Grow Omaha
Non-Profit News

Debate has intensified around the University of Nebraska’s plan to pay $500 million to Clarkson Regional Health in order to assume full ownership of the nonprofit entity Nebraska Medicine. Currently, 50 percent of Nebraska Medicine is owned by the University of Nebraska, and the other 50 percent is owned by Clarkson.

The Nebraska Medicine board announced a new “informational website” aimed at reducing public support for the proposed deal, while the University of Nebraska Medical Center has updated its website with information about the deal framed with its perspective. The University of Nebraska Board of Regents will consider the deal in a special meeting on January 9.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Midlands is recognizing National Mentoring Month this January by raising awareness of the critical role mentors play in the lives of young people. Through simple, consistent activities, such as sharing a meal, going for a walk or trying something different together, mentors can make a powerful, life-changing impact.

This annual campaign encourages adults across the Omaha metro to step forward and volunteer, as more than 100 local youth are currently waiting to be matched with a caring, dependable mentor, and the need has never been more urgent.

The 2026 ICAN Women’s Leadership Conference is set for April 22 at CHI Health Center. At the 33rd event, leaders of all levels will opt In and explore the power of optimism intelligence — the intentional cultivation of human potential rooted in knowledge, hope, purpose and positive energy. The conference, which annually convenes nearly 3,000 attendees from more than 300 local, regional, national and international organizations, is open to people of all genders and identities. Early-bird pricing for in-person registrants is available until February 4. In-person registration closes on April 7.

Recent funding awarded under the Nebraska Convention Center Financing Assistance Act will provide $294,602 to 40 North Omaha organizations including nonprofits like Girls Inc. of Omaha, Omaha CARES and the MAYS Foundation. Chosen projects showcase important historical aspects, help to reduce street and gang violence or assist with small business and entrepreneurship growth in North Omaha.

Omaha native Darya Kaboli-Nejad has launched The Soraya Foundation, a nonprofit that provides scholarships for former collegiate student-athletes to continue on after their athletic careers to higher education—whether that’s law school, med school, graduate programs or PhDs.

This Christmas, Open Door Mission served around 900 meals and gave away more than 800 gifts. More than 350 donors chose to “Adopt a Guest” and give gifts for the men, women and children living on the Open Door Mission campus.

Omaha Community Foundation is accepting applications for the 2026 Community Interest Funds from January 1 to March 1. Local nonprofits and neighborhood groups can apply for funding through five resident-led grant programs:

• African American Unity Fund
• Futuro Latino Fund
• LGBTQIA2S+ Equality Fund
• Refugee Community Grant Fund
• Omaha Neighborhood Grants

Each program has unique eligibility requirements and priority areas. In 2025, these funds awarded $664,994 to 86 organizations.

Heartland Bike Share hosted its second Ride at The Dock fundraiser at Millwork Commons on December 17. The event invited participants to ride stationary bikes through a virtual landscape and raised about $20,000 to support HBS operations. CEO Benny Foltz rode about 126 miles over the 12-hour event.

The Nebraska Community Blood Bank is facing a shortage this month, falling about 400 donors short of the 1,000 they need each week. Those who donate blood before January 2 will get “a cozy beanie or a pair of lifesaver socks.”

After the public/private partnership between the City of Omaha and the Lozier Foundation was finalized this month, Front Porch Investments will begin distributing $40 million dedicated toward affordable housing production in the urban core beginning in January 2026.

Fontenelle Forest last week hosted its 126th annual Christmas Bird Count, which invites the public to tally the numbers of birds in the Forest. According to preliminary reports, volunteers identified 36 species and counted 2,554 individual birds. Some of the most frequently spotted species included European Starlings, American Robins, Canada Geese and White-breasted Nuthatches. Bald Eagles, Pileated Woodpeckers, Sharp-shinned and Cooper’s Hawks and Red-headed Woodpeckers were also sighted.