Soup Supper Fundraiser with TRACY CONRAD

Thursday, April 18, 2024

             Tracy Conrad’s weekly Desert Sun column “Thanks for the Memories” covers a wide range of historical features and is an enormously popular weekly column. Conrad is an author of several books on local history; president of the Palm Springs Historical Society; a former emergency room physician; and previous owner of several notable Palm Springs historic buildings that she renovated and preserved including one of the topics of her talk. The Ojo Del Desierto (The Eye of the Desert) is the historic O’Donnell House which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. She also serves as the Chief Operating Officer of the historic Smoke Tree Ranch.
            In addition to The Eye, Conrad will explore the fascinating history of The Desert Inn which was the vision of Nellie Coffman who established a rudimentary sanitarium in 1909 for people suffering from respiratory ailments. By the early 1920s, The Desert Inn flourished as a stylish Spanish Mediterranean hotel drawing prominent elected officials, countless celebrities, and captains of industry – effectively launching Palm Springs as the tourism destination it is today.