Noted Democratic Party activist Page dies at 73

Tuesday, May 13, 2003 | 8:44 a.m.

A memorial gathering for longtime Las Vegas insurance adjuster and Democratic Party mainstay Lee Page will be 4 p.m. Friday at the Spanish Oaks Clubhouse, 2201 Spanish Oaks Drive off West Sahara Avenue.

Lehmann McBride "Lee" Page died May 5 at his home after a long illness. He was 73.

"Lee had a soft-spoken demeanor and a zest for life," said Las Vegas attorney Ralph Denton, who met Page while working with him on Grant Sawyer's first campaign for governor in 1958 and became a lifelong friend. "He was good-natured and patient. He never lost his temper.

"And he was always there for his friends or would help anyone down on their luck. He did it all from the heart."

Page worked on numerous political campaigns, including Sawyer's re-election races in 1962 and '66, U.S. Sen. Howard Cannon's unsuccessful re-election bid in 1982 and Mike O'Callaghan's successful runs for governor in 1970 and '74.

Born Aug. 29, 1929, in Gravette, Ark., Page moved with his family to California at age 14. Page later enlisted in the Army and served in the Korean War. He served in the Second Infantry Indian Head Division, where he rose to the rank of sergeant major.

After the war, Page moved to Las Vegas in 1953, where he initially was employed by R.L. Gresham & Co., as an insurance adjuster. In 1956, Page and Bill Kellett founded Las Vegas Insurance Adjusters.

In the mid-1960s, Page sold his interest in that business and attended the University of Arizona. In Tucson, he founded the Page-Baumer insurance adjusting firm.

In the late 1960s, Page returned to Las Vegas and formed his third insurance adjusting firm, Consolidated Insurance Adjusters. He sold that company and served on the board of directors of the Nevada Medical Insurance Company until the mid-1990s.

Page then became a real estate broker, a position he held until his death.

Page is survived by his wife, Bonnie Kay Page; three daughters, Paula, Lisa and Lori Page; a sister, Jean Taylor; and three grandchildren, Kiernan, Tory and Dana Page.