Midlands Business Journal May 14, 2021 Vol. 47 No. 20 issue

Midlands Business Journal • MAY 14, 2021 •

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Career

Development A section prepared by the staff of the Midlands Business Journal

May 14, 2021

Local job openings abundant, talent remains in demand

by Gabby Hellbusch

Local talent across various industries is in high demand recently, causing employers to adjust to the current landscape.

Zoe Olson, executive director for the Nebraska Restaurant Association, said the jobs outlook in Nebraska for the hospitality industry is tough right now.

“Nebraska is tied for the lowest unemployment percentage in the nation,” Olson said.

Olson “We simply do not have the people to fill the needs of employers.

“Every restaurant I know is looking for staff and for all positions. Currently, many restaurants are cutting days and hours of operation in order to not overwork staff and to be able to give guests the great experience they expect from our industry. Additionally, many are also reducing capacity by removing and/or distancing tables to ensure a quality experience utilizing their staff to guest ratio for their particular establishment.”

She said more third-party delivery companies are looking to take a portion of the low margins restaurants are operating on.

Another trend is utilizing the technology developed during the indoor dining shutdown last year, like QR code menus, as well as contactless credit card payment.

“Fast casual restaurants are looking more toward automating their stores as the worker shortage in all businesses continues,” Olson said.

Andrew Ives, director of culture and talent development at Fusion Medical Staffing, said the past year’s events have impacted the health care industry in ways that no one could have predicted.

“With the medical staffing industry constantly evolving, Fusion continues to put travelers, internal employees and culture first,” Ives said. “We have a vast assortment of open internal positions to continue to lead the way within the industry. Fusion’s core values are to positively impact every life we touch and,

in doing so, we have created a lasting impression on the local community, as well as nationwide.”

As the need for traveling health care workers continues to expand, he said Fusion has been expanding its sales teams to meet this demand and provide the best possible service to travelers and clients.

“This growth has also led us to significant investments in our technology, marketing, Bouchard compliance and several other departments, which has opened even more positions within our internal staff,” Ives said.

Chris Bouchard, director of talent acquisition at Lutz, said many companies are looking for candidates.

“However, finding quality candidates is very difficult,” Bouchard said. “Candidates are still concerned about how COVID has and will affect business.

Whenever we get a new president, people also seem to sit tight in their current roles, waiting to see what may change with the economy. With the labor market so tight, we are having to proactively recruit passive candidates. Even doing this, candidates are very reluctant to make a change, knowing they have a role and hopefully stability.”

Currently, he said most industries are struggling to find top talent. Companies are also working to keep culture and communication strong among team members.

“Companies are really focused on keeping the ones they have through different means,” Bouchard said. “Work from home is something we now have more of and will continue to see going forward.

“Companies are beefing up recruiting departments to keep up with the constant flow of potential candidates,” he said.

“Search firms and staffing agencies are also being relied on more than ever to help find top talent. Times are changing and companies will have to continue to adapt to hiring trends if they want to attract and retain top talent today and in the future.”

Andrew Ives, director of culture and talent development at Fusion Medical Staffing.

Career Development — inside MAY 14, 2021

THE BUSINESS NEWSPAPER OF GREATER OMAHA, LINCOLN AND COUNCIL BLUFFS

THIS WEEK ’S ISSUE:

$2.00

VOL. 47 NO. 20

In 75th year Cobalt Credit Union invests in high-tech and high-touch

by Michelle Leach

Focus Business Financing assists clients with financial education, funding.

– Page 2

40 er d Un 40 Smits Wilson a force in local advertising industry at Smith Kroeger.

– Page 4

ds ren lT a g Le

Pandemic’s effects on economy, workplaces driving need for legal assistance. – Page 5

Investments in the likes of video banking and interactive teller machines predate COVID-19, and have resonated in an environment that demands such technologies; ITM transactions have reportedly surged by 450%, and new video banking users peaked at 13,000 in one month during the pandemic, according to new leadership with Cobalt Credit Union, which is also celebrating 75 years.

“In January 2020, we had 160 new people using video banking,” said President and CEO Robin Larsen, when putting the aforementioned new users into perspective.

“In 2019, we were one of the first credit unions in the nation to roll out video banking for our members … Video banking has enhanced our ability to provide banking support to our military members stationed overseas. Additionally, it has also provided a new level of service to our members who have disabilities or are unable to drive.”

Larsen spoke to the MidContinued on page 8.

New President and CEO Robin Larsen … Certified in-house financial counselors, new Gretna and Lincoln branches among myriad changes on the horizon for credit union. (Photo by MBJ / Becky McCarville)

Offering plant-based choices, Ital Vital Living serves fresh and healthy foods

by Gabby Hellbusch

Passionate about veganism and plant-based eating, Imani Murray started a YouTube channel in 2019 with the intent to share recipes and insight with others who were exploring a plant-based lifestyle.

From there, the concept grew organically into what is now known as Ital Vital Living, a business providing healthy plant-based options to Omaha consumers.

Located inside No More Empty

Pots, the business offers delivery and curbside pick-up for cold press juices, smoothie bowls and vegan dehydrated snacks, all of which can be purchased via the store’s website.

Family-operated, Ital Vital Living aims to serve those who are looking for nutritious options that will support a healthy lifestyle.

Growing up in the north Omaha community, Murray said it was Continued on page 9.

Owner Amelia Rosser … Helping customers find the right plant and materials to be successful is paramount to business model.

Steeped in history, Sheelytown Market brings together houseplants, community

by Savannah Behrends

Owner Imani Murray … The plant-based snack and juice business has grown through pop-ups in local businesses.

Under the guise of selling houseplants, Sheelytown Market owner Amelia Rosser is cultivating a community that acknowledges the past while building a more inclusive, collaborative future.

“It’s about business, but also it’s about what’s better for all of us,” she said. “I think that’s a big reason for our success — that it’s

not just mine, it’s everyone’s.”

The notion for the collective good is infused in every facet of the business, from making plant “parentship” accessible and simple, to showcasing local makers and artisans and providing space for political candidates.

A combination of support for local artists and political candidates led to the installation of Continued on page 10.

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• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal

Focus Business Financing assists clients with financial education, funding “Many people can’t qualify for financing

by Gabby Hellbusch Many business owners and professionals due to credit issues. While other lenders simneed help securing loans and other funding for ply tell the client ‘no,’ we take a consultative their businesses, which is what led to the cre- approach. We discuss with the client the speation of Focus Business Financing, a company cific reasons they were denied. In the case of credit problems, we helping businesses and refer them to our credit real estate investors Focus Business Financing repair partner. We’ve secure alternative fi- Phone: 402-496-2007 had much success getnancing options while Founded: 2012 ting their credit repaired also offering financial Service: solutions for financing needs so that they qualify for education workshops Goal: expand throughout U.S., share financing.” for businesses and or- financial education Mark Eldridge, Websites: www.FocusBusinessFinancing. ganizations. who spent the first 10 Today, there are com; www.FocusFranLoans.com; www. years of his career as a two divisions under FocusBF.com; www.FocusFinancialEduCPA in public accountthe Focus brand: Focus cation.org ing, has noted deficienBusiness Financing and cies in financial education over time.

Focus Financial Education.

He discovered that there were two signifFounder Mark Eldridge, who carries out the role of CEO, works alongside Mitchell El- icant financial topics that needed to be taught: dridge who serves as president of the company. alternative financing options available to Both have nearly 20 years of experience in the businesses, and financial literacy to the mass population. industry.

“That led us to create two primary educaThe company, which has many national lending partners, offers funding services tional workshops: Alternative Ways To Finance Your Business and Financial Literacy: How throughout the U.S. “We provide funding for a lot of startups Money Works,” he said. “There is a financial and acquisitions that have no collateral,” Mark illiteracy crisis in our country that’s having Eldridge said. “We consistently provide financ- devastating personal and business consequencing for businesses and real estate investors who es. Many people are lost when it comes to their are declined by their banks or other alternative personal financial situation.”

Studies have consistently shown a multitude lenders.

Business Minute

President Mitchell Eldridge, left, and CEO Mark Eldridge … Offering solutions for financing and financial literacy education for businesses. of benefits for providing financial education, there is no selling involved. including increased bottom-line financial reIn addition to helping solve clients’ fisults, increased productivity, increased morale, nancing challenges, relationships with various increased employee loyalty, reduction in health professionals are important to the team. care costs and improved company culture.

“Our banker and commercial loan officer As for the company’s financial literacy relationships are critical,” he said. “We fill an workshops, Eldridge said these are very unique important need they have when they’re not able in the marketplace, as they are educational and to help with their clients’ financing needs. When they send their client to us and we’re able to help their client, that banker or commercial loan officer becomes a hero in the eyes of their client.”

Paid Content On the education side, Eldridge said being able to remove financial stress and give people hope that they can reach their financial and life goals, protect their families and leave a legacy for their children is highly rewarding.

The result of having a growing business and ongoing innovations means more time demands LLP Continued on page 8.

Scott Becker Managing Partner, HBE

Associations/Titles: Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Certified Valuation Analyst (CVA), Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) Hometown: Harvard, Nebraska Education: University of Nebraska-Lincoln

How I got into the business: I was working at a bank and was lucky enough to get introduced to the partners at HBE. I had interviewed at other places, but after meeting them, I was immediately drawn to the profession.

Accomplishments or milestones: I became Managing Partner of HBE in 2002. In 2012, I was recognized by Accounting Today as a Managing Partner Elite, one of just 10 across the nation. I am incredibly proud of the growth and accomplishments of the firm and our team, having grown from a single-office firm of about 35, to now being a firm of nearly 100 employees with offices in Lincoln, Norfolk, and Omaha.

First job: While attending college at UNL, I worked at Union Bank & Trust.

Biggest career break: Not leaving HBE. At one time, I was seriously considering going to law school. The leaders at HBE convinced me to stay due to more opportunities. This was absolutely the right decision; my career with the firm has been great, and I have no regrets!

The toughest part of the job: The compliance driven tax season and helping our team with work/life balance during these times.

The best advice I have received: The importance of setting and prioritizing goals, and being committed to the accountability of those goals. At HBE, we are a very goal-oriented firm and frequently set and re-visit our goals, both short-term and long-term, to ensure that we are a leader in the profession.

About my family: My wife Amy and I have three children: Ally (junior at UNL), Alex (senior at Pius X), and Sam (freshman at Pius X).

Something else I’d like to accomplish: The future is bright for the profession and there is so much more I’d like to accomplish. Top on the list: keep growing HBE in the Omaha market, continue providing career-building opportunities

for our team, and focusing on advisory services to help our clients get better.

How my business will change in the next decade: As a whole, public accounting is accelerating toward an advisory industry. This acceleration has been even more pronounced and important over the past year. Other anticipated disruptions include the move to remote or blended work environments, succession planning and transitioning to next-gen leaders, and, of course, technology.

Mentor who has helped the most in my career: John Hanigan, previous HBE managing partner and founder of HBE Wealth Management.

Outside interests: Golf, watching kids swim competitively, Husker sports, and running.

Favorite vacation spot: Florida.

Other careers I would like to try: Youth swimming coach and/or medical doctor.

Favorite cause or charity: St. Peters Catholic Church.

Favorite app: Spotify.

Interested in being featured in the Business Minute? Email news@mbj.com for more information.

Midlands Business Journal Established in 1975

FOUNDER, Robert Hoig

ADMINISTRATION PUBLISHER, Andrea “Andee” Hoig

EDITORIAL EDITOR & VICE PRESIDENT OF NEWS, Tiffany Brazda EDITORIAL ASSISTANT, Savannah Behrends STAFF WRITER, Becky McCarville

ADVERTISING ADVERTISING CONSULTANT, Julie Whitehead OFFICE OFFICE ASSISTANT, Rosemary Gregurich (402) 330-1760 Zane D. Randall (1925-2006) Co-founder LeAnne M. Iwan (1932-1986) First News Editor

The Midlands Business Journal (ISSN 0194-4525) is published weekly plus one by MBJ Inc. and is available for $2.00 per individual copy or $75 per year. Editorial offices are 1308 S. 119th St., Omaha, NE 68144. Periodical postage paid at Omaha NE POSTMASTER; Send address changes to Midlands Business Journal, 1308 S. 119th St., Omaha, NE 68144. All submissions to the Midlands Business Journal become the property of the Midlands Business Journal and will not be returned.

Written permission must be obtained from Midlands Business Journal and MBJ, Inc., to post any of our stories or other published materials on a website. Under no circumstances, because of spamming potential and other issues, will permission be granted to transmit our stories by email.

-The Publisher.

Midlands Business Journal • MAY 14, 2021 •

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• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal

Smits Wilson a force in local advertising industry at Smith Kroeger

by Dwain Hebda

Quickly climbing the ranks is an understatement for Sara Smits Wilson, executive vice president of client services for Smith Kroeger.

At 31, she’s already directly worked with more than 50 companies on various branding, marketing and PR initiatives from global anti-terrorism companies to multimillion-dollar consumer brands. She became an ownership partner at SKAR Advertising by age 26, and 2020 when that firm was purchased in 2019, she was promoted to executive vice president of the new entity, Smith Kroeger, at age 29.

Accomplishing what many would see as a career’s worth of achievements in less than a decade took hard work, consistent drive and the right opportunities, she said.

“Practically speaking, working at a small business versus a global agency provides a lot of growth opportunities for people who have a strong work ethic and a drive to do well,” she said. “Through the fortunate circumstance of working at a small- to medium-sized agency, I’ve been given those opportunities to show leadership and take ownership. I feel really lucky in that.”

Smits Wilson was an overachiever before she ever hit the working world. The daughter of a Navy man, she earned two undergraduate degrees from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Executive Vice President of Client Services Sara Smits Wilson … Utilizing leadership skills and drive to offer relevant marketing tools to client base. in 2010 — journalism and business administra- what drives me.”

Timing also had something to do with Smits tion in marketing — with which she graduated with high and highest distinction, respectively. Wilson’s success. She said she came into the She said her upbringing also sowed early the advertising and marketing profession during a seeds of attributes that would serve her well in unique era when many established companies were looking to reach a younger audience in her chosen profession.

“I am the oldest of three siblings, so with their branding and marketing communications. that comes some inherent leadership tendencies, Given that, she was afforded a leading seat at the tendency to want to help people and want the table much earlier than in previous eras. to guide them and figuring out what’s going on so other people can be better-informed and Proud Sponsors of the 2020 on same page,” she said. “As a result, I was always really motivated to learn everything in school and college. When someone asked me a question, I wanted to have the answer. So, that’s

“I came into the industry during a time when there was constant change, not even change year-to-year, but change month-tomonth,” she said. “So many companies don’t have the time to keep up, that’s not their specialty. Knowing that that’s the velocity of change meant when people come to us, they know that they need help updating things and that things are different than they were five years ago, or even two years ago.

“The clients we work with are people who recognize that and it’s the reason they’re coming to us in the first place. So, the fact that the person they’re talking to is 20 years their junior doesn’t bother them. That’s what they’re looking for; they're not looking for feedback from someone at their same seniority level.”

At the same time, Smits Wilson doesn’t completely shun the long-held advertising fundamentals. To the contrary, she said combining those tactics with cutting-edge delivery and media are what separate leading businesses from the field, especially last year.

“There are definitely some things that never change in marketing and advertising. It’s always going to be an awareness game,” she said.

“But as some companies unfortunately found out last year, you can’t rely only on personal touchpoints anymore. If you don’t have strong communications strategies in place, it can be very hard to sustain the business.”

40 Under 40:

Midlands Business Journal • MAY 14, 2021 •

Legal

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Trends

A section prepared by the staff of the Midlands Business Journal

May 14, 2021

Pandemic’s effects on economy, workplaces driving need for legal assistance

by Michelle Leach

From negotiating new agreements for struggling tenants and landlords, to demands for estate planning services and guidance on return-to-work policies, to say Midlands law firms are “busy” would be a vast understatement.

“With our practice focusing primarily on commercial real estate transactions, we saw a large increase in lease and loan workouts, both with our clients on the landlord and tenant side,” said Jen Rattner of Ringenberg and Rattner Law. Dvorak “Retail tenants seem to have been hit the hardest during the COVID-19 pandemic and both the tenants and landlords were forced to navigate through unchartered territory.”

Rattner, who is a founding partner in the firm owned by Kendra Ringenberg, said many landlords and tenants were able to come to agreements on deferred or abated rent to help retail tenants while their industries struggled.

“And many lenders were willing to negotiate interest only periods or other alternative financing terms during this time to help the landlords as well,” she said. “We think this trend is likely to continue for at least a portion of 2021.”

Dave Dvorak characterized Dvorak Law Group’s corporate, estate planning and tax, and litigation groups as “exceptionally busy” over the past year.

“Our corporate group saw heightened levels of deal flow in the latter part of last year and early this year, and maintained traditional levels of corporate activity along with significant new work in the PPP loan space,” said the president and chair of the firm’s executive committee. “Estate planning/tax saw an unprecedented level of high and ultra-high net worth planning fueled by anticipated tax law changes resulting from the election cycle. Our litigation group remained steady and active, despite the logistical challenges related to COVID.” Executive Vice President and Executive Committee Member Dave Mayer attributed activity in the above areas to “strong markets, expanding economy, perceived and actual decrease in COVID-related complications, and anticipated changes in tax and other

ployment priorities under the Biden-Harris Administration. These shifts include the Protecting the Right to Organize Act (PRO Act), and they are generally monitoring labor activity closely.

“We anticipate a new approach by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which

Jen Rattner, attorney at Ringenberg and Rattner Law. regulatory schemes.” employment and benefits, has been answering When asked about general vulnerabilities questions from clients about return-to-workor legal blind spots that smaller organiza- type issues; for instance, how to maintain tions are likely facing, Mayer referred to the safe workplaces, employee vaccinations, “likely shift in corporate and individual tax work from home and job modifications, and structures.” general Americans with Disabilities Act acAbigail M. Moland, an attorney whose commodation. She also noted that employers practice areas at McGrath North span labor, have questions about shifts in labor and em-

Mayer Moland would impact union and non-union employers alike, and we also predict increased organizing activity by unions,” she said.

Pivoting from keen practice areas and services to operational trends, Rattner noted that they’re lucky to perform their jobs from anywhere.

“So, being in a position where either one of our employees or our clients were teleworking, really didn’t have an impact on our productivity,” she said. “But with the Continued on next page.

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• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal • Legal Trends

A deeper dive into legal concerns for businesses and COVID-19

by Gabby Hellbusch

Businesses could face some legal complications post COVID-19, local legal experts say.

Randy Stevenson, partner at Baird Holm, said employers who want to mandate the vaccine may do so, but they may need to make exceptions for employees who have religious objections or cannot be vaccinated due to bona fide medical reasons.

Before mandating the vaccine, Stevenson said an employer should consider that approximately 25% of Americans say they will refuse the vaccine.

“Employers should consider using the ‘carrot’ approach rather than the ‘stick’ approach,” he said. “For example, employees can be incentivized by receiving paid time off in order to be vaccinated or to recuperate from side effects of the vaccine.”

Stevenson said it’s also important for employers to be patient.

“Once these employees see that their vaccinated co-workers, friends, and the vast majority of Americans have suffered

no significant ill-effects from the vaccine, then many of them will agree to be vaccinated,” he said.

COVID-19 vaccination is not a disability-related inquiry,” Stevenson said.

Justin Sheldon, attorney at Vandenack

Stevenson Sheldon The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently issued guidance which stated that administration of the COVID-19 vaccine by an employer to an employee on either a mandatory or voluntary basis is not a “medical examination” for purposes of the Americans with Disabilities Act. “Likewise, asking or requiring an employee to show proof of receipt of a

Dunning Cano Weaver, said one legal implication facing businesses post COVID-19 is managing the risk of future business interruptions.

“For example, businesses may want to require employees to be vaccinated as a term of their employment,” Sheldon said. “Are businesses liable to employees if an employee has a negative reaction to a vaccine? What are the risks to pregnant women and women of child-bearing age,

Growing demand for legal professionals expected to continue

by David Kubicek

Although the demand for legal professionals is expected to remain strong, the supply of applicants may be lacking.

Over the past six months, Abrahams Kaslow & Cassman has been getting sufficient applicants for entry level positions, but for positions requiring some kind of experienced professional, applicants are short of what the firm would like, according to Attorney and Partner Nicole Seckman Jilek.

“I don’t know why, but I think that right now the economy in the professional world and Omaha is fairly strong, and people are making professional moves between firms and between different careers in the legal professions, and that is creating gaps that need to be filled by experienced professionals,” she said.

Seckman Jilek expects this positive growth for professionals in the legal arena to continue.

“I don’t see a downward trend in the profession at all,” she said. “Over the past decade or two some support positions have probably been eliminated or reworked, but for attorneys in the profession I think it’s a strong upward growth.”

Most students who graduate from the University of Nebraska College of Law with a juris doctor degree go on to pass the bar exam and practice law in the traditional sense, according to Tasha Everman, assistant dean and director of career development at University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s College of Law. “A significant number of graduates also use their JDs in positions which may not require a JD, but consider the education a distinct advantage,” she said. “If a student or alumnus asks me ‘What can I do with my JD?’ I often reply that they are asking the wrong question. The question each should be asking is ‘What do I want to do with my JD?’ because a law degree prepares them to be leaders in whatever their chosen field may be, and they should first be looking inward to discover what area will best take advantage of their unique skills

and interests.”

Examples of popular JD advantage careers include compliance officers, positions

Seckman Jilek Everman in banking, health care, college athletics, policy positions, and lobbying. In 2020, the College of Law had 52% of its graduates working for private law firms, 18% for government agencies, 13% in private businesses, and 11% in the public interest.

“Nebraska Law graduates have consistently performed above the national average in securing post-graduate employment,” Everman said. “In fact, three years ago we were number six in the country out of 200 law schools. Even in the midst of a global pandemic, the Class of 2020 actually

outperformed the previous class.”

Students of any undergraduate major can choose to pursue a law degree, and UNL sees a wide variety of backgrounds among its student body. Admission is a multi-factor decision, but a solid academic background and a strong showing on the LSAT law school entrance exam are the two major considerations.

A typical law school degree takes three years to complete, and graduates must pass the bar examination in order to practice. Unlike undergraduate degrees, students do not need to declare a major in law school.

“Last March when the pandemic hit, many legal insiders were afraid that the shut down would mean layoffs and a reduction in business like we saw during the last recession,” Everman said. “That did not happen and, in fact, the lateral market has been very active. I would say we continue to enjoy a robust hiring market in Nebraska. In addition, many states, including Nebraska, continue to have openings for attorneys to meet the needs of lower income individuals as well as the needs of those living in rural areas without attorneys easily accessible.”

or others with specific medical considerations? Does an employer want to be in the position of essentially making health care decisions on behalf of these or other employees? Can the employer effectively force an employee to sign a waiver to absolve itself of liability? These are legal questions businesses are facing, and it may take some form of legislation or further interpretation of current law before they can be answered clearly.”

Moving forward, Matt Dunning, attorney at Vandenack Weaver, said businesses need to be aware of potential changes to force majeure clauses in contracts; these clauses free both parties from having to perform due to an extraordinary event beyond their control.

“Force majeure clauses generally need to be specific; as an example, contracts can be drafted to include or exclude pandemics from provisions such as acts of God,” Dunning said. “Businesses should take special care to review contracts in order to make an informed decision about additional provisions relating to pandemics.”

Catherine Cano, attorney at Jackson Lewis P.C., said employers need to be mindful of the many sources of legal obligations. For example, mask mandates may be ending in some areas, but she said employers are still required to comply with Occupational Safety and Health Administration standards and local health department-directed health measures.

“Employers are getting some mixed signals on vaccinations and how they factor into the equation,” Cano said. “On one hand, OSHA guidance suggests that employers make the vaccination available to employees at no cost. On the other hand, employers that mandate vaccination or push too hard may face challenges — both legal and non-legal.”

She said employers have to balance maintaining a safe workplace, the pressure to return to “normal,” and confidentiality concerns, among other things.

“Getting employees back in the workplace and easing restrictions is going to take time,” Cano said. “Employers obviously need to remain informed with respect to legal updates related to COVID-19, but there is also a practical side. Employees may not want to or feel ready to return to work yet. It is important to develop a plan and to maintain open communication with employees about these issues.”

Pandemic’s effects on economy, workplaces driving need for legal assistance Continued from preceding page. accessibility of meeting via Zoom or one of the other meeting platforms, we now have the ability to meet face-to-face (or screen-toscreen) with clients and attorneys across the country, who we would otherwise only ever have talked to on the phone.”

Dvorak, too, referred to the “openness of the firm and clients to electronic communication and interaction,” when asked to describe the biggest change in the past year regarding the way that the team conducts business.

Accordingly, he referred to investments that have been made in cloud-based and electronic hardware and software.

Mayer indicated opportunities abound for new attorneys/careerists and law firms related to a more flexible mindset — accommodating

less traditional work arrangements.

“That said, the mentoring/training of young attorneys/careerists will still need to take place in person or on the job, as will maintenance of an employer’s culture,” he said.

Opportunities to educate clients are presented not only by guidance on COVID-19 related items, but also on issues related to protecting and accommodating LGBTQ+ employees.

“And, specifically, transgender employees in the workplace in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 2020 decision in Bostock, which clarified that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects employees against discrimination because they are gay or transgender,” Moland said.

She also referenced client education on matters related to employee benefit changes imposed by Congress; managing labor issues that include the likes of non-union employee dissidence with the roll out of new company policies; and how to avoid wage and hour liability by properly calculating and factoring in non-discretionary bonus payments.

She cautions office administrators to think about workplace procedures as it relates to returning to the office — from handling absenteeism to increased communications and training to assure proper handling of employee complaints.

“We have … seen many issues arise with seemingly benign return to work decisions,” Moland said.

Legal Trends Profile • Midlands Business Journal • MAY 14, 2021 •

Special Advertising Section

LEGAL TRENDS "FOR OVER 50 YEARS, IT HAS BEEN A PLEASURE TO HELP OUR CLIENTS GROW THEIR BUSINESSES AND PLAN FOR THEIR SUCCESSION. THE TIME HAS COME TO TAKE OUR OWN ADVICE SO THAT WE MAY CONTINUE TO MEET OUR CLIENTS' NEEDS." ~ TOM STALNAKER, PRESIDENT

MCGILL GOTSDINER AFTER 100 YEARS and many name variations as goes with professional service firms, Stalnaker Becker & Buresh will integrate their long-standing and highly regarded firm with McGill Gotsdiner Workman & Lepp, P.C., L.L.O. Aimee Cizek and John Stalnaker will be joining McGill as Shareholders, and Tom Stalnaker and Bob Becker will be joining as Of Counsel.

Stalnaker Becker & Buresh was founded in 1921 as Swarr, May & Royce, and will continue its tradition of excellence and personal service at McGill. The integration will provide a broader range and depth of legal services to clients.

Tom Stalnaker graduated from Stanford University in 1968 and immediately joined Stalnaker, Becker & Buresh, which at the time was then Swarr, May, Royce, Smith, Andersen & Ross. He served as a Nebraska Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Trustee for over 30 years. In addition to his substantial bankruptcy experience, Tom has significant experience in business law, real estate, construction and estate planning.

After graduating from Creighton University School of Law in 1969 and four years as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, Bob Becker joined Stalnaker, Becker & Buresh in 1973. He has served as legal counsel to clients in business, construction, and real estate for nearly 50 years.

Aimee Cizek graduated from Creighton

University School of Law in 2003 and is a member of the Nebraska State Bar Association, Iowa State Bar Association, and Omaha Bar Association. Before joining Stalnaker, Becker & Buresh in 2007, Aimee served as a prosecutor in the Douglas County Attorney’s Office. In addition to her current civil litigation practice, Aimee advises construction companies and individual clients in real estate disputes and litigation. Aimee also represents clients in general corporate matters, sales and acquisitions of businesses, real estate, and estate planning and probate. These diverse practice areas enable her to work with clients to develop multi-generational business and estate plans.

John Stalnaker graduated from Chicago Kent College of Law in 2003 and is a member of the Nebraska State Bar Association and Omaha Bar Association.

He was appointed in 2018 as a Nebraska Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Trustee. In addition to bankruptcy trustee work, John has substantial experience in real estate law, including title insurance, land development, purchase agreements and construction. He also practices in general corporate law and particularly enjoys helping clients grow and build their businesses.

McGill focuses in the practice areas of corporate and business law; real estate;

estate planning, trusts, and probate; banking and finance; employment; health care law; mergers and acquisitions; nonprofit and tax-exempt entities and creditors’ rights. McGill also has a sophisticated commercial litigation practice with significant experience in mediation and arbitration. The attorneys’ experience of Stalnaker Becker will add depth in corporate and business law, real estate, title insurance and construction law. The keystones of the firm’s culture, integrity, expertise and compassion, form the foundation for long-term client relationships and drive high-quality professional services. More information about the firm can be found at www.mgwl.com.

MGWL.COM • (402) 492-9200

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• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal

In 75th year Cobalt Credit Union invests in high-tech and high-touch Continued from page 1.

Larsen indicated town halls and talking lands Business Journal in late April, tours are more important in a society that has having just surpassed the first 100 days on the been thrust into going virtual overnight.

“When you get them in a room, they’re very job. A more than 30-year veteran of the credit union, Larsen most recently served as chief op- comfortable with talking to me and they want erations officer before succeeding Gail DeBoer, to know what my goals are,” she said. “They’re who had held the top executive role since 2007. a part of it.”

Additionally, she noted member “noise” “I’m fortunate to have worked alongside is huge.

Gail for many years “We need to have — she was a great role Cobalt Credit Union that ‘noise,’ so we model,” Larsen said. Phone: 402-292-8000 (local area conknow what we need to “As I’ve transitioned to tact center) my new role … I have Address: 71488 Towne Center Parkway, fix,” Larsen said. “I can fix stuff that I know is spent a lot of time with Papillion 68046 (headquarters) broken.” our senior management Services: not-for-profit, member-owned Far from broken, team, getting to know credit union with range of personal and ITMs, also implementeach of them as individ- business financial products ed prior to the pandemuals and learning more Founded: 1946 ic, have proven to be a about their leadership Website: www.cobaltcu.com “strategic advantage,” styles.”

Larsen said.

Leadership chang“Our membership benefited by having no es are not limited to senior managers.

“We have had a lot of change in manage- disruption in service during the pandemic,” ment roles at all levels of the organization she added. “We continued to be there for our over the past year,” she said. “It’s great to see members when they needed us most. Our vidinternal candidates get the opportunity to grow eo banking app and ITMs provided expanded banking options to our members.” in their careers.”

These services included check cashing, Larsen also embarked on the new position by taking to the road; she’s been visiting each expanded deposit and withdrawal functionality, department and branch, sharing her vision for loan payments, funds transfers, and account the credit union, and engaging with the teams. balance inquiries.

While it was noted that ITM transactions “I had the operations side of the house down,” she said. “What had really changed had leveled off in the months after May 2020, was my interaction with all of the departments. they reportedly remained twice as high as pre-pandemic levels.

It’s critical.”

“We were at about 6,000 sessions/8,000 transactions via ITM in January 2020, jumping to 27,000 sessions/36,000 transactions in May 2020, and now we are averaging 11,000 sesContinued from page 2. and pressures, and COVID-19 has added even sions/15,000 transactions,” Larsen said. more pressure.

“Getting access to capital and financing has never been more difficult,” he said. “This in turn means more and more businesses must turn to

by Brooke Strickland alternative lenders like us.”

Home isn’t just a place, it’s where you Additionally, the financial illiteracy crisis has continued to grow larger over the past can fully be yourself and express your unique several years, and the COVID-19 pandemic personality. In other words, your home is part has caused this crisis to reach levels never of who you are. Your décor is part of that reflection, too. With the pandemic forcing many imaginable.

He noted there are specific factors adding people to spend more and more time at home, to this crisis, including that most U.S. compa- many have noticed that they need an interior nies no longer offer defined-benefit pensions, décor refresh. If you fall into that category, here which typically provided guaranteed monthly are some things to keep in mind.

Comforting design trends payments to workers when they retired. Even Home is meant to be a place of rest and more, Social Security continues to struggle and medical advancements and breakthroughs are safety. This is especially true as many individuals and families are recovering and rebuilding causing life expectancies to go up.

“Financial education and learning how to after a hard year.

“2020 was scary and we were drawn tocreate your own ‘personal pension’ has never ward anything that comforted us,” said Lorele been more important,” Eldridge said.

Looking toward the future, one focus is Lesoing, founder, owner and lead designer at working closely with banks to help those clients Lee Douglas Interiors. “As we move into 2021, we are hanging onto that notion. Searching for that the banks can’t help.

He said working closely with franchise comforting components of past styles is becomcompanies to help provide financing for new ing chic. Combining the old and familiar with startups, as well as existing franchisees who the new and fresh will be on trend.”

Be on the lookout for popular styles like need working capital, is also major. The company also plans to home in on vendors and Victorian, art deco, rustic vogue, vintage and equipment dealers needing alternatives for those grand millennial (aka granny chic), Lesoing clients who can’t qualify for “in-house” financ- said.

Carrie Derrick, owner and project manager ing. Plans also include expanding throughout at Urban Restorative, advised that while trends the United States.

“We genuinely care about people and can provide good insight into what is popular helping them in any way possible,” Eldridge and what might work for your space, your décor said. “We value all our personal and business should really reflect you.

“Some interesting trends that I love and am relationships above anything else and strive to treat each individual person the way we would seeing in the interior design industry right now are light colored and white walls and trim,” she want to be treated.”

Focus Business Financing

When asked about technologies or features on the horizon, Larsen noted that over the past month Cobalt had implemented a web-based phone system with advanced technology and hardware, which allows for better service to members when employees work remotely.

“Additionally, we are building an infrastructure of computer equipment ready for future deployment when needed, including more laptops and hot spots,” she said.

Larsen indicated technology is not a substitute, but rather a way to augment, high-touch customer service.

“We want to provide our team members with the tools and technology they need to focus on providing our members advice and coaching, clarifying options and fixing problems,” she said. “It’s all about trust and building relationships.”

Accordingly, investments continue to be made in brick and mortar.

“Our focus is on ensuring we have locations to accommodate new and existing members in the communities we serve,” Larsen said.

In fact, Cobalt is building a new branch in Gretna on Highway 6. The branch is slated to open June 1.

“We’re also in the process of designing a new branch at 84th and Windmill Drive in Lincoln,” she said.

The branch’s opening is slated for next year.

“While members have many options — including using the ITMs, chatting with us through video banking and talking with a service representative on the phone — they’ve told us they still like the option and convenience of stopping into a branch location, preferably near home or work,” she said.

At the time of this writing, Cobalt had 24 locations, 13 of which are characterized as

traditional brick and mortar, with the balance retail locations.

These locations and its roughly 250-member workforce supported more than 110,000 members, as of end of 2020, across its service areas in eastern Nebraska and western Iowa.

“Currently, we have 20 open positions, including in IT, human resources and branch operations,” Larsen said.

Larsen indicated the credit union will be taking a deep dive into its membership composition, as well as non-members. CUs have traditionally been challenged by consumers who do not think they are eligible to be members of respective organizations.

Larsen did confirm that the name and branding change (from SAC Federal Credit Union) in 2018 has been beneficial on this front.

“There was a perception that you had to be in the military to join,” she explained.

Larsen also referred to a focus on communicating the benefits of membership; for instance, via an advertising campaign that features members who have been supported

by Cobalt through the onslaught of challenges presented by COVID-19.

“One big difference between a bank and a credit union is we will do the smaller dollar loans and we tend to have the smaller business accounts,” she said. “And one of the things that we are in the process of identifying financial counseling programs to assist people. We would have in-house certified employees to sit down with people to do financial counseling.”

A nod to its anniversary year, Cobalt’s roots can be traced back to 1946 when 12 individuals formed SAC Federal Credit Union. Its first location was Andrews Field in Maryland. Its office moved to Offutt Air Force Base three years later.

Comfort, nostalgia rule latest home design trends said. “Everyone seems to want to have bright, light spaces that they can then imbed color in through furnishings, cabinetry, and fixtures.

Ultimately, your home and space should reflect the things you love and value, regardless of

Lesoing Derrick what is ‘trendy.’”

Bring the outside in Michele Thelen, owner and principal at Something Special Interiors, explained that keeping things basic and fresh can go a long way. One of the easiest ways to do this is by bringing the indoors outside, and vice versa.

“Multi-use your spaces,” she said. “Create a nice outdoor reading/relaxing/snacking area. Get a colorful outdoor rug and pillow to add to your outdoor setting. Bring the outdoors in by clipping a branch from your blooming bushes and drop in a vase to freshen up the living areas. Pull up your area rug and use a sisal/woven rug for the spring and summer months. Put away some of your dated accessories/accents and keep it organic, fresh and

natural for the warmer weather.”

Pandemic-related slowdowns The pandemic has impacted the residential interior design industry. Materials are in high demand, but manufacturing has slowed down significantly. Typically, six to eight weeks of lead time are needed for furniture ordering.

Now people are waiting six to eight months.

So, if you do plan to redecorate, be patient.

Lesoing said that if a full remodel and redesign is in order, talk to interior design professionals.

Thelen “Home has become our ‘everything’ space right now,” she said. “I have had so many clients see their home differently now, and because of that we are seeing a surge in remodels and updates. Know your limits. An unknown process or unexpected issue can cost you a lot. Most of us don’t self-diagnose ourselves, we seek professional help. Why should our homes be different?”

Most of all, keep in mind that your home should be not only designed how you want it, but it should also be a collection of things that you love. And of course, think about how you want the space to feel when people come into it.

“Keep it simple — but always think inviting,” Thelen said. “The first impression sets the stage.”

Midlands Business Journal • MAY 14, 2021 •

9

OMAHA Business Journal A section prepared by the staff of the Midlands Business Journal

May 14, 2021

Offering plant-based choices, Ital Vital Living serves fresh and healthy foods Continued from page 1. she said. clear that there weren’t many healthy For Murray, experimenting with new eating options in the area. recipes, creating beautiful product photog“Ital Vital Living really wants to be raphy, and educating others on the importhat change,” Murtance of consuming ray said. “We want Ital Vital Living fruits and veggies on to make sure that we Phone: 402-681-6777 a daily basis are the have very affordable Location: 8501 N. 30th Street (Southeast driving forces for options for our com- backdoor) Omaha 68112 the business. munity, so they are Founded: March 2019 Even though able to lead healthy Service: vegan smoothie bowls, cold time management lifestyles with our pressed juices and dehydrated snacks has been a learning products.” curve, she said the Employees: 3 The inspiration Goal: Open a brick-and-mortar location. business has adapted behind the business Website: www.italvitalliving.com and learned to stratename was derived gically plan out each from her own Jamacian heritage, as Ja- day so that the operation runs efficiently. maican Rastas call a plant-based way of While the COVID-19 pandemic caused life “Ital.” a few hurdles, it also led to more custom“My roots and culture naturally flow ers, as people became highly aware of the into the business, which I think really sets importance of healthy eating habits. us apart and makes us very authentic,” Over the past couple of years, the business has also focused on pop-ups, which have been critical to the growth of the business.

“We’ve been able to collaborate with other local shops, which led us to meet new clientele that we wouldn't have been able to reach without them,” she said.

“I’m very thankful for other businesses that have allowed us to do pop-ups and work with them. Being located in a commercial kitchen has also been amazing for our dayto-day operations and has allowed us to run very smoothly.”

This year, Murray is focused on plans to open a brick-and-mortar storefront. Upon operating from a new space, the business will also be able to expand the menu by adding healthy plantbased meals.

Success has been measured through reGinger goes into the juicer. peat customers and

A display of some of the cold press juices Ital Vital Living has to offer. Juice flavors offered include Mani Mon Pineapple OJ, Key Lime OG, Grape Love and Just Beet It. positive feedback. regularly consuming our smoothies, it re“When we hear how Ital Vital Living ally shows us that we can truly add value has become part of people’s lifestyle and to people's health and become an importhow much healthier their body feels when ant part of their lives,” she said.

A bottle of Sweet Serenity cold press juice is poured. The vibrant blue juice includes apple, lemonade, blue spirulina and kava kava.

10

• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal

Steeped in history, Sheelytown Market brings together houseplants, community packing plants.

Continued from page 1.

Through her previous work as interim painted shutters that represent the neighassistant director at the Refugee Empowborhood demographics in April.

Cammy Watkins, who at the time of erment Center she knew that the families the project’s unveiling was running for in the neighborhoods of Hanscom Park and City Council District 3, had organized a Field Club, which surround her store, were campaign in collaboration with Omaha’s also immigrants. The shutters reflect that. wanted to highWatie White Stu“Everything that led me here light“Ithat [immigrants dios to encourage and inspire people was intentional, but it is well are still locating to area to work for to vote and celebeyond what I ever pictured,” this the stockyards and brate diversity.

“So while this — Sheelytown Market owner meatpacking plants], the demographics didn’t feel like a Amelia Rosser have just changed,” normal campaign activity, I thought it was really beautiful she said. “The demographics that may be to want to leave something behind whether working now are refugees from Somalia, South Sudan, Burma and Butan.” or not you’re elected,” Rosser said.

The name Sheelytown Market as well The project, she said, also ties into the history of Sheelytown, the store’s as its location in a building that has been namesake neighborhood that in the 1860s vacant for years has drawn locals to the and 1870s was populated by immigrants store. Rosser, who lives just blocks from working at local stockyards and meat- her storefront, said the neighborhood is populated by generations of families, many of whom remember the former Sheelytown neighborhood.

“The gal that lives two doors down from me is raising her kids in the same house that she was raised in and when she was a kid she played in the house that I live in now,” Rosser said.

Those who remember the former district are protective over the name, Rosser said. Through her engagement in the community as a member of the Hanscom Park

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Midlands Business

Journal • NOVEMBER 24,

2017 •

27

November 24, 2017

5055 Building at Bryan Health’s East Campus (Courtesy of Davis Design)

Unique Midlands

by Michelle Leach

Boys Town Clinic (Courtesy of Calvin L. Hinz Architects)

Sandhills Publishing Cyber Center Rendering (Courtesy of Sinclair Hille)

features, robust economy

result in multi-sector

Mixed use building rendering (Courtesy of Studio 951)

Private giving and an economy that any one industry isn’t may stays,” but the level be Midlands “mainDundee harkening and the sheer need of cross-sector activity back to communities for talent to meet in communities demand for services are newer-emerging that sprung up on withphenomenon streetcar or bus lines. for area firms.

He also speaks to “The architecture, lifestyle and the built a “balance in terms of construction industry engineering and the movement from environment”; consider Greater Omaha region is very strong in the and now “hybrids,” cubicles to open spaces at the moment,” said conference rooms which combine smaller BCDM Principal and areas where and employees can still have Director John Sullithat sense of community van, who also isolated but also privacy Sarpy County’s highas needed. growth.

“We’re moving Further, Sullivan to that direction, notes strength “nearnot because it’s the trend ly across the board” but because it’s — from office the and right thing,” he said. institutional to private The architecture sectors such as reliand engineering Palandri gious projects which, side of the construction he said, is “unusual” and “won’t last forever.” industry was described “The economic development as “robust,” into and growth Smith of the metro-area the has Design Senior Associatefinal quarter by Davis and the diversificationbeen steady and strong, and Senior Architect of the area economy Greg Smith.

— both of those factors add up to good by Sullivan: John Sullivan, principal and things happening “Several projects in designed recently director at BCDM “One of the things still in hopes of breaking necessarily true the metro, and that’s not about are Architects. that’s unique across the state, Omaha is there is ground this fall many especially and strong philanthropic environments, and a shift in if you’re in an ag private support for what people ects of the large Downtown Lincoln and area and go into expect.” central or key projects.” projwestern Nebraska are gaining inertia,” AO’s … he said.

Palandri speaks to modities-driven areas,”and some of the com- Palandri Managing Principal Randall trying to attract millen- remodel market is also strong “The interior J. nials and has seen the and He also referenced he said. became noticeable uptick in growth that urban a lifestyle shift, whereby the more keep contractors busy during winter this will centers are in demand around two years months.” growth, from newer the many pockets of main steady Many large-scale ago refrom a housing Telegraph District’s projects, such as the to Aksarben Village, areas such as Blackstone attributes in more recent months, which he perspective and offices that speak Marilyn Moore Middle at the stage where particularly to infill-type generation are in-demand to this School/YMCA, sion of that development extenprojects.

Hudl, and from a “There of the projects featured is occurring. Some opment,” is a lot more emphasis on redevel- perspective. He also speaks, not workplace to form; however, Smith Nelnet, have come necessarily he said. “What really to “vintage” or said here in this section reflect another prominent “traditional” construction mains work in the build-outs. there still redrove it was, materials but to, He referenced trend mentioned there was a pent-up demand for market-rate perhaps, more “traditional” work at Bryan Health’s apartments and East neighborhoodin more walkable-type and community-building, new LES Operations Center, Campus, the of with areas and projects for Eustis Autobody such as Benson, at 98th Street and Blackstone and Highway Continued on next page.

opportunities

Architecture — inside NOVEMBER 24,

2017

THE BUSINESS

NEWSPAPER OF

GREATER OMAHA,

Technology upgrad

THIS WEEK 'S ISSUE:

by Richard D. Brown

LINCOLN AND

COUNCIL BLUFFS

es keep Interstate

$2.00

VOL. 43 NO. 47

Printing competitive

Interstate Printing ha-based firm founded Co., an Omaby a German immigrant with Business & Industrial a special interest in publishing ethnic Parks/Leasing newspapers, has used its family-ownership as an anchor, placed strong equipment upgrades, emphasis on a comprehensive and maintained list has enabled it to growof services that of its commercial with the needs Business & Industrial printing clients, which are located Park/Leasing throughout much of the country.

— inside “For our 100 years OCTOBER 20, we have main2017 tained a low-key approach, which has enabled us to attract business clients THIS WEEK 'S ISSUE: with jobs that we can on,” said William do a good job F. Peter, a third generation family member who became president five years “With each job we ago. to say, ‘This came want to be able from us’ and that both our client and will be pleased with their customers r 40 the results,” he de continued.

Un 40 Peter, who formerly practiced law full-time before uncle Eugene Peter succeeding his who retired from Locally owned Aksarben the business at age 88 five years ago, serves large demographicCinema From left, Continued on page with amenities.

8. reached its Senior VP of Sales Jim Mancuso centennial year – Page 2 with investments and President William Peter … in new tech.

The printing company has (Photo by MBJ / Becky McCarville) 28

40

• OCTOBER 20,

2017 • Midlands Business

Journal

October 20, 2017

r 40 de Un

No slowdown in demand

by Michelle

A section prepared

by the staff of

as availability presents

the Midlands

Business Journal

ongoing challenges

More buildings may Leach economy with upside potential.” ground, but demand be coming out of the NAI NP Dodge also being constructed remains brisk.

“Demand for commercial at described the leasing Associate Kyle Pelster Opportunities are Highway Crossing.”

Edney indicated real estate market as “very tight.” loans is very strong,” this is driving “At any given and landlords leasing available for tenants such as the said Stephanie Moline, executive vice president aforementioned R&R. projects, to them. time, there are around These challenges ing with First National of Enterprise Lend- 100 properties, Bank. “Commercial give or A; Edney recalled aren’t limited to Class and industrial loan how the Kellogg take, listed/available demand is growing, building at 10203 Crown at a much slower but in the Omaha/Council Point Ave. near pace.”

Fort Blair High Road She said some of had “multiple offers and Bluffs couple of weeks.” in a in late 2016 is being the capital investment said. market,” he “Having said absorbed.

“There isn’t much “It would appear that, finding the of that type of product out there, either,” coris lagging the capital the anticipated revenue rect he said. square footage, expenditures,” Moline He also spoke to said. location, rental rates tures, such as greater demand for certain feaGrowth of C&I loans, clear heights and she said, remains and building layout dock doors — driven larger about the same as can be very difficult.” by requirements a year companies such as “Agribusiness loans ago. as He referred to are up year over year and using third-partyAmazon are growing and commercial Moline more providers. real estate is up Edney “We’re also seeing year over more construction in the last year — year,” she said.

Pelster with a lot of interest owner/user buildings “We are finally seeing from investors Generally, businesses but some spec spec industrial space an increase in new in industrial that are looking to invest are optimistic buildings as well. about potential tax properties,” he on the market again “The new Facebook reform. said. “A after a slowdown of that interest is project will “This would cause in new spec coming from outside lot new infrastructure some monies to along the Highwayadd past,” he said. “The increases projects in the the Midwest.” of repatriated and improving be in term length, 50 rental rates working capital corridor,” Pelster said. “This Edney referred and operating expenses and money that can to cap rates and be used for acquisitions for new projects and industrialwill break way to steadily rise. continue ROI as lower or additional investment on the coasts, making one’s parks in that in equipment and/ area.”

“The rest of the market Omaha attractive as a secondary or people,” she said. seems to be catch- to He said Thrasher ing up with Chicago, New York or tertiary market and Freightliner more entrants into “There continues to be created have of the new the rental rates we are seeing out or Denver. large new buildings Regarding “behind-the-scenes” construction from loan productionthe local market; both leaving vacancies in their for themselves, offices OMNE Partners projects.” indusprevious locations.

Moline is encouraged and FinTechs.”

Continued on page “Brook Valley continues Class A industrial EVP Matt Edney said by new market 30. entrants as: “People availability remains to be the leader believe this is a vibrant in new industrial construction hard to find.” “really projects,” Pelster said. “The “And that type R&R Commerce of product is moving Park is pretty quick,” he said.

in Omaha

Green Arrow Junk Co. aims to reduce household, landfill clutter. – Page 2

Persistence paves way for for Contemporary Art’s The Union community impact.

– Page 3

n in me ess Wo sin Bu

Women’s representation in leadership: Ripples adding up to a sea change?

– Page 4

Archrival updates 10-year-old Haymarke t space, establishe s Los Angeles presence

by Michelle Leach

Archrival’s renovated space as one space,” said Clint! RunLincoln ge, headquarters at 720 founder and the unique mix of O St. speaks to director. “We managing creative a mature wanted our space years old and counting firm — 20 be a little further to along the business — and energetic startup spirit that has resulted chain … and at one point that was in campaigns with an ‘aspirational’ Redbull, space, it became Motorola, and expansion Adidas, us and we outgrew with sister mature it. It’s more offices and teams of a business than in the space gon, and Los Angeles.Portland, Ore- felt like.”

“We’ve been here The Haymarket for over 10 space breathes years, and wanted to rethink the entire Archrival’s niche in youth cultureContinued on page 10.

yee plo Em nefits Be

Harness technology to overcome capacity constraints, attract business year-round – Page 6

President Nick upon 30-plus years Cusick … Equipment manufacturer builds soccer; tennis courtof innovation with safety features in volleyball, sports like pickleball.renovations to accommodate rising interest in

Bison makes gains Nebraskan Michael Forsberg focuses as new gyms built lens on Great Plains amid popularity of conservation. sports like picklebal – Page 34

by Michelle Leach l

Founder/Mana Communication ging Creative Director Clint! Runge s Amy with focus on youth Filipi … Brand communication with Head of s firm flourishes culture.

Depending on where pared to that,” said President Nick across Bison’s divisions one looks Cusick, who indicated its focus and product lines, the Lincoln-based was on other areas.

“Even without manufacturer’s growth is up at least 5 to a lot of direct marketing emphasis, 10 percent to 30 percent our site furnishing business, BRP, following or amid dealer base and ownership was up 5 to 10 percent.” transitions, and Falling under custom a business unit redesign. trial job shop manufacturerindusIM“Bison overall, its SCORP’s holding company umline, had an incredibleown product brella, wholly-owned year prior subsidiary and this last year was flat com- Bison is joined by SNA Sports Continued on page 10.

THE BUSINESS

NEWSPAPER OF

GREATER OMAHA,

Lamp Rynearson

by Richard D. Brown

Drone and innovative scanning technology is giving Lamp Rynearson, Omaha-based civil engineering, a 58-year-old landscape architecture, construction and surveying firm, administration a competitive advantage as it completes a wide range of private and public sector projects.

Nancy Pridal, a professional engineer and 20-year son employee who Lamp Rynearto president of the was promoted firm in August, stresses that leading the latest technologywith the use of the employee-owne has enabled increase its revenuesd company to by more than 100 percent over the while the employee past 10 years creased by 45 percent.count has in“With the investment we’ve made, we want to be viable in the future with the technology provided,” Pridal said.

“For example, we can scan a mound and get the typographic data and in scanning stockpiles we can get quantities.”

The purchase of a second drone Continued on page 12.

LINCOLN AND

COUNCIL BLUFFS

competes with innova

$2.00

VOL. 43 NO. 42

tive technology

President Nancy

Pridal … Leveraging

La Casa Pizzaria dishes out more options to customers from online orders to food

by Michelle Leach truck

tech investments

for variety of projects.

(Photo by MBJ / Becky McCarville)

La Casa Pizzaria Jesse. “Being a family restaurant, is evolving with offerings on wheels — its food our staff lives for interaction.” truck — and via She indicated there technologies such is a balas online ordering, ancing act for the third-generafocused on customerwhile staying tion, family-owned service from and operated the family that has been dishing restaurant, which is still located out its Neapolitan-style at 4432 pizza for the Leavenworth St. in Omaha — almost 75 years. same location that reportedly “Technology plays caught on so well that a part,” said General Manager/Treasu Patane and his family Founder Joe rer Nicole “ran out of Continued on page 18.

Ashley Abel, property manager with Cushman Lund Co., for 1415 & Wakefield/ @ The Yard, demonstrates app during the IOTAS’ property grand opening event for the complex.

Smart-enabled apartmen t community delivers plug and play app to renters

by Becky McCarville

General Manager/Treas urer Nicole — from food truck to website and menu Jesse … A heaping of “new” on service, Neapolitan-styl updates — blends with focus e pizza and pasta.

At the recent grand lifestyle. opening of 1415 @ The Yard The platform also apartment comprovides data plex at 14th and Cuming streets, to property managers so they can property manager Ashley Abel with monitor and control energy usage, Cushman & Wakefield/Lund rent units Co., streamlinefaster through automation, logged onto the property labor costs and add dashboard value to launch the smart apartment app to properties. designed by Portland-based “It helps run the property IOTAS more (Internet of Things As a Service), efficiently,” Abel said, adding that demonstrating the she can control ease new tenant can control at which a ing, heating vacant units’ lightand air conditioning, automated technologyand integrate monitor maintenance to fit their issues as well Continued on page 39.

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Neighborhood Association and CenterFest needs, pot size and soil, the goal is to give organizer, she’s garnered support and a the owner the education to succeed.

“Some people have a lot of questions, local following at what could be described and some people have none, but we have as perfect timing.

The store opened on Christmas Eve enough staff and time invested that we 2020, in the midst of the pandemic that can work with every person that comes caused more people to stay home and the through,” she said.

Rosser’s own personal journey to plant houseplant industry to skyrocket.

“We’re at a really unique time to parentship began after her son’s birth in 2017. At the time be in business were she was trying to there’s lots of oth- Sheelytown Market recover from poster little houseplant Phone: 531-218-8161 partum depression s t o r e s o p e n i n g , ” Address: 3522 Center St., Omaha 68105 and anxiety and felt Rosser said. “We’re Founded: 2020 lost. Then, she said, each serving our own Service: one-stop-shop for those looking she saw a video markets and I try to to dabble in houseplants; plant education, blog from YouTube encourage collabora- local goods, and easy-to-care-for plants are personality Jenna tion instead of com- plentiful Marbles on housepeting because there’s Employees: 6 plants. still so much room.”

Industry outlook: As more houseplant “I thought ‘Oh, She singled out companies open there is a greater opportuit’s not that hard,’” Nodest, Drips, and nity for collaboration and education. she said. “I went G r e e n e r Ti m e s a s Website: www.sheelytownmarket.com one day to Lowe’s businesses she’s hoping to collaborate with in the future, and bought a clearance Dieffenbachia. whether that’s exchanging plant cuttings I thought that if I could keep that plant alive, then maybe this was something I or co-hosting events.

Sheelytown focuses on providing cus- could do.”

Not only did she keep the plant alive, tomers with plants they can leave the store but she began buying more plants because feeling confident with.

“My focus isn’t the rare plants or the taking care of them “helped calm my mind super trendy plants, mine are going to be and body and it focused me.”

“Everything that led me here was inyour dependable gals, your ride or die,” tention, but it is well beyond what I ever Rosser said.

From determining skill level, care pictured,” she said.

Commercial spaces evolving with changing times

by Jasmine Heimgartner

The coronavirus pandemic had a significant impact on many businesses, but it didn’t slow down a boon of commercial new construction and redevelopment.

While its impact is certainly making people rethink what is essential, the need for space is keeping construction firms busier than ever.

“We are seeing some awesome development in Lincoln, Omaha and Des Moines, but also seeing redevelopment in older parts of town,” said Jim Henderson, owner of H2C Construction. “It’s a winwin. It’s nice to see these older buildings, both historical and not, being repurposed.

There are challenges aesthetically, mechanically and structurally, but it is an enjoyable challenge retrofitting them and bringing them up to code.”

While layouts and floor plans haven’t had any radical changes, many businesses are moving toward a more industrialized look with open ceilings, exposed duct work and LED lighting.

“We are seeing lots of glass, more color and lots of options for architectural metal paneling,” said Rob Stargel, vice president business development at Lund Ross Constructors. “Architectural metal paneling is used more and more today with new options coming to the market every year. Maintenance and longevity should be taken into consideration when choosing a metal product because some do not wear as well as others.”

Perhaps related to a new emphasis on hygiene, hard-floor surfaces and washable wall treatments are becoming more popular. Polished or stained concrete is also

on the rise, which is durable and a way to cut costs over going with a ceramic tile or luxury vinyl.

One negative trend has been materials

Henderson Stargel cost. A pandemic-induced global supply chain shortage and delay has meant low, costly supplies, some even more than three times the normal cost.

“Building costs are the highest we have ever seen in this market and continue to rise,” Stargel said. “Some clients are choosing to wait on projects hoping that prices will fall later this year. I’m not optimistic that will happen in 2021. In many cases, delaying purchasing materials is adding a lot of costs that some projects cannot bear. Pre-purchasing some of the most volatile materials may be a good idea in the current market.”

Many of the new developments are mixed used for commercial and residential. From lifestyle changes to a shortage of housing, these walkable communities address many of the issues communities face. A number of businesses and residents are enjoying this one-stop-shop type of environment, which is a growing

solution in an age where land is becoming scarce.

While aesthetics is always an important factor, incorporating the latest technologies to ensure a clean environment that is sustainable have increasingly become more popular. From installing air purification systems to using green materials, there are more ways than ever to keep up with the times. Changing the way space is used has also come to the forefront after the past year.

“Many of our clients are paying more attention to the HVAC systems in their buildings and addressing how the air contributes to the well-being of their employees and tenants,” Stargel said. “There is a trend toward more individual offices and less shared space that I think will continue even after the pandemic subsides.”

With the diversity of commercial space, from day cares to restaurants to retail, companies ready to renovate or build have more options than they may think.

If already in a prime location, renovating may be the best solution. Before jumping into the process, it’s important to be ready.

Any type of construction is a long-term investment.

“I recommend to clients that before you sign a lease or purchase a property, do your homework,” Henderson said. “Find out what your project is going to cost.

Secure your funds first before you sign anything. I do find times that a person will fall in love with a space and buy or lease long-term, but then find out the cost is way over budget. At that point, you may have to redesign or not end up with the project you envisioned.”

Midlands Business Journal • MAY 14, 2021 •

11

COVID-19 shot in the arm not enough to keep pharmacies in business

by Markian Hawryluk

Tobin’s pharmacy and department store had already stocked its shelves with Easter and Mother’s Day items last spring, and the staff had just placed the Christmas orders. The shop in Oconomowoc, Wis., had been operating on a razor’s edge as retail sales moved online and mail-order Health care pharmacies siphoned off its patients. It was losing money on 1 out of 4 pill bottles filled, so the front of the store, where it sold clothing, cosmetics and jewelry, had been compensating

for pharmacy losses for years.

“And then COVID hit,” said Dave Schultz, who co-owned the store with his brother. “And that was the final straw.”

The COVID-19 pandemic sank many businesses in 2020, particularly those relying on in-person sales to stay afloat. For pharmacies — especially independent pharmacies — the pandemic lockdowns exacerbated long-standing economic pressures. Many small owner-operated pharmacies adapted quickly, delivering their traditional amenities in safer ways or capitalizing on new services created by the pandemic, REPEATED NOTES

Answers on page 12.

Joe Moose, co-owner of Moose Pharmacies in the Charlotte, N.C., area, is trying to adapt to the changes dealt by covid. The chain expanded curbside services, hired additional drivers, and tripled home deliveries. (Logan Cyrus for KHN/TNS) such as COVID-19 testing and vaccinations. But plans’ prescription drug reimbursements to pharothers, like Tobin’s, became casualties of the macies. Those PBMs, often aligned with large pandemic, closing their doors for good. drugstore chains, systematically squeezed the It’s too early to quantify just how many profits out of independent pharmacies. That left pharmacies succumbed to COVID-19 and many smaller chains or unaffiliated pharmacies assess how patients will be affected. The total unable to bear the added hit from the pandemic. number of pharmacies has declined less than “I’m afraid to see the outcome,” said Joe 1% over the past five years, as pharmacy Moose, co-owner of Moose Pharmacy, a chain chains get larger while independent community of seven drugstores on the outskirts of Charlotte, pharmacies — often the last place left to fill a N.C. “The delay in payments, the increased prescription in some small towns — go under. cost to keep operating in the early days of this, The Rural Policy Research Institute found that combined with the fact that reimbursement is 1,231 independently owned rural pharmacies, so poor already — COVID-19 may be the final about 16%, closed for good from 2003 to 2018, nail in the coffin for some of us.” well before the pandemic pinch. And according Moose Pharmacy is trying to adapt. When to the Drug Channels Institute, after five years it had to stop in-store purchases during the panof declines, the number of urban and rural in- demic, the chain expanded curbside services and dependent pharmacies dipped below 20,000 for hired additional drivers. Home deliveries tripled. the first time in 2020.

Workers ferried food, toilet paper, paper towels Revenue from COVID-19 testing and vac- and shampoo to customers. cinations may help keep some independents “We had to build out our website. We put in afloat, but that comes with added costs and technology so that people could text us from the logistical challenges. parking lot. It had to be HIPAA-compliant,” said “Pharmacies are struggling,” said Harry Moose, who owns the chain with his brother.

Lattanzio, president of PRS Pharmacy Services, “And keep in mind that all of that is happening a consulting firm in Latrobe, Pa. “We’re getting at no change in reimbursement.” calls from a lot more pharmacy owners that want COVID-19 also interrupted the medication to sell their stores. They’ve had enough.” supply chain. In normal times, the pharmacy’s Most pharmacies, he said, saw a decline in supply of drugs is automated, so when it disprescriptions last year as customers hesitated to penses medicines, replacements show up in the visit their doctors for anything but emergencies. next day’s delivery. But Moose and his staff had That drop in business also meant fewer sales of to resort to the old way of calling up five or six over-the-counter medicines and ancillary items wholesalers to see who had the drugs in stock. sold by the stores. Meanwhile, pharmacies had When COVID-19 testing was scarce, the to buy protective equipment to keep staffers and pharmacies taught their employees to perform customers safe and beef up their technology to rapid tests. Once vaccines arrived, Moose address the new reality. sought out patients who couldn’t make an Lattanzio said some independent pharma- appointment on a smartphone, who couldn’t cies, which had always preferred the personal drive to mass vaccination clinics, or who were touch of having staff members answer the just afraid to leave their home. phones, have had to invest in new systems to Staffers delivered vaccines to one elderly handle thousands of calls a day from people man with cancer, whose wife had died a year seeking vaccines. Costs rose even as revenues earlier. He and his disabled adult son didn’t dropped. want to risk going out and contracting the virus.

“For the most part, they lost money,” Lat“But he trusts us, and so we deliver medtanzio said. “If you didn’t lose money, you did ication to him probably every other week,” something really right.”

Moose said. “So it made sense that we bring When Lattanzio opened his first pharmacy the vaccine to him.”

20 years ago, he saw gross profit margins of Tripp Logan, a pharmacist in Charleston, 36%. Now independent pharmacies are fortu- Mo., said one of his three pharmacies is in rural nate to see margins of 3% to 5%, if they survive Mississippi County, which has no hospital or the pandemic at all. Much of that decline comes chain pharmacy for the 14,000 residents. There, from the impact of pharmacy benefit managers, four independent pharmacies and the county which manage commercial and public health Continued on next page.

12

• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal

It’s the best time ever to sell a used car — as long as you don’t need to buy one

by Daniel Miller

Clarissa Iliff logged about 78,000 miles on her trusty 2015 Ford Focus before a looming new car purchase rendered it expendable earlier this year.

Trying to unload it, the Orange resident took the Ford to a local car dealership, which offered her $4,850 for the sedan in late March. But that was about $1,000 less than the Auto low-end valuation from automotive research company Kelley Blue Book, so she passed.

It was the right decision. On Monday, Iliff sold the vehicle to CarMax in Costa Mesa for $6,400.

“I didn’t expect to get that much,” said Iliff, 31, director of business operations at BOTEC Analysis, a public policy research and consulting firm. “I am absolutely pleased with the financials.”

Iliff benefited from a red-hot used car market, which has been roiled by a once-in-a-generation set of circumstances brought on by the pandemic. Last year’s collapse of the rental car market, ongoing production issues in the new automobile business and droves of buyers flush with stimulus checks have turned the used car market upside down, leading to a shortage of inventory that has sent asking prices soaring to historic levels in the Los Angeles area and nationally.

“If you have an extra car to sell it’s a great time — there may never be another time greater than this,” said Eric Ibara, director of residual values at Kelley Blue Book, a subsidiary of Cox Automotive. “But if you’re selling a used car to buy another car, it could be difficult. I’ve been in the industry 30 years now and I have never seen the market as hot as it is.”

A snapshot of the Los Angeles market in April gives a sense of the turbulence. There were about 101,000 used cars for sale in the L.A. region during the week ending April 4, down 12% from the same week in 2020, and off 18% from 2019, according to data provided by Cox, a car

services company. Meanwhile, the average list price was $22,963, up 12% from a year ago and 14% from 2019.

At Worthington Ford in Long Beach, there are 137 used cars for sale — only a little more than half of what it would typically have on offer, said Ates Baydu, the dealership’s director of e-commerce operations.

“Our inventory is decimated quite a bit right now,” he said. “It was really brisk a couple months ago; right now it is turbocharged.”

A confluence of events has limited used car inventory.

The near total shutdown of the rental car business is one key factor. Rental car companies typically are steady contributors to the used car inventory nationwide, reliably refreshing their stables every 12 to 18 months by selling older rides on the used market. However, when the rental car business dried up last year, many operators stopped buying new cars while also quickly unloading huge portions of their existing fleets.

That has meant fewer used rental cars hitting the market this year — and it’s a trend experts expect to continue.

“Sales into rental fleets were down 50% last year, which means ... 12 to 18 months [later] the supply coming into the used car market would be down by 50%,” said Larry Dixon, a vice president at the National Independent Automobile Dealers Assn. “It is going to get worse as the year progresses.”

Also, consumers have recently reentered both the new and used car markets in earnest after sitting on the sidelines during the early days of the pandemic — when stay-at-home orders kept many off the roads.

“Things are opening up now, consumers want to get out of the house — we have the worst case of cabin fever in history,” Dixon said. “People want to drive and go places. You have ... very

COVID-19 shot not enough to keep pharmacies in business Continued from preceding page. health department formed a consortium to help distribute COVID-19 vaccines.

“It started with a group text, and the next thing you know, we’re vaccinating hundreds of people a week collectively,” Logan said.

Because pharmacies can make up to $70 per COVID-19 test and $40 for each vaccination, many pharmacies are earning new revenue to offset some of the retail losses, said Owen BonDurant, president of Independent Rx Consulting in Centerville, Ohio.

“So that has brought a significant increase in profit margins for the short term,” BonDurant said. “COVID has probably saved a lot of pharmacies. Because PBM pressure has been so hard, especially on some of these rural and inner-city pharmacies, a lot of them still are on the verge of going out of business.”

The cash infusion from the federal Paycheck Protection Program also kept many pharmacies afloat, and allowed some to make investments that better position them for the future.

“We would have had to shut down or sell because the PBMs were brutal last year, and they killed off a lot of our friends in Wisconsin,” said Dan Strause, president and chief executive officer of Hometown Pharmacy in Madison, Wis. “Without the PPP, there would have been far more facing the same fate.”

Some of the changes born of necessity could stick. In a recent survey by the National Community Pharmacists Association, 3 in 5 community pharmacists said they expect more pharmacies to offer point-of-care testing after the pandemic, and more than half said additional

pharmacies will give immunizations.

Hashim Zaibak, CEO of Hayat Pharmacy in Milwaukee, said his pharmacy is considering testing for the flu, strep and hemoglobin A1C levels for those with diabetes, and it will continue providing vaccinations.

“Those changes are here to stay,” Zaibak said.

Tobin’s owners considered selling their pharmacy, but finding no buyers, they shut down for good in September. Schultz said it’s unclear whether they could have survived had COVID-19 not happened — or if the vaccine revenue might have helped. He knows of two other independent pharmacies in Wisconsin that closed in the past 18 months.

“The real crux of the matter is you’re getting paid, in some cases, $60 under the cost that we end up paying for the medication,” he said. “How do you justify that portion of your business?”

Oconomowoc has one independent drugstore, two grocery store pharmacies and a Walgreens to serve its 17,000 residents. But Schultz worries about many of the older, sicker customers who relied on the personalized care his pharmacy provided. One of his former pharmacists now works at a drugstore outside of town but delivers medications to some of Tobin’s most vulnerable former customers on her way home.

“She just didn’t think they would survive going someplace else,” he said. (c)2021 Kaiser Health News Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

strong demand.”

Many of those additional buyers are shopping with extra money in their pockets from annual tax refunds and government stimulus checks — and interest rates are still at historically low levels.

Such factors may make it seem like a great time for the new car market, but an ongoing global semiconductor shortage has slowed automakers’ efforts to ramp up production of vehicles after having shut down manufacturing plants during the pandemic. The lack of new cars has pushed customers who can’t or don’t want to wait for their preferred new rides to turn to used ones.

In the L.A. area, 86,994 used cars were sold during the 30-day period that roughly corresponded to the month of March, an increase of 52% from a year earlier, according to Cox. An all-time record for the average list price of a used car in the L.A. area was set in the fourth quarter of 2020, when it hit $23,587. Although the average list price is down from the high mark, that change follows a typical pattern, which sees asking prices trend upward at the end of the year, then dip in the first quarter and increase in the spring. Experts said they expect list prices to rise in the months ahead.

“You cannot make more 3-year-old used cars, so we are limited by the supply already out there,” Ibara said. “So if you can’t increase supply, the only thing that can happen is the prices go up.”

And there are still other factors driving inventory lower and prices up. Among other pandemic-driven idiosyncrasies, there are fewer vehicles entering the used car market via repossessions, Ibara said, because banks and other financial institutions have given consumers a break during the global cataclysm, allowing them to delay car payments. Also, consumers aren’t trading in their used vehicles at the typical pace, hurting dealers’ ability to replenish their inventories.

It all adds up, Ibara said, to “quite a roller coaster ride.”

“This hasn’t played out entirely — we don’t know how long it will take to solve the [new car] supply chain issues, for example,” he said. “We don’t really know what’s going to happen for the rest of the year.”

Sellers are the clear beneficiaries. And it’s not just L.A. — the market is tight nationwide.

According to Cox data, during the week ending April 4, there were 2.1 million used cars for sale in the U.S., down 25% from the same period a year earlier and down 22% from 2019. And the average list price was $21,522, up 12% from a year ago and 14% from 2019.

In Hawaii, semi-retired musician Cyrus Faryar sold his inoperable 2008 Mazda Tribute in mid-March for $800 — roughly a few hundred dollars more than its Kelley Blue Book value. The car, with a transmission that had given out in January, had attracted about 30 interested parties after it was listed on Facebook Marketplace, he said.

Faryar, who lives just outside Hilo, Hawaii, marveled that a vehicle that “could have easily been destined for the junkyard” attracted so many prospective buyers. He estimated it would take about $3,000 to repair the Mazda, which had about 190,000 miles on it.

“I was satisfied — and grateful” to sell it, said Faryar, 85.

Now, Faryar is considering buying a used pickup truck, and has been perusing Craigslist for one. He’s girding himself for an adventure.

“My sense of the secondary car market at the moment: It is a lively environment!” he said.

Faryar is right. And, Dixon said, it makes for “the frothiest market” on record. ©2021 Los Angeles Times.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

SUPER CROSSWORD PUZZLE ANSWERS

Puzzle on page 11.

Midlands Business Journal • MAY 14, 2021 • Legal notices LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES MBJ legal notice instructions The following are some guidelines to consider when posting legal notices with the Midlands Business Journal: 1. Submit a written notice in either Microsoft Word or as a PDF document to the Legal Department at legals@mbj.com. For trade names, submit a copy of approved (bar code in upper right hand corner) Application For Registration of Trade Name from the Secretary of State to the same email address. Please include your billing address and the desired duration you’d like your notice to run (trade names run for only one week).

As a publisher and not a legal advisor we print notices exactly as they are submitted and therefor only comp reruns when the notice was rejected or messed up due to a MBJ error. All companies submitting notices are responsible for ensuring the content fits with the State’s requirements and are responsible for the cost of republishing the notice if it is rejected due to misinformation or missing information 2. You will receive a confirmation and price quote. Legal notices, except for trade names, are charged per line. The flat fee for a trade name is $50.

Payment options are cash or check.

3. Deadline is noon on Tuesday for a notice to start publishing that Friday.

4. All costs include fees to file the notice with the Secretary of State and/or any appropriate courts.

5. You will receive a paid invoice copy the first week it runs.

DAVID J. SKALKA, Attorney CROKER, HUCK LAW FIRM 2120 S. 72ND STREET, SUITE 1200 OMAHA, NEBRASKA 68124 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF TANTO DISTRIBUTION LLC The name of the limited liability company is Tanto Distribution LLC. The address of the initial designated office is 2120 South 72nd Street, Suite 1200, Omaha, NE 68152. The name and address of the initial agent for service of process is David J. Skalka, 2120 South 72nd Street, Suite 1200, Omaha, NE 68124.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

BARBARA MEDBERY-PRCHAL, P.C., L.L.O., Attorney 11102 Blondo Street, Suite 103 Omaha, Nebraska 68164 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF HRDL, LLC Notice is hereby given that a professional limited liability company has been formed under the laws of the State of Nebraska, and that the name of the company is HRDL, LLC The name and street address of the company’s initial registered agent is Law Offices of Barbara Medbery-Prchal, P.C., L.L.O., 11102 Blondo Street, Suite 103, Omaha, NE 68164. The designated office is located at 11102 Blondo Street, Suite 103, Omaha, NE 68164.

Christopher Bauer and Timothy McGee, Members First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

GROSS & WELCH, P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 2120 South 72 Street, Suite 1500 Omaha, Nebraska 68124 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF ACT PROPERTIES LLC a Nebraska Limited Liability Company Notice is hereby given that ACT PROPERTIES LLC, a Nebraska Limited Liability Company, has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska, with its designated office located at 6801 Lexington Avenue, Lincoln, Nebraska 68505, its registered agent is Frederick D. Stehlik, and its registered office located at 2120 South 72 Street, Suite 1500, Omaha, Nebraska 68124. The general nature of its business is to engage in and do any lawful act concerning any and all lawful business, other than banking or insurance, for which a limited liability company may be organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The Certificate of Organization was filed in the office of the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 10, 2021, the Company commenced business thereon, and shall have perpetual existence.

The affairs of the Company are to be conducted by the Managing Member.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

MATTHEW T. PAYNE, Attorney PANSING HOGAN ERNST & BACHMAN LLP 10250 Regency Circle, Suite 300 Omaha, Nebraska 68114-3728 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF WLS REALTY, LLC Notice is hereby given of the organization of WLS Realty, LLC: 1. The name of the limited liability company is WLS Realty, LLC. 2. The street and mailing address of the initial designated office is 19613 Audrey Street, Gretna, Nebraska 68028, and the name and street address of the initial agent for service of process is Ashleigh Preston, 19613 Audrey Street, Gretna, Nebraska 68028.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

THOMAS H. PENKE, Attorney 12020 Shamrock Plaza, Suite 200 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 Notice is hereby given that Evergreen Transport, Inc. has incorporated under the Nebraska Model Business Corporation Act. The general nature of the business is any lawful business. Authorized capital is 10,000 shares of common stock, with a par value of $1.00 per share. The incorporator and the registered agent is Thomas H. Penke and the incorporator’s address and the address of the registered office is located at 12020 Shamrock Plaza, Suite 200, Omaha, Nebraska 68154. The affairs of the corporation are to be conducted by the Board of Directors and such officers as it may elect.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

Philip J. Thompson Cripple Creek Aviation Services LLC 1013 Fenwick Street Papillion, Nebraska 68046 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF CRIPPLE CREEK AVIATION SERVICES, LLC Notice is hereby given that Cripple Creek Aviation Services, LLC, (the “COMPANY”) has been organized under the laws of the Stare of Nebraska. The Designated Office Address of the Company is 1013 Fenwick Street, Papillion, Nebraska 68046. The Registered Agent of the Company is Philip J. Thompson, 1013 Fenwick Street, Papillion, Nebraska 68046.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

THOMAS H. PENKE, Attorney 12020 Shamrock Plaza, Suite 200 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 Notice is hereby given that Peak Transport, Inc., has incorporated under the Nebraska Model Business Corporation Act. The general nature of the business is any lawful business. Authorized capital is 10,000 shares of common stock, with a par value of $1.00 per share. The incorporator and the registered agent is Thomas H. Penke and the incorporator’s address and the address of the registered office is located at 12020 Shamrock Plaza, Suite 200, Omaha, Nebraska 68154. The affairs of the corporation are to be conducted by the Board of Directors and such officers as it may elect.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

THOMAS H. PENKE, Attorney 12020 Shamrock Plaza, Suite 200 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 Notice is hereby given that CUAD Corporation, has incorporated under the Nebraska Model Business Corporation Act. The general nature of the business is any lawful business. Authorized capital is 10,000 shares of common stock, with a par value of $1.00 per share. The incorporator and the registered agent is Thomas H. Penke and the incorporator’s address and the address of the registered office is located at 12020 Shamrock Plaza, Suite 200, Omaha, Nebraska 68154. The affairs of the corporation are to be conducted by the Board of Directors and such officers as it may elect.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

THOMAS H. PENKE, Attorney 12020 Shamrock Plaza, Suite 200 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 Notice is hereby given that M2C Express, Inc. has incorporated under the Nebraska Model Business Corporation Act. The general nature of the business is any lawful business. Authorized capital is 10,000 shares of common stock, with a par value of $1.00 per share. The incorporator and the registered agent is Thomas H. Penke and the incorporator’s address and the address of the registered office is located at 12020 Shamrock Plaza, Suite 200, Omaha, Nebraska 68154. The affairs of the corporation are to be conducted by the Board of Directors and such officers as it may elect.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF ARC OBGYN, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that ARC OBGYN, LLC has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The limited liability company shall provide medical services. The designated office of the limited liability company is 1822 South 211th Street, Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022. The registered agent and office of the limited liability company is Koley Jessen P.C., L.L.O., 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, Omaha, Nebraska 68124.

The limited liability company commenced business on April 17, 2021.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

13

NOTICE OF INCORPORATION OF 1490 SPORTS, INC. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that 1490 SPORTS, INC., is incorporated under the laws of the State of Nebraska, with a registered office at 3018 South 87th Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68124. The registered agent is ANTHONY L. GROSS. The general nature of the business is to operate a general sports officiating/reviews business, to own, operate and perform services of every kind and nature whatsoever, which are not inconsistent with law, which are necessary, suitable, proper, convenient or expedient to the operation of a general sports officiating/reviews business. The authorized capital stock is $10,000.00, consisting of 10,000 shares of stock having a par value of $1.00 each, which stock shall be paid for wholly or partly by cash, by labor, by personal property and by real property. The corporation became a corporate body on March 25, 2021, and upon its Articles being filed with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 10, 2021, and shall have perpetual existence. The affairs of the corporation are to be conducted by a Board of Directors, the number of directors to be provided in the By-Laws, and the officers shall be a President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer, and such other officers as shall be designated in the By-Laws.

ANTHONY L. GROSS, Incorporator CATHERINE L. WHITE, Incorporator 3018 South 87th Street, Omaha, NE 68124 First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

Alton E. Mitchell, Attorney at Law, LLC 1905 Harney Street, Suite 711 Omaha, Nebraska, 68102 Notice of Organization of DJ’s Carpentry LLC Notice is hereby given that a Limited Liability Company has been formed under the laws of the State of Nebraska.

The initial Registered Agent is:

Darren R. Johnson

18230 Western Hills Drive

Omaha, NE 68007 The address of the initial Designated Office is:

DJ’s Carpentry LLC

18230 Western Hills Drive

Omaha, NE 68007 The Certificate of Organization was filed with the Secretary of State April 15, 202. Prior to publication a Statement of Change was filed on behalf of the Company reflecting a Designated Office address and Registered Agent address of 18230 Northern Hills Drive, Omaha, NE 68007.

The Company has perpetual existence; the general nature of its business is construction. services. Company business will be conducted by its Manager as described in the Company’s Operating Agreement.

Alton E. Mitchell, Authorized Representative First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

Daniel C. Pauley, Attorney LAMSON, DUGAN & MURRAY, LLP 10306 Regency Parkway Drive Omaha, Nebraska 68114 NOTICE OF THE ORGANIZATION OF FIND YOUR RUSH, LLC Notice is hereby given of the formation of a limited liability company under the laws of the State of Nebraska, and that the name of the limited liability company is Find Your Rush, LLC. The address of the initial designated office is 10320 N 191st Avenue, Bennington, Nebraska 68007.

The name and address of the registered agent and office is LDM Business Services, Inc, 10306 Regency Parkway Drive, Omaha, Nebraska 68114. The general nature of the business is any or all lawful business. The company commenced existence on April 16, 2021 and shall have a perpetual duration.

The affairs of the company shall be conducted by the Members, as prescribed by the Operating Agreement.

LDM Business Services, Inc., Organizer First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

NOTICE OF INCORPORATION OF PARIS 3 IN 1, INC. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that PARIS 3 IN 1, INC., is incorporated under the laws of the State of Nebraska, with a registered office at 3018 South 87th Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68124. The registered agent is ANTHONY L. GROSS. The general nature of the business is to operate a general wholesale nail polish business, to own, operate and perform services of every kind and nature whatsoever, which are not inconsistent with law, which are necessary, suitable, proper, convenient or expedient to the operation of a general wholesale nail polish business. The authorized capital stock is $10,000.00, consisting of 10,000 shares of stock having a par value of $1.00 each, which stock shall be paid for wholly or partly by cash, by labor, by personal property and by real property. The corporation became a corporate body on April 9, 2021, and upon its Articles being filed with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 16, 2021, and shall have perpetual existence. The affairs of the corporation are to be conducted by a Board of Directors, the number of directors to be provided in the By-Laws, and the officers shall be a President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer, and such other officers as shall be designated in the By-Laws.

ANTHONY L. GROSS, Incorporator CATHERINE L. WHITE, Incorporator 3018 South 87th Street, Omaha, NE 68124 First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

14

• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal

Legal notices LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 N O T I C E O F A M E N D M E N T T O T H E A RT I C L E S O F INCORPORATION OF GENERAL SERVICE BUREAU, INC. Notice is hereby given that the Articles of Incorporation of General Service Bureau, Inc., a Nebraska corporation, have been amended by revoking Article VIII in its entirety and restating Article VIII as being Intentionally Omitted. The Articles of Amendment were filed with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 29, 2021.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

Notice is hereby given that Pineapple Express, Inc. has incorporated under the Nebraska Model Business Corporation Act. The general nature of the business is any lawful business. Authorized capital is 10,000 shares of common stock, with a par value of $1.00 per share. The incorporator and the registered agent is Thomas H. Penke and the incorporator’s address and the address of the registered office is located at 12020 Shamrock Plaza, Suite 200, Omaha, Nebraska 68154. The affairs of the corporation are to be conducted by the Board of Directors and such officers as it may elect.

Thomas H. Penke, Incorporator 12020 Shamrock Plaza, Suite 200 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

NOTICE OF PUBLICATION TO: MARQUS DOUGLAS You are hereby notified that on 11/17/20, the Plaintiff Credit Management Services, Inc., filed a Complaint in the COUNTY Court of DOUGLAS County, Nebraska, against you shown as Case Number CI20 20553. The object and prayer of which is a judgment in the amount of 1,052.00, plus court costs, pre-judgment interest and attorney fees, if applicable.

The Complaint prays that judgment be entered against you. You are hereby notified that you must answer the Complaint on or before 06/13/21 at the COUNTY court of DOUGLAS County, OMAHA Nebraska.

Edwina Heise #25377 P.O. Box 1512 Grand Island, NE 68802 (308)398-3801 Attorney for Plaintiff First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION Notice is given that ALMA CONVENIENCE STORE AND MONEY TRANSFERS , LLC has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska with the following registered agent and registered office: Alma Zapien at 1952 S 14th St Omaha, NE 68108. The general nature of the Company's business is to engage in any lawful business permitted under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The company was organized on April 2, 2021, and it shall continue in perpetuity unless sooner terminated in accordance with the terms of its operating agreement. In general, the Company's business is to be managed by its primary member Alma Zapien in accordance with the Company's operating agreement.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION Notice is given that BURRO’S LAWN & LANDSCAPE SERVICES, LLC has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska with the following registered agent and registered office: Orlando Arzate Martinez at 3919 S 33rd St. Omaha, NE 68107. The general nature of the Company's business is to engage in any lawful business permitted under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The company was organized on April 1, 2021, and it shall continue in perpetuity unless sooner terminated in accordance with the terms of its operating agreement. In general, the Company's business is to be managed by its primary member Orlando Arzate Martinez in accordance with the Company's operating agreement.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION Company Name: Crafted Performance Homes LLC Initial Designated Office: 3512 S 193rd St, Omaha, NE 68130 Registered Agent and Office: Registered Agents, Inc. 530 S. 13th St., Ste 100, Lincoln, NE, 68508 Date of Organization: April 4, 2021 Modern Law Firm, PC, LLO, Organizer First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

DVORAK LAW GROUP LLC 9500 West Dodge Road, Suite 100 Omaha, Nebraska 68114 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF FANCY FORMATIONS, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Fancy Formations, LLC (the “Company”) has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska.

The Designated Office Address of the Company is 20289 Blondo Parkway, Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022. The Registered Agent of the Company is DDLG Business Services, Inc., 9500 West Dodge Road, Suite 100, Omaha, Nebraska 68114.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY 1. The name of the company is Look at the Moon, LLC 2. The address of the initial registered office is 2932 N 57th Street, Omaha, NE 68104.

3. The purpose for which the company is organized is to engage in and to do any lawful act concerning any and all lawful business, for which a limited liability company may be organized under the laws of Nebraska.

4. The time of commencement of the company shall be March 19, 2021 and the duration of the company shall be perpetual.

5. The affairs of the corporation are to be conducted by: Angela Norman, Manager, 2932 N 57th Street, Omaha, NE 68104 First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

FITZGERALD, SCHORR, BARMETTLER & BRENNAN, P.C., L.L.O. 200 Regency One 1005 Regency Circle Omaha, Nebraska 68114-3794 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION FORTEN BUILDING GROUP, LLC has been organized as a limited liability company under the Nebraska Uniform Limited Liability Company Act. The street and mailing address of the initial designated office of the Company is 2105 Hickman Road, P.O. Box 105, Roca, NE 68430. The name, street and mailing address of the initial agent for service of process of the Company are Charles P. Stewart, 2105 Hickman Road, P.O. Box 105, Roca, NE 68430.

Dated this 29TH day of April, 2021.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

LIKES MEYERSON HATCH LLC 444 Regency Parkway Drive, Suite 100 Omaha, Nebraska 68114 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF ROAD RUNNER GRILL CLEANERS, LLC Notice is hereby given that Road Runner Grill Cleaners, LLC, a Nebraska limited liability company (the “Company”), has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The street and mailing address of the Company’s initial designated office is 10705 S. 176th Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68136. The street and mailing address of the Company’s initial agent for service of process is 10705 S. 176th Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68136, and the Company’s initial agent for service of process at such address is Robert S. Harvey.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION 1. The name of the Limited Liability Company is BATTLESHIP RANCH, LLC. 2. The designated office of the limited liability company is 6755 Road 42, Bayard, NE 69334.

3. The registered agent and office of the limited liability company is Charles Nolan Edwards, at 6755 Road 42, Bayard, NE 69334.

4. The purpose for which the company is organized is to engage in any and all business which is lawful under the Nebraska Uniform Limited Liability Company Act of the State of Nebraska.

5. The company commenced its existence on April 16, 2021, and the period of duration of the Company shall be perpetual.

6. The affairs of the company shall be conducted by its Members in accordance with the company’s operating agreement.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF NINETY-SIXTH MERIDIAN III, LLC The name of the Company is Ninety-Sixth Meridian III, LLC. The Designated Office of the Company is: 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, Omaha, Nebraska 68124. The Registered Agent and Office of the Company is: Koley Jessen P.C., L.L.O., 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, Omaha, Nebraska 68124. This limited liability company commenced business on May 3, 2021.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

Russell S. Daub, Attorney for Personal Representative 2800 S. 110th Court, Suite 1, Omaha, Nebraska 68144 LEGAL NOTICE In the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska. PR21-615 Estate of JUANITA M. GALVAN, Deceased Notice is hereby given that on April 12, 2021, in the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska, the Registrar issued a written statement of Informal Probate of the Will of said Decendent and that JOHN M. GALVAN, whose address is 11033 Prairie Hills Drive, Omaha, Nebraska 68144, was informally appointed by the Registrar as Personal Representative of theestate.

Creditors of this estate must file their claims with this Court, located at Courtroom No. 330, Third Floor, Probate Division, Douglas County Hall of Justice, 17th & Farnam Streets, Omaha, NE 68183, on or before July 20, 2021 or be forever barred.

CARROL L. MILLS Registrar First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

Charles E. Dorwart, Attorney Massih Law, LLC 226 North 114th Street Omaha, Nebraska 68154 LEGAL NOTICE In the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska. PR21-532 Estate of PATRICIA A. GOSCH, Deceased Notice is hereby given that on April 1, 2021, in the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska, the Registrar issued a written statement of Informal Probate of the Will of said Decedent and that Constance E. Newman, 3202 S. 49th Avenue, Omaha, NE 68106 was informally appointed by the Registrar as Personal Representative of the Estate.

Creditors of this estate must file their claims with this Court, located at Courtroom No. 330, Third Floor, Probate Division, Douglas County Hall of Justice, 17th & Farnam Streets, Omaha, NE 68183, on or before July 20, 2021 or be forever barred.

CARROL L. MILLS Registrar First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

Alton E. Mitchell, Attorney at Law, LLC 1905 Harney Street, Suite 711 Omaha, Nebraska, 68102 Notice of Organization of Hatch & Dallon, Attorneys at Law, L.L.C. Notice is hereby given that a Limited Liability Company has been formed under the laws of the State of Nebraska.

The initial Registered Agent is:

Nathan Dallon

16308 Ohio Street

Omaha, NE 68116 The address of the initial Designated Office is:

Hatch & Dallon, Attorneys at Law, L.L.C.

16308 Ohio Street

Omaha, NE 68116 The Certificate of Organization was filed with the Secretary of State on April 29, 2021.

The Company has perpetual existence; the general nature of its business is as a law firm. Company business will be conducted by its Managers as described in the Company’s Certificate of Organization & Operating Agreement.

Alton E. Mitchell, Authorized Representative First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF AL INVESTMENTS, LLC Notice is hereby given that AL Investments, LLC has been organized as a limited liability company under Nebraska laws, with its designated office at 2922 N. 169th Avenue Omaha, NE 68116. Its registered agent is Kris Abrahamson at 2922 N. 169th Avenue, Omaha, NE 68116. Kris Abrahamson at 2922 N. 169th Ave, Omaha, NE 68116 is replacing the previous registered agent USCA, INC at 1603 Farnam Street, Omaha, NE 68102.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF DOUGLAS COUNTY, NEBRASKA Ana Isabel Bremers, Plantiff, vs. Jesse Bremers, Defendent Case No. CI21-2990 This matter having regulary come on for hearing before the undersigned judge on the Motion of Plaintiff, and it appearing to the court that Plaintiff is entitled to the relief sought by the Motion.

IT IS ORDERED that the notice of the pendency of this action shall be given by publication in a legal newspaper in Douglas County Nebraska.

By the Court: Hon. Thomas A Otepka Judge First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

Midlands Business Journal • MAY 14, 2021 • Legal notices LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF MKC Enterprises, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that MKC Enterprises, LLC (the “Company”) has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The Designated Office Address of the Company is 201 Shillaelagh Blvd. Unit 6, Papillion, NE 68046. The Registered Agent of the Company is Registered Agents Inc, 530 S. 13th St. STE 100 Lincoln, NE 68508.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 NOTICE OF CONVERSION OF BUCK’S, INC. AND ORGANIZATION OF BUCK’S, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Buck’s, Inc. has been converted into Buck’s, LLC under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The Designated Office of the company is 7315 Mercy Road, Omaha, Nebraska 68124. The Registered Office of the company is 7315 Mercy Road, Omaha, Nebraska 68124 and the Registered Agent at such address is Steven Buchanan.

The conversion of the corporation into the limited liability company was accomplished by the filing of Articles of Conversion and Certificate of Organization with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 29, 2021.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

KENDRA RINGENBERG, Attorney RINGENBERG & RATTNER LAW 14301 FNB Parkway, Suite 204 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF 301 RENDON CROWLEY ROAD CARWASH RE, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that 301 Rendon Crowley Road Carwash RE, LLC (the “Company”) has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The Designated Office Address of the Company is 222 S. 15th Street, Suite 1404S, Omaha, Nebraska 68102. The Registered Agent of the Company is Kendra Ringenberg, 14301 FNB Parkway, Suite 204, Omaha, Nebraska 68154.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

KENDRA RINGENBERG, Attorney RINGENBERG & RATTNER LAW 14301 FNB Parkway, Suite 204 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF RACEWAY DRIVE CARWASH RE, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Raceway Drive Carwash RE, LLC (the “Company”) has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The Designated Office Address of the Company is 222 S. 15th Street, Suite 1404S, Omaha, Nebraska 68102. The Registered Agent of the Company is Kendra Ringenberg, 14301 FNB Parkway, Suite 204, Omaha, Nebraska 68154.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

Notice is hereby given that 96 Investments, a Nebraska Limited Liability Company has been organized under the laws of the state of Nebraska with its initial office located at 834 S 129th Ave, Omaha, NE 68154. The initial agent for service of process for this company is Ayleen Perez, 530 S.13th Street Ste 100, Lincoln, NE 68508. The company is member-managed and nature is Leasing.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

Darren R. Carlson, Attorney CARLSON & BURNETT, LLP 17525 Arbor Street Omaha, Nebraska 68130 NOTICE OFAMENDMENT OF CERTIFICATE OF ORGANIZATION Notice is hereby given that HUCKLEBERRY FLATS HUNT CLUB, LLC, organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska filed an Amended Certificate of Organization with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 21, 2021. The terms of the Amended Certificate of Organization provide the name of the Limited Liability Company will be changed to HACKLEBERRY FLATS HUNT CLUB, LLC. The name HACKLEBERRY FLATS HUNT CLUB, LLC will be substituted for HUCKLEBERRY FLATS HUNT CLUB, LLC each place it appears in the Certificate of Organization. In all other respects the Certificate of Organization of the Company remains unchanged.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

NOTICE OF INCORPORATION OF D & L 3 IN 1, INC. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that D & L 3 IN 1, INC., is incorporated under the laws of the State of Nebraska, with a registered office at 3018 South 87th Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68124. The registered agent is ANTHONY L. GROSS. The general nature of the business is to operate a general wholesale nail polish business, to own, operate and perform services of every kind and nature whatsoever, which are not inconsistent with law, which are necessary, suitable, proper, convenient or expedient to the operation of a general wholesale nail polish business. The authorized capital stock is $10,000.00, consisting of 10,000 shares of stock having a par value of $1.00 each, which stock shall be paid for wholly or partly by cash, by labor, by personal property and by real property. The corporation became a corporate body on April 9, 2021, and upon its Articles being filed with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 16, 2021, and shall have perpetual existence. The affairs of the corporation are to be conducted by a Board of Directors, the number of directors to be provided in the By-Laws, and the officers shall be a President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer, and such other officers as shall be designated in the By-Laws.

ANTHONY L. GROSS, Incorporator CATHERINE L. WHITE, Incorporator 3018 South 87th Street, Omaha, NE 68124 First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

KENDRA RINGENBERG, Attorney RINGENBERG & RATTNER LAW 14301 FNB Parkway, Suite 204 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF 306 INTERSTATE 20 CARWASH RE, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that 306 Interstate 20 Carwash RE, LLC (the “Company”) has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The Designated Office Address of the Company is 222 S. 15th Street, Suite 1404S, Omaha, Nebraska 68102. The Registered Agent of the Company is Kendra Ringenberg, 14301 FNB Parkway, Suite 204, Omaha, Nebraska 68154.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

NOTICE OF INCORPORATION OF KEMBA, SOPHIE & ARCHIE, INC. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that KEMBA, SOPHIE & ARCHIE, INC., is incorporated under the laws of the State of Nebraska, with a registered office at 3018 South 87th Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68124.

The registered agent is ANTHONY L. GROSS. The general nature of the business is to operate a general sales services business, to own, operate and perform services of every kind and nature whatsoever, which are not inconsistent with law, which are necessary, suitable, proper, convenient or expedient to the operation of a general sales services business. The authorized capital stock is $10,000.00, consisting of 10,000 shares of stock having a par value of $1.00 each, which stock shall be paid for wholly or partly by cash, by labor, by personal property and by real property. The corporation became a corporate body on March 19, 2021, and upon its Articles being filed with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 10, 2021, and shall have perpetual existence. The affairs of the corporation are to be conducted by a Board of Directors, the number of directors to be provided in the By-Laws, and the officers shall be a President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer, and such other officers as shall be designated in the By-Laws.

ANTHONY L. GROSS, Incorporator CATHERINE L. WHITE, Incorporator 3018 South 87th Street, Omaha, NE 68124 First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

MATTHEW T. PAYNE, Attorney PANSING HOGAN ERNST & BACHMAN LLP 10250 Regency Circle, Suite 300 Omaha, Nebraska 68114-3728 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF SOLON ADVISORY, LLC Notice is hereby given of the organization of Solon Advisory, LLC: 1. The name of the limited liability company is Solon Advisory, LLC. 2. The street and mailing address of the initial designated office is 5911 S. 173rd Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68135, and the name and street address of the initial agent for service of process is Matthew T. Payne, 10250 Regency Circle, Suite 300, Omaha, Nebraska 68114.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

JENNIFER L. RATTNER, Esq. RINGENBERG & RATTNER LAW 14301 FNB Parkway, Suite 204 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF BOHEMIAN GARDENS, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Bohemian Gardens, LLC (the “Company”) has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska.

The Designated Office Address of the Company is 2405 Harney Street, Suite 12, Omaha, Nebraska 68131. The Registered Agent of the Company is Jennifer L. Rattner, Esq., Ringenberg & Rattner Law, LLC, 14301 FNB Parkway, Suite 204, Omaha, Nebraska 68154.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

15

KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 N O T I C E O F A M E N D M E N T T O T H E A RT I C L E S O F INCORPORATION BUCK’S HOLDCO, INC. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Articles of Incorporation of Buck’s Holdco, Inc. have been amended to reflect that that the Corporation shall now have the authority to issue 100,000 shares of voting common stock, at a par value of $0.01. The Amendment was filed with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 19, 2021.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

AMANDA M. BARRON, Attorney P.O. Box 597 Fremont, Nebraska 68026 LEGAL NOTICE TO THE DEFENDANT(s), ZACHARY A STARK You are hereby notified that Credit Bureau Services, Inc., a corporation, filed its complaint in the County Court of DOUGLAS County, Nebraska on 09/17/2020 on Case Number CI20-17319, the object and prayer of which is to recover the sum of $497.00, plus interest, attorney fees and court costs.

You are required to answer the complaint of the Plaintiff on or before 06/21/2021 or the allegations in said complaint will be taken as true and judgment entered accordingly.

CREDIT BUREAU SERVICES, INC., A CORPORATION First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

KENDRA RINGENBERG, Attorney RINGENBERG & RATTNER LAW 14301 FNB Parkway, Suite 204 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF RACEWAY DRIVE CARWASH, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Raceway Drive Carwash, LLC (the “Company”) has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska.

The Designated Office Address of the Company is 222 S. 15th Street, Suite 1404S, Omaha, Nebraska 68102. The Registered Agent of the Company is Kendra Ringenberg, 14301 FNB Parkway, Suite 204, Omaha, Nebraska 68154.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

BARBARA MEDBERY-PRCHAL, P.C., L.L.O., Attorney 11102 Blondo Street, Suite 103 Omaha, Nebraska 68164 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF CS LENTINI, LLC Notice is hereby given that a limited liability company has been formed under the laws of the State of Massachusetts, and that the name of the company is CS Lentini, LLC The name and street address of the company’s initial registered agent is Crystal Lentini, 1015 Michelle Parkway, Papillion, NE 68046. The designated office is located at 1015 Michelle Parkway, Papillion, NE 68046.

Crystal Lentini, Member First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

AMANDA M. BARRON, Attorney P.O. Box 597 Fremont, Nebraska 68026 LEGAL NOTICE TO THE DEFENDANT(s), ALICIA B LANDA You are hereby notified that Credit Bureau Services, Inc., a corporation, filed its complaint in the County Court of DOUGLAS County, Nebraska on 12/22/2020 on Case Number CI21-345, the object and prayer of which is to recover the sum of $230.31, plus interest, attorney fees and court costs.

You are required to answer the complaint of the Plaintiff on or before 06/21/2021 or the allegations in said complaint will be taken as true and judgment entered accordingly.

CREDIT BUREAU SERVICES, INC., A CORPORATION First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

AMANDA M. BARRON, Attorney P.O. Box 597 Fremont, Nebraska 68026 LEGAL NOTICE TO THE DEFENDANT(s), DEAN J JACKSON You are hereby notified that Credit Bureau Services, Inc., a corporation, filed its complaint in the County Court of DOUGLAS County, Nebraska on 10/09/2020 on Case Number CI20-18444 the object and prayer of which is to recover the sum of $232.00, plus interest, attorney fees and court costs.

You are required to answer the complaint of the Plaintiff on or before 06/21/2021 or the allegations in said complaint will be taken as true and judgment entered accordingly.

CREDIT BUREAU SERVICES, INC., A CORPORATION First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

16

• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal

Legal notices LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES WHITMORE LAW OFFICE LLC 7602 Pacific Street, Suite 200 Omaha, Nebraska 68114 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION Notice is hereby given that PALZ ENTERPRISE LLC (the “Company”) has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The Designated Office of the Company is 5307 N 110th Plaza Apt 2126, Omaha, Nebraska 68164. The Registered Agent of the Company is Thomas E. Whitmore, 7602 Pacific Street, Suite 200, Omaha, Nebraska 68114. The Company was formed on April 23, 2021.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

ABRAHAMS KASLOW & CASSMAN LLP, Attorneys 8712 West Dodge Road, Suite 300 Omaha, Nebraska 68114 NOTICE OF ARTICLES OF AMENDMENT OF ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION Pursuant to the Nebraska Model Business Corporations Act, Articles of Amendment of Articles of Incorporation of Backlund Animal Clinic, P.C., a Nebraska Professional Corporation, were filed on April 08, 2021, for the purpose of amending the Articles of Incorporation to provide for a change in the name of the corporation to NelsBAC, P.C. First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

ERICKSON l SEDERSTROM, P.C., Attorneys 10330 Regency Parkway Drive, Suite 100 Omaha, Nebraska 68114 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF STREAMLINEAERO, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that StreamlineAero, LLC, a Nebraska limited liability company has been duly organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska, with its designated office located at 9818 Bloomfield Drive, Omaha, Nebraska 68114 and designating its registered agent as Joseph Pogge with its registered office at 9818 Bloomfield Drive, Omaha, Nebraska 68114.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

WHITMORE LAW OFFICE LLC 7602 Pacific Street, Suite 200 Omaha, Nebraska 68114 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION Notice is hereby given that Shrader Made Glass, LLC (the “Company”) has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The Designated Office of the Company is 2505 South 35th Avenue, Omaha, Nebraska 68105. The Registered Agent of the Company is Corporation Consultants, 7602 Pacific Street, Suite 200, Omaha, Nebraska 68114. The Company was formed on April 24, 2021.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF TEAM GREEN & CLEAN, L.L.C. Notice is hereby given that Team Green & Clean, LLC has been organized as a limited liability company under Nebraska laws, with its designated office at 813 S 182nd Street, Elkhorn, NE 68022. It is organized to transact any lawful business for which a Limited Liability Company may be organized under Nebraska laws and its duration is perpetual commencing from April 10, 2020. Its affairs are to be conducted by the manager Brooke Ayoub. Its registered agent is Brooke Ayoub and her office is located at 813 S 182nd Street, Elkhorn, NE 68022.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

FLICKER LLC 4717 Decatur Street Omaha, Nebraska 68104 NOTICE OF DISSOLUTION NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN of the voluntary dissolution of Flicker LLC as of March 8, 2021. Any person having a claim whether known or unknown, against the Company is requested to present such a claim in writing to the Company at the following address: c/o Laura Armentrout, 4717 Decatur Street, Omaha, NE 68104. The claim must be in writing, must be sent by mail to the address set forth above, and must set forth the name, address and telephone number of the claimant, a detailed description and amount of the claim, the date of occurrence of the claim and any tangible evidence to support the claim that is available to the claimant. Unless sooner barred by any other statute limiting actions, any claim against the Company is barred if an action to enforce the claim is not commenced within five years after the publication of the third required notice.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

AMANDA M. BARRON, Attorney P.O. Box 597 Fremont, Nebraska 68026 LEGAL NOTICE TO THE DEFENDANT(s), MICHAEL M VILLALOBOS You are hereby notified that Credit Bureau Services, Inc., a corporation, filed its complaint in the County Court of DOUGLAS County, Nebraska on 10/13/2020 on Case Number CI20-18461, the object and prayer of which is to recover the sum of $222.68, plus interest, attorney fees and court costs.

You are required to answer the complaint of the Plaintiff on or before 06/21/2021 or the allegations in said complaint will be taken as true and judgment entered accordingly.

CREDIT BUREAU SERVICES, INC., A CORPORATION First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

MICHAEL J. WEAVER, Attorney VANDENACK WEAVER LLC 17007 Marcy Street, Suite 3 Omaha, Nebraska 68118 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF SANTA FE AIR BUILDING LLC Notice is hereby given that SANTA FE AIR BUILDING LLC has been organized as a limited liability company under the Nebraska Uniform Limited Liability Company Act. The address of the initial designated office of the company is 13330 "I" Street; Omaha, NE 68137. The agent for service of process for the Company is VW Agents LLC located at 17007 Marcy Street, Suite 3, Omaha, NE 68118.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION of a Limited Liability Company Notice is hereby given the registration with the Nebraska Secretary of state’s office of JAJD Painting, LLC under the laws of the State of Nebraska as follows: The name of the company is JAJD Painting, LLC. Registered agent and office of JAJD Painting, LLC is Jose Juarez Domingo at 4214 S 41st Avenue, Omaha, NE 68107. The designated address is 4214 S 41st Avenue, Omaha, NE 68107. Initial members: Jose Juarez Domingo. General nature of the business is to transact any and all lawful business for which limited liability companies are allowed by statute. The LLC was organized in April 2021 for the perpetual duration and is managed by its members.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION Notice is hereby given that SUPER VELOCE, LLC has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska with the following registered agent and registered office: Andrew P. McCormick, 7664 Shirley Street, Omaha, NE 68124. The designated office is 7664 Shirley Street, Omaha, NE 68124. The general nature of the business to be transacted is any or all lawful business. The business commenced on February 19, 2021, and it shall continue in perpetuity.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

WHITMORE LAW OFFICE LLC 7602 Pacific Street, Suite 200 Omaha, Nebraska 68114 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION Notice is hereby given that Forte Real Estate Investments LLC (the “Company”) has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The Designated Office of the Company is 523 S 116th Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68154. The Registered Agent of the Company is Thomas E. Whitmore, 7602 Pacific Street, Suite 200, Omaha, Nebraska 68114. The Company was formed on April 8, 2019.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

Samuel J. Turco, Sr., Attorney at Law 2580 South 90th St. Omaha, NE 68124 LEGAL NOTICE In the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska. PR15-713 Estate of HAROLYN E. SKADELAND, Deceased Notice is hereby given that on April 15, 2021, in the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska, the Registrar issued a written statement of Informal Probate of the Will of said Deceased, and that Dean Ray Skadeland, whose address is 8235 NW Birch LN, Kansas City MO, 64151, has been appointed Personal Representative of this Estate.

Creditors of this estate must file their claims with this Court, located at Courtroom No. 330, Third Floor, Probate Division, Douglas County Hall of Justice, 17th & Farnam Streets, Omaha, NE 68183, on or before June 29, 2021 or be forever barred.

CARROL L. MILLS Registrar First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

DVORAK LAW GROUP LLC 9500 West Dodge Road, Suite 100 Omaha, Nebraska 68114 NOTICE OF AMENDMENT AND RESTATEMENT OF ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION OF LUCHSINGER ENTEPRISES, P.C. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Articles of Incorporation of Luchsinger Enterprises, P.C., a Nebraska professional corporation, have been amended and restated in their entirety and were duly filed with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 24, 2021. The purpose of the Corporation is to engage in the practice of real estate.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

NOTICE TERMINATION OF NOTICE OF COMMENCEMENT TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN, TAKE NOTICE: The Contracting Owner identified below gives notice that it caused to be filed a Termination of Notice of Commencement on the April 23, 2021, containing the following information: Contracting owner: Villa Rows L.P. Real Estate: Lot 1, Omaha View Replat 4, an addition to the City of Omaha, Douglas County, Nebraska and Lot 1, Villa Rows on 15th, an addition to the City of Omaha, Douglas County, Nebraska.

Contracting owner's interest in the subject real estate: Fee simple Title holder (if different from contracting owner):

NA

The notice of commencement was recorded on March 24, 2021 as instrument number 2021037905 is terminated as of May 19, 2021.

This termination applies only to the following described real estate: Lot 1, Omaha View Replat 4, an addition to the City of Omaha, Douglas County, Nebraska and Lot 1, Villa Rows on 15th, an addition to the City of Omaha, Douglas County, Nebraska.

All lien claims for which a notice of lien is not recorded by the termination date may be defeated by a transfer of the real estate.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

DVORAK LAW GROUP LLC 9500 West Dodge Road, Suite 100 Omaha, Nebraska 68114 NOTICE OF INCORPORATION NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Telcoin, Inc. has been incorporated under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The corporation is authorized to issue 100,000 shares of common stock at a par value of $.01 each. The initial registered agent and registered office of the corporation are DDLG Business Services, Inc., 9500 West Dodge Road, Suite 100, Omaha, Nebraska 68114. The name and street address of the incorporator of the corporation are M. Thomas Langan II, 9500 West Dodge Road, Suite 100, Omaha, Nebraska 68114.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

Michael Mostek, Attorney Mostek Law LLC 1111 North 13th Street, Suite 305 Omaha, NE 68102 NOTICE OF DISSOLUTION OF GBR CONSULTING, LLC GBR Consulting LLC, a Nebraska limited liability company (the “Company”), filed its STATEMENT OF DISSOLUTION with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 26, 2021. Persons with claims against the Company must present such claim to: GBR Consulting LLC, c/o Bruce Larsen, 20740 Ginkgo Circle, Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022. Claims against the Company must include the following information: (i) claimant’s name, address, and telephone number during business hours; (ii) any facts, which may support the claim; and (iii) any amounts allegedly owed by the Company under the claim. Claims not including this information will not be reviewed. Any claims against this Company will be barred unless a proceeding to enforce such claims is commenced within five (5) years after the date this Notice is last published.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

MATTHEW T. PAYNE, Attorney PANSING HOGAN ERNST & BACHMAN LLP 10250 Regency Circle, Suite 300 Omaha, Nebraska 68114-3728 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF COVENTRY POINTE, LLC Notice is hereby given of the organization of Coventry Pointe, LLC: 1. The name of the limited liability company is Coventry Pointe, LLC; and 2. The street and mailing address of the initial designated office is 4880 S. 131st Street, Suite 3, Omaha, Nebraska 68137, and the name and street address of the initial agent for service of process is Gerald S. Reimer, 4880 S. 131st Street, Suite 3, Omaha, Nebraska 68137.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

Midlands Business Journal • MAY 14, 2021 • Legal notices LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES KENDRA RINGENBERG, Attorney RINGENBERG & RATTNER LAW 14301 FNB Parkway, Suite 204 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF INTERSTATE 20 CARWASH, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Interstate 20 Carwash, LLC (the “Company”) has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska.

The Designated Office Address of the Company is 222 S. 15th Street, Suite 1404S, Omaha, Nebraska 68102. The Registered Agent of the Company is Kendra Ringenberg, 14301 FNB Parkway, Suite 204, Omaha, Nebraska 68154.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

WHITMORE LAW OFFICE LLC 7602 Pacific Street, Suite 200 Omaha, Nebraska 68114 N O T I C E O F A M E N D M E N T S A N D R E S TAT E M E N T O F CERTIFICATE OF ORGANIZATION OF NO EX, LLC Notice is hereby given that the Certificate of Organization of NO EX, LLC (the “Company”) organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska on December 22, 2011 has been amended and restated as per the following: 1. On July 22, 2013, the Company filed an Amendment to the Certificate of Organization to change its name to Jilly Bars, LLC 2. On September 3, 2013, the Company filed a Statement of Change to Restate its Registered Agent as Thomas E. Whitmore with the Registered Office at 7602 Pacific Street, Suite 200, Omaha, Nebraska 68114 3. On October 25, 2013, the Company filed an Amendment to the Certificate of Organization to change its name to NoshSense, LLC The Designated Office of the Company remains at 1603 Farnam Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68102. There are no other Amendments or Restatements as of April 28, 2021.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

CATHERINE E. FRENCH, Attorney LAMSON, DUGAN and MURRAY, LLP 10306 Regency Parkway Drive Omaha, Nebraska 68114-3743 NOTICE OF THE ORGANIZATION OF K & S HEALTH, LLC Notice is hereby given of the formation of a professional limited liability company under the laws of the State of Nebraska, and that the name of the professional limited liability company is K & S Health, LLC. The address of the initial designated office is 5310 South 84th Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68127. The name and address of the registered agent is LDM Business Services, Inc., 10306 Regency Parkway Drive, Omaha, Nebraska 68114.

The general nature of the business to be transacted is all lawful business, including medicine. The company commenced existence on April 26, 2021 and shall have perpetual duration. The affairs of the company shall be conducted by the Managers, as prescribed by the Operating Agreement.

LDM Business Services, Inc., Organizer First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

AMANDA M. FORKER, Attorney PANSING HOGAN ERNST & BACHMAN LLP 10250 Regency Circle, Suite 300 Omaha, Nebraska 68114-3728 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF TARA HILLS STORAGE, LLC Notice is hereby given of the organization of Tara Hills Storage, LLC. 1. The name of the limited liability company is Tara Hills Storage, LLC. 2. The street and mailing address of the initial designated office is 10250 Regency Circle, Suite 300, Omaha, Nebraska 68114.

3. The name and street address of the initial agent for service of process is Dennis P. Hogan, III, 10250 Regency Circle, Suite 300, Omaha, Nebraska First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

WALENTINE O'TOOLE, LLP, Attorneys 11240 Davenport Street P.O. Box 540125 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF OMAHA HOMESCAPES, LLC Omaha Homescapes, LLC, with its initial designated office at 3018 N. 144th Terrace, Omaha, NE 68116, gives notice that it filed its Certificate of Organization with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 27, 2021, and that it has been organized as a Nebraska limited liability company under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The initial agent for service of process is David P. Wilson, and his initial mailing address is 11240 Davenport St., Omaha, NE 68154. The company’s period of duration is perpetual, and the general nature of its business is to engage in any and all lawful business for which a limited liability company may be organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska.

Austin M. White, Sole Member First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

Notice is hereby given that Cindy Duggin, LLC, has been organized as a Limited Liability Company under the laws of the State of Nebraska as of April 9, 2021. The designated office of the entity is 706 N 129th Street, Suite 103, Omaha, NE 68154. The registered agent is Registered Agents Inc., 530 S 13th Street, Suite 100, Lincoln, NE 68508.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF OSCLUB, LLC The name of the Company is OSClub, LLC. The Designated Office of the Company is: 13323 California Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68154. The Registered Agent and Office of the Company is: Koley Jessen P.C., L.L.O., 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, Omaha, Nebraska 68124. This limited liability company commenced business on April 26, 2021.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

NOTICE OF PUBLICATION TO: SHERI BLUME You are hereby notified that on 01/28/21, the Plaintiff Credit Management Services, Inc., filed a Complaint in the COUNTY Court of DOUGLAS County, Nebraska, against you shown as Case Number CI21 1747. The object and prayer of which is a judgment in the amount of 405.00, plus court costs, pre-judgment interest and attorney fees, if applicable.

The Complaint prays that judgment be entered against you. You are hereby notified that you must answer the Complaint on or before 06/20/21 at the COUNTY court of DOUGLAS County, OMAHA Nebraska.

Megan L. Bischoff #25206 P.O. Box 1512 Grand Island, NE 68802 (308)398-3801 Attorney for Plaintiff First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

MATTHEW BURNS, Attorney LEFLER | KUEHL | BURNS 1213 JONES ST. Omaha, NE 68102 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION: Browne Industries, L.L.C. was formed pursuant to the Nebraska Uniform Limited Liability Company Act on April 5, 2021. The Company was organized to engage in all lawful business that a limited liability company may participate in under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The Company’s affairs shall be managed by its members. The company’s initial designated office is located at 4422 Eastridge Drive, Omaha, NE 69134. The Company’s Registered Agent for service of process in the state of Nebraska is Matthew Burns, who may be contacted at 1213 Jones St., Omaha, NE 68102.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF MB OZ FUND, LLC The name of the Company is MB OZ Fund, LLC. The Designated Office of the Company is: 18603 Leavenworth Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68022. The Registered Agent and Office of the Company is: Koley Jessen P.C., L.L.O., 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, Omaha, Nebraska 68124. The purpose is to invest in qualified opportunity zone property by acquiring qualified opportunity zone partnership interests or qualified opportunity zone stock in one or more first-tier subsidiaries or by directly acquiring qualified opportunity zone business property and to engage in other activities incidental or related thereto. The Company intends to be a qualified opportunity fund and cause any first-tier subsidiaries it invests in to meet the requirements for a qualified opportunity zone business. This limited liability company commenced business on April 27, 2021.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

In the District Court of Douglas County Nebraska: To: Zachary Morris-Gottlieb whose place of residence is unknown and upon whom personal service of summons cannot be had.

You are hereby notified that on March 9, 2021, AMANDA J. SPICKA as Plaintiff filed her Petition against you for Paternity in the District Court of Douglas County Nebraska at Case No: CI21-2206. The object of the Petition is to establish paternity of a minor child, custody of the minor child, visitation with the minor child, child support for the minor child, other financial support for the minor child, assignment of the tax attributes of the minor child to a parent and to change the minor child's last name.

You must file an Answer with the Douglas County District Court on or before June 30, 2021 or said Petition will be taken against you as true.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

17

NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF JKKC PROPERTIES, LLC Notice is hereby given that JKKC PROPERTIES, LLC, a Nebraska Limited Liability Company, has been organized under the laws of the state of Nebraska. The Company’s initial designated office is located at 3211 South 57th Circle, Omaha, Nebraska 68106. The name and street mailing address of the initial agent for service of process is John D. Hassett, the initial registered office located at 3211 South 57th Circle, Omaha, Nebraska, 68106.

The general nature of its business is to engage in and do any lawful act concerning any and all lawful business, other than banking or insurance, for which a limited liability company may be organized under the laws of the state of Nebraska. The Certificate of Organization was filed in the office of the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 26, 2021, the Company commenced business thereon, and shall have perpetual existence. The affairs of the Company are to be conducted by its members.

First publication April 30, 2021, final May 14, 2021

KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF M & MC HOLDINGS, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that M & MC Holdings, LLC has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The designated office of the limited liability company is 9341 G Court, Omaha, Nebraska 68127. The registered agent and office of the limited liability company is Koley Jessen P.C., L.L.O., 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, Omaha, Nebraska 68124.

The limited liability company commenced business on April 29, 2021.

First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF OPTIMAL RECOVERY, LLC A NEBRASKA LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Optimal Recovery, LLC, a Nebraska Limited Liability Company, has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska, with its initial designated office at 955 South 119th Circle, Omaha, Nebraska 68154 and with its initial agent for service of process being Michael K. Huffer whose office is located at 9290 West Dodge Road, Suite 302, Omaha, Nebraska 68114. The general nature of its business is to provide devices and other items to assist in recovery from medical conditions, and to engage in any lawful business. The company was organized and commenced April 15, 2021, and its period of duration will be perpetual, unless terminated earlier. The affairs of the limited liability company shall be conducted by its Manager until such time as a successor or successors are selected pursuant to the Operating Agreement.

Michael K. Huffer, Organizer 9290 West Dodge Road, Suite 302 Omaha, Nebraska 68114 First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

WALENTINE O'TOOLE, Attorneys 11240 Davenport Street P.O. Box 540125 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF MURPHY’S LAWNCARE, LLC Murphy’s Lawncare, LLC, with its initial designated office at 4113 N. 208th St., Elkhorn, NE 68022, gives notice that it filed its Certificate of Organization with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 28, 2021, and that it has been organized as a Nebraska limited liability company under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The initial agent for service of process is David P. Wilson, and his initial mailing address is 11240 Davenport St., Omaha, NE 68154. The company’s period of duration is perpetual, and the general nature of its business is to engage in any and all lawful business for which a limited liability company may be organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska.

Nathan Murphy, Sole Member First publication May 7, 2021, final May 21, 2021

RADLEY E. CLEMENS, Attorney 5717 North 127th Street, Omaha, NE 68164 LEGAL NOTICE In the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska. PR21-466 Estate of Rex E. Daywalt, Deceased Notice is hereby given that on April 1, 2021, in the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska, the Registrar issued a written statement of Informal Probate of the Will of said Decedent and that Donna Daywalt, whose address is 6814 Parkview Lane, Omaha, Neb., 68104, was informally appointed by the Registrar as Personal Representative of the Estate.

Creditors of this estate must file their claims with this Court, located at Courtroom No. 330, Third Floor, Probate Division, Douglas County Hall of Justice, 17th & Farnam Streets, Omaha, NE 68183, on or before July 13, 2021 or be forever barred.

CARROL L. MILLS Registrar First publication May 14, 2021, final June 4, 2021

18

• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal

Legal notices LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES KENDRA RINGENBERG, Attorney RINGENBERG & RATTNER LAW 14301 FNB Parkway, Suite 204 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF 3440 SAMSON WAY CARWASH RE, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that 3440 Samson Way Carwash RE, LLC (the “Company”) has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The Designated Office Address of the Company is 222 S. 15th Street, Suite 1404S, Omaha, Nebraska 68102. The Registered Agent of the Company is Kendra J. Ringenberg, Ringenberg & Rattner Law, LLC, 14301 FNB Parkway, Suite 204, Omaha, Nebraska 68154.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

MARTIN P. PELSTER, Attorney CROKER, HUCK LAW FIRM 2120 South 72nd Street, Suite 1200 Omaha, Nebraska 68124 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF MIRABEL, LLC The name of the limited liability company is Mirabel, LLC. The address of the initial designated office is 11550 I Street, Suite 200, Omaha, NE 68137. The name and address of the initial agent for service of process is John Hughes, 11550 I Street, Suite 200, Omaha, NE 68137.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION OF TRADE NAME Trade Name to be registered is: North Omaha Music & Arts Name of Applicant: NOW Initiative Address: 8201 Molokai Drive, Papillion, NE 68046 Applicant is Other (specify): nonprofit corporation If other than an Individual, state under whose laws entity was formed: Nebraska Date of first use of name in Nebraska: upon filing General nature of business: music and arts education DANA MURRAY Signature of Applicant or Legal Representative May 14, 2021

KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF EDGEWATER HOLDINGS, LLC The name of the Company is Edgewater Holdings, LLC. The Designated Office of the Company is: 18081 Burt Street, Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022. The Registered Agent and Office of the Company is: Koley Jessen P.C., L.L.O., 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, Omaha, Nebraska 68124.

This limited liability company commenced business on May 5, 2021.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

MATTHEW T. PAYNE, Attorney PANSING HOGAN ERNST & BACHMAN LLP 10250 Regency Circle, Suite 300 Omaha, Nebraska 68114-3728 NOTICE OF AMENDMENT TO THE CERTIFICATE OF ORGANIZATION OF WLS REALTY, LLC Notice is hereby given that pursuant to the applicable provisions of the Nebraska Uniform Limited Liability Company Act, the Certificate of Organization of WLS REALTY, LLC, a Nebraska limited liability company (the “Company”), has been amended to designate the Company as a professional limited liability company and that the professional services to be performed are real estate brokerage services. The Amended Certificate of Organization was filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Nebraska on May 5, 2021. In all other respects, the Certificate of Organization remains unchanged.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

SEAN D. MOYLAN, Attorney 1010 South 120th Street, Suite 320 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF BWHWY36, LLC The name of the Company is BWHWY36, LLC, a Nebraska limited liability company. The initial registered agent is Robert G. Miller located at 5931 N. 295th Street, Valley, Nebraska 68064. The initial designated office of the Company is located at 5931 N. 295th Street, Valley, Nebraska 68064. Perpetual existence commenced on March 23, 2021.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

LAMSON, DUGAN & MURRAY, LLP Erin K. Artz, Attorney 10306 Regency Parkway Drive Omaha, Nebraska 68114-3743 NOTICE OF THE ORGANIZATION OF WATTON INTERPRETING, LLC Notice is hereby given of the formation of a limited liability company under the laws of the State of Nebraska, and that the name of the limited liability company is Watton Interpreting, LLC. The address of the initial designated office is 1268 Golden Gate Drive, Apt. #143, Papillion, NE 68046. The name and address of the registered agent and office is LDM Business Services, Inc, 10306 Regency Parkway Drive, Omaha, Nebraska 68114. The general nature of the business is any or all lawful business. The company commenced existence on May 5, 2021 and shall have a perpetual duration. The affairs of the company shall be conducted by the Members, as prescribed by the Operating Agreement.

LDM Business Services, Inc., Organizer First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

JEROME OKOLO Okolo Law Firm LLC 6572 Ames Ave Omaha, Nebraska 68104 LEGAL NOTICE In the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska. PR21-489 Estate of LARRY L. CHANDLER, Sr., Deceased Judge Huber, County Court Judge Notice is hereby given that on 26TH day of March, 2021, in the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska, the Registrar issued a written statement of Informal Probate of the Will of said deceased and that, Patricia Gardner, whose address is 10630 Craig St., Omaha, Douglas County, Nebraska 68122, has been formally appointed via Will as Personal Representative of the Estate of Larry L. Chandler, decedent named herein.

Creditors of this estate must file their claims with this Court, located at Courtroom No. 330, Third Floor, Probate Division, Douglas County Hall of Justice, 17th & Farnam Streets, Omaha, NE 68183, on or before July 13, 2021 or be forever barred.

CARROL L. MILLS Registrar First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

Russell S. Daub, Attorney for Personal Representative 2800 S. 110th Court, Suite 1 Omaha, Nebraska 68144 LEGAL NOTICE In the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska. PR21-616 Estate of JOSEPH AQUILA, Deceased Notice is hereby given that on April 14, 2021, in the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska, the Registrar issued a written statement of Informal Probate of the Will of said Decedent and that GERALD JOSEPH AQUILA, whose address is 16002 Nottingham Drive, Omaha, Nebraska 68118, has been appointed Personal Representative of the Estate.

Creditors of this estate must file their claims with this Court, located at Courtroom No. 330, Third Floor, Probate Division, Douglas County Hall of Justice, 17th & Farnam Streets, Omaha, NE 68183, on or before July 13, 2021 or be forever barred.

CARROL L. MILLS Registrar First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION OF TRADE NAME Trade Name to be registered is: DBI Group Name of Applicant: PROtect, LLC Address: 3815 S Midco Street, Wichita, KS 67215 Applicant is a Limited Liability Company If other than an Individual, state under whose laws entity was formed: Nebraska Date of first use of name in Nebraska: 12/31/2020 General nature of business: Nondestructive Testing JASON FRIEDBERG Signature of Applicant or Legal Representative May 14, 2021

APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION OF TRADE NAME Trade Name to be registered is: ERI Solutions Name of Applicant: PROtect, LLC Address: 3815 S Midco Street, Wichita, KS 67215 Applicant is a Limited Liability Company If other than an Individual, state under whose laws entity was formed: Nebraska Date of first use of name in Nebraska: 12/31/2020 General nature of business: Nondestructive Testing JASON FRIEDBERG Signature of Applicant or Legal Representative May 14, 2021

Rodney G. Gnuse GNUSE & GREEN LAW OFFICES, P.C. 11311 Chicago Circle Omaha, Nebraska 68154 NOTICE OF INCORPORATION OF OUTLAND LAWN CARE AND HANDY MAN, INC. Notice is hereby given of incorporation of Outland Lawn Care and Handy Man, Inc. under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The number of shares that the corporation is authorized to issue is up to 10,000 shares of voting common stock.

The name and address of the initial registered agent is Rodney G. Gnuse, 11311 Chicago Circle, Omaha, NE 68154. The name and address of the incorporator is Rodney G. Gnuse, 11311 Chicago Circle, Omaha, NE 68154.

The Corporation shall engage in any lawful business for which a corporation may be formed under the Nebraska Model Business Corporation Act. Perpetual existence commenced April 29, 2021, when articles were filed with the Secretary of State. Affairs are to be conducted by the Board of Directors and Officers authorized by the Bylaws and the Board.

Rodney G. Gnuse, Incorporator First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

Rodney G. Gnuse GNUSE & GREEN LAW OFFICES, P.C. 11311 Chicago Circle Omaha, Nebraska 68154 NOTICE OF INCORPORATION OF CALIBER CONCRETE, INC. Notice is hereby given of incorporation of Caliber Concrete, Inc. under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The number of shares that the corporation is authorized to issue is up to 10,000 shares of voting common stock.

The name and address of the initial registered agent is Rodney G. Gnuse, 11311 Chicago Circle, Omaha, NE 68154. The name and address of the incorporator is Rodney G. Gnuse, 11311 Chicago Circle, Omaha, NE 68154.

The Corporation shall engage in any lawful business for which a corporation may be formed under the Nebraska Model Business Corporation Act. Perpetual existence commenced May 3, 2021, when articles were filed with the Secretary of State. Affairs are to be conducted by the Board of Directors and Officers authorized by the Bylaws and the Board.

Rodney G. Gnuse, Incorporator First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

GROSS & WELCH, P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 2120 South 72 Street, Suite 1500 Omaha, Nebraska 68124 NOTICE OF INCORPORATION OF HYDRA CONTRACTING, INC. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Hydra Contracting, Inc., a Nebraska corporation, is incorporated under the laws of the State of Nebraska, with a registered office at 2120 South 72nd Street, Suite 1500, Omaha, Nebraska 68124. The general nature of its business is to do and transact fully, and to the same extent as natural persons might or could do in any part of the world, any and all lawful business for which a corporation may be incorporated under the Nebraska Business Corporation Act, as amended from time to time. The authorized capital is $10,000.00 of common stock, consisting of 10,000 shares having a par value of $1.00 each, payable in money or other property, but not in stock or securities. The corporation became a body corporate on May 5, 2021 and shall have perpetual existence. The affairs of the corporation are to be conducted by a Board of Directors, and the officers shall be a President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer, and such other officers as shall be designated in the Bylaws.

Frederick D. Stehlik Incorporator First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

SEAN D. MOYLAN, Attorney MOYLAN LAW, LLC 1010 South 120th Street, Suite 320 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF RON’S GROUP, LLC The name of the Company is Ron’s Group, LLC, a Nebraska limited liability company. The initial registered agent is Sean D. Moylan located at 1010 S. 120th Street, Suite #320 Omaha, Nebraska 68154. The initial designated office of the Company is located at 18670 Webster Circle, Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022. Perpetual existence commenced on April 20, 2021.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF AUGGIE WINSTON LLC The name of the Company is Auggie Winston LLC. The Designated Office of the Company is: 9516 Capitol Avenue, Omaha, Nebraska 68114.

The Registered Agent and Office of the Company is: Koley Jessen P.C., L.L.O., 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, Omaha, Nebraska 68124. This limited liability company commenced business on May 6, 2021.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

Midlands Business Journal • MAY 14, 2021 • Legal notices LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION of OMAHA SUNFLOWER COOPERATIVE, LLC a Nebraska Limited Liability Company.

Notice is hereby given that OMAHA SUNFLOWER COOPERATIVE, LLC a Nebraska Limited Liability Company, has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska, with its initial designated office at 3010 LINCOLN BLVD, OMAHA NE 68131, and its registered agent is ALEXANDRIA O’HANLON with a registered office at 3010 LINCOLN BLVD, OMAHA NE 68131. The general nature of its business is to engage in and to do any lawful act concerning any and all lawful business, other than banking or insurance, for which a limited liability company may be organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The company was organized and commenced on May 4, 2021.

SANDRA STERN, Attorney at Law 1904 Farnam Street, Suite 701 Omaha, Nebraska 68102 In the District Court of Douglas County, Nebraska TO: MATTHEW D. VANDEWARK, whose place of residence is unknown and upon whom personal service of summons cannot be had, Plaintiff: YOU ARE HEREBY NOTIFIED that on February 20, 2021, SHANIA F. RIOS, as Defendant, filed a Complaint to Modify and on May 6, 2021 also filed a Motion to Enforce Parenting Time and Notice of Hearing, in the case entitled, MATTHEW D. VANDEWARK, Plaintiff vs. SHANIAH F RIOS, Defendant, against you in the District Court of Douglas County, Nebraska, Case No. CI 17 No. 10735, the object and prayer of which is to Modify the Bridge Order in the matter of In the Interest of Aubrey VanDewark, to award Plaintiff and Defendant Joint Legal and Joint Physical Custody of the parties’ minor child, Aubrey VanDewark, with equal shared parenting time and also to ask the Court to enter an Order Enforcing her Parenting Time.

You are required to file an answer to the Complaint to Modify on or before the 27 day of June, 2021, or a Default Judgment may be taken against you.

The Court has also scheduled a hearing for June 7, 2021 regarding the Defendant’s Motion to Enforce Parenting Time, before the Honorable Kimberly Pankonin in the Douglas County District Court, in Courtroom 408 at 10:30 a.m. or as soon thereafter as the matter may be heard.

Shaniah Rios, Defendant First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

MATTHEW T. PAYNE, Attorney PANSING HOGAN ERNST & BACHMAN LLP 10250 Regency Circle, Suite 300 Omaha, Nebraska 68114-3728 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF KEP INVESTMENT TEAM 2, LLC Notice is hereby given of the organization of KEP Investment Team 2, LLC: 1. The name of the limited liability company is KEP Investment Team 2, LLC; and 2. The street and mailing address of the initial designated office is 4880 S. 131st Street, Suite 3, Omaha, Nebraska 68137, and the name and street address of the initial agent for service of process is Gerald S. Reimer, 4880 S. 131st Street, Suite 3, Omaha, Nebraska 68137.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

MATTHEW T. PAYNE, Attorney PANSING HOGAN ERNST & BACHMAN LLP 10250 Regency Circle, Suite 300 Omaha, Nebraska 68114-3728 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF URBAN WATERS II, LLC Notice is hereby given of the organization of Urban Waters II, LLC: 1. The name of the limited liability company is Urban Waters II, LLC; and 2. The street and mailing address of the initial designated office is 4880 S. 131st Street, Suite 3, Omaha, Nebraska 68137, and the name and street address of the initial agent for service of process is Gerald S. Reimer, 4880 S. 131st Street, Suite 3, Omaha, Nebraska 68137.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

ABRAHAMS KASLOW & CASSMAN LLP, Attorneys 8712 West Dodge Road, Suite 300 Omaha, Nebraska 68114 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION MUSE COACHING, LLC has been organized as a limited liability company under the Nebraska Uniform Limited Liability Company Act. The street and mailing address of the initial designated office of the company is 8712 West Dodge Road, Suite 300, Omaha, Nebraska 68114. The name and street and mailing address of the initial registered agent of the company for service of process are Andrew P. Deaver and 8712 West Dodge Road, Suite 300, Omaha, Nebraska 68114.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION OF TRADE NAME Trade Name to be registered is: Elder Law and Life Care Planning Center Name of Applicant: Elder Law and Life Care Planning Center, Kimberley A. Hughes, P.C., L.L.O. Address: 4022 S 224th Circle, Elkhorn, NE 68022 Applicant is a Corporation If other than an Individual, state under whose laws entity was formed: Nebraska Date of first use of name in Nebraska: 5/3/2021 General nature of business: legal services KIMBERLEY A. HUGHES Signature of Applicant or Legal Representative May 14, 2021

KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF MDM PAYMENTS, LLC The name of the Company is MDM Payments, LLC. The Designated Office of the Company is: 900 South 74th Plaza, Suite 303, Omaha, Nebraska 68114. The Registered Agent and Office of the Company is: Koley Jessen P.C., L.L.O., 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, Omaha, Nebraska 68124.

This limited liability company commenced business on May 6, 2021.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION OF TRADE NAME Trade Name to be registered is: TPG, Inc. Name of Applicant: TPG Telemanagement, Inc. Address: 2909 N. 118th Street, Suite 100, Omaha, NE 68164 Applicant is a Corporation If other than an Individual, state under whose laws entity was formed: Pennsylvania Date of first use of name in Nebraska: June 4, 2015 General nature of business: Customer experience and quality assurance services.

LISA DEFALCO Signature of Applicant or Legal Representative May 14, 2021

CROCKER, HUCK, KASHER, DeWITT, ANDERSON & GONDERINGER, L.L.C. 2120 South 72nd Street, Suite 1200 Omaha, Nebraska 68124 LEGAL NOTICE In the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska. PR21-715 Estate of Robert O'Brien, Deceased Notice is hereby given that on May 6, 2021, in the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska, the Registrar issued a written statement of Informal Probate and that Alex N. O'Brien, whose address is 17119 Sprague Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68116, was informally appointed by the Registrat as Personal Represenative of the Estate.

Creditors of this estate must file their claims with this Court, located at Courtroom No. 330, Third Floor, Probate Division, Douglas County Hall of Justice, 17th & Farnam Streets, Omaha, NE 68183, on or before August 14, 2021 or be forever barred.

CARROL L. MILLS Registrar First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION OF TRADE NAME Trade Name to be registered is: AALD Hardscape Construction Name of Applicant: MIHI, INC. Address: 5605 N. 168th Street, Omaha, NE 68116 Applicant is a Corporation If other than an Individual, state under whose laws entity was formed: Nebraska Date of first use of name in Nebraska: April 1, 2021 General nature of business: hardscape construction JEFF HENG Signature of Applicant or Legal Representative May 14, 2021

Notice of Organization Webster Place, LLC Notice is hereby given that Webster Place, LLC, a Nebraska Limited Liability Company, has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska, with its initial designated office at 4805 S 184th Plaza, Omaha, NE 68135, and with its initial agent for service of process as Colin Kastrick, 9859 S 168th Avenue, Omaha, NE 68136.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

19

KIMBERLEY A. HUGHES, Attorney 4022 S 224th Circle Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022 NOTICE OF INCORPORATION OF ELDER LAW AND LIFE CARE PLANNING CENTER, KIMBERLEY A. HUGHES, P.C., L.L.O. Elder Law and Life Care Planning Center, Kimberley A. Hughes, P.C., L.L.O. was formed on April 14, 2021 for the purpose of providing legal services. The Registered Office is located at 4022 S 224th Circle, Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022, and the name of the Registered Agent at said address is Kimberley A. Hughes. The professional corporation has authorized and issued 100 shares of common stock at a value of $1.00 per share. The affairs of this professional corporation, which shall exist in perpetuity, shall be conducted by a Board of Directors and such Officers as it shall appoint.

The name and address of the incorporator is Kimberley A. Hughes, 4022 S 224th Circle, Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022.

Kimberley A. Hughes, Incorporator First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

Notice of Organization Terramark LLC Notice is hereby given that Terramark LLC, a Nebraska Limited Liability Company, has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska, with its initial designated office at 4805 S 184th Plaza, Omaha, NE 68135, and with its initial agent for service of process as Colin Kastrick, 9859 S 168th Avenue, Omaha, NE 68136.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

Jeffrey T. Palzer, Attorney at Law 10828 Old Mill Road, Suite 6 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 NOTICE OF INCORPORATION OF HEMP BATCH TRACKER, INC. 1. The name of the corporation is HEMP BATCH TRACKER, INC. 2. The registered office of the Corporation is 13963 Jaynes Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68164. The registered agent at that office is Gordon Summers.

3. The general nature of the corporation is software to support tracking of legal hemp and accompanying testing certificates.

4. The corporation shall have 10,000 shares of common stock, each having a par value of $1.00 are authorized to be issued at such time and upon such conditions as the Board of Directors shall determine.

5. The corporation commenced on March 19, 2021, and shall have perpetual existence 6. The affairs of the corporation are to be conducted by the President, Secretary, Treasurer, and such other officers as the Board of Directors shall determine.

7. The name and address of the Incorporator are Gordon Summers, 13963 Jaynes Street, Omaha, Nebraska, 68164.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION OF TRADE NAME Trade Name to be registered is: Assisted Living at Pacific Springs Name of Applicant: Immanuel Retirement Communities Address:1044 N 115th St. Suite 500 Omaha NE 68154 Applicant is a Other (specify): Non-profit Corporation If other than an Individual, state under whose laws entity was formed: Nebraska Date of first use of name in Nebraska: 04/27/2021 General nature of business: Senior housing- assisted living ADAM B. KUENNING Signature of Applicant or Legal Representative May 14, 2021

NOTICE OF INCORPORATION OF TWIN LYONS CONTRACTING, INC. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that TWIN LYONS CONTRACTING, INC., is incorporated under the laws of the State of Nebraska, with a registered office at 4913 Davenport Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68132.

The registered agent is JAMES A. WACHTER. The general nature of the business is to operate a general residential remodel business, to own, operate and perform services of every kind and nature whatsoever, which are not inconsistent with law, which are necessary, suitable, proper, convenient or expedient to the operation of a general residential remodel business. The authorized capital stock is $10,000.00, consisting of 10,000 shares of stock having a par value of $1.00 each, which stock shall be paid for wholly or partly by cash, by labor, by personal property and by real property. The corporation became a corporate body on April 16, 2021, and upon its Articles being filed with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 24, 2021, and shall have perpetual existence. The affairs of the corporation are to be conducted by a Board of Directors, the number of directors to be provided in the ByLaws, and the officers shall be a President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer, and such other officers as shall be designated in the By-Laws.

ANTHONY L. GROSS, Incorporator CATHERINE L. WHITE, Incorporator 3018 South 87th Street, Omaha, NE 68124 First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

20

• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal

Legal notices LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION OF TRADE NAME Trade Name to be registered is: Assisted Living at Lakeside Name of Applicant: Immanuel Retirement Communities Address:1044 N 115th St. Suite 500 Omaha NE 68154 Applicant is a (Other): Non-profit Corporation If other than an Individual, state under whose laws entity was formed: Nebraska Date of first use of name in Nebraska: 04/27/2021 General nature of business: Senior housing - assisted living ADAM B. KUENNING Signature of Applicant or Legal Representative May 14, 2021

RICHARD A. TROIA, Attorney RICHARD TROIA LAW 9802 Nicholas Street, Suite 375 Omaha, Nebraska 68114-2168 NOTICE OF THE ORGANIZATION OF ALLIANCE LIFE SKILLS INC. Notice is hereby given of the formation of a Public Benefit non-profit corporation under the laws of the State of Nebraska, and that the name of the non-profit corporation is Alliance Life Skills Inc. The Name of the incorporator is Brandon Kinnie, 16532 Dorcas Street, Omaha, NE 68130.

The address of the company’s initial designated office is 16532 Drocas Street, Omaha, NE 68130. The name and address of the registered agent is Richard A. Troia, 9802 Nicholas Street, Suite 375, Omaha, NE 681142168. The general nature of the business to be transacted is all lawful business. The company commenced existence on February 24, 2021 and shall have perpetual duration. The affairs of the company shall be conducted by the Board of Directors and such Officers as prescribed by the Articles of Incorporation.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF OVERLOOK BAR, LLC The name of the Company is Overlook Bar, LLC. The Designated Office of the Company is: 9140 West Dodge Road, Suite 404, Omaha, Nebraska 68114. The Registered Agent and Office of the Company is: Jessica Cooper, 9140 West Dodge Road, Suite 404, Omaha, Nebraska 68114.

This limited liability company commenced business on May 10, 2021.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

NOTICE OF DISSOLUTION NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Small Team Solutions, LLC, a Nebraska limited liability company, filed its Statement of Dissolution with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 12, 2021, and the company is in the process of voluntary dissolution. The terms and conditions of such dissolution are, in general, that all debts and obligations of the company are to be fully paid and satisfied or adequate provision is to be made therefore, and that the balance of any remaining assets are to be distributed to its Members. Diping Huang, Member, will wind up and liquidate the company’s business and affairs. If you have a claim against the company, please provide the following information with respect to your claim: 1) your name or the name of your entity; 2) the nature of your claim; 3) the amount of your claim; and 4) the date your claim arose. All claims shall be mailed to Diping Huang, 14625 Grand Ave, Omaha, Nebraska 68116. A claim against the company will be barred unless an action to enforce the claim is commenced within five (5) years after the third publication of this Notice.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

NOTICE OF AMENDMENT TO THE CERTIFICATE OF ORGANIZATION OF 402 HOW LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Certificate of Organization of 402 How, LLC, a Nebraska limited liability company, has been amended changing the name of the company to Small Team Solutions, LLC. The Amended Certificate of Organization was filed with the Nebraska Secretary of State on April 22, 2020.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF HEY LIBRARIAN, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Hey Librarian, LLC (the “Company”) has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska.

The Designated Office Address of the Company is 3157 Farnam Street, Suite 7104 #7239, Omaha, Nebraska, 68131. The Registered Agent of the Company is USCA, Inc., 1603 Farnam Street, Omaha, Nebraska, 68102.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

AMANDA M. FORKER, Attorney PANSING HOGAN ERNST & BACHMAN LLP 10250 Regency Circle, Suite 300 Omaha, Nebraska 68114-3728 NOTICE OF INCORPORATION OF YATES FUND Notice is hereby given of incorporation of YATES FUND under the laws of the State of Nebraska as follows: 1. The name of the corporation is Yates Fund.

2. The Yates Fund is a public benefit corporation.

3. The street address of the Corporation's initial registered office is 10250 Regency Circle, Suite 300, Omaha, Nebraska 68114. The name of its initial registered agent at that office is Amanda M. Forker.

4. The name and address of the incorporator is as follows: Kathryn A. Weitz 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 200 Omaha, NE 68124 5. The Corporation shall engage in any lawful business for which a corporation may be formed under the Nebraska Nonprofit Corporation Act. 6. The Corporation shall not have members.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

ABRAHAMS KASLOW & CASSMAN LLP, Attorneys 8712 West Dodge Road, Suite 300 Omaha, Nebraska 68114 N O T I C E O F A M E N D M E N T A N D R E S TAT E M E N T O F CERTIFICATE OF ORGANIZATION The articles of organization of Hunzeker TMV Holdings, LLC, a Nebraska limited liability company, originally filed with the Nebraska Secretary of State on June 25, 2007, have been amended, restated, and superseded in their entirety by the filing of a Certificate of Amendment and Restatement of the Certificate of Organization with the Nebraska Secretary of State (the “Certificate of Amendment”). The Certificate of Amendment (A) (i) changed the name of the company to TMV Holdings III, LLC, (ii) updated the street and mailing address of the designated office of the company to 14302 FNB Parkway, Omaha, Nebraska 68154, (iii) updated the name and the street and mailing address of the agent of the company for service of process to Thomas J. Malicki, 8712 West Dodge Road, Suite 300, Omaha, Nebraska 68114; and (B) removed all items that are not required by the Nebraska Uniform Limited Liability Company Act to be stated in the certificate of organization.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 NOTICE OF DISSOLUTION NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Home Instead Senior Care Disaster Relief Foundation, a Nebraska nonprofit corporation (the "Corporation"), has filed Articles of Dissolution with the Nebraska Secretary of State on May 10, 2021, and the Corporation has voluntarily dissolved. The terms and conditions of such dissolution are, in general, that all debts and obligations of the Corporation have been fully paid and satisfied and any remaining assets will be distributed in accordance with the Corporation’s Articles of Incorporation. The President, Martha Cashins, will wind up the Corporation’s business and affairs. The Corporation’s remaining assets shall be distributed in accordance with the Plan of Dissolution.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF DIVENTURES ATLANTA, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that DiVentures Atlanta, LLC has been organized under the laws of the State of Nebraska. The designated office of the limited liability company is 11640 Arbor Street, Suite 100, Omaha, Nebraska 68144. The registered agent and office of the limited liability company is Koley Jessen P.C., L.L.O., 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, Omaha, Nebraska 68124. The limited liability company commenced business on May 10, 2021.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

Steven G. Ranum, Attorney CROCKER, HUCK, KASHER, DeWITT, ANDERSON & GONERINGER, L.L.C. 2120 South 72nd Street, Suite 1200 Omaha, Nebraska 68124 LEGAL NOTICE In the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska. PR21-749 Estate of Tanya Lynn Burnside, Deceased Notice is hereby given that on May 3, 2021, in the County Court of Douglas County, Nebraska, the Registrar issued a written statement of Informal Appointment of Personal Representative in Intestacy and that Joyce Beacham, whose address is 2526 Grant Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68111, was informally appointed by the Registrar as Personal Representative of the Estate.

Creditors of this estate must file their claims with this Court, located at Courtroom No. 330, Third Floor, Probate Division, Douglas County Hall of Justice, 17th & Farnam Streets, Omaha, NE 68183, on or before July 14, 2021 or be forever barred.

CARROL L. MILLS Registrar First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

KATHRYN J. DERR PC LLO 1301 S. 75th Street, Suite 100 Omaha, Nebraska 68124 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF Boji3, LLC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Boji3, LLC has been organized as a limited liability company under the Nebraska Uniform Limited Liability Company Act. The address of the initial designated office of the company is 14541 Grover Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68144. The registered office of the Company is 14541 Grover Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68144, and the agent at such office is Kelly King. The general nature of the business to be transacted by the company is any lawful business which may be carried on by a limited liability company organized under the Nebraska Uniform Limited Liability Company Act. The company commenced operations on April 28, 2021 and shall have a perpetual duration.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

KOLEY JESSEN P.C., L.L.O., Attorneys 1125 South 103rd Street, Suite 800, One Pacific Place Omaha, Nebraska 68124-1079 N O T I C E O F A M E N D M E N T T O T H E A RT I C L E S O F INCORPORATION OF OMAHA CANCER FOUNDATION Notice is hereby given that the Articles of Incorporation of Omaha Cancer Foundation have been amended to change the name of the corporation to: XCancer Foundation. The Amendment was filed with the Nebraska Secretary of State on May 10, 2021.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

AMANDA M. BARRON, Attorney P.O. Box 597 Fremont, Nebraska 68026 LEGAL NOTICE TO THE DEFENDANT(s), TRICIA R LINTON You are hereby notified that Credit Bureau Services, Inc., a corporation, filed its complaint in the County Court of DOUGLAS County, Nebraska on 01/13/2021 on Case Number CI21-1185, the object and prayer of which is to recover the sum of $547.80, plus interest, attorney fees and court costs.

You are required to answer the complaint of the Plaintiff on or before 06/28/2021 or the allegations in said complaint will be taken as true and judgment entered accordingly.

CREDIT BUREAU SERVICES, INC., A CORPORATION First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

ALLAN M. ZIEBARTH, Attorney at Law 1702 South 10th Street, Suite 2 Omaha, Nebraska 68108 NOTICE OF DISSOLUTION OF COLLEGE SPORTS, INC. Chad M. Schneider, 1702 S. 10th St., Suite 2, Omaha, NE 68108, President, will manage the wind up and liquidation of its business and affairs. Assets, if any, remaining after paying liabilities will be distributed pro-rata to the shareholders. All claims against the corporation must be forwarded to the corporation at the foregoing address and contain the name of the claimant, the nature and amount of the claim, and the address and a contact person for the claimant. A claim against the corporation is barred unless a proceeding to enforce the claim is commenced within three years after publication of this notice.

First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

ALLAN M. ZIEBARTH, Attorney at Law 1702 South 10th Street, Suite 2 Omaha, Nebraska 68108 NOTICE OF AMENDMENT On 05/05/2021, ANGEL'S ROOFING, LLC amended its Certificate of Organization changing its name to ANGEL FRANCO CONSTRUCTION, LLC. First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

ALLAN M. ZIEBARTH, Attorney at Law 1702 South 10 Street, Suite 2 Omaha, Nebraska 68108 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF HILLTOP BIO-CONSULTING LLC Designated Office: 1702 S. 10 St., Suite 2, Omaha, NE 68108 Initial Agent/Address For Service: Allan M. Ziebarth/1702 S. 10 St., Suite 2, Omaha, NE 68108 First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

Midlands Business Journal • MAY 14, 2021 • Legal notices LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES ALLAN M. ZIEBARTH, Attorney at Law 1702 South 10 Street, Suite 2 Omaha, Nebraska 68108 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF OCTO INVESTMENTS, LLC Designated Office: 1702 S. 10 St., Suite 2, Omaha, NE 68108 Initial Agent/Address For Service: Allan M. Ziebarth/1702 S. 10 St., Suite 2, Omaha, NE 68108 First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

ALLAN M. ZIEBARTH, Attorney at Law 1702 South 10 Street, Suite 2 Omaha, Nebraska 68108 NOTICE OF ORGANIZATION OF PIPA ENTERPRISES, LLC Designated Office: 1702 S. 10 St., Suite 2, Omaha, NE 68108 Initial Agent/Address For Service: Allan M. Ziebarth/1702 S. 10 St., Suite 2, Omaha, NE 68108 First publication May 14, 2021, final May 28, 2021

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21

‘It’s like a war,’ restaurateur says of struggle to find workers

by Lori Weisberg

What if all of the country’s restaurants reopened their doors following a year-long pandemic that forced massive layoffs and hardly anyone showed up? To work.

It’s more than a hypothetical riddle.

As drinking and dining venues across the nation get the green light to more widely welcome back the customers they’ve been craving since COVID-19 first shut them down almost 14 months ago, many employers have been confronting a near-crisis labor shortage.

Restaurants While it initially caught them off guard, it shouldn’t be all that surprising.

San Diego is experiencing something of a perfect storm as it transitions into life under increasingly relaxed reopening rules driven by rising vaccinations and diminishing infection rates.

That, in turn, has unleashed a torrent of job openings not only for restaurants and bars, but also for hotels, casinos, theme parks and other service industries at a time when enhanced jobless benefits remain alluring.

So difficult is it to find cooks, dishwashers, servers and bartenders that many pandemic-battered restaurants are foregoing lunch service, closing earlier than normal or staying open fewer days a week because they lack the manpower to serve the guests they know are eager to eat out.

The once familiar lament that overly strict COVID-19 guidelines were killing their businesses has been supplanted by urgent appeals for jobs and at pay considerably higher than just a year ago.

“After 14 months of COVID hell, you finally get the orange light to open up at 50 percent capacity and you can’t find people to come back to work,” said David Cohn, co-founder of the Cohn Restaurant Group, which is looking to fill 200 positions at its 20 venues across San Diego County. “We’ve reached out to the San Diego Workforce Partnership, every culinary program. At Corvette Diner, which we’ve struggled to reopen, we reached out to theater groups because it’s about entertainment at that restaurant. We said if you bring us people with the right attitude we can teach them to be servers or bussers or soda jerk.”

“The unemployment rate is still so much higher than it was pre-COVID, you thought there would be all these people who would be anxious to come back to work.”

Corvette Diner just reopened a week ago — albeit not yet at its normal seven days a week — thanks in part to the recruitment of several local theater performers, who’ve also been hit hard by the pandemic.

So frantic are some restaurant owners they’ve resorted to poaching others’ employees, asserts Dario Gallo, owner of Civico by the Park in Bankers Hill and Civico 1845 in Little Italy.

“A restaurant sent workers to approach my employees and they would say, ‘How much are you making? OK, $17 an hour?

I’ll give you $19 or $20 an hour if you come today,’ and they don’t even give two weeks notice,” said Gallo, who is now offering to pay $3 more an hour than his previous average. “So literally I was about to close both locations. Thank God, my brother at

Civico and my chef at 1845 jumped in to do line cook duties, dishwashing, preparation during the day.

“It’s like a war, just because it feels like this is endless.”

Employers say they will place ads across multiple online platforms, and if they’re lucky enough to get any responses, few, if any, candidates will show up for interviews, despite offers of higher pay than before the pandemic and tantalizing signing bonuses in the hundreds of dollars.

“I’ve had multiple job fairs where we have great turnout but we don’t get people all the way through the process,” said Erin O’Mara, operations manager for the Cohn Restaurant Group.

“They just ghost you. They just don’t answer their phone, they don’t return your call, they don’t say I found another job, you just don’t know why they didn’t show up.”

Competing with unemployment benefits Job posting sites like Indeed.com and Craigslist are bulging with listings that seem to broadcast the desperation of those doing the hiring.

“COOK and SERVER positions WE WILL BEAT YOUR CURRENT PAY.” “Dishwashers — Get hired today! Start at $20/hr for min 6 wks!” “*$300 SIGN ON BONUS!* Line Cook at The Crossings at Carlsbad.”

Nationally, Indeed.com job postings for the food-service industry are up more than 20 percent compared to Feb. 1, 2020 — a month before the onslaught of the pandemic. The current volume of posts is the highest since March of last year, the company said. While Indeed was unable to break out restaurant job listings for San Diego County, overall postings for the metro area are 34 percent higher than they were on Feb. 1 of last year.

Employment in restaurants and bars has clearly started to rebound as state-prescribed indoor capacities have increased, with a full reopening expected by June 15 when California officials have said the color-coded, tiered reopening system will end.

Last year when the pandemic shut down restaurants in midMarch, jobs vanished overnight. By April of 2020, the 132,400 jobs in place just a month earlier has plummeted to 67,700. As of March of this year, that number has jumped to more than 102,000 but is still far short of pre-pandemic employment.

The reasons for the disconnect between San Diego’s still relatively high unemployment rate — 6.9 percent — and an abundance of unfilled positions are many. Leading the list, say a number of employers, is the competition they’re facing from the federal government, which is offering supplemental unemployment insurance benefits of $300 a week for laid-off workers, due to expire in September. In some cases, hourly workers find they can earn more on unemployment than what they could returning to their former jobs.

San Diego economist Lynn Reaser did a calculation showing that, based on an average workweek of 26 hours, restaurant workers who lost their jobs early in 2020 could earn $525 a week on unemployment (including the extra $300), versus average weekly earnings on the job of $452. Of course, many in the industry are now working more hours, including overtime, Continued on page 24.

Powell dashboard shows wider disparities as job growth slows

by Matthew Boesler

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell says he wants to see a recovery that reaches all corners of the labor market before the U.S. central bank begins raising interest rates. The numbers in the recent jobs report suggest the economy didn’t make much progress toward that goal in April.

Jobs The U.S. central bank announced last year an overhaul of its monetary policy strategy, a move which included changing the way it defines its congressionally-mandated goal of maximum employment to be “broad-based and inclusive.”

Here’s a look at how a few of the indicators Powell has said he’s watching to judge progress toward the new objective fared last month, according to Labor Department figures published Friday.

Black Unemployment The unemployment rate for Black Americans rose in April to 9.7%.

Unemployment for Latino Americans was unchanged at 7.9%, while for White Americans the unemployment rate edged down to 5.3%, and Asian-American unemployment fell to 5.7%.

Low-Wage Earnings

Powell has cited a wage-growth indicator compiled by the Atlanta Fed, which measures earnings trends for the bottom 25% of American workers by wage level. Median wage growth for that group ticked up to 4.3% on average in the 12 months through March (the latest month for which data are available).

That compares with 3.5% for the entire workforce.

The report showed tentative signs of firming wages in low-paid jobs, too. Average hourly earnings in the leisure and hospitality sector jumped 1.7% as 331,000 workers returned to payrolls there, bringing pay back to roughly in line with the pre-pandemic trend.

Non-College Participation Americans without college educations continue to struggle with employment prospects, according to Friday’s report. Labor force participation for high school graduates 25 years and older without college educations rose to 55.3% in April, but that leaves it still three percentage points below where it was in February 2020.

Participation among those 25 years and older without high school diplomas, meanwhile, slid to 44.2%. ©2021 Bloomberg L.P. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

22

• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal

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Midlands Business Journal • MAY 14, 2021 •

Transportation, Distribution & Warehousing

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Focus on

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A section prepared by the staff of the Midlands Business Journal

A section prepared by the staff of the Midlands Business Journal

Topics may include:

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TDW overview • Trucking • Aviation How distribution has changed over the last year Warehousing • Update on logistics technology

Safety overview Workplace safety incorporating pandemic measures Workers’ Compensation • Performing risk assessments

Issue Date: May 28 • Ad Deadline: May 20

Issue Date: May 28 • Ad Deadline: May 20

Architecture A section prepared by the staff of the Midlands Business Journal

A section prepared by the staff of the Midlands Business Journal

Topics may include:

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Architecture industry update • Emerging technology • Design trends Careers in architecture • Designing for public health • Urban design Enhancing a client’s brand • Restoration architecture

Locally Grown overview • Made Locally • Homegrown events Local farmers and CSAs • Headquartered in Omaha

Issue Date: June 4 • Ad Deadline: May 27

Issue Date: June 11 • Ad Deadline: June 3

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24

• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal

‘It’s like a war,’ restaurateur says of struggle to find workers Continued from preceding page. as operators do whatever it takes to keep their businesses open at maximum capacity.

“People always take time to consider different job opportunities, while restaurants are desperate for a lot of employees immediately,” said Reaser, chief economist with Point Loma Nazarene’s Fermanian Business & Economic Institute. “The competition among restaurants has given workers, especially for those with some experience, an edge. The unemployment benefits have also given them a cushion allowing them to be more choosey.”

She points out that the year-long pandemic also has given hospitality workers plenty of time to rethink the trajectory of their careers and consider a change to a different profession as they navigated on-again, off-again openings, closures and layoffs.

Employers report that still others left California for lower-cost states, while some former workers took jobs in other fields like construction while they waited out multiple lockdowns.

And a number of individuals still need to stay at home with school-age children who haven’t fully returned to in-person classes.

Changing careers Even before the pandemic, Ruby Elliott, formerly a supervisor at Puesto in La Jolla, Calif., had mulled the idea of eventually moving out of state with her boyfriend, also in the restaurant industry, so that they could buy a home and live in an area with a more affordable cost of living.

They continued working, though, through the pandemic and when they were laid off in December, they made the leap.

They moved to Nashville last month and both have new jobs, but not in hospitality.

They’re both now employed in customer service positions — one for a biotech company, the other at a tech startup.

“The No. 1 motivation was cost of living,” said Elliott, 25. “We wanted to buy a house and it’s impossible to find something in an area you actually like at an affordable price. And 2020 was really hard on restaurants and also workers because they had to change a lot.

“It was just the inconsistency of we’re closed, we’re not closed, we’re only outdoors.

People in the industry crave consistency, and instead, there was total unpredictability for many.”

Nicolas Pelaez recognized early on last year that it was unlikely the spread of the novel coronavirus would be short-lived, and so he opted to make a clean break from the restaurant industry in March of 2020. He left behind his job overseeing Modern Times’ multiple tasting rooms and restaurants and took a position as a financial adviser with Northwestern Mutual.

His girlfriend, Maggie Beemon, by necessity, took up jewelry-making as a hobby when she lost her position as a server. She’s now doing so well that her income from her new vocation is exceeding what she had made in her restaurant job, Pelaez said.

“I’m super glad I made the decision I did,” said Pelaez, 35, who lives in San Diego’s North Park neighborhood. “If everything had bounced back within the first month or two, I could have said I jumped out at the wrong time. From the beginning, we knew we didn’t have the ability to sit and wait. We had to pay a mortgage. If we waited a year, we’d have been a year behind where we’re at now.”

COVID-19 fears Even as vaccinations rise, there’s still the fear factor to consider. Some restaurant employees, whether working in cramped kitchens or waiting on unmasked diners, worry that they

Corvette Diner, which only recently reopened for indoor dining at Liberty Station, had a tough time finding employees at a time when restaurants and other hospitality businesses are all competing for workers. (Eduardo Contreras/San Diego Union-Tribune/TNS) could be at risk of being infected. Assembly- in Balboa Park and Blind Lady Ale House in woman Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego, says Normal Heights, he stayed away from offering restaurant operators should not be surprised bonuses, but as his search proved increasingly they’re having a hard time finding cooks. She fruitless, he offered current staff a finders fee of a points to a recent UC San Francisco study, which few hundred dollars if they could refer someone found that among working-age Californians, who would eventually become an employee — line cooks had the highest risk of dying during and stayed. That yielded nothing. Pre-COVID, the pandemic.

Motch says he had 50 to 60 employees at Pan“Cooks, who are overwhelmingly Latino, ama, and now it’s about half that. made up the highest excess mortality rate of any “Except for our staff at Panama who had profession last year — and people wonder why been with us for three to nine years, all of our workers would think twice before returning to ex-employees disappeared,” said Motch, who these jobs?” Gonzalez said. “To build a stronger will be partially reopening Blind Lady for economy as we recover from the pandemic, it’s indoor service this weekend for the first time time we have a serious discussion about valuing since last June. “We had a number of people service work and paying workers a living wage.” who changed careers. One became an elecWhen Jeff Motch first began the hunt for trician. Some took desk jobs. I have another employees at his Panama 66 outdoor venue trying to become a nurse. This is a crazy world

and we’re still in uncharted territory, and that will be the case for a while. Lots of us are healthy and vaccinated, but that’s not the case for everyone.”

David Contreras Curiel, whose family-owned restaurant group of nine eateries — including a 10,000-square-foot venue that will open next month in the Gaslamp Quarter — says some locations in the Karina’s Group are 30 to 35 percent understaffed. They’re paying wages approaching $20 an hour for back-of-the-house employees, offering raises to current workers, and shelling out more money for overtime. He wonders if the bonuses and current wage inflation is sustainable.

“People are waiting longer to get a table so our service is taking a hit because of our short staff,” Curiel said. “I know I see it when I go to restaurants. The lines are ridiculous. But we’ll survive no matter what.”

Whether the current labor shortage is a temporary blip on the coronavirus timeline or it portends major shifts in the hospitality sector remains to be seen. Robert Gleason, CEO of San Diego-based Evans Hotels, suspects that the pandemic will, in some ways, forever change the industry. Evans’ three hotels — the Catamaran, Bahia and Lodge at Torrey Pines — have more than 150 open positions in all categories of work.

“I think there is some permanent dislocation,” said Gleason. “There are a number of people who’ve decided to not be in this business here, and there is a certain amount of additional efficiency we’ve figured out that may require slightly fewer people. I think it’s a long-term challenge for the industry, particularly as wages continue to increase.

“That affects what you have to charge for things. People can expect that dining out will get more expensive.” ©2021 The San Diego Union-Tribune.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Inflation brews for US producers while services wages pick up

by Reade Pickert and Vince Golle

Inflation continues to brew in America’s industrial heartland as growing materials shortages cascade into record-long delivery times and leave manufacturers struggling to keep pace with an energized economy.

Economy As producers attempt to navigate supply-chain pitfalls for the commodities necessary to produce their wares, wage growth is beginning to percolate. A recent Labor Department report showed the largest quarterly increase in worker pay at companies since 2003.

This combination of higher labor and materials costs will probably lead to a bigger pickup in consumer inflation at a time when monetary and fiscal policies are conducive to faster economic growth. Colgate-Palmolive Co., food and beverage maker Mondelez International Inc. and Kimberly-Clark Corp. are among a growing number of companies raising prices.

While Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell says the central bank views the shortages in materials and supply-chain challenges as temporary, companies are saying the constraints will linger, possibly into 2022.

The Labor Department releases April inflation data recently.

The following charts highlight the latest developments in materials shortages, delivery times and wages: Longer lead times are one of the clearest

indications of the supply-chain challenges that producers face. Wait times of factories for production materials grew to 79 days in April, the longest in records dating back to 1987, according to the latest Institute for Supply Management data. The average delivery time of supplies for maintenance, repair and operations was also the longest in ISM data.

Such delays have inflated order backlogs to record levels and kept a lid on a breakout in production growth.

The ISM’s monthly reports also provide a clear indication of a growing number of commodities in short supply. In November, purchasing managers listed just 8 materials companies were struggling to get their hands on. Five months later and it’s expanded to 24.

While some things like personal protective equipment and gloves have been in short supply for months, others like aluminum, wood pallets and rubber-based products are new additions to the list.

Meantime, companies largest cost — labor — is accelerating as the lifting of coronavirus restrictions leads to a broader pickup in economic activity.

The government’s latest employment cost index, a quarterly measure of compensation, showed wages in the private sector climbed in the first quarter by the most in 18 years.

Most economists prefer the ECI because, unlike average hourly earnings in the monthly jobs reports, the worker-pay data aren’t distorted by

the compositional changes in employment that have been particularly severe amid the pandemic.

The overall ECI, including government workers, registered the biggest increase since 2007.

Despite an elevated unemployment rate, many firms have cited troubles finding qualified workers. As a result, some are offering incentives like signing bonuses and boosting wages to attract applicants. Some 28% of small businesses reported raising compensation in a March survey by the National Federation of Independent Business.

Increasing vaccinations have also allowed more Americans to head back to their favorite restaurants or begin traveling again. For service providers, that means hiring more workers. That will only increase amid projections for a wave of pent-up demand.

But it’s been challenging to attract workers, which may reflect lingering child care obligations and enhanced unemployment benefits. The more generous jobless insurance and two latest rounds of pandemic-relief checks have given some workers the opportunity to be more selective about which job they take.

These factors may help explain a big increase in first-quarter wages for service providers. The 1.3% gain was the largest quarterly gain in two decades of record keeping. ©2021 Bloomberg L.P. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal

REGIONAL LANDSCAPES

Briefs…

Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium, in collaboration with the Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership (MBP), and supported by the Arbor Day Foundation, has planted its 4-millionth tree in Madagascar in celebration of Arbor Day. For 12 years, these reforestation efforts have been focused on providing habitat for lemurs, the most threatened group of primates in the world. Habitat loss is one of the biggest threats to all of Madagascar’s remaining lemur species. In addition to the 4-millionth tree, another 20,100 trees were planted split between 10 communities (2,000 trees each), and 100 trees that the government officials and wildlife representatives planted at the field station, Kianjavato Ahmanson Field Station.

Omaha area elder care law and estate planning firm Rachel A. Truhlsen Estate Planning and Elder Law Center has rebranded and is now known as Truhlsen Elder Care Law of Nebraska. The firm’s new website can be found at TruhlsenElderCareLaw.com. Located 20 minutes north of Omaha, Truhlsen Elder Care Law of Nebraska will continue to offer those services in addition to providing life care planning to clients throughout the state. The firm will also continue to offer wills, trusts, trust administration, powers of attorney, medicaid planning, VA benefits planning, asset protection planning, probate, medicare/insurance counseling, social security benefits consulting, and more.

Countour Construction, a commercial subcontractor based in Omaha, has been re-certified as a WOSB/EDWOSB through the National Women Business Owner Corporation.

This will enable Contour to provide services and develop business relationship with companies,

large and small, and create future partnership opportunities in the private and public sector where SBA goals exist. Contour Construction is a commercial and industrial construction company with expertise in finish & trim carpentry, select rough carpentry, architectural casework, doors, frames, hardware, accessories and specialties, and industrial concrete placing and finishing.

Holiday Bright Lights, a provider of holiday lighting, foliage and commercial scale products, announced a major headquarters move to a larger office and warehouse facility in the Omaha area. HBL will be moving from its current location at 13424 Industrial Rd. to 4433 South 96th St. As a holiday lighting and Christmas décor wholesale supplier, Holiday Bright Lights provides product to retailers, independent garden centers, wholesale distributors, and independent holiday lighting installers & professional decorators. The new space is approximately 70,000 square feet, which makes it nearly four times larger than the previous space and will house more than 20 employees.

The U.S. Small Business Administration announced grant funding for the historic launch of 20 new Women’s Business Centers across America to serve rural, urban, and underserved communities, including GROW Nebraska Women’s Business Center. The GNWBC has been a partnership effort between the GROW Nebraska Foundation, the Metro Omaha Women’s Business Center, and the Nebraska Enterprise Fund. For more information, contact GNWBC at 402-300-8170.

Education notes…

Two University of Nebraska–Lincoln engineering students have been awarded a Le-

melson-MIT Student Prize for their invention designed to keep grain farmers safe. Seniors Ben Johnson, an electrical engineering major, and Zane Zents, a computer engineering major, pitched the plan for their product, Grain Weevil, for the national award. They were chosen alongside three other undergraduate teams and four graduate winners. They will receive a $10,000 prize. The Grain Weevil is a small robot designed to maintain grain, eliminating the need for farmers to enter bins, which can be dangerous and even fatal.

In a historic appointment, the University of Nebraska Board of Regents unanimously confirmed Joanne Li, Ph.D., CFA, as the 16th chancellor of the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Li, currently the dean of the College of Business at Florida International University, will begin transition work as UNO chancellor-elect on June 1, 2021, and will assume the role of chancellor on July 1. She will become the first woman of color to serve as UNO chancellor and the first Asian-American in the history of the University of Nebraska system to hold an executive leadership role. Li will succeed current UNO Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, M.D., who is stepping down from his UNO role and assuming the role of executive vice president and provost of the NU system. Gold will continue to serve as chancellor of the University of Nebraska Medical Center.

The University of Nebraska at Omaha announced to students, faculty, and staff that it will return to traditional operations for the Fall 2021 semester, with a return to on-campus teaching, working, and learning activities. Fall 2021 will closely resemble a pre-pandemic level of in-person, on-campus activity with some

adjustments to help the university return to full on-campus capacity as it can safely allow. This decision is based on the latest health projections and insights on vaccination rates, virus transmission, and COVID-19 testing capacity shared by the Office of Health Security as well as federal, state, and local health officials.

Heath care notes…

The University of Nebraska Medical Center honored three individuals and public health directors. UNMC faculty member Philip Smith, M.D., was honored with the J.G. Elliott Award for leading the establishment of the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit team. Gary Anthone, M.D., chief medical officer and director of public health for the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, was also honored with the J.G. Elliott Award. Anthone was instrumental in taking measures to allow retired, inactive or out-of-state health professionals to help with managing the pandemic. William C. Mobley, M.D., Ph.D., was honored with the Honorary Doctorate of Science Degree. Nebraska’s public health directors were collectively honored with the Chancellor’s Distinguished Service Award.

The National Disaster Medical System has chosen Omaha as a “key pilot site” to enhance, develop and expand catastrophic disease-response services. Led by the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Nebraska Medicine, the pilot is part of the Med Center’s ongoing “Project NExT” initiative, a project designed to “propel the medical center campus and the state of Nebraska to even higher levels of clinical care, education and research,” according to a 2019 independent economic impact analyContinued on next page.

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REGIONAL LANDSCAPES Continued from preceding page. sis executed by Tripp Umbach. Project NeXT, a public-private partnership expected to add nearly $2 billion to the local economy by 2030, is also on track to catalyze 8,700 permanent jobs statewide.

CVS Health has acquired First Choice of the Midwest to become part of its PPO network.

The addition of FCM strengthens the PPO network offering, providing more access points and increased savings. Aetna, a CVS company, can in-source PPO arrangements, reducing external expenses and providing an owned network platform to expand service offerings.

Legato Living announced plans for a new home located in the Five Fountains neighborhood of Omaha at 19111 Western Ave. Legato Living anticipates a spring 2022 opening. Legato Living will open the new location in partnership with A Place at Home’s co-founders Dustin Distefano and Jerod Evanich. Construction for the new location will be completed by Ideal Designs Custom Homes with the architecture of the project overseen by Rod Laucomer. The new location will be Legato Living’s third home. For future locations, Legato Living is set to launch a franchising model in select states, with more information for interested and dedicated senior care professionals to be announced soon.

Activities of nonprofits…

The Lincoln Children’s Museum has been closed for COVID-19 and then construction since November of 2020. Several donors from Lincoln and surrounding communities wanted to help combat the impacts of COVID-19 on youth development. The National Arbor Day Foundation was one of those donors. LCMs

newest exhibit, Exploring Trees — Inside AND Out was originally created and owned by the National Arbor Day Foundation as a traveling exhibit. NADF has now made it a permanent exhibit at LCM.

Arts & events…

Omaha Performing Arts in partnership with the Omaha Entertainment and Arts Awards is looking for local artists to perform in the 2021 Singer-Songwriter Showcase at Holland Center Outdoors on June 17 and August 26 at 6:30 p.m. The event is free but a suggested donation of $10 is encouraged and the proceeds will go to the artists. Each showcase will feature 20-minute sets with seven different artists. In addition, one showcase artist will be selected to perform as the opening act for Alternative Routes at Holland Center Outdoors on Sept. 2.

Local artists, ages 19 years old and older, are encouraged to apply by May 31.

Opera Omaha will premiere eleven original pieces of music created through the Poetry & Music Project on May 16 at 1 p.m. Hosted live by Nebraska State Poet Matt Mason and Holland Community Opera Fellow Fernando Antonio Montejano, the virtual concert will feature original songs composed by Matt Browne and Frances Pollock with lyrics by our student poets performed by Holland Community Opera Fellows Jared Hiscock, Gwenna Fairchild-Taylor, and Nicholas Davis. The songs explore a variety of themes including uncovering history, the range of emotions of 2020, odes to family members, nature, and sense of place. This event will be streamed on Opera Omaha’s Facebook and YouTube and is free and open to the public.

The Durham Museum is premiering

“James Cameron — Challenging the Deep” on May 22. Experience how James Cameron’s passion for understanding and exploring our oceans has shone a light on the least known place on earth. The exhibition immerses guests in an underwater environment using cinema scale projections, artifacts and specimens from

his expeditions. Explore the spectacular and mysterious abyss and discover the shipwrecks of Titanic and the German battleship Bismarck.

See artifacts from the design and construction of the DEEPSEA CHALLENGER, built to withstand water pressures of 1.2 tons per square centimeter.

MEETINGS AND SEMINARS Tuesday, May 18 Holmes Murphy is hosting a free virtual webinar from 11 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. on the topic of Construction Fall Protection: 3 Overlooked Takeaways That Can Reduce Worker Injury. Holmes Murphy’s Josh Jacobsen, senior class control consultant, and Robert Luckey, fall protection manager at FallTech, will lead the conversation. Registration is online.

The Heartland Women’s Network is hosting its monthly meeting in-person for the first time in several months. The event, which will be at the Garden Café in Rockbrook Village, will run from 11-30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and will be limited to 40 guests.

The speaker will be Sharon Robino-West, a veteran of the United States Marie Corps and mother of a combat veteran. She will be giving a talk on her experiences called “The Difficulty Is Your Driver.” Registration is online.

Wednesday, May 19 CASA of Douglas County is hosting an information session online from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Lora Sladovnik, therapist at the Child Savings Institute, Melissa Schaefer,

manager of youth services at Region 6 Behavioral Healthcare and Dr. Keasha Hawkins, child welfare manager at the Center for Holistic Development, will discuss the community resources. Registration is online.

Thursday, May 20 The Business Ethics Alliance is hosting its Summer Ethics Luncheon from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Dr. Erin Bass from the University of Nebraska at Omaha will discuss Corporate Citizenship: An Individual Approach to Community Impact. The facilitator for the event is Casey Putney, director of education and leadership Development at the Business Ethics Alliance. The cost for the event is $25 and the event will be virtual.

Heartland Workforce Solutions is hosting its virtual monthly workshop from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. This months’ topic will be Employment Discrimination Overview and Updates; Franklin Thompson from Omaha Human Rights & Relations, Ben Watson from The Nebraska Equal Opportunity Commission, and Rob Rowan from the Lincoln Commission on Human Rights will be leading the discussion. Registration is online.

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Career

Development A section prepared by the staff of the Midlands Business Journal

May 14, 2021

Local job openings abundant, talent remains in demand

by Gabby Hellbusch

Local talent across various industries is in high demand recently, causing employers to adjust to the current landscape.

Zoe Olson, executive director for the Nebraska Restaurant Association, said the jobs outlook in Nebraska for the hospitality industry is tough right now.

“Nebraska is tied for the lowest unemployment percentage in the nation,” Olson said.

Olson “We simply do not have the people to fill the needs of employers.

“Every restaurant I know is looking for staff and for all positions. Currently, many restaurants are cutting days and hours of operation in order to not overwork staff and to be able to give guests the great experience they expect from our industry. Additionally, many are also reducing capacity by removing and/or distancing tables to ensure a quality experience utilizing their staff to guest ratio for their particular establishment.”

She said more third-party delivery companies are looking to take a portion of the low margins restaurants are operating on.

Another trend is utilizing the technology developed during the indoor dining shutdown last year, like QR code menus, as well as contactless credit card payment.

“Fast casual restaurants are looking more toward automating their stores as the worker shortage in all businesses continues,” Olson said.

Andrew Ives, director of culture and talent development at Fusion Medical Staffing, said the past year’s events have impacted the health care industry in ways that no one could have predicted.

“With the medical staffing industry constantly evolving, Fusion continues to put travelers, internal employees and culture first,” Ives said. “We have a vast assortment of open internal positions to continue to lead the way within the industry. Fusion’s core values are to positively impact every life we touch and,

in doing so, we have created a lasting impression on the local community, as well as nationwide.”

As the need for traveling health care workers continues to expand, he said Fusion has been expanding its sales teams to meet this demand and provide the best possible service to travelers and clients.

“This growth has also led us to significant investments in our technology, marketing, Bouchard compliance and several other departments, which has opened even more positions within our internal staff,” Ives said.

Chris Bouchard, director of talent acquisition at Lutz, said many companies are looking for candidates.

“However, finding quality candidates is very difficult,” Bouchard said. “Candidates are still concerned about how COVID has and will affect business.

Whenever we get a new president, people also seem to sit tight in their current roles, waiting to see what may change with the economy. With the labor market so tight, we are having to proactively recruit passive candidates. Even doing this, candidates are very reluctant to make a change, knowing they have a role and hopefully stability.”

Currently, he said most industries are struggling to find top talent. Companies are also working to keep culture and communication strong among team members.

“Companies are really focused on keeping the ones they have through different means,” Bouchard said. “Work from home is something we now have more of and will continue to see going forward.

“Companies are beefing up recruiting departments to keep up with the constant flow of potential candidates,” he said.

“Search firms and staffing agencies are also being relied on more than ever to help find top talent. Times are changing and companies will have to continue to adapt to hiring trends if they want to attract and retain top talent today and in the future.”

Andrew Ives, director of culture and talent development at Fusion Medical Staffing.

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• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal • Career Development

Has women’s representation in the workforce stalled? Experts weigh in

by Michelle Leach

While women are mobilizing around inequities in the workforce, COVID-19 has put an ugly spotlight on persistent challenges.

The eye is on equal pay, according to Metro Omaha Women’s Business Center founder and President BC Clark.

“We accepted the ceiling and just dealt with it,” she said. “Now, it appears we’ve banned together and are not having it anymore.”

However, Clark noted that minority women in particular are challenged in their access to capital.

She is seeing some positives related to women working on their credit, and accessing assistance and education from organizations such as local community development financial institutions.

Clark cited U.S. Chamber of Commerce data, when asked about the impact of the pandemic.

“The number of female business owners who ranked their business’s overall health as ‘somewhat or very good’ fell 13 points during the pandemic, from 60% in January to 47% in July 2020,” she said. “Women-owned small businesses have been hit particularly hard.”

The Institute for Career Advancement Needs (ICAN) President and CEO Susan Henricks noted how women remain underrepresented at all levels, from entry-level to C-suite.

“Only 22% of C-suite positions are held by women,” she said. “Why are there not more women in the C-suite in 2021?”

The pay gap persists; women still earn 79 cents for every dollar that a man is paid. And women continue to be penalized for taking time off to have or be with their children.

“When they return to work after a longer leave, they are penalized in type of job, or compensation, or both,” she said.

Citing the sixth annual McKinsey and Lean In “Women in the Workplace 2020” survey, Henricks said progress hasn’t slowed; it has stalled.

“Because there is a lack of powerful female leaders at top,” it was noted, “there’s nobody to encourage and supClark port women.”

From 2015 to 2020, women C-suite roles reportedly grew from 17% to 21%, with senior VP roles increasing from 23% to 28%. In 2020, women accounted for 38% of managers (versus 62% for men).

“So, while there has been a little progress, these numbers show that women are still definitely in the minority,” Henricks said.

Henricks noted that Omaha-area organizations used to be surveyed on women’s representation. This survey no longer exists. Why? “Many organizations would not complete the survey and provide the actual numbers of women in leadership roles,” she said.

And, while everyone has been impacted by COVID-19, women have been more negatively impacted, as they work two full-time jobs (caregiver and working professional) all day and all evening.

“What has manifested is an ‘always on’ mentality for working mothers,” Henricks said.

This factor is causing some women to leave

the workforce.

“Nationally, one in four women are contemplating leaving the workforce or ‘downshifting’ their careers,” Henricks said.

She could not find Omaha statistics.

T h e Wo m e n ’s Fund of Omaha Research and Policy Director Tiffany Seibert Joekel said, especially women and girls of color, will suffer from the economic and social Henricks costs of the pandemic for years to come.

“As this public health crisis has become an economic one, many Nebraskans have experienced job loss and income reduction,” she said.

“Women have lost nearly six out of every 10 jobs nationally.”

As women are forced out of the workforce due to caregiving responsibilities, it presents a danger to women (careers), family (economic stability) and employers (“whose No. 1 need is qualified workers”).

But caregivers leaving the workforce wasn’t inevitable. Employers can better support women by enacting policies that better reflect dual commitments: family and job.

“This includes flexible hours, work from home and paid leave,” she said.

Seibert Joekel noted real steps are being taken by the federal government to address paid leave, and to refocus priorities on meeting basic needs such as increased access to food, housing and child care.

What pandemic hangover? Enrollment at local colleges up

by Dwain Hebda

Local colleges and universities report enrollment is up as people in every phase of life look to continue or start on a degree.

Alex Lovrien, workforce training coordinator with Metropolitan Community College, said COVID-19’s impact on the business community drove many people back to the classroom.

“There has been a sizable increase in students accessing GAP funding during the past year,” Lovrien said. “So far, this fiscal year we’ve had 186 students utilize that funding; last fiscal year, we had a total of 108 students do so.

“This year, many individuals were laid off or had hours drastically cut due directly to the pandemic. They expressed a desire to learn a new skill to secure employment or they wanted an opportunity to up-skill in their current positions in hopes that they could apply for different positions.”

Among the most popular degrees, Lovrien said, are business management and administrative services.

“The project management professional program is popular because it’s a highly desired credential across multiple industries,” she said.

“Pharmacy technician is popular because it’s an entry-level position in a high-need field with growth potential as the vaccine development and rollout has increased demand for pharmacy technicians.”

The University of Nebraska at Omaha also saw an uptick in enrollees, with the most growth seen in the College of Business Administration and College of Information Science and Technology.

“Given the news of the last year, there

has been strong interest in professions such as social work, teacher education, public administration, health humanities and public health,” said Dr. Sacha Kopp, senior vice chancellor for academic affairs.

UNO’s enrollment was up 5% in the fall and 3% in the spring, Kopp said.

“Several corporations announced partnerships with UNO enabling their employees to come to UNO with no outof-pocket costs,” she said. “These included Union Pacific, MuKopp tual of Omaha, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Nebraska and Omaha Public Power District, among others. Many employees are taking the opportunity, paid by their employers, to advance their education and skills.”

The most pronounced bump came in the university’s online programs.

“UNO has always had a strong and vibrant array of programs online, even before the pandemic,” Kopp said. “These past 18 months, we’ve really leaned into that. The availability of online programming in business, IT or our Bachelor of Multidisciplinary Studies has greatly expanded learning opportunities for adult learners, given other obligations of jobs, families, et cetera.”

Scott Kizzire, assistant vice president at Bellevue University, said the enrollment growth of Bellevue University has resulted in

improved programing, especially for online learners.

“Through our student voice program, we learned that the majority of students’ work environments changed this past year, with many people now working from home,” he said.

“We responded with enhancements, including online live sessions with professors.

Students told us that having the opportunity to interact with a professor and their class peers in a live setting each week was a benefit and improved their Kizzire learning experience.”

Kizzire said for as difficult as 2020 was on all aspects of society, one positive upshot of the pandemic is how it is inspiring innovation and advanced problem solving in the business world. That has had a direct impact on higher education.

“Our top bachelor programs are in business, health care, cybersecurity, supply chain and logistics,” he said. “At the graduate level, our MBA, cybersecurity and health care programs experienced increases.

“Businesses are trying to address new problems and customer demands and these challenges require the application of innovation, collaboration and critical thinking knowledge and skills. We’re seeing organizations request customized degree programs that directly align to their industry needs.”

For instance, Legislative Bill 108 reportedly increases eligibility for SNAP and directly addresses the “cliff effect” in food assistance benefits, which allows working families to accept raises or small wage increases without losing financial support.

Presented by Gallup, the “Women: Work & Life Well-Lived” workshop in October was designed to help UNMC leaders create modern workplaces that women want to join. Sponsored partly by UNMC’s Office of Equity, Director Dr. Brandy Clarke provided a report on some of Gallup’s data, which noted that 54% of working moms would prefer to stay home. Yet, only 33% of working mothers say their employer is doing “very well” at allowing work from home (33% also said employers are doing “very poorly” on this front).

“Since that workshop, we have initiated a gender equity community of practice on campus that includes leadership teams from many major units on campus, as well as other campus teams, to address issues of gender equity on our own campus,” she said.

MOWBC’s Clark encourages organizations and corporations to change the cultures that stifle minorities’ growth in business and minority employee promotions.

“When we cooperate and collaborate, great things happen,” she said. “Respect each other’s’ differences and talents.”

MOWBC, which provides business education and grants to emerging women entrepreneurs, is also a resource partner and co-creator with GROW Nebraska on the new Women’s Business Center, which is now officially open.

ICAN’s Henricks encourages owners and leaders to look at the number of women in their organizations. Are there more? At what levels? What positions did women hold five years ago? What do they hold today? What has changed? Set specific and tangible goals. Be transparent about these efforts and numbers, she said.

Look at managerial, mid-level and executive position pipelines. Are both high potential men and women being invested in equally within each pipeline? Do women have access to strong mentors? Evaluate how people get into each of these pipelines for higher-level positions. Are men and women being “equally vetted”?

Fittingly, the 2021 ICAN Women’s Leadership Conference in August is themed “IN SIGHT: Step up, Stand out. Stand together.”

“It will be all about how women must step up and advocate for themselves and for their careers, and for the women that follow,” Henricks said.

“Women need to take on opportunities to gain visibility, apply for the big jobs, ask for stretch assignments and seek sponsorship.”

She noted both women and men need to sponsor and mentor more women than they do at present.

Seibert Joekel from The Women’s Fund said that small business owners can be “changemakers,” starting with paying women equally for equal work, allowing for flex-work schedules, and providing paid sick and safe leave.

“Small businesses will benefit from reduced turnover and increased loyalty and productivity, not to mention a competitive advantage in recruiting new talent,” she said.

More small businesses also need to use their voices on issues such as gender and racial equity. As a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, The Women’s Fund wants to work with small businesses who share such a vision for the community — supporting their voices in the conversation.

Midlands Business Journal • MAY 14, 2021 •

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In the Spotlight Paid Content

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Named a Principal at Alvine Engineering, Rich Woodson plays an important role in guiding mechanical engineering design at the firm, especially within the healthcare and senior living markets. He has experience using a variety of delivery models, including design-build, which embraces flexibility and collaboration. Rich shares his knowledge as an active mentor within the firm and the community.

FINANCE

Recently named a Principal at IP Design Group, Pat Kelly has a background in construction management, electrical contracting, and technology design. His experiences provide a diverse perspective on building systems integration, especially the coordination of telecommunications, audiovisual, security, and acoustical systems. A natural leader, Pat focuses on growth of the firm, team, individual staff members, and client relationships.

REAL ESTATE

Added

Mary Hiatt Financial Representative Principal Securities

Mary’s experience includes 20 years of business ownership, including managing the finances of the businesses along with the employee benefit plans. She also valued and negotiated the sales of the businesses.

During the pandemic of 2020, she found she could identify with many of the struggles small business owners were feeling and could not ignore the call she felt to extend her experience and help them. She helps

her clients identify their financial goals and understand the current financial terrain and strategizes with the team of experts at Principal to create a plan for her clients’ financial future. She is authentic and works hard for her clients.

Mary has obtained her FINRA Series 6 and 63 securities registrations as well as her Life, Health, and Variable Insurance License. She attended the University of Nebraska at Omaha where she received her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a major in Finance.

In her free time, Mary is involved in her community as a member of Omaha Leaders, Heartland Women’s Network, Women in Financial Services, and is a Teammates Mentor. She loves to be on the water and spend time with her family! During the summers you can

BUSINESS SERVICES Named

Paulette Monthei Executive Director Outlook Enrichment

Born legally blind, Monthei marks the first visually impaired executive director in Outlook Enrichment’s history. As program manager, she led the implementation of New Outlook Enrichment programs such as monthly independent living skills classes and advocacy 101 educational sessions. In her new role, Monthei will foster relationships with Outlook Enrichment’s many participants,

Hired

find her in her backyard pool, and in the cold winters she enjoys traveling to someplace warm, usually including a catamaran or fishing trip.

Amber Davis Director of Commercial Asset Management Metonic

Metonic is excited to welcome Amber Davis to the team.

As the Director of Commercial Asset Management, Amber is involved in the comprehensive oversight of the Metonic portfolio of mixed-use commercial investments, including but not limited to, oversight of leasing strategy and operational procedures, thorough reporting, streamlining acquisition and disposition of assets, and maximizing profitability in between.

LEGAL SERVICES

collaborators and supporters, inviting them to empower their blind and visually impaired neighbors in their journey beyond vision.

Hired

Lindsay Belmont Promoted Koenig|Dunne

Koenig|Dunne is pleased to announce that Lindsay Belmont has been elected a partner. Lindsay wholeheartedly fulfills our values of excellence, support, integrity and always team. Her leadership in and out of the courtroom combined with ever-present grit, grace, courage and strength will lead Koenig|Dunne forward for years to come. Lindsay focuses exclusively on divorce and custody litigation. She is the current family law section chair in the

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Nebraska State Bar Association. She received her J.D. from the University of Nebraska College of Law and her B.A., Political Science with Distinction from the University of Kansas.”

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• MAY 14, 2021 • Midlands Business Journal