Fifteen years old, working full time through a military dependant summer work program, I was assigned the tedious task of inputting incoming payments and matching those to a monster list of accounts receivable.

The computer system was in a now-archaic pixilated character format and enough oversized paper made its way through the screeching printers that entire German forests - where my family was based - were probably lost, filling the countless ledgers stored in the aging Army building. Needless to say, I did not seek a career in accounting.

I'll have to double-check, but I'm fairly certain that I earned $4.25 an hour during my six weeks there.

Not a bad chunk of change for a teenager more interested in drama club and hanging out at the community pool with friends, especially considering the favorable U.S. dollar exchange rate to the German mark (this was the pre-euro era).

But that first job - and the following years' summer work - taught me many important lessons: Respect, responsibility, accountability, and I've carried those with me through my work life.

So, I felt encouraged when I read the Labor Statistics Bureau's recent report that nationwide nearly two-thirds of 16- to 24-year-olds were employed this summer.

In July, the peak month for summer employment, 24.4 million young people had a tax-paying job or were looking for one. Overall, 21.1 million were gainfully employed, according to the bureau.

Of course, with the economy in a slump, this year's figure is down and the number of unemployed young people increased.

In July 1989, the number of young people with summer jobs or looking for work peaked at 77.5 percent, 12 percentage points higher than this July's participation at 65.1 percent, the bureau said.

Since 1989, the number of youths enrolled in school in July increased; those same youths are less likely to seek work, the bureau said.

From April to July the number of employed youths increased by 1.9 million; last year during the same time, that figure increased by 2.3 million.

Because of Nevada's small size, the state doesn't have information about working youth, said Bill Anderson, chief economist for the state's Employment, Training and Rehabilitation Department. However, he said the normal spring to summer job levels "weren't as pronounced as it had been."

The man in charge of investigating and prosecuting state Medicaid fraud allegations is retiring, a state news release said.

During his 17 years as head of the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, Chief Deputy Attorney General L. Timothy Terry has been involved in "hundreds of cases," leading to the recovery of tens of millions of dollars for Nevada's Medicaid program.

Unlike Medicare, Medicaid is state administered and funded both federally and by the state. It provides health coverage to qualified low-income families and people with disabilities.

His biggest case concluded this year, he recently told the Las Vegas Sun. In a seven-year case against pharmaceutical giant Merck that Terry concluded this year, $400 million was recovered nationwide, although Nevada saw only a few million dollars.

"Tim Terry is innovative and often at the forefront of new developments concerning the prosecution of fraud committed by Medicaid providers," state Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto said in a statement. "Tim's work in the area of pharmaceutical pricing fraud gained national attention on several occasions. He also spearheaded many of our earlier elder neglect cases. His services, achievements and dedication will be missed."

Terry, who is moving into the private sector, said he is looking forward to "new adventures and challenges."

"It has been my sincere pleasure to have served the citizens of Nevada through my work in the attorney general's office," he said in a statement.

The fraud unit's deputy director, Mark Kemberling, is replacing Terry. His earlier roles include serving as an FBI special agent, a Nevada Gaming Control Board enforcement agent and as an attorney adviser for the state's U.S. Trustee program with the Justice Department.

United Way of Southern Nevada will kick off its 2008-09 fundraising campaign and launch the organization's nationwide Live United campaign Sept. 12.

Nevada Power Co., Southwest Gas Corp. and USAA Savings Bank are sponsoring this year's kickoff.

Sierra Pacific Resources Chief Executive Michael Yackira is this year's campaign chairman.

Actress Fran Drescher of TV's "The Nanny" fame, will be at the Nevada Cancer Institute at 11 a.m. Sept. 12 to sign copies of her book, "Cancer Schmancer."

Drescher, who will be reading from her book, describes her battle with uterine cancer.