ordinary people can do extraordinary things with God's help."

Though workers are catering to guests on the nation's biggest religious and secular holiday, Starkes said Christmas is still a special day.

The holiday spirit builds during the week prior and employers prepare special feasts for those who are working.

Still, Starkes added, "I try to make it special as I go around I bring trinkets; little angel pins. They're family people. They work around their schedule.

What really makes them sad is Christmas Eve because they can't be with their families, with their churches."

But Starkes, who is employed by Southern Nevada Baptist Association, added, "Mostly they're used to it because they work holidays all the time."

Christmas weddings

Charolette Richards, owner and minister of A Little White Chapel at 1301 Las Vegas Blvd., said there's no place she'd rather be than work on Christmas Day where this year more than 50 weddings will be conducted.

At A Little White Chapel, Christmas is the third-busiest day of the year, competing with the Fourth of July. New Years Day and Valentine's Day are the busiest.

"I celebrate (Christmas) with the people I call my family -- that's couples that come in and get married and people who work with me," Richards said. "We just have a wonderful time. Nobody's in a rush. Nobody is demanding anything.

"The atmosphere lends to a lot more happiness. People feel more romantic. It's a day they'll always cherish. It's a double celebration."

Some of the couples, Richards said, "Get all decked out in a lot of red satin and festive wear, or have dressed as Mr. and Mrs. Claus. Others have dressed as elves. It's their day. Whatever makes them feel good is what we want."

Upon request, the organist plays Christmas music. Food is catered for the employees, some who have been with Richards for 10 to 20 years, and everybody nibbles between services, she said.

"It's definitely a beautiful spirit," Richards said. "This really isn't a job. It's a fun experience. This is my life. I don't do anything else but be with people in love.

"It's cozy. It's fireplaces. It's romantic. If I were to ever be married (again) I'd want to be married on Christmas. It's a special day."

Holiday 'Jubilee'

Backstage at Bally's "Donn Arden's Jubilee," halls outside the dressing rooms are decked with silver stars, Christmas pictures, tinsel and trim.

A decorative fireplace made from cardboard is pulled from storage. On top of its mantel are photos of Donn Arden, longtime company manager Fluff LeCoque and memorable moments and entertainers who devoted years to the old-style Las Vegas stage production.

"This has been a tradition for many, many years," LeCoque said. "They decorate for Thanksgiving. That comes down, (then) they decorate for Christmas."

Before headdresses, G-strings and Bob Mackie costumes are donned, Christmas carols play during the mandatory preshow warm-up.

This year staff and performers of the entertainment department helped sponsor needy families for HELP of Southern Nevada.

"On Christmas day there is a Christmas party between shows for cast, crew, wardrobe," LeCoque said. "Everybody brings food. So we have a little celebration. Dressing rooms have secret Santas.

"You work together a long time. You tend to think of this as your family. So you celebrate together."

Mass on the Strip

Catholics throughout the Las Vegas Valley attending mass at the Guardian Angel Cathedral are often accompanied by casino employees who stop in at Christmas services before or after their shift.

Because of its location on Cathedral Way, just off the Strip, the church draws a blend of local Catholics, tourists and casino workers.

It offers three masses Christmas Eve (at 4 p.m., 5:15 p.m. and midnight) and five masses Christmas day (at 8 a.m., 9:30 a.m., 11 a.m., 2:30 p.m. and 5 p.m.).

Nearly 7,000 people are expected to attend today's and Wednesday's services.

"It's a mixture of everybody,"the Rev. James Crilly said. "Casino workers will come in with their uniform on, pit bosses with a suit on. We do have a certain number of visitors, but fewer than we would if we have a regular service. Many tourists stay home at Christmastime."

Though popular among valley residents, the cathedral was built near the Strip in 1963 as a way to serve casino workers and tourists.

"Some come in uniforms," Crilly said. "Some of them wear casino badges. When they come up for communion, I find out what hotels we're representing."

That, and the fact that Guardian Angel is the Cathedral of the Diocese makes it a popular draw -- especially at Christmastime.

"It's one of the tourists stops as people come down the strip," Crilly said. "But we do find a lot of people who come Christmas day, then don't come on Sunday. I think at Christmas, too. I think we get a number of people are not Catholic and they sure are welcome."