Stock broker, civic leader Willis dies

Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2003 | 9:55 a.m.

Vern Willis initially made his mark as one of Las Vegas' first travel agents in the early 1950s, but his first love was stocks and bonds, having started on Wall Street as a 20-year-old broker.

After working for Western Airlines and later opening his own travel agency, Willis returned to the investment field and helped open Las Vegas' first brokerage firm in 1954.

In a career that spanned four decades, Willis became known as the dean of Las Vegas investment brokers.

Vernon B. Willis died Sunday in Salt Lake City, where he resided in recent years. He was 88.

Services for the Las Vegas resident of nearly 60 years will be at 11 a.m. March 8, at Palm Mortuary-Eastern.

Willis and partner Dwight Gravett opened a branch of the San Francisco-based First California Co. Inc. in 1954.

The firm, later aligned with Eastman Dillon Union Securities, grew to three locations, and Willis eventually was promoted to first vice president of the company that was to became Blyth Eastman Dillon.

Willis and his company helped finance such projects as the construction of public schools, the Clark County Courthouse, phases of McCarran International Airport, the original MGM Grand, which today is Bally's, and the expansion of the Southern Nevada Water Project, which made it possible for Las Vegas to use its entire allocation of Lake Mead Colorado River water.

Born in New Jersey in 1914, Willis worked on Wall Street at age 20 for the California-based William R. Staats & Co.

He came to Las Vegas in 1940 to work in sales for Western Airlines and eventually was promoted to district traffic manager. Las Vegas was so small at the time that Western's only competition was a daily Trans World Airlines flight from San Francisco.

In 1950 Willis opened the Willis Travel Service, purported to be the town's first travel agency. Three years later, he partnered with Mike Cole, then of Bonanza Airlines, to form the Willis-Cole Travel Bureau, which later became Cole Travel Service.

Willis was lured back to the investment brokerage world in 1954. After Blyth Eastman Dillon was bought out by Paine Webber in 1979, Willis became senior vice president of Dain Bosworth Inc., a position he held until his retirement in March 1988.

In 1980 Willis became the first Nevadan to serve on the board of governors of the National Association of Security Dealers.

He was a founding member of the Las Vegas Press Club, past president of the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, served on the board of directors of the local Boy Scouts, was a founder of the Hualapai Club, and was a past president of the Rotary Club.

His survivors in include his wife, Helen Willis and son Paul Willis, both of Salt Lake City.