Valerie A Sears

Valerie was born Valerie Ann Rizzi on February 17, 1930 in Baldwin, New York, the daughter of Joseph and Annette Rizzi. She had a brother, Raymond Rizzi, and a sister, Marie Kramer, both of whom are now deceased. As a teenager she considered modeling but didn’t pursue it, instead going to work with her mother, a restaurant supervisor at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Manhattan, where Valerie was to meet William Sears, a trumpet player in the Peter Duchin Orchestra which frequently played at the Waldorf. They had a daughter together, but the marriage eventually ended in divorce.

Valerie became a ballroom dance teacher at Arthur Murray Studios in New York, where she met Martin Goldstein after he also began working as a dance teacher there. The two began dating, and eventually they decided to come to Las Vegas, where Marty wanted to pursue a career in the gaming industry.

In February of 1963, Valerie and her daughter traveled to Las Vegas by train to join Marty, arriving on his birthday. The following day Marty and Valerie were married by the Justice of the Peace, a marriage that was to last 56 years. They moved to their first apartment on Cedar Avenue in Las Vegas, which at that time were brand-new apartments on the edge of town. The following year, Valerie’s parents also moved to Las Vegas from New York, and remained Las Vegans until their deaths in 1967 and 1998.

Valerie loved animals and in the 1960s and 1970s she worked with the fledgling Las Vegas Humane Society, through the years adopting many dogs and cats who needed homes. She also worked as a cashier at Sears Department Store in the Boulevard Mall, then moved to retail sales, working some years for Mordechai the Jeweler at the Stardust Hotel Jewelry shop. After the closure of the Stardust she sold jewelry at the Royal Inn Hotel and the Landmark Hotel, later moving to retail furniture sales at Montgomery Ward on South Decatur.

In the 1980s Valerie and Marty were persuaded to move to Crystal Springs, Mississippi to embark on a business venture with friends; however, they returned to Las Vegas a few years later.

In the 1990s Valerie worked awhile for Payday Loans on Sahara and Valley View before retiring. Her mother, Annette, who by that time lived with them, passed away in 1998 at the age of 102.

In March of 2019, Marty passed away at the age of 92.

In early 2026 Valerie was suffering mobility problems after a fall, and had been living with breast cancer for several years. Her daughter came to stay with her in February and was by her side when she passed away in her home the morning of September 12, 2026.

She is survived by her daughter, Brett Sears of Las Vegas, some distant relatives in New York, and a few good friends. She was beautiful and a lady in all her ways. She was much loved and will be missed forever.