A long, long time ago, 78 years ago to be exact, Lawrence Paul Nemelka was born. This single event marked the beginning of a lifetime devoted to the service of others. Aside from the occasional evening, where he enjoys watching country westerns featuring his cowboy man crush John Wayne, or African gazelles being chased down by lions on Animal Planet, you would likely find him working on something for someone else. Those who truly know Larry can testify to his loving, loyal, and selfless nature.
Born to devout members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Larry and his nine siblings were raised in a service oriented family. He has held numerous church callings to serve in the youth programs, adult programs, in priesthood leadership, and from 1956-1959 as a missionary in Münich/Frankfurt, Germany where he started his first scout troop.
After returning home from his mission, Larry Nemelka married Dorothy Loa Hansen. Shortly thereafter, he enlisted himself in the United States National Guard for eight years, starting out as a Green Beret Officer in Utah’s Special Forces Unit and then in California as a Mechanized Infantry Battalion Executive Officer.
At the beginning of his military service, he was employed as a police officer for two years in Salt Lake City, Utah. In 1962 he was recruited by the Santa Ana Police Department where he served for another fifteen years. Most of his service with Santa Ana Police Department was as a sergeant in the juvenile detective division. He became the program coordinator for the Santa Ana Police Officers Association Athletic League, which relied on athletics to help gain the friendship of youth. During his stay with the Santa Ana Police Department, he won the “Officer of the Year” award twice and was elected Secretary and then President of the Santa Ana Police Officers Association.
Larry first became a scoutmaster in 1963. He has since been a scoutmaster in five troops and has helped well over one hundred scouts earn the Eagle Scout Award. Along the way, his scouts were never short an ounce of fun. Known by his fellow scout leaders as “The Godfather”, Larry is a fundraising machine. Firework stands, luaus, various fund-raising item sales, international dinners, car washes, play productions, silent bid auctions, marathons, and countless garage sales. His troops have always afforded themselves the best activities fundraising can buy, as well as some of the most rewarding, like feeding meals to the hungry and homeless, freeway clean-ups or community parks and building restorations. Larry always says: ”scouting offers an alternative to other undesirable activities. I make it so much fun, they can’t do things that get them into trouble.”
Larry Nemelka has received the Award of Merit from the Boy Scouts of America Orange County Council in 1996. Then in 2012, Larry was awarded the prestigious BSA Silver Beaver Award, acknowledging his lifetime of service to the Boy Scouts.
In business, Larry continues to help people and is the “DAD” in Menifee’s #1 Real Estate Team - RE/MAX Diamond Realty’s “Team Dad & Daughters”. Team Dad & Daughters have closed the most Real Estate Transactions in the City of Menifee for the last four years in a row now. In addition to specializing in Residential Sales, they also own Menifee Property Management which is a company dedicated to leasing and managing homes solely within the City of Menifee. Larry’s team leases between 60-80 homes a year only in Menifee and currently manage around 80 Menifee homes. RE/MAX Diamond Realty & Menifee Property Management are located on the corner of Newport & Bradley at 26900 Newport Rd., #120, Menifee, CA 92584.
“Behind every great man is a great woman” and Larry’s wife Dorothy has been a huge help in supporting Larry’s work at the office, and more amazingly through his 52 years of dedicated service to the Boy Scouts of America.
Larry and his wife, Dorothy, have recently celebrated their 55th wedding anniversary. They have four children, twelve grandchildren and three great grandchildren.
