Longreads by The World-Herald
Sunday, Aug. 27, 2017
In 1919, Omaha's courthouse was burned, three men were killed and Omaha's mayor was lynched, nearly to death.
A new novel explores the tempestuous years leading up to one of the city's darkest days.
By Micah Mertes
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Sunday, May 14, 2017
STORY BY MARA KLECKER | PHOTOGRAPHY BY MEGAN FARMER | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Mara Klecker
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Sunday, April 23, 2017
For years Ashleigh Buch hid the fact that she was transgender. The Offutt airman reported to work each day as a man, telling colleagues little about her life. Off the base, in her Omaha apartment, above, she lived as a woman, donning wigs over the hair she kept trimmed short. But as part of a wave of social change to hit the military, the Air Force instructor’s days of appearing one way at work and another at home are over.
STORY BY STEVE LIEWER | PHOTOS BY SARAH HOFFMAN | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Steve Liewer
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Sunday, March 12, 2017
For area hunt club, it’s more about the rituals and the horses than going after a fox (or coyote).
By Blake Ursch
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Saturday, March 11, 2017
In our "Battle of Bluejays" bracket, we're asking for your take on the greatest Creighton men's basketball players in program history.
By World-Herald staff
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Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017
Pssst.
Have you heard what they’re teaching
kids about sex in Omaha Public Schools?
What you heard, it turns out, may not be true.
STORY BY JOE DEJKA AND ERIN DUFFY | ILLUSTRATIONS BY MATT HANEY | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Joe Dejka and Erin Duffy
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Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017
STORY BY JOE DEJKA AND ERIN DUFFY | ILLUSTRATIONS BY MATT HANEY | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Joe Dejka and Erin Duffy
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Sunday, Jan. 29, 2017
Few know the story of the criminal Pat Crowe and his once-famous kidnapping scheme, but Omaha author Andrew Hilleman wants to bring the legend back to life. Hilleman knew the story would be a great basis for a novel because, “You just couldn’t make this stuff up.”
By Micah Mertes
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Sunday, Jan. 15, 2017
Film Streams hopes to renovate and reopen the Dundee Theater by the end of 2017.
In addition to reviving the 300-seat screen, the building will boast a few new coming attractions: a restaurant, a bookstore and a second screen.
Here's what it will look like, and here's what it could mean for Omaha.
By Micah Mertes
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Sunday, Jan. 15, 2017
A century removed from its first official contest, Creighton is among the most viable — and visible — programs in the rugged, basketball-fueled Big East. The Jays have a nationally ranked team, and they play home games in front of packed houses in an enormous, modern arena. They’ve become relevant in the battle for top recruits. It seems like all of this unfolded overnight. It didn’t. Today we examine the characters and events that paved the way for a cozy, small-school program to grow into a big-time hoops machine.
By Jon Nyatawa
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Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016
Sam Foltz’s death prompted an outpouring of support that helped heal his family’s broken hearts. More than 1,000 letters, cards and gifts prompted something just as remarkable: a mother’s mission to say thank you.
By Dirk Chatelain
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Saturday, Nov. 19, 2016
Elkhorn South star, adopted from Sierra Leone, finds love here, someday hopes to reconnect with birth father
By Dirk Chatelain
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Saturday, Nov. 5, 2016
A vault in the far corner of the museum's lower level is home to some 9,000 historical items collected by one of city’s founding fathers.
By Courtney Brummer-Clark
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Monday, Oct. 24, 2016
“I’m shocked, I’m so disappointed, I’m so disgusted, I’m a social worker!” she yelled rapid-fire, then gathered herself for a moment. “I don’t even have words for this,” she said. “But I’m sick. This just makes me sick.”
COLUMN BY MATTHEW HANSEN | ILLUSTRATIONS BY MATT HANEY | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Matthew Hansen
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Monday, Oct. 24, 2016
Goodwill Omaha’s executive pay is causing some county officials to raise new questions about whether the organization’s thrift stores should remain exempt from property taxes.
STORY BY HENRY J. CORDES | ILLUSTRATIONS BY MATT HANEY | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Henry J. Cordes
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Monday, Oct. 24, 2016
Several leaders of Goodwill Omaha are related to others in management. Regardless of the quality of their work, an official with a national charity watchdog said nonprofit organizations that rely on donations from the public should avoid questions of favoritism that could lead to public doubt.
STORY BY HENRY J. CORDES | ILLUSTRATIONS BY MATT HANEY | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Henry J. Cordes
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Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016
A World-Herald analysis of IRS tax filings found Goodwill Omaha spends a higher percentage of its budget on CEO compensation than almost any large Goodwill affiliate in the country.
STORY BY HENRY J. CORDES | ILLUSTRATIONS BY MATT HANEY | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Henry J. Cordes
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Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016
Interviews with the former employees reveal a deep frustration that starts with money — specifically, the six-figure salaries for the CEO and other executives — but then dives much deeper into what they see as the nonprofit’s broken culture.
COLUMN BY MATTHEW HANSEN | ILLUSTRATIONS BY MATT HANEY | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Matthew Hansen
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Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016
Big salaries, bonuses and lucrative retirement packages are funded in large part by revenue from the charity’s signature thrift stores. So that compensation doesn’t need approval from governments or private donors.
STORY BY HENRY J. CORDES | ILLUSTRATIONS BY MATT HANEY | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Henry J. Cordes
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Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016
Some Goodwills and other organizations have stopped paying workers with disabilities less than the minimum wage. Despite the lucrative salaries of its top executives, Goodwill Omaha continues the controversial practice.
STORY BY HENRY J. CORDES | ILLUSTRATIONS BY MATT HANEY | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Henry J. Cordes
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Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016
High executive pay at Goodwill Omaha — higher than at other Omaha nonprofits, and higher than at most comparable Goodwills around the country — hurts the organization’s ability to carry out its mission.
STORY BY HENRY J. CORDES | ILLUSTRATIONS BY MATT HANEY | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Henry J. Cordes
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Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016
Goodwill does need to attract and retain leaders who know the business world, but local experts on nonprofits are taken aback at the generous level of compensation. After all, the Omaha charity is a nonprofit.
STORY BY HENRY J. CORDES | ILLUSTRATIONS BY MATT HANEY | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Henry J. Cordes
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Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016
A Goodwill Omaha effort to raise money by repackaging hair rollers for a private company appears to violate federal rules for “Made in America” labeling.
COLUMN BY MATTHEW HANSEN | ILLUSTRATIONS BY MATT HANEY | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Matthew Hansen
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Saturday, Sept. 10, 2016
Leo Pluhacek wanted a ‘normal’ life, an independent life like his older brother’s. But with epilepsy, he is learning to deal with what comes in his quest for independence.
BY ERIN GRACE | WORLD-HERALD COLUMNIST | PHOTOS BY SARAH HOFFMAN
By Erin Grace
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Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016
Home-field advantage has plummeted across the sport's major conferences, especially in the Big Ten. What’s turning it upside down?
By Dirk Chatelain
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Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2016
BY BETSIE FREEMAN | PHOTOS BY MATT DIXON | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Betsie Freeman
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Saturday, Aug. 13, 2016
BY RICK RUGGLES | PHOTOS BY RYAN SODERLIN | THE WORLD HERALD
By Rick Ruggles
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Saturday, July 30, 2016
For 27 years, Jim Bochnicek and the rest of the Jimmy B Orchestra have loaded onto a bus and traveled from small town to small town, playing big band classics in crowded ballrooms. As the band plays its final dance, it pays homage to a passing era as Jimmy B gets ready to retire his drumsticks.
By Michael Kelly | World-Herald columnist | Photos by Matt Dixon
By Michael Kelly
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Saturday, July 30, 2016
Like the gift left from his hunting buddies, Husker punter Sam Foltz was a Golden Boy with small-town roots
By Tom Shatel / World-Herald columnist
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Saturday, July 16, 2016
Reaching great heights and handling the pressure are reasons Kadie and Amber Rolfzen are named the 2016 winners of the Fred Ware Award, presented Sunday for the 36th time by The World-Herald.
By Rich Kaipust
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Sunday, July 10, 2016
When an American couple adopted an infant from a Russian orphanage, it seemed that fortune had smiled upon the 13-month-old girl. But within three years, Carolyne's adoptive parents in Nebraska gave her up to the state. Authorities placed Carolyne in emergency foster care with an uncertain future. But one family's tragedy was another family's blessing.
STORY BY JOE DEJKA | PHOTOS BY MEGAN SMITH AND CHRIS MACHIAN | THE WORLD-HERALD
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Saturday, June 25, 2016
When he pitches, Chase Caspersen isn't thinking about the scar running up his arm. He isn't thinking about the chemo, or the doctors, or the doubt. When bone cancer threatened his arm six years ago, no one was sure if he would ever throw a baseball again. Now, the 15-year-old fifth-generation ballplayer is defying the odds, playing the game he loves.
BY MICHAEL O'CONNOR | PHOTOS BY MEGAN FARMER | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Michael O'Connor
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Saturday, June 25, 2016
Almost nobody saw this day coming. June 1, 1991, when Omaha’s cozy, laid-back 42-year summer tradition suddenly feels brand-new. Look up. A plane overhead pulls a banner: “Go Creighton Bluejays!” They’re down in the first-base clubhouse, the hometown team.
By Dirk Chatelain
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Sunday, June 19, 2016
BY MATTHEW HANSEN | PHOTOS BY SARAH HOFFMAN | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Matthew Hansen
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Saturday, June 18, 2016
STORY BY BETSIE FREEMAN | PHOTOS BY BRENDAN SULLIVAN | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Betsie Freeman
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Saturday, June 4, 2016
Drew Wilson looked across the table at the homeless shelter and saw a familiar face. It couldn't be, could it?
Dad?
BY ERIN GRACE | WORLD-HERALD COLUMNIST | PHOTOS BY SARAH HOFFMAN
By Erin Grace
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Wednesday, June 1, 2016
Activities will run on the Omaha riverfront all weekend. Organizer Mike Mancuso said one of the festival’s main goals is to expose Omahans to new flavors and styles of cuisine.
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Sunday, May 29, 2016
A salute to the fallen officers of the Omaha Police Department
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Saturday, May 28, 2016
He's one of Nebraska's most accomplished high school students and one of the state's elite soccer players. But Papillion-La Vista South senior Adam Dejka stands out for one more reason — his silence.
By Dirk Chatelain
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Saturday, May 14, 2016
Omaha dad Tim Cacioppo has ALS. Despite his diagnosis, he's doing everything he can to keep his family's life as normal as possible, while imparting life lessons now and preserving some moments for later.
STORY BY MICHAEL O'CONNOR | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Michael O'Connor
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Saturday, May 14, 2016
Hector Orozco still wears his wedding ring a year after losing his wife and mother of his child. He reflects on one year without Kerrie.
By Alia Conley
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Saturday, April 30, 2016
Earlier releases are just a warmup. The summer movie season starts ... now!
BY MICAH MERTES | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Micah Mertes
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Saturday, April 23, 2016
By Micah Mertes
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Sunday, April 17, 2016
Omaha is no Hollywood, but during the past week the hometown of director Alexander Payne got a front row seat to movie-making.
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Saturday, April 16, 2016
Hockey isn't an official high school sport in Nebraska, but one metro school is home to 40 of the best youth hockey players in the country. At Douglas County West, players find the schedules, teachers, and environment they need to make it to the next level.
STORY BY HENRY J. CORDES | PHOTOGRAPHY BY MEGAN FARMER | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Henry J. Cordes
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Saturday, April 9, 2016
From 2010 through 2014, 57 gun crimes occurred in north Omaha’s Bedford Place. The 10-block area had the highest total in the city.
In 2015, the gun violence ended.
But why?
STORY BY MATT WYNN | PHOTOS BY MATT MILLER | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Matt Wynn
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Saturday, March 26, 2016
Deuel County Deputy Sheriff Mike Hutchinson was ambushed and shot four times at close range while serving an arrest warrant in Big Springs on Dec. 3. He is alive today because of a series of extraordinary coincidences, good fortune, and the heroic efforts of others.
STORY BY DAVID HENDEE | PHOTOGRAPHS BY MATT DIXON | THE WORLD-HERALD
By David Hendee
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Monday, March 21, 2016
By Matthew Hansen, World-Herald columnist / Photos and video by Brendan Sullivan, The World-Herald
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Wednesday, March 16, 2016
In the most Irish town in Nebraska, an Irish-American named Patricia will celebrate her 100th birthday with a very Irish party that will include stories, poems and a toast or two. Patricia Sullivan Donohoe was born in O'Neill in 1916, taught in one-room school houses and continues to thrive at home on land her Irish immigrant forbears homesteaded.
By Erin Grace / World-Herald columnist / Photos by Sarah Hoffman
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Saturday, March 12, 2016
18 men in an Air Force crew of 24 survived a 1981 crash at Shemya — an island off Alaska, where the Bering Sea collided with the Pacific Ocean. Tuesday at Offutt, the Air Force will salute the 6 who didn’t.
By Steve Liewer
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Friday, Feb. 26, 2016
World-Herald movie guy Micah Mertes takes on the Academy Awards. Who will win, who should win, who might win. There's a whole lotta uncertainty heading into Sunday's ceremony.
By Micah Mertes
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Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016
More than 10,000 people attend Terence "Bud" Crawford’s fights in Omaha. Nearly a million others, sometimes more, tune in to watch the champ showcase his gifts on Saturday nights on HBO. But very few get to see him — or any other world-class boxer — hone his craft during a grueling training camp that precedes fight night. The World-Herald did that, joining Crawford for a full day (and a few hours) during the third of his six weeks of training.
By staff writer Tony Boone; photos by Sarah Hoffman / The World-Herald
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Saturday, Feb. 20, 2016
How bad did it get for Erica Brown-Zamudio, an on-and-off meth addict of 16 years? Three times child welfare officials took her kids. Her probation officer was ready to make the call to send her back to jail, killing any chance of getting her boys back. But given one last shot, something changed. Two years later, she knows she’s not out of this. But there is hope, for her and others facing the same struggle.
By Casey Logan
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Saturday, Feb. 13, 2016
THERE IS A CUBA THAT WORDS CANNOT CAPTURE. THIS IS THAT CUBA.
By Matthew Hansen
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Friday, Feb. 12, 2016
FORMER GOV. DAVE HEINEMAN MADE THE MOST SURPRISING OF ACQUAINTANCES — CUBAN DICTATOR FIDEL CASTRO — DURING A TIME WHEN NEBRASKA WAS MAKING MILLIONS OF DOLLARS' WORTH OF AG DEALS WITH CUBA. TODAY, THAT TRADE RELATIONSHIP IS BROKEN, AND AG LEADERS SAY ENDING THE EMBARGO WILL FIX IT.
By Matthew Hansen
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Thursday, Feb. 11, 2016
FOR DECADES, ROCK MUSIC WAS BANNED IN CUBA BY FIDEL CASTRO. BUT A BEATLES' TRIBUTE BAR IS REVIVING ROCK 'N' ROLL IN HAVANA. STEP INSIDE THE SUBMARINO AMARILLO, THE CITY'S HELTER-SKELTER ROCK CLUB.
By Matthew Hansen
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Thursday, Feb. 11, 2016
THOUSANDS OF AMERICANS HAVE NEVER BEEN REPAID FOR THE HOMES, LAND AND PROPERTY FIDEL CASTRO SEIZED IN THE AFTERMATH OF THE CUBAN REVOLUTION. FIFTY-SEVEN YEARS LATER, THEY ARE STILL FIGHTING TO REGAIN WHAT THEY LOST, AND AN OMAHA WOMAN HAS BECOME OF THE LEADERS OF THIS FIGHT.
By Matthew Hansen
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Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2016
CUBANS ARE FLEEING THEIR HOMELAND AND ENTERING THE UNITED STATES AT A RECORD PACE. TODAY, TWO 30-SOMETHING CUBANS WOULD LIKE TO TELL YOU A STORY THAT VEERS FROM RURAL CUBA TO OMAHA'S EPPLEY AIRFIELD. OCTAVIO AND NIURIS WOULD LIKE TO TELL YOU ABOUT WHAT THEY LOST BY LEAVING, AND WHAT THEY FOUND.
By Matthew Hansen
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Sunday, Feb. 7, 2016
YOU THINK IT'S HARD TO START A SMALL BUSINESS? TRY IT IN HAVANA. THERE, TWO YOUNG WOMEN HAVE STARTED THE COUNTRY'S FIRST INDEPENDENT DESIGN STORE AND GOTTEN INTERNATIONAL ATTENTION. THEY HAVE ALSO FELT THE BLUNT FORCE OF THE CUBAN STATE.
By Matthew Hansen
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Saturday, Feb. 6, 2016
By Matthew Hansen
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Saturday, Feb. 6, 2016
BY RYAN SODERLIN | THE WORLD-HERALD
By Ryan Soderlin
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Saturday, Feb. 6, 2016
By Matthew Hansen
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Saturday, Feb. 6, 2016
OUR VIEW OF CUBA IS WARPED BY THE COLD WAR, DISTORTED BY A HALF-CENTURY-LONG EMBARGO, BLURRED BY THE DIFFICULTY OF TRAVELING TO CUBA AND MEETING REGULAR CUBANS ON THEIR OWN TERMS. STARTING TODAY, THE WORLD-HERALD AIMS TO PRESENT A CLEAR-EYED PICTURE OF CUBA IN 2016: THE COUNTRY'S RAPID CHANGE, ITS UPSIDE-DOWN ECONOMY, ITS FRUSTRATED YOUNG ADULTS, ITS NEWFOUND FREEDOMS AND THE HOPE AND FEAR OF THE FUTURE.
By Matthew Hansen
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Saturday, Dec. 26, 2015
By Steve Jordon
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Thursday, Dec. 24, 2015
World-Herald archive photos tell the stories of holiday displays and traditions of yesteryear.
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Saturday, Dec. 19, 2015
Paul Beranek's tenacious style turned Ravenna into a basketball force.
As cancer takes his life, his sons are picking up his legacy.
By Dirk Chatelain
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Monday, Nov. 23, 2015
JJ Ventura, age 41: "I think a lot of OPS teachers, we care a lot about our kids. We know a lot of them have hardships, and we try to help."
By Erin Duffy
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Monday, Nov. 23, 2015
Steve Skidmore, age 62: “I was one of those kids. If we have the ability to help them, why would you not?”
By Cindy Gonzalez
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Monday, Nov. 23, 2015
Rachael Johnson, age 21: “I started to realize that I’m not an inspiration because I broke my neck. I’m an inspiration because I’m me.”
By Matthew Hansen
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Monday, Nov. 23, 2015
Gannie Clark, “over 60,”: "You get attached! You see the need. You can see the need. It's not that easy to throw your hands up."
By Erin Grace
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Monday, Nov. 23, 2015
Win Finegan, age 76: “It’s OK to cry as long as you aren’t the person who has to be consoled.”
By Rick Ruggles
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Saturday, Nov. 14, 2015
By Chris Peters
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Saturday, Oct. 31, 2015
Two decades before there was Caitlyn Jenner, a Nebraska farmer made a similar journey
By Erin Grace
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Saturday, Oct. 17, 2015
By Alissa Skelton
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Saturday, Oct. 10, 2015
Before October 2005, there was a hole in Omaha's art scene.
The Holland Performing Arts Center filled it beautifully.
By Betsie Freeman
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Saturday, Oct. 10, 2015
Fetal alcohol syndrome is rampant among children born on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.
By Paul Hammel
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Saturday, Aug. 29, 2015
Some stay, some will go home, but no one was untouched
By Erin Grace
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Saturday, Aug. 22, 2015
My childhood doctor has ALS. But Dr. Tom is breaking his imposed silence to shout, again, for patients.
By Matthew Hansen
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Saturday, July 11, 2015
Due to a low participation rate and lack of an official push, it's as if residents are tossing money into a landfill.
By Henry J. Cordes
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Sunday, July 5, 2015
In 1951, during the height of the Cold War, Omaha's Peter Kiewit Sons' Inc. led work on one of the most ambitious building projects in military history. The task: Build an airstrip in frigid Greenland in just 100 days.
By Steve Jordon
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Tuesday, June 16, 2015
A look at several town landmarks damaged in the deadly tornado that hit Pilger, Nebraska, one year ago today.
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Monday, June 8, 2015
People with severe mental illness struggle with the complexity of their disease and with a confusing system that doesn’t always help. The following is the third in a three-part series by Erin Grace.
By Erin Grace
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Sunday, June 7, 2015
People with severe mental illness struggle with the complexity of their disease and with a confusing system that doesn’t always help. The following is the second in a three-part series by Erin Grace.
By Erin Grace
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Saturday, June 6, 2015
People with severe mental illness struggle with the complexity of their disease and with a confusing system that doesn’t always help. The following is the first in a three-part series by Erin Grace.
By Erin Grace
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Saturday, May 2, 2015
As a powerful tornado made its way through the Omaha area, the gutsy tornado tracking of Police Officer David Campbell, among others, helped keep the death toll to three.
Also read:
'Out of tragedy there was a rebirth'
By Nancy Gaarder
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Saturday, May 2, 2015
Tougher building codes and interfaith cooperation are just part of the legacy of the 1975 tornado that slammed Omaha. Some have called Omaha's rebound, spurred by thousands of volunteers, a textbook tornado recovery.
Also read: Officer tracks the beast, provides live-saving reports
By Nancy Gaarder
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Thursday, April 30, 2015
Nearly four months after suffering the unimaginable,
the Hughes family is trying to heal and find a new normal.
By Emily Nohr
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Wednesday, April 22, 2015
Louis Bostwick's photos are an essential part of the Durham Museum collection. Together, the images tell the story of a city in the early decades of the 20th century.
By Michael O'Connor
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Sunday, April 5, 2015
Nebraska loses its longtime spot among the top 10 low- cost electricity states.
By Henry J. Cordes
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Thursday, April 2, 2015
The Food Prowl team was faced with the task of finding Omaha's best onion rings.
The results are in, but the winner isn't actually in Omaha.
By Sarah Baker Hansen
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Saturday, March 14, 2015
Former co-workers say Hank Bounds fixes what’s broken with a combination of high expectations, modesty and a low tolerance for failure. He gets it done.
By Kate Howard
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Friday, Feb. 13, 2015
Love is all around this time of year with woman’s vast valentine collection.
By Lexie Heinle
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Saturday, Jan. 31, 2015
A nuclear reactor operated by the VA Medical Center in Omaha from 1959 to 2001 is believed to be the only one of its kind in the country inside a hospital.
Either this year or next, all its pieces will be gone for good.
By Steve Liewer
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Saturday, Jan. 10, 2015
For at least two decades, serial stalker Dammon Haynes terrorized women.
He seemed unstoppable. Then someone stopped him.
By Erin Grace
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