Ana Rosa Wood

It is with deep sorrow that we announce the passing of Ana Rosa Wood, on May 8, 2026. She was 76 years old.

Born in Havana, Cuba on November 13, 1949, Ana came to the United States in 1961 during Castro's regime at 11 years old, accompanied by her grandmother and 6-year-old sister. She lived with her maternal aunt and uncle in Schenectady, N.Y. until her parents and grandfather could leave Cuba to reunite with the family. The loss of all possessions was a sacrifice her parents made in exchange for freedom and a future for their lives. Raised by parents of both Chinese and Spanish ethnicity, Ana was deeply proud of her rich and diverse cultural background. In 1971, Ana earned her Bachelor of Arts in Spanish Literature from The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C.

Ana married Steven Wood on September 4, 1971, in Schenectady, N.Y. She went on to travel extensively throughout Europe, raise a family with two sons, Greg Wood and Ryan Wood, and later divorced.

Ana’s professional career spanned over 30 years in community development, customer service and education. She managed community development programs at United Way of Southern Nevada, such as the Earn it Keep it Save it Collaborative, which is composed of 84 coalition partners, both business and non-profit organizations, focusing on financial stability for employees and families. Through her work at United Way, she supported families, so their children had the best opportunities for academic success while also offering financial literacy resources and classes to children, employees and parents to help promote self-sufficiency and stability in the home.

Ana started her career in teaching. She taught English and adult basic education courses such as skills qualification training to the military in Fulda, Germany; worked with children with disabilities, and taught Spanish at Killeen High School in Texas. She taught English as a Second Language (ESL) and citizenship classes to adults at College of Southern Nevada (CSN). Prior to United Way, she was a customer service trainer at Nevada Power.

Ana is best known for her leadership on the boards of the American Society for Training and Development, BEST Coalition, March of Dimes, UNR Cooperative Extension Advisory Council, Vietnamese American Community of Las Vegas Advisory Board, Latin Chamber of Commerce, and primarily the Las Vegas Asian Chamber of Commerce (LVACC), where she served as a member of the Board of Directors since 2015.

Within the LVACC, she chaired the Chinese New Year Gala and Community Achievement Awards from 2016-2020 and again from 2022 to 2025. As Chair of the Government Affairs Committee and a naturalized citizen, she took this responsibility seriously with her civic involvement in citizenship, Get Out the Vote, and advocated on behalf of its members, businesses and community. With the integral values of respect, honesty and integrity deeply instilled by her parents, Ana committed to working hand in hand with community leaders to improve the Southern Nevada community.

She is survived by her two sons, Greg Wood (Erin), of Pacifica, Calif. and Ryan Wood (Victoria), of Las Vegas, Nev.; mother, Ana Wong, from Schenectady, N.Y., sister, Marilyn Wittmer (Robert) of Melbourne, Fla. and brother, Jose Wong (Jessica) from Bedford, N.H. Grandchildren, Taylor Wood, Pacifica; Ella Wood, Charlotte Wood and Lucas Wood, Las Vegas. She is also survived by and very fond of her two dear aunts and uncle, and many nieces, nephews and cousins, throughout the country.

In lieu of flowers, Ana’s family requests that you may honor Ana’s life with a donation to the Asian Chamber of Commerce Scholarship fund at https://lvacc.org

A Memorial Celebration will be held on June 6, 2026 from 2:00 to 6:00PM with the service beginning at 3:00PM at Palm Southwest Mortuary 7979 W. Warm Springs Road, Las Vegas, Nevada 89113.