Issuu

16009 Cornish Rd., Springfield

$740,000

Beautiful home on 10 acres with 6 acres of old growth forest, creek, huge backyard with tree house. Fully remodeled with main floor master suite, large deck, walk out basement. Also, a professionally designed home theater with 93” screen and 7:1 surround, audio system. Heated 30x70 outbuilding.

Matt Rasmussen • 402.657.1969

7407 N 116 Ave. Cir., Omaha

$649,900

Denice Coenen • 402.677.7538

1745 N Nye Avenue, Fremont

$575,000

$595,000

A refreshed, refurbished historical home. Newer granite, refinished wood floors, original leaded glass, beautiful library. Over 4,200 sq ft. with 5 bedrooms and 6 baths. Truly an exquisite home.

Johnathan O’Gorman • 402.595.8857

$525,000

5,375 finished sq feet! True 5 bedroom home with lots of space! Amazing kitchen/hearth room, 3 season porch with views of golf course and in-‐ground pool with wrought iron fenced yard. Updates galore!

Hopkins Home Team • 402.990.9658

512 N Spruce Street, Valley

$550,000

Doug Schlegelmilch • 402.706.2330

$525,000

Stunning .75 acre lot with huge shoreline! Pristine condition, open floor plan, with oversized windows overlooking stunning panoramic views. Gourmet kitchen with Thermador double ovens. Lower level kitchenette, Keystone sea wall, huge new deck w/2 pergolas, Geothermal.

Deb Ellis • 402.706.1003

$699,900

Archistructure’s one of a kind lake home. Enjoy the beauty and serenity of this private lake. This home includes a 5+ garage, two 4 seasons rooms with 10’ retractable glass walls for the ultimate indoor/outdoor living space. 3 private bedroom suites, and 500 sq ft covered concrete deck for expansive lake views.

710 Key Circle, Carter Lake, IA

$590,000

Truly unique custom home! Must see this lakefront home only 10 minutes from downtown Omaha! Only 2 years old with gourmet kitchen. 6 bedrooms, 4 baths, walkout, granite, hickory floors, tiled bathrooms, plantation shutters and the list goes on.

The Good Life Group • 402.612.3833

This Victorian time capsule has been preserved with top quality products of today. As you encounter the character and exquisiteness you can almost feel the origin of awesome. Over 4,100 sq ft. with 5 bedrooms and 3 baths. Allow yourself to seize the opportunity of making this mansion your home!

12901 Lakeview Dr, Springfield

5410 N 279 St, Valley

Mike Jenkins • 402.707.6453

Kori Krause • 402.679.0007

This home sits on a secluded lot and has no backyard neighbors! Custom built cook’s kitchen with custom cabinetry and double ovens, also a full lower level kitchen. Stucco and stone exterior, 11+ foot basement ceilings, Geo Thermal heat and cooling system and so much more!

17737 Harney Street, Omaha

$725,000

Stunning Cherry cabinetry, 6” crown, hearth and dinette overlooking fountain. Also, walk-in pantry, Sonos Sound System, IPAD charging stations, huge laundry. Lower level with large bar, TV’s, 2 gaming areas/rec rm. 95% H/E furnace, 6’ steel fence, in/outside security and custom blinds.

Gene Riehart • 402.490.5233

Feel the entire experience of resort living in Deer Creek. Amazing home with tremendous views...on 6th tee, Arnold Palmer’s Signature Hole! Open Plan. Tall ceilings. Designer windows.

19817 Gertrude Street, Gretna

809 N 190 Street, Elkhorn

22101 Cedar Circle, Omaha

$545,000

Custom two story home with 4 bedrooms, 4 baths + bonus room built by TruVision Custom Homes. Open main level, hardwood floors, walk-‐in pantry, and stainless steel appliances. Quartz countertops throughout, large daylight windows in lower level, and covered patio.

Julie Arp • 402.250.5850

18107 Leavenworth St, Omaha

$500,000

Gorgeous 5 bedroom, 4 bath home with over 4,600 sq feet. Full daylight windows in basement, landscaping, gazebo and outside fireplace. 2 heating and cooling systems. Patio covered by gazebo with wood burning fireplace. Garage heated and hot & cold water outlets.

Mark Renner • 402.690.1687

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Compassionate, state-of-the-art care for adults who were born with heart disease.

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beer gardens • live country music • fun zone

The mechanical bull challenges you in the fun zone. Lewis & Clark Landing • 345 riverfront dr. June 20, 2015 • 1–6 p.m. • Free Admission

friedfoodfest.com presented by:

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ROB THOMAS WITH PLAIN WHITE T’S JUN 20 § NEON TREES JUN 26 DAVID GRAY WITH RACHAEL YAMAGATA JUN 30 § “WEIRD AL” YANKOVIC JUL 2 THE AVETT BROTHERS JUL 8 § LITTLE BIG TOWN WITH DAVID NAIL JUL 10 THE ROOTS JUL 18 § alt-J JUL 28 § ALICE IN CHAINS JUL 30 HOZIER WITH DAWES JUL 31 § ALABAMA SHAKES AUG 1 SLIGHTLY STOOPID WITH DIRTY HEADS AND THE EXPENDABLES AUG 29 § BILLY IDOL SEP 10

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omaha magazine • may/june 2015

BETWEEN THE LINES

beer gardens • live country music • fun zone

Make this Father’s Day weekend one to remember. Lewis & Clark Landing • 345 riverfront dr. June 20, 2015 • 1–6 p.m. • Free Admission

friedfoodfest.com presented by:

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

Expanded Content On Your Digital Device Watch videos, and view photo galleries of select editorial from Omaha Magazine.

2 17 e g pa

e1 g pa

H ge a p

1 Download the App Browse the Apple App Store or shop Google Play for the LayAR app.

1 ge a p

2 Look for this icon You’ll see the ‘ar’ icon on pages with expanded content.

3 Scan the page Load the LayAR app on your digital device. Hold your phone/table over the entire page to load content.

CONTENTS FEATURES

table visitors of contents edition • may/june 2015

visitors edition • table of contents Excellence in Nursing omaha magazine’s inaugural Awards PAGE 37 “Flush Him Down the Toilet” Cult leader michael Ryan is dying. Good riddance, his son Says. PAGE 140 178

Brave New Prairie Summer Miller’s 171 NEW PRAIRIE KITCHEN showcases regional chefs, farmers, and artisans. PAGE 178

The Omaha Storm Chasers 180 The back-to-back Triple-A champs are minor in name only. people PAGE 136 172

Alexis Shorb Shark Feeder

food 32

the usual suspects

16 Editor’s Letter 18 For Starters 21 Calendar of Events 34 Not Funny

And Nothing But The Truth

the next generation

171 Gen O

Bagpiper Luke Ashton

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

30 Faces

175 Omaha Magazine’s

32 Faces

177 Dining Feature

172 Faces

Fried Food Festival Get Your Grease On Chad Lebo Cure Cooking

178 Brave New Prairie

Summer Miller’s New Prairie Kitchen showcases regional chefs, farmers, and artisans.

180 Mystery Review

Plank Seafood Provisions

184 Dining Guide

Magdalena Garcia El Museo Latino Crime Author Mark Langan

omaha magazine visitors edition

35-170 These pages are

not included in the visitors edition of Omaha Magazine. Articles online at OmahaMagazine.com. Purchase a subscription at OmahaMagazine. com/subscribe.

may/june 2015

EDITORIAL EXECUTIVE EDITOR DAVID WILLIAMS MANAGING EDITOR ROBERT NELSON SENIOR ARTS CONTRIBUTOR KIM CARPENTER CONTRIBUTING WRITERS LINDSEY ANNE BAKER LEO ADAM BIGA RYAN BORCHERS APRIL CHRISTENSON JUDY HORAN JENNIFER LITTON SANDRA MARTIN SUSAN MEYERS ROBYN MURRAY CAROL CRISSEY NIGRELLI OTIS XII JAMES WALMSLEY SARAH WENGERT ANDY WILLIAMS

Handcrafted Custom Jewelry Stop in today to view our selection 13013 West Center Road Montclair On Center 402.558.1307 • SilverofOz.com silverofoz@silverofoz.com

CREATIVE CREATIVE DIRECTOR JOHN GAWLEY DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY & INTERACTIVE MEDIA BILL SITZMANN SENIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNER KRISTEN HOFFMAN GRAPHIC DESIGNER RACHEL JOY

402.330.0300 • 1350 South 119th Street WWW.BROTHERSEBASTIANS.COM

ILLUSTRATION SECRET PENGUIN JUSTIN STEUBE JASON MEYER DAVE NELSON CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHY LAURIE AND CHARLES PHOTOGRAPHS KEITH BINDER COLIN CONCES SCOTT DRICKEY SARAH LEMKE FALLS CITY JOURNAL omaha magazine • may/june 2015

DEPARTMENTS

table of contents •

volume 32 • issue 2

130 122

120 134

the usual suspects

16 Editor’s Letter 18 For Starters 21 Calendar of Events 34 Not Funny

And Nothing But The Truth

Omaha Home 60 PLus In Omaha

Cinema Under the Stars

117 Obviously Omaha 199 Greater Nebraska

Bagpiper Luke Ashton

Nebraska in Black and White

omaha magazine visitors edition

35-170 These pages are

not included in the visitors edition of Omaha Magazine. Articles online at OmahaMagazine.com. Purchase a subscription at OmahaMagazine. com/subscribe.

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

30 Faces

Alexis Shorb Shark Feeder

32 Faces

Magdalena Garcia El Museo Latino

118 Sports

Lauren Sieckmann Life’s a Beach

community

53 Giving Feature

The Omaha Community Playhouse Turns 90

120 Style Shot

Hip Hop Dancer Joey Reed

56 Giving

124 Faces

58 Giving

134 Faces

food

172 Faces

Cookie Lady Carolyn Hess Calendar of Events

Happenings

202 The Closer

171 Gen O

64 Instagram Be Social

people

147

the next generation

35 Between the Lines 61 History

127

Stylist Omar Rodriguez KMTV Anchor Craig Nigrelli Crime Author Mark Langan

175 Omaha Magazine’s Fried Food Festival Get Your Grease On

177 Dining Feature Chad Lebo Cure Cooking

180 Mystery Review

Plank Seafood Provisions

184 Dining Guide

art+culture

122 Video

Music Video Editor Taylor Tracy

127 Visual Arts

Sculptor Therman Statom

130 Music

Recording Artist Orenda Fink

volume 32 •

issue 2

ACCOUNTS PUBLISHER TODD LEMKE PUBLISHER’S ASSISTANT & OMAHA HOME CONTRIBUTING EDITOR SANDY BESCH-MATSON VICE PRESIDENT GREG BRUNS EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT SALES & MARKETING GIL COHEN SENIOR SALES EXECUTIVE & 60PLUS IN OMAHA CONTRIBUTING EDITOR GWEN LEMKE BRANDING SPECIALIST KYLE FISHER ANGIE HALL GEORGE IDELMAN SALES ASSOCIATES JAMIE COLE JESSICA CULLINANE DAWN DENNIS ALICIA SMITH HOLLINS JUSTIN IDELMAN JESSICA LINHART

OPERATIONS VICE PRESIDENT OF OPERATIONS TYLER LEMKE EVENT DIRECTOR ERIN COX ACCOUNTANT HOLLEY GARCIA-CRUZ DISTRIBUTION MANAGER MIKE BREWER FOR ADVERTISING & SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION: 402.884.2000 All versions of Omaha Magazine are published bimonthly by Omaha Magazine, LTD, P.O. Box 461208, Omaha NE 68046-1208. Telephone: (402) 884-2000; fax (402) 884-2001. Subscription rates: $19.95 for 6 issues (one year), $24.95 for 12 issues (two years). No whole or part of the contents herein may be reproduced without prior written permission of Omaha Magazine, excepting individually copyrighted articles and photographs. Unsolicited manuscripts are accepted, however no responsibility will be assumed for such solicitations. Best of Omaha®™ is a registered tradename of Omaha Magazine.

MAY 29 –JUNE 28

MAY 8 – JUNE 7

6915 CASS STREET | (402) 553-0800 | WWW.OMAHAPLAYHOUSE.COM sponsors:

media sponsor:

The Pegasus Travel 2014 OCP London Tour Friend of the Playhouse

Q 98.5

AMERICAN MODERNS 1910 –1960: From O’Keeffe to Rockwell

Organized by the Brooklyn Museum February 8–May 17, 2015

sponsor:

orchestra sponsor:

media sponsor:

The Giger Foundation

Between 1910 and 1960, the United States emerged as an international power, while also experiencing two world wars and the Great Depression. New technologies changed all aspects of life, while the art world witnessed dramatic transformations of its own. This exhibition explores the ways 40 American artists – including Georgia O’Keeffe, Marsden Hartley, Stuart Davis, Isabel Lydia Whitney, and Norman Rockwell – engaged the modern world. American Moderns is a ticketed exhibition. Admission is FREE for Joslyn members. $10 for general public adults; youth ages 17 and younger and college students with ID are free. Special Thursday pricing (4-8 pm): $5 for general public adults.

preSenting SponSor:

Major SponSorS: Douglas County, Contributing SponSorS: Rich and Fran Juro, Supporting SponSor: Adah and Leon Millard Foundation Additional support provided by Wiesman Development, Nebraska Arts Council and Nebraska Cultural Endowment IMAGE: Marsden Hartley (American, 1877-1943), Handsome Drinks, 1916, oil on composition board, 24 x 20 in., Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Milton Lowenthal, 72.3

2200 Dodge St. | Omaha, NE | (402) 342-3300 | joslyn.org omaha magazine • may/june 2015

FROM THE EDITOR

david williams

The Legacy of Groovy Bob

t was the same week Squeaky

Fromme tried to assassinate President Gerald R. Ford that I began my freshman year at a land grant college situated on an Iowa prairie. And it was there that I met Groovy Bob Gunderson, a decidedly eccentric character whose nickname was earned through a series of largely unprintable, Animal House-style antics. Groovy Bob was studying landscape architecture and worked at a drafting table that gobbled up most of the space in the closet-sized room he shared with another, now long-forgotten frat brother. One of the tools of his trade was a mechanical pencil— but not just any mechanical pencil. Groovy Bob wielded a Pentel P205. I, something of a frustrated, wanna-be artist who had somehow instead decided to matriculate in the totally un-artsy realm of business, was swept away by his architectural renderings, especially the precision lettering

that labeled his rhapsodic rhododendrons and majestic maples. I quickly adopted not only that same blocky style of printing, but also began a 40-year love affair with the P205. Besides being a handsome example of techie, industrial-themed design, the pencil’s diminutive 0.5-milimeter graphite nib allows me to write in a remarkably clear, miniature, almost mechanical hand. Its cleverly concealed eraser is housed under the removable end cap, the plunger that, when activated by a click-click-click of the thumb, feeds new life—new words—into this magical little device. That same eraser ensures that the past is never immutable. Cataclysmic errors may be evaporated with a quick rub-a-dub-dub followed by the sweep of a hand in scattering the dormant ashes of dead words and abandoned musings. My admittedly geeky, decades-long obsession with the P205 makes me think of how we compile this magazine. After all, the Pentel

facebook.com/omahamagazine

ABOUT THE COVER

@omahamagazine @omahamagazine

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

brand name, the company explains, is a union of the words pen and tell, as in telling a story. Many of our pieces are on the short-ish side in terms of word counts. The art of short storytelling relies on writing that must be, just like my chunky, boxy, Pentel-fueled printing, remarkably clear in its presentation—meticulous but never mechanical. I lost track of Groovy Bob sometime around 1977. He had gone east to practice his trade in Philadelphia. Last I heard at the time, this singularly enigmatic guy was acting out a role-play version of Dungeons and Dragons in the dank, crumbling sewers beneath the City of Brotherly Love. Where have you gone, Groovy Bob? And how do I thank you for introducing me to the marvel that is the Pentel P205? OMAG Comments? Send your thoughts to: david@omahamagazine.com. Owned and managed by Omaha Magazine, LTD

Jason Meyer, Justin Steube, and Dave Nelson (the team at Secret Penguin) knocked one out of the park on this issue’s cover design. Former baseball card collectors will know that the only thing missing is that unmistakable scent of stale, crumbly Bazooka bubble gum that awaited as you tore into every wax pack searching for a Mantle, Maris, or Mays.

SEASON TICKETS ON SALE! BROADWAY SERIES

SHOWCASE SERIES

JAZZ SERIES

A Celtic Tenors Christmas

Ramsey Lewis Electric Band

YOU’LL HAVE THE TIME OF YOUR LIFE.

December 2, 2015 | 7:30 PM

October 20 - The 25,papers, 2015 They DelivereD unTil They maDe The heaDlines...

with special guest vocalist

Philip Bailey

of Earth, Wind and Fire

November 17 - 22, 2015

November 13, 2015 | 8:00 PM

2012 Ard® Tony Aw

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Jane Lynch: See Jane Sing

February 16 - 21, 2016

Gregory Porter

February 28, 2016 | 7:00 PM

February 4, 2016 | 7:30 PM

Under the Streetlamp

Dee Dee Bridgewater and Irvin Mayfield

March 15 - 20, 2016

C A MERON M AC K IN TO S H’S S P ECTAC U L AR NEW P RODU CTION OF

A N D R E W L L O Y D W E B B E R ’S

April 20 - May 1, 2016

former cast members of Jersey Boys

May 19, 2016 | 7:30 PM

with the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra

March 12, 2016 | 8:00 PM

S U B S C R I B E N O W A N D S AV E ! 402-345-0606

OmahaPerformingArts.org/SeasonTickets omaha magazine • may/june 2015

CALENDAR

this is omaha for starters

THIS IS OMAHA

ONCE Orpheum Theater May 13-17

Winner of eight 2012 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and the 2013 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album, Once is a truly original Broadway experience featuring an impressive ensemble of actor/musicians who play their own instruments onstage. Based on the Academy Award-winning film, it tells the enchanting tale of a Dublin street musician who’s about to give up on his dream when a beautiful young woman takes a sudden interest in his haunting love songs. As the chemistry between them grows, his music soars to powerful new heights, but their unlikely connection turns out to be deeper and more complex than your everyday romance. The Oscar-winning independent Irish film, Once, was made for $150,000. Shot in 17 days, it went on to gross $20M worldwide, becoming a critically acclaimed international smash. It stars Glen Hansard, from the popular Irish Rock band The Frames, and Markéta Irglová. The duo won the 2007 Academy Award for Best Original Song with “Falling Slowly,” and the film won the Los Angeles Film Critics Award for Best Music. The soundtrack was also nominated for two Grammy Awards. Orpheum Theater 409 S. 16th St. TicketOmaha.com liedcenter.org

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

The College World Series TD Ameritrade Park Omaha June 13-23/24

Call it Baseball’s Burning Man. There’s just nothing like it in the world of college sports: One city inextricably linked to the national championship of a major sport. For more than 60 years, college baseball players have had one goal each spring—to keep rolling down that “Road to Omaha.” For many it’s more a week-and-a-half-long vacation, a chance to leave the real world behind at the rebirth of summer and immerse in the unique rhythms and peculiarities of “America’s Pastime.” For 10 days (or 11 days if the 3-game championship series goes to a third game), Omaha adopts the spirit of the game, a vibe built on colorful people, bizarre superstitions, and a freewheeling festival groove. Baseball fans are cool. They’re laid back. They’re friendly. They’re master tailgaters. There’s a reason the series has stayed in Omaha all these years. It’s just hard to imagine any place doing it better. TD Ameritrade Park Omaha 1200 Mike Fahey St. Tickets from $ 30. cwsomaha.com

CALENDAR

this is omaha for starters

FOR STARTERS FOUR

Omaha Magazine’s Fried Food Festival Presented by Storz Brewery Lewis and Clark Landing June 20

Partnering with Storz Trophy Room Grill & Brewery, Omaha Magazine’s Fried Food Festival promises lots of outdoor fun on Father’s Day weekend. Featuring everything for the fried food foodie, this festival will celebrate all things dipped and battered on the Lewis and Clark Landing from 1 to 6 p.m. Bringing together street-style vendors, food trucks, and multiple beer gardens is a sure-fire way for dads to load up the calories and enjoy this special weekend. Sticking to a theme we think is only natural for a fried food festival, you’ll enjoy live country music while gobbling down such perfect—if funky—combos as deep-fried pickles and squid. Enjoy the view of the riverfront while learning a twangy two-step or a do-si-do from professional line dancers. If you’re feeling a bit more adventurous, you can try your luck on the mechanical bull. If a little liquid courage is needed, relax in one of the many beer gardens featuring locally brewed Storz beer. But don’t forget to slather on the sunscreen and bring the kids to the fun zone featuring large inflatable obstacle courses. Admission is free, so bring dad, the kids, and yourself to Omaha’s only Fried Food Festival. Lewis and Clark Landing 345 N. Riverfront Dr. FriedFoodFest.com

Riitta Ikonen: PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST AS A YOUNG LEAF Through June 27 Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts

Myth, memory, and mysticism. Finnish artist Riitta Ikonen ties together all three, and she does so through long-term, multi-disciplinary projects that she creates alone or in conjunction with regular collaborators. Throughout her work, nature frequently acts as both content and context, with characters literally inhabiting the natural landscape or anthropomorphizing into it. This is evident in several of the exhibition’s featured projects, including Ikonen’s acclaimed Eyes as Big as Plates series, which she created through an on-going collaboration with photographer Karoline Hjorth. Inspired by Scandinavian folklore, the series documents older inhabitants clad in the artist’s wearable costumes in remote landscapes around the world. Within the solitude of these places, her subjects become one with their surroundings, subtly underscoring the age-old relationship between people and nature. While each of Ikonen’s projects differ in breadth and scope, at their core they all emphasize the deep and abiding connection as well as the silent, dynamic potential that exists between people and nature, the spaces they inhabit, and the experiences they share. Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts 724 S. 12th St. BemisCenter.org

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

The 2015 FIVB W World Grand Prix Final Rou Round ound is Coming to the United States

CENTURYLINK CENTER IN OMAHA TICKET PRICES START AT:: STA T RT AT TA A $20/Day or $75 All-Tourney T Tourney TicketMaster. r com to purchase r. Visit TicketMaster.com . .745.3000 today ay! your tickets or call 800.745.3000 today!

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

COME SEE THE

World Ch am US Teampion

IN ACTION!

CALENDAR

may/june 2015

CALENDAR OF EVENTS ART AND MUSEUM EXHIBITS Theresa and Harry Crook: Artwork from their Estate. Through May 2, Gallery 72—1806 Vinton St. Theresa and Harry Crook were very active supporters and collectors of visual artworks from local, regional, and national level artists. Harry died in March 2011, leaving a large collection of artwork, part of which is being presented for sale at this show. 5-9pm. 402-496-4797 - gallery72.com Fascination: New Works by Mary K. Murphy. Through May 16, Gallery 72—1806 Vinton St. Mary K. Murphy has been described many times as as “painter’s painter.” Her new works, which includes paintings, drawings, and mixed media, move in and out of the boundary between representational figurative works and pure abstractions. 5-9pm. 402-496-4797- gallery72.com

Andrew Borowiec. Through May 17, Joslyn Art Museum—2200 Dodge St. Andrew Borowiec has been photographing the changing landscape of industrial America for more than 25 years. This Riley CAP Gallery installation features both black and white images from his Along the Ohio series and color work from his recent project, Post-Industrial Rust Belt. Regular museum admission. 402-342-3300 - joslyn.org College of Saint Mary Student Art Exhibition. Through May 18, College of Saint Mary Hillmer Art Gallery – 7000 Mercy Rd. View the many artworks of College of Saint Mary students. Free. 402-399-2400 - csm.edu

AMERICAN MODERNS AT THE JOSLYN ART MUSEUM

American Moderns: From O’Keeffe to Rockwell. Through May 17, Joslyn Art Museum— 2200 Dodge St. Between 1910 and 1960, the United States emerged as an international power, while also experiencing two world wars and the Great Depression. New technologies changed all aspects of life, while the art world witnessed dramatic transformations of its own. This exhibition explores the ways American artists, including Georgia O’Keeffe, Marsden Hartley, Stuart Davis, Rockwell Kent, and Norman Rockwell engaged the modern world. This exhibition has a ticket fee. Free for members, youth ages 17 and younger, and college students with ID. 402-342-3300.–joslyn.org

41st Annual Omaha Summer Arts Festival. June 5-7, Summer Arts Festival—10th-15th Sts. and Farnam St. Join us for one of the city’s premier events for exceptional art, atmosphere, and entertainment, featuring 135 of the nation’s finest visual artists, three stages of continuous entertainment, food, special events, and artist demonstrations. Friday & Saturday: 11am-11pm, Sunday: 11am-5pm. Free. 402-345-5401 - summerarts.org

Animation from the AniMutts. May 22-June 13, Gallery 72—1806 Vinton St. This show explores animations viewed as art. These are computer and stop motion animations produced through collaboration of the artists Rebecca Hermann, Peggy Reinecke, and Tom Sain, who call themselves The AniMutts. 5-9pm. 402-496-4797 - gallery72.com Emilie Baltz: Food Theater. Through May 23, Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts—724 S. 12th St. Emilie Baltz developed “Food Theater” as a platform to transform the everyday into the exceptional by bringing together local creators, ingredients, and community members to participate in immersive, multi-sensory spectacles that reimagine the role that food plays in our lives. 11am-5pm. Free. 402-341-7130 - bemiscenter.org

MARSDEN HARTLEY’S HANDSOME DRINKS IN

Michelle Daisley Moffitt & Ron Quick Exhibits. Through May 29, Fred Simon Gallery—1004 Farnam St. Painter Michelle Daisley Moffitt and photographer Ron Quick exhibit their latest works. 8-5pm. Free. 402-595-2142 - nebraskaartscouncil.org

Lost Egypt: Ancient Secrets, Modern Science. May 23-September 6, Durham Museum— 801 S. 10th St. Step into the world of archaeologists, Egyptologists, and other researchers through multiple hands-on elements, immersive storytelling, and real mummies and artifacts. The exhibition challenges visitors to apply numerous methods to unveil hidden mysteries within the display. Children free, Adults $9. 402-4445071 - durhammuseum.org Brett Erickson & Patricia James Exhibits. Through May 29, Fred Simon Gallery—1004 Farnam St. Nebraska photographers Brett Erickson and Patricia James showcase their latest works in this dual exhibit. 8-5pm. Free. 402-595-2142 - nebraskaartscouncil.org

JENNIFER HOMAN TUMULTUOUS SKIES

Jennifer Homan. June 2-27, Modern Arts Midtown—3625 Dodge St. Traveling the highways and country roads that outline the fields and farms of Nebraska and Eastern Colorado, Jennifer Homan captures the open fields, wide skies, clean white farm houses, and red barns of a disappearing landscape. 402-502-8737. - modernartsmidtown.com Art Seen: Exhibition of Artists from Omaha to Lincoln. June 21-October 11, Joslyn Art Museum – 2200 Dodge St. Selected by an all-star jury, Art Seen uncovers the most compelling and challenging creative impulses driving working artists in the Omaha and Lincoln areas. Adults $10, free for members and students. 402-342-3300 - joslyn.org JOSLYN ART SEEN JESS BENJAMIN

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

144th St.

THANK YOU!

Harrison St.

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

14406 Harrison St. • Omaha, NE 68138 • 402.403.5735 www.OmahaDentists.net

CALENDAR

may/june 2015

CALENDAR OF EVENTS Union Station: Built to L ast Exhibit. Through January 3, 2016, Durham Museum—801 S. 10th St. Take a look back at what makes Union Station unique. Every facet, from the imposing terracotta exterior to the yummiest of treats in the soda fountain, will be explored in this interactive exhibit featuring artifacts, images, and hands-on components. Children free, Adults $9. 402-444-5071 - durhammuseum.org

Rock Legends with Billy McGuigan May 15, Holland Performing Arts Center—1200 Douglas St. In this unique rock and roll revue created by Billy McGuigan, audiences are given the opportunity to vote, through the power of their applause, for the songs they want to hear. During the concert, audience members may enjoy hors d’oeuvres and cocktails served right to their candle-lit table. 8pm. $22 and up. 402-345-0606. - ticketomaha.com

CONCERTS The Music of Queen. May 2, Holland Performing Arts Center—1200 Douglas St. Hear a lushly orchestrated tribute to Queen, including timeless classics “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” “We Will Rock You,” “Another One Bites the Dust,” and “Bohemian Rhapsody.” 7:30pm. Tickets start at $22. 402-345-0606 - omahasymphony.org

Fresh Ink with John Corigliano May 16, 2015, KANEKO—1111 Jones St. Pulitzer and Oscarwinning composer John Corigliano curates a program of his own music and the premieres of works by emerging composers. Experience the music in the KANEKO’s intimate and casual setting, with refreshments at your seat. 7:30pm. $28. 402-345-0606 - omahasymphony.org

Tech N9ne Special Effects Tour. May 5, Sokol Underground—2234 S. 13th St. Featuring Tech N9ne, Chris Webbie, Murs, Krizz Kaliko, King 810, Zuse. 7pm. $30. 402-346-9802 - sokolunderground.com

GARTH BROOKS

Garth Brooks, with Trisha Yearwood. May 7-10 CenturyLink Center Omaha – 455 N. 10th St. With 69.6 million albums sold, Garth Brooks is the biggest-selling artist since the advent of SoundScan, Nielsen’s music tracking system that launched in 1991. Brooks has won two Grammy Awards and 22 Academy of Country Music Awards. Nineteen of his songs have hit No. 1 on Billboard’s country music chart. 7:00pm. $74.98. 402-341-1500 - centurylinkcenteromaha.com Masterworks Concert: Handel’s MESSIAH. May 8, Grace University Masterworks Chorus—840 Pine St. A performance by Grace University Masterworks Chorus and Orchestra. 7:30pm. $5. 402449-2800 - graceu.edu

TERENCE BLANCHARD

Terence Blanchard: Jazz Trumpet Concert. May 7, Holland Performing Arts Center— 1200 Douglas St. You don’t want to miss Grammy-winning jazz trumpeter Terence Blanchard, along with his accomplished quintet, perform their modern twist on post-bop jazz. Blanchard has made a name for himself as a renowned trumpeter, composer, arranger, and bandleader, winning five Grammys along the way. 7:30pm. 402-345-0606 - ticketomaha.com

The English Beat. May 9, Slowdown—729 N. 14t St. Celebrate the first anniversary of NorthStar changing the lives of boys in North Omaha with a special performance by the legendary ska-reggae-punk rockers, The English Beat. VIP Patron Party ticket $100. General admission $40. - theslowdown.com Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. May 10, Joslyn Art Museum – 2200 Dodge St. The orchestra’s concertmaster leads Vivaldi’s beloved evocation of nature and country life, plus Berio’s restoration of Schubert’s sketches for his 10th Symphony. 2pm. $36. 402-345-0606. - omahasymphony.org

Don Williams May 20, Holland Performing Arts Center—1200 Douglas St. Real emotions. Real songs. Real moments in people’s lives. Williams’ songs of straightforward simplicity and heartfelt messages dominated the country charts for decades, including “Good Ole Boys Like Me,” “Till the Rivers All Run Dry,” “It Must Be Love,” “I’m Just a Country Boy,” “Amanda,” and “I Believe in You.” You won’t want to miss this American classic. 7:30pm. Tickets start at $39. 402-345-0606. omahaperformingarts.com CASABLANCA May 23, Holland Performing Arts Center—1200 Douglas St. Here’s looking at you. Experience Bogie and Bergman as never before when the Omaha Symphony performs Max Steiner’s score live while the 1943 Best Picture Oscar winner is screened in its entirety. 7:30pm. Tickets start at $22. 402-345-0606. - omahasymphony.org Sounds of Summer Concert Series May 29-August 21 (every Friday), Shadow Towne Lake Center—7775 Olson Dr, Papillion, NE. Live bands include a mix of jazz, blues, classic rock, country, and funk. Various merchant prizes, free face painting, balloon art and other giveaways for kids will be available. Outdoor seating is available. 6:30-8:30pm. Free. 402-537-0046 - shadowlakeshopping.com

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

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omaha magazine • may/june 2015

Omaha Magazine’s 2015

Cardiovascular

Bridget Boeckman

RN, BSN, Staff Nurse, Cardiac Progressive Care Unit and Nebraska Biocontainment Unit Nebraska Medicine How do you handle stress and the emotional toll nursing can have on your life?

Cheryl Bohacek

Oncology

Cheryl Bohacek RN, MSN, OCN, Oncology Nurse Methodist Hospital

Cheryl Bohacek remembers early on in her nursing career caring for a young woman with cancer who was dying. A group of the patient’s closest friends came to her room, opened a bottle of wine, reminisced, laughed, and cried with her. Then her husband came, laid down beside her and spent his final moments with his wife. It became a life-altering experience for Bohacek. “I realized that I was not just passing medications, but I was a part of people’s lives,” she says. “I was caring for them during their most vulnerable moments, and I got to help them and their families get through it.” Something touched Bohacek’s spirit that day, and she has never wanted to care for another type of patient population since. “You become deeply vested in their outcomes, whether it’s by helping them through recovery, helping them deal with something they’ll have to live with for the rest of their lives, or helping them cope with end of life,” says Bohacek, who finds her profession very rewarding. She balances the good days with the bad by always trying to start each day with a positive attitude. “Even if you don’t feel good inside, if you keep smiling and have a positive outlook it presents a different feeling on the outside…and pretty soon, it becomes reality,” she says. And it appears to be working. “Cheryl is our constant rock,” says one of her colleagues. “While many of my colleagues have burned out in oncology, Cheryl is always shining. She is the heart and soul of our oncology unit. She always greets people with a warm smile, and her presence is a calming reassurance to both patients and staff.” OMAG 38

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

“I have some wonderful coworkers who are always supportive, comforting, and kind. Because we have had the opportunity to get to know each other well, we know just what each of us needs to get us through the tough days—be it a hug, some dark humor, tough love, or a break from our phone to eat lunch without interruption. We also hold each other accountable for caring for ourselves and celebrate each others’ lives outside of work. We have a Facebook group of nurses and care techs from our floor, which is a great forum for inviting each other to dinner after work, running in the park, or a day at the zoo. It is a great way to share parts of our lives outside of work through pictures and news posts. These are just a few ways I handle the stress of my job.” Tell me about the importance of working as a team?

“I am glad to work on two units where teamwork is essential to our collective success and also ingrained in our culture. Often, it would be difficult to provide excellent care to our patients without the help of other staff members on our floor who assist with tasks large and small.” OMAG

Excellence in Nursing Winner Profiles

Management/Nurse Executive

Tracy Doebelin

RN, BSN, Director of Women’s and Children’s Services CHI Health Bergan Mercy How do you handle stress and the emotional toll nursing can have on your life?

Ira Combs

Community Care/Ambulatory Care

Ira Combs RN, MSN

UNMC College of Public Health Center for Reducing Health Disparities

Giving back to the community. It’s something Ira Combs does well. He’s the community liaison/nurse coordinator for the University of Nebraska Medical Center’s College (UNMC) of Public Health Center for Reducing Health Disparities. Combs’ job is to connect with the community by performing health fairs, screenings, and providing public education. Combs is founder of a free clinic called North Omaha Area Health (NOAH), an independent, non-profit organization which provides free blood pressure tests, sugar and cholesterol screenings, and screenings for STDs. He also volunteers with the staff at the Charles Drew Health Center, the Lighthouse Wellness and Community Center, and Open Door Mission. He regularly speaks to students about reducing health disparities and exploring health-related careers. Combs can be seen at schools, grocery stores, churches, libraries—wherever people convene—to deliver his message of living healthy in mind, body, and spirit. “Building relationships is just as important as giving medical advice,” says Combs. “Before you can help people, you have to get out there and meet them and develop a trust.” Combs says he tried to empower people with knowledge so that they can take control of their health. “It’s not brain surgery or rocket science. You can talk about small things that can have a big impact on a person’s health.” Combs recently traveled to the White House, where he was one of eight selected for President Barack Obama’s Champion of Change award in prevention and public health. “I like what I do because I feel it’s making a difference,” says Combs. “It’s all about giving back to the community.” OMAG

“I have some wonderful coworkers who are always supportive, comforting, and kind. Because we have had the opportunity to get to know each other well, we know just what each of us needs to get us through the tough days—be it a hug, some dark humor, tough love, or a break from our phone to eat lunch without interruption. We also hold each other accountable for caring for ourselves and celebrate each other’s lives outside of work. We have a Facebook group of nurses and care techs from our floor, which is a great forum for inviting each other to dinner after work, running in the park, or a day at the zoo. It is a great way to share parts of our lives outside of work through pictures and news posts. These are just a few ways I handle the stress of my job.” Tell me about the importance of working as a team?

Omaha Magazine’s 2015 Excellence in Nursing Winner Profiles

Mary Jane Egan RN, BSN, Flight Nurse, Charge Nurse, Emergency Department LifeNet, Nebraska Medicine What attracted you to trauma nursing?

“I never imagined being a trauma nurse until I spent six hours in Creighton’s emergency department while in nursing school. A critically ill trauma patient arrived with a head injury. I was eager to help and was able to witness life-saving procedures right in front of me. I was amazed at the vast knowledge base the nurses and physicians had to care for in a wide range of ages and acuity. I was drawn to the fast-paced, adrenaline-filled atmosphere where you can perform a procedure to literally save someone’s life.” Lindsey Gross-Rhode

What is the most rewarding part of your job?

School

Lindsey Gross-Rhode

RN, BSN, Healthcare Coordinator, Head Start Plattsmouth School District Early Childhood Center

Lindsey Gross-Rhode wears many hats at the Plattsmouth Early Childhood Center, where she is the health and nutrition manager. She also serves as the school nurse and participates on the Head Start Policy Council and the Cass County Health Advisory Board. Gross-Rhode goes over and above the call of duty, say her colleagues. She makes home visits to ensure children have healthy living conditions. She provides food, clothing, and personal care supplies to low-income families. She coordinates with other agencies to intervene when a child’s living conditions are dangerous. And she finds healthcare for those that can’t afford it. In the classroom, she teaches these young, impressionable children healthy eating habits, the importance of exercise, good hygiene, and preventive health habits. She also promotes healthy living in her workplace by coaching her co-workers on diet and exercise. “Every day I am trying to break that cycle of poverty and help these children get the best start possible,” says Gross-Rhode, who recently obtained a masters in health promotion to support her new multi-dimensional roles. Over the past two years, she has worked to better the Cass County Head Start health and nutrition program to ensure continued funding from state and federal resources. “Working in this setting is a very different type of nursing than the hospital,” she says. “I realize how important it is for students to be healthy in order to learn and grow. What I am doing now will have an impact on them for the rest of their lives.” OMAG 40

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

“The most rewarding part of emergency nursing is witnessing life after a traumatic event. Seeing a patient making steps towards recovery and being successful is extremely rewarding. My patients are experiencing possibly the worst day of their life and they look to my partner and I for hope. The ultimate reward is providing a second chance to others and watching them overcome the challenges they are facing.” What is the greatest challenge you face in your job?

“The greatest challenge I face is witnessing the end of someone’s life. In emergency nursing, I see violence, fear, but also acts of love. It is humbling, emotionally tolling. Nurses are instantly a support for the family and friends of those who may be having the worst days of their lives. I have learned that simple acts of kindness can mean the world to others. I leave work finding myself thinking of those I have cared for, but also realize how thankful I am to have life.” OMAG

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Omaha Magazine’s 2015

Hospice/Home Health

Jennifer Kaluza MSN, APRN, ANP-BC, Vascular Services Nebraska medicine What advice would you offer to patients?

Anisa Hoie

Pediatrics: Non-Neonatal

Anisa Hoie RN, Oncology Nurse

Children’s Hospital & Medical Center

“Sometimes there are things worse in life than death.” Those powerful words were spoken to Anisa Hoie by a physician colleague early in her nursing career. They were words that helped inspire her and cultivate a love for working with children and cancer. “When I was in nursing school, one of the areas that I knew I didn’t want to work in was cancer,” she recalls. “I’m a cup half full sort of person and I thought this area would just be too depressing.” But as Hoie became more exposed to this group of patients with her work on the medical/ surgery floor, she soon learned that this was where her heart was. “These kids were living life and loving it,” she says. “They didn’t know they were supposed to be sick. These kids were going to be sick whether I was there to help them or not, so I decided that if I could be a part of their journey and make it a little bit better, then that would make it all worthwhile.” Additionally, approximately 80 percent of these children will be long-term survivors whom Hoie says she gets to watch grow up and share in their life accomplishments. Today, more than 30 years later, Hoie has become known by her patients, their families, and her colleagues on the cancer floor at Children’s Hospital as one that puts her heart and soul into every patient she encounters. “I believe there’s a mission involved with nursing,” says Hoie. “You can make a difference in peoples’ lives, and sometimes that means it needs to be more than a job.” OMAG 42

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

“Ask a lot of questions and never settle for an easy answer. Always ask if there are alternatives to the treatment plan to make it more acceptable to your own goals and wishes. If a patient is active in decision-making and planning, they are more involved and more likely to follow the advice of their providers.” What is your greatest challenge?

“Trying to balance my personal and work life. I am a lifelong learner and am always drawn to learning new things and working on new projects. As healthcare gets more complex and patients get sicker, it seems that every year we are asked to do more with less resources. I love the patients and families I work with, but it is very easy to work a lot of hours and not be fully present at home. I went to grad school when my children were just babies so that I would be able to be in a position to work standard day-shift hours and be able to spend quality time with them and my husband. As part of being a professional, I’ve had to learn how to stand up for myself. I found I was in a position that was too demanding and my personal life was suffering. I had to make a change and find a position that stimulates me mentally and allows me to be a wife and mom.” OMAG

Excellence in Nursing Winner Profiles

Medical-Surgical Nursing

Erin Merrill

RN, BSN, Lead Staff Nurse Orthopedics/Medical-Surgical Unit Nebraska Medicine What advice would you offer to other nurses?

Jodeena Kempnich

Acute Care/Family Practice

Jodeena Kempnich

MSN, RN, CNML, Advanced Nurse Administrator

“I would tell nurses to remember why they became a nurse: We are there to help people in need. There will be good days and there will be bad days. There will be easy patients and there will be tough patients… but we need to remember that we came into the nursing profession to help people. The field of nursing is one of the most trusted professions, and we get a chance every day to impact people’s lives.”

CHI Health

Jodeena “Jody” Kempnich likes to think of herself as a change agent. She loves the nursing profession and is dedicated to helping the profession grow through education, research, and mentorship. As a nurse administrator and member of the Research Council at CHI Health, Kempnich has had a significant impact in promoting research and the use of evidence-based practices by helping other nurses develop and strengthen their research skills. “When I was in nursing school, practicing nursing was often trial and error,” she explains. “That is not the case anymore. Through research, we can implement better nursing practices at the bedside by using evidence-based practices.” Kempnich was recently awarded the Nursing Mentor Award by the Nebraska Organization of Nurse Leaders, an honor she is very proud to have. “I really enjoy mentoring other nurses and sharing my knowledge,” she says. “The nursing profession has a strong need to get younger nurses involved in leadership positions, and this is just another way I can have an impact on the profession.” Kempnich helps facilitate change on a national level as an active member of the American Nurses Association (ANA), the American Association of Nurse Executives (AONE), and the HealthLeaders Media Council. She stays active locally with the Nebraska Organization of Nurse Leaders (NONL), Nebraska Nurses Association (NNA), and Nebraska Action Coalition–Future of Nursing (NAC). “In nursing, we have to hold that bar high,” she says. “If I can play a role in that, then I’ve done my job.” OMAG

What are the rewards of being a leader?

“The most rewarding part of being a leader is seeing those around you achieve their goals. When I am working with a new graduate or a staff nurse trying to improve on skills, it is rewarding to see them achieve that goal. They get a boost in self-confidence. They improve in their nursing ability, and they gain in their ability to teach others.” What is the most rewarding part of your job?

“Watching my patients improve and get to go home after a stay in the hospital is always a great way to end the day. However, there are times when difficult decisions have to be made and the outcomes are not always happy. Those tough times are when I can be there to support a patient and family. I can offer support, both medically and emotionally. That is also very rewarding.” OMAG omaha magazine • may/june 2015

Omaha Magazine’s 2015 Excellence in Nursing Winner Profiles

Teresa Kenney

Women’s Health

Teresa Kenney

WHNP, APRN, Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner Pope Paul VI Institute, Sancta Familia

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

A tender hand for women and new life are areas of care that have become Teresa Kenney’s passion. Her desire to help other women as well as her strong Catholic faith led her to Pope Paul VI Institute for the Study of Human Reproduction. The institute is internationally recognized for its achievements in the field of natural fertility regulation and reproductive medicine. It treats women from all over the country and the world, says Kenney, who specializes in a new women’s health science called NaProTechnology. The focus here is on using natural fertility cycles to help women deal with such common women’s health issues as premenstrual syndrome, ovarian cysts, irregular cycles, painful periods, polycystic ovaries, premenopausal symptoms, infertility, and repeat miscarriage. “I am extremely passionate about what I do because everything I offer my patients is healthy and works cooperatively with their bodies,” says Kenney. “So many women come to us with health issues they don’t understand. They have already been to many doctors for help, but have only been given a band-aid approach to medicine. We empower these women by helping them understand their bodies and, by using NaProTechnology, we are able to treat their underlying diseases without the use of harmful drugs.” Kenney goes above and beyond the boundaries of her job to help patients, whether it’s staying after hours to make phone calls, comforting a grieving patient suffering with infertility or loss, taking the time to talk to patients that no one else can reach, or just taking a moment to pray with them. She also takes time to educate young women in the community, works at Sancta Familia family practice clinic one day a week, and also provides prenatal care for a local maternity home for homeless women. “I feel that this is what I was called to do,” says Kenney. “To serve women and their families, and to treat them with compassion and dignity.” OMAG

ASK ANY NURSE I t h a s b e e n s a i d t h a t a go o d n u r s e can work any�here, but it takes a t��ly ex��aordinar � nurse to work here.

» A nurse who is dedicated to the highest standards of patient care, and patient caring. » A nurse who enjoys the challenge of caring for some of the most seriously ill or injured patients. » A nurse who is an important, respected and empowered member of a highly specialized care team. » A nurse who is empathetic and develops strong, trusting relationships with patients and their families. » A nurse who uses critical thinking skills every day.

JACKIE KELLAR, RN

» A nurse who wants to lead.

We have a phenomenal team of nurses at Nebraska Medicine. And we are so very proud of the work they do, each and every day.

NebraskaMed.com

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

Omaha Magazine’s 2015

Pediatrics-Neonatal

Nancy Murray,

RN, BSN, MS, Staff Nurse, and Director of Research and Special Projects, Neonatal Care, PC Methodist Women’s Hospital Describe an incident that has had the most impact on you in your profession?

Ellen Long

RN, BSN, ED Staff Nurse Omaha VA Medical Center

“The first time I walked into the VA hospital, I felt a different presence there,” says Ellen Long. Maybe she felt the presence of her father and grandfather, who both were military veterans. Or that of her husband or three brothers who had also served in the military. Or maybe it was her mother who was a nurse at the VA for many years. Whatever the case, Long says that her love for taking care of patients has grown to a deeper level since working here. “The patients here are so thankful,” says Long. “I’ve never felt more appreciated.” And she’s never felt so moved. “The strength and courage they display, even when they come to the emergency room, is amazing.” Long recently did a presentation with a colleague at a nursing conference for emergency nurses on post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury and how it affects veterans. After the recent changes in our healthcare laws that allow veterans to seek care at any hospital, Long saw a need to provide education and awareness to all nurses in hopes that it will improve care to our veterans, no matter what hospital they visit. “Individuals with these diagnoses need a unique type of care, and I want to all nurses to be aware of their special needs,” she says. It’s just one of the many areas in which Long has taken a leadership role. She helped lead ebola preparedness efforts in her department as well as training for many types of medical and natural disasters, not to mention a number of continuing education programs. “I’m always looking for opportunities to make sure our staff is prepared and current,” says Long. “By being enthusiastic, it hopefully helps promote and encourage others to follow.” OMAG 46

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

“As a new graduate I took care of infants who had chronic illnesses and who required long-term hospitalization. I quickly realized that the infants with good growth had a better chance of survival. Together with Dr. Jon Vanderhoof, a pediatric gastroenterologist, and other interested professionals, a pediatric nutrition support team was developed. I was the first nurse on the team. By 1981, babies with long-term nutritional needs were being cared for by their parents at home, and were thriving. The program was one of the best in the country. Those first infants changed the course of my career, as I have always viewed myself as a pediatric nutrition nurse. Although my current job is more encompassing, feeding remains a large component of the care I provide in the NICU.” What advice would you offer to patients?

“If they would listen, I would tell the babies to sleep during the night! Instead, I would like their parents to know their most important role is to love and cherish their miracle babies. They must do what is right for their family, whether it is breastfeeding, formula feeding, staying at home, or using daycare. Do what is right for you and your child, and don’t try to live up to anyone else’s expectations.” OMAG

Excellence in Nursing Winner Profiles

Neurology/Psychology/ Behavioral Health

Crystal Pearon RN, MSN, CNRN, Nebraska Epilepsy Center Nebraska Medicine What attracted you to this area of nursing?

“My mom was a nurse for over 40 years and I saw how much she loved her work. I also have two younger brothers and found that helping to take care of them gave me a lot of fulfillment and made me feel important. I love being a nurse for my own selfish reasons—I have a need to give to others and to feel needed!” What advice would you offer to other nurses?

Lesha Murphy

“Take care of yourself first. You will be more effective at your job if you feel good.”

Rehabilitation

What advice would you offer to patients?

Lesha Murphy

“Don’t be afraid to get a second opinion or find a provider that is a good fit for you. It could be life-changing.”

BSN, Rehabilitation Nurse Methodist Hospital

Treat others with respect. It was a simple life lesson taught by her parents when she was growing up that helped lay the foundation for Lesha Murphy’s nursing career. Murphy works in Inpatient Rehabilitation at Nebraska Methodist Hospital. This area of patient care involves working with a wide variety of patients who have suffered various problems, such as stroke, heart attack, amputations, or brain and spinal injuries. Her role is to help patients attain their maximum function and capability to participate in life. It’s a job that takes patience, respect, compassion, and empathy, says Murphy. “It’s definitely challenging at times, but that makes me a better nurse,” she says. “Just seeing that I can make a slight difference in anyone’s day is rewarding. And while I hope that I can have an impact on their lives, they touch my life in many, many more ways.” Says one of her colleagues, “Lesha embodies the Methodist mission of being the ‘meaning of care.’ She is truly genuine and heartfelt with each patient she encounters and always has a smile on her face.” Murphy says taking care of patients is “an honor and a privilege. Nursing is my passion and I can’t imagine doing anything else.” OMAG

What advice would you offer to students?

“Participate in something fun that you love while you are in school. There is a reason for old sayings that still ring true today, such as, ‘All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.’” How does your profession help complete the circle?

“Nursing is everywhere. Taking care of others is nursing. At some point in our life we require nursing from someone, so I think that it is something that we can all relate to.” OMAG omaha magazine • may/june 2015

Omaha Magazine’s 2015 Excellence in Nursing Winner Profiles

Orthopedics

Angela Pfeiffer

MSN, APRN-CNS, ACNS, BC, Clinical Nurse Specialist, MedicalSurgical/Orthopedics CHI Health Lakeside Describe an incident that has had the most impact on you in your profession.

Kimberly Sieck

Intensive Care

Kimberly Sieck

MSN, RN, CCRN-E, Director of eFocus/eICU CHI Health

Overseeing a critical care team that supports up to 111 critical care patients spread among 13 hospitals at any one time is no easy task. It’s a job Kim Sieck’s colleagues say she does with professionalism, poise, and skill. Sieck is director of the eFocus/eICU at CHI Health. ICU nurses provide bedside monitoring and assessments while the eICU team helps monitor patients 24/7 from a central monitoring unit. The eICU ensures there is a critical care physician monitoring the patients at all times which, ultimately, improves overall care. “It’s set up like an air traffic control center,” says Sieck. “We can often see changes in a patient’s status more quickly than the bedside nurse because we are focused solely on things like vitals, ventilator data, and labs.” Sieck started the eICU program at CHI in 2007, and it has been a success from the start. “We have decreased ‘never events’ like blood clots and infections, and last year we decreased length-of-stay through better ventilator management and saved the hospitals more than $3 million,” says Sieck. “The eICU allows us to spread our expertise over many hospitals, and rural hospitals as well, who otherwise would not have access to the same resources,” says Sieck. She enjoys the challenge of staying current with new nursing practices and the satisfaction of seeing the impact good nursing practice can have on patient care. “In healthcare, we often see miracles every day,” says Sieck. “In the ICU, it’s even more rewarding because we see them faster and on the sickest of the sick.” OMAG 48

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

“The incident that was a life-changing event for me was actually saving my mom’s life. She suffered a brain aneurysm while my husband and I were visiting at my parent’s home one weekend. She collapsed right in front of me. I had to pull from all my knowledge as a nurse while at the same time being in a family crisis. My mother is alive today, beat the odds of 50 percent survival, and leads a normal life, for which I will be forever grateful. I experienced first-hand how it felt to be a family member of someone who was critically ill. The nurses were so comforting and brilliant, and cared about my mother and our family very much. I later developed a talk titled ‘Families in Crisis: The Waiting Room Warriors,’ and shared my experiences with other nurses so they would understand what families often go through when they have a loved one who is ill, and what they as nurses can do to provide comfort and support to families.” What are you most passionate about in your profession?

“I am most passionate about being able to bring evidenced-based care to the bedside. This is really about bringing the best proven care to our patients who need it. I always get excited when there is something out there that can make a big difference in patient’s lives.” OMAG

Congratulations CHI Health would like to congratulate these finalists for Excellence in Nursing: Jodeena M. Kempnich, CHI Health Tracy Doebelin, CHI Health Bergan Mercy Linda Norton, CHI Health Lakeside Carolyn Carr, CHI Health Lakeside Sarah Martensen, CHI Health Midlands Bridgette Laney, CHI Health Midlands Kimberly Sieck, CHI Health Ann Smith, CHI Health Bergan Mercy Keri Kennon, CHI Health Lakeside Angie Pfeiffer, CHI Health Lakeside

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omaha magazine • may/june 2015

Omaha Magazine’s 2015 Excellence in Nursing Winner Profiles

Educator

Elizabeth Lynn Beam BSN, MSN, PhD, Director of Education, Nebraska Biocontainment Unit UNMC What drew you to this area of nursing?

Dawn Truckenbrod

Senior Services

Dawn Truckenbrod RN, BSN, Director of Nursing Brookestone Meadows

The first time Dawn Truckenbrod stepped foot into a nursing rehabilitation center for seniors nearly 30 years ago, she knew this was her vocation. “Something clicked and I realized that I really enjoyed being around the elderly population,” says Truckenbroad. “I have a deep respect for their experience and knowledge. They come from all avenues of life and have been through so much more than any of us. Eventually, it will come full circle. Some day I will be in their shoes. So right now, I figure it’s my turn to help them.” Truckenbroad also enjoys working with the patients’ families and helping them get through a difficult time. “It makes you feel so good when you go home and you know that you’ve done something beneficial for someone else,” she says. “It puts a smile on my face.” Truckenbrod is Director of Nursing at Brookestone Meadows, a facility that provides short-term rehabilitation and skilled nursing services to seniors. Her colleagues respect her patience, dedication, and leadership skills. Says one of her colleagues, “Dawn is a very dedicated, responsible, high achieving nurse whose heart is always with those she serves, whether they are patients and residents or the team members she is responsible for growing and developing.” “As a seasoned nurse, there is so much we can teach other nurses and so much they can teach us,” says Truckenbrod. “We can learn and grow from each other.” Her colleagues say that it is the selfless attitude and mutual respect for those she serves that is indelibly inscribed in the outcomes and the culture at Brookestone Meadows. OMAG 50

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

“I was drawn to infection control research by peers who trusted me and supported me. The cool thing about the biocontainment team in 2014 is that we all had different strengths and were willing to work collectively to solve problems as they arose. I remember driving to work the morning the first patient arrived, my mind racing thinking about keeping my peers safe and sound while asking them to do something only a few people had ever done in the United States. They are truly ordinary people who stood up to help a fellow healthcare worker when it was terribly frightening to do so. I hope in some small way I soothed their fears and gave them peace of mind.” What is your biggest pet peeve in nursing?

“Nursing has become too automated and we need a return to our basic skills using new technologies available with critical thinking at the bedside. Healthcare provider education needs to interlace the wisdom of early nursing practice with evidence-based research in the many allied health professions. Our family had a miraculous birth of a little boy during this exciting time in history. That little boy feeds my passion, as well as the love of my husband, Shad Beam, and other supportive family and friends.” OMAG

Omaha Magazine’s 2015 Excellence in Nursing Finalists Acute Care/ Family Practice Jodeena Kempnich CHI Health Kim Hayes Nebraska Medicine Bianca Meehan Omaha VA Medical Center Cardiovascular Bridget Boeckman Nebraska Medicine Kim Robison Methodist Hospital Jenny Strawn Children’s Hospital & Medical Center Community Care/ Ambulatory Care Ira Combs UNMC Carolyn Carr CHI Health Lakeside Sarah Martensen CHI Health Midlands Educator Elizabeth Lynn Beam UNMC Joyce Black UNMC College of Nursing Kathleen Zaijic College of St. Mary ER Mary Jane Egan LifeNet and Nebraska Medicine Ellen Long Omaha VA Medical Center Hospice/Home Health Jennifer Kaluza Nebraska Medicine Jena Ann Fosdick Saint Jude Hospice Diane McGee Nebraska Medicine

Intensive Care Kimberly Sieck CHI Health Kelly Renee Goetschkes UNMC Keri Kennon CHI Health Lakeside

Pediatrics-Neonatal Nancy Murray Methodist Women’s Hospital Jamie Jensen Methodist Women’s Hospital Catherine Stanton Nebraska Medicine

Management/ Nurse Executive Tracy Doebelin CHI Health Bergan Mercy Dr. Katherine Girard National American University Linda Norton CHI Health Lakeside

Pediatrics: Non-Neonatal Anisa Hoie Children’s Hospital & Medical Center Kristie Schwab Children’s Hospital & Medical Center Susan Steinke Children’s Respite Care Center

Medical-Surgical Nursing Erin Merrill Nebraska Medicine Alexei Boettcher Methodist Hospital Blake Kevin Smith Methodist Hospital Neurology/Psychology/ Behavioral Health Crystal Pearon Nebraska Medicine Monica Bentzinger Nebraska Medicine Amy Jo Patten Nebraska Medicine Oncology Cheryl Bohacek Methodist Hospital Whitney Knuth Nebraska Medicine Orthopedics Angela Pfeiffer CHI Health Lakeside Chris McLouth Nebraska Orthopaedic Hospital

Rehabilitation Lesha Murphy Methodist Hospital Katie Pearson Methodist Hospital

Excellence in Nursing National Judging Panel Hazel Chappell, MSN, RN Director, Nursing Continuing Education University of Kentucky Thad Wilson, PhD, RN, FAAN Executive Associate Dean, College of Nursing The University of Iowa Rebecca Payne McClanahan, MSN, RN President Missouri Nurses Assocation Robert Rosseter Chief Communications Officer American Association of Colleges of Nursing

School Lindsey Gross-Rhode Plattsmouth School District Bridgette Laney CHI Health Midlands Jillian Sisson Nebraska Methodist College Senior Services Dawn Truckenbrod Brookestone Meadows Shannon Dobey Omaha VA Medical Center Kathleen Wooley Life Care Center of Elkhorn Women’s Health Teresa Kenney Pope Paul VI Institute Sharon McArdle Methodist Women’s Hospital Ann Smith CHI Health Bergan Mercy

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

An accurate diagnosis can be pivotal in saving a life. Methodist’s cardiac and vascular team is among the top two percent in the nation for saving the most lives following a heart attack. It’s a higher level of expertise and a sign that you’re in the best place for your care. bestcare.org/cardiac

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omaha magazine • may/june 2015

Siou Lab

GIVING • FEATURE

by andy williams • photography by bill sitzmann

Standing: Noah Diaz (actor/volunteer), Tim Schmad (OCP president), Nora Hantula (apprentice), Jeff Horger (OCP associate artistic director), Dave Wingert (actor/volunteer) Sitting: Stephanie Gould (Act II volunteer), Trish Liakos (Act II volunteer), Pat Maly (volunteer), Hilary Adams (OCP artistic director)

Lights Up!

The Omaha Community Playhouse celebrates 90 years of curtain calls.

onda…Brando…McGuire. The roster of famous actors who

have graced the stage at the Omaha Community Playhouse during its 90-year run reads like a Hollywood Who’s Who. But for Playhouse board president Tim Schmad, it’s the unsung heroes—volunteers who have never been in the theater’s spotlight—that have built OCP into “the New York Yankees of community theater.” “The word ‘community’ is in our name for a reason,” Schmad says. “This is about the ushers, the set builders, makeup artists, actors, corporate sponsors, our great audiences, the 98% of the people who make live theater happen here are volunteers. > omaha magazine • may/june 2015

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< “Above everything else, we are a community theater.” There’s Florence Young, who performed in the Playhouse’s first production in 1924, and was still selling memberships well into her ‘90s. Elaine Jabenis was active at the theater for over 50 years and was 80 when she retired. Ed Owen started the Playhouse’s foundation, and his wife Dee still answers the phone and serves on the board after 40 years. A 20-year stage manager still makes things click backstage. Some ushers have put in more than 25 years leading patrons to their seats. One scenic designer who has been in the mix for 40 years once got snowed in at the Playhouse, and survived three days on prop food. In all, it takes about 1,000 volunteers a year to make the Playhouse sing. Omaha-area audiences have made OCP America’s largest community theatre in attendance, staff size, and budget. “It’s obvious,” says OCP Board Trustee Lloyd Meyer, “this theater means so much to so many people.” Omaha will get a chance to relive history and show its appreciation this summer when the Omaha Community Playhouse celebrates its 90th birthday. The Playhouse’s Act II guild is planning a free county-fair-vibe event on June 27 with Broadway Bingo, jugglers, magicians, and live music by OCP staple Billy McGuigan (perhaps best known for his annual Yesterday and Today Beatles show). Nearby in Dundee, ice cream shop eCreamery is even creating a featured 90th birthday flavor that will be determined by a community-based contest—with Sea Salt Curtain Call, Henry’s Fondant Birthday Cake, and Drama Queen as the possible winners. “We think multiple generations will come out to celebrate what they love most about the Playhouse,” says Act II board member Trish Liakos. Since the day Dodie Brando (yes, the mother of that other Brando) enlisted a family named Fonda to join her in OCP’s first season, Omahans have gravitated to New York-caliber live theater with Midwestern roots. Henry Fonda loved the Playhouse so much that he brought his young daughter, Jane, to Omaha for a performance. All the Fondas have been here to help raise funds for the Playhouse, and Henry is prominently featured in Warren Franke’s recently-published history of the institution, The Omaha Community

Cordial Cherry

omaha community playhouse

Playhouse Story: A Theatre’s Historic Triumph. “We sent a draft copy to Henry Fonda’s widow [Shirlee],” Schmad says. “She loved it.” Omaha’s love affair with the Playhouse can be traced to winning and sometimes daring productions over the years—including one mainstay that extols holiday crowds with the familiar “God bless us, every one!” Long-time Playhouse director Charles Jones put his spin on Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol in 1976, and a Playhouse star was born. Dick Boyd gave life to Scrooge and never missed a performance in 30 years. Among other productions, OCP’s touring company, the Nebraska Theatre Caravan, has performed A Christmas Carol in 49 states, four Canadian provinces, and 160 Nebraska communities—seen by audiences of more than three million people. Boyd retired from the stage at age 83, and received national media attention when he walked away with his well-worn top hat. “I think that’s the only prop we’ve ever given an actor to keep,” Meyers says. “He deserved it.” OCP has taken its share of risks through the years with such critically acclaimed productions as Hair, August: Osage County, and others. In 2001, The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife featured a cursing grandmother that cost the Playhouse 1,000 members. For Evil Dead, organizers designed a “Splatter Zone” where theatergoers were splattered with fake blood. Those choice tickets were the first to sell out. One production prompted a ban by a local priest for all Catholics. “We’re pretty sure some still snuck in,” Schmad says. Through it all, Omahans have embraced OCP’s give-back nature toward its hometown. The Playhouse sponsors programs that reach out to middle school students, and ties play themes to workshops on real-life social issues. In partnership with Metro Community College, the Theatre Technology Apprenticeship Program helps participants pursue technical careers in the entertainment industry. Alternative Programming brings local playwright works to the stage. Special events and Broadway karaoke nights bring even more locals to the country’s leading community theater. “We have a great thing going, and we have for 90 years,” Schmad says. “We just want more people to experience it.” OMAG

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omaha magazine • may/june 2015

GIVING • FACES

by andy williams photography by bill sitzmann

Baking Up Smiles

Carolyn Hess and the Cookie Ladies

a r o ly n Hess can’t

escape her labor of love as a volunteer baker. Even when she’s away from a group of Omaha women who bake up to 800 cookies a week for the Hospice House of Omaha, the oven is always warm. “I went to visit my grandkids in Florida,” Hess says, “and the first thing they wanted me to do when I got there was bake cookies.” That’s what happens when you spend one morning a week brightening the days and enlivening the smells at Hospice House for residents, family members, nurses, staff, ambulance drivers— even the mailman. “Ever ybody knows Thursday is Cookie Day,” Hess says. “After a snow storm hit [last winter] we couldn’t get there to bake cookies that week, and 56

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

giving • faces carolyn hess

Mission: To enhance the quality of life of the blind and visually impaired. everybody said, ‘We sure missed you last week. We didn’t have our cookies!’ Everybody loves Cookie Day.” When Hess retired from her accounting career seven years ago, she joined the Cookie Lady of Hospice House—Jan Ryan—who has been making cookies there for 15 years. Ryan prepares the dough every week, and Hess and others join her at 8 a.m. sharp at Hospice House to bake enough cookies to get the Omaha non-profit through the week. Because of her giving spirit and faithful service to Hospice House, Hess was recently recognized by Cenex’s Tanks of Thanks program in the form of Cenex gift cards valued at over $2,000. “The Tanks of Thanks program does more than give away free fuel,” says Cenex brand manager Akhtar Hussain. “It empowers people—people like Carolyn Hess and the countless others who do good things for those around them.” Staff members at the Hospice House know the contributions of Hess, Ryan and the five other cookie ladies go beyond a tasty treat on a Thursday morning. “Those ladies provide a bright spot in our week, that’s for sure,” says Hospice House Director Gary George. “The smell of freshbaked cookies is very comforting to our residents and their families, but it’s about far more than cookies. “They bring joy along with everything they do for us.” Hess has extended her volunteer spirit beyond baking, and she also uses her accounting background to prepware tax returns for free at the Bellevue Senior Center. “I actually enjoy doing taxes and this really helps people who can’t afford to have them done or figure it out on their own,” Hess says. “When I stopped working, I wondered what I was going to do with all my free time. I thought if I’m going to do something for free, it might as well be something I enjoy, like baking cookies and doing taxes.” The ledger sheet on this good deed shows a plus sign in both columns, for Hess and the Hospice House. “The reason I like going to Hospice House is people are so grateful,” Hess says. “People wonder how we can bake all those cookies. But it’s a great joy for us because everyone appreciates it so much.” In the end, she says, the recipe for smiles is a simple one. “We’re just trying to help make people happy.” OMAG

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GIVING • EVENTS

Giving Events May/June 2015

MAY EVENTS

JUNE EVENTS

April 30

May 14

June 1

2015 Women’s Power Lunch

Saving Places, A Preservation Celebration

Central High School Golf Outing

Habitat for Humanity of Omaha Hilton Omaha habitatomaha.org

Restoration Exchange Omaha Scottish Rite Temple restorationexchange.org

Central High School Foundation Field Club of Omaha chsfomaha.org

May 1-2

May 19

June 3

Bowl for Kids’ Sake

Cabaret 2014

Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Midlands Maplewood Lanes bbbsomaha.org

Child Saving Institute Embassy Suites Conference Center childsaving.org

Omaha Home “Fore” Boys 2015 Golf Classic

May 4

May 12

June 4

YES Golf Outing

Kids Can Luncheon

Youth Emergency Services, Inc. Shadow Ridge Country Club yesomaha.org

Kids Can Community Center CenturyLink Center Omaha kidscanomaha.org

Alegent Creighton Health Foundation Gala

May 5

May 16

D.J.’s Heroes Awards Luncheon

Wear Yellow Ride & Walk

The Salvation Army CenturyLink Center Omaha givesalvationarmy.org

Wear Yellow Nebraska Strategic Air & Space Museum wearyellownebraska.org

May 7

May 24

High Heel Dash

NKA Night at the Storm Chasers

Junior League of Omaha Midtown Crossing jlomaha.org May 8

Nebraska Kidney Association Werner Park kidneyne.org

Brownell-Talbot Gala

May 28

Brownell-Talbot School Brownell-Talbot School brownell.edu

Angels Among Us 2015 Golf Outing

May 8 Safe Haven Golf Event

Heartland Family Service Tregaron Golf Course heartlandfamilyservice.org

Angels Among Us Tiburon Golf Club myangelsamongus.org May 29 Partnership 4 Kids Volunteer Appreciation Lunch

Partnership 4 Kids Taste of Omaha p4k.org 58

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

Omaha Home for Boys Indian Creek Golf Course omahahomeforboys.org

Alegent Creighton Health Foundation Embassy Suites Convention Center alegentcreighton.com June 4-5 Pinot, Pigs & Poets

Completely KIDS Happy Hollow Club pinotandpigs.org June 5-6 Cattlemen’s Ball of Nebraska

June 6-8 Sand in the City

Nebraska Children’s Home Society CenturyLink Center Omaha sandinthecityomaha.com June 9 Project Harmony Golf Invitational

Project Harmony Indian Creek Golf Course projectharmony.com June 12 Strike a Chord

Heartland Family Service Mid-America Center heartlandfamilyservice.org June 14 Munroe-Meyer Guild Garden Walk

Munroe-Meyer Guild Five Various Gardens unmc.edu June 15 Alegent Creighton Health Foundation Golf Outing

Cattlemen’s Ball Redbird Ranch, Lynch Neb. cattlemensball.com

Alegent Creighton Health Foundation The Players Club alegentcreighton.com

June 6

June 28

On the Road

2015 Walk/Run

Boys & Girls Clubs of the Midlands Champions Run bgcomaha.org

Siena/Francis House Homeless Shelter Lake Zorinsky sienafrancis.org

by • photography by bill sitzmann

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HISTORY

by judy horan • photography by bill sitzmann

Cinema Under the Stars

Drive-in theaters were fun, cheap, and full of adventure.

ou knew them as

“drive-in” theaters, but in 1933 outdoor theaters were created as “park-in” theaters by Richard Hollingshead in Camden, N.J. He wanted to make movie-going easier for his mother. More than 40 drive-in theaters operated in Nebraska at their peak popularity in the 1950s and 1960s, according to DriveinMovie.com. But in the 1970s, drive-in theaters faced increased competition from television and slowly died. Omaha’s first drive-in theater, the 76 West Dodge Drive-in, opened in 1948 and held on until 1984. Susan Eustice, the director of public relations and communications for The Salvation Army, lived nearby as a girl. Her neighborhood near Methodist Hospital was populated with many physicians, and one of her good friends was the daughter of a pediatrician. Eustice recalls being smuggled into the drive-in theater along with her friend in the doctor’s 1964 Thunderbird convertible. “It wasn’t like we didn’t have allowances, but it was much more fun to climb in the trunk and drive a few blocks to the drive-in,” she says. The Council Bluffs Drive-in was the last holdout in the Omaha area. Opened in 1950 three miles east of the South Omaha Bridge, it closed in 2007. The Golden Spike near 114th and Dodge streets also was very popular. The Sky View Drive-in at 72nd Street and Hartman Avenue advertised “The World’s Largest Screen.” It was a towering 80 feet in height.

Teens called the outdoor theaters “passion pits,” but Mark Tatelman of Omaha doesn’t remember such hanky-panky. He does recall wearing pajamas to the drive-in as a child while seeing such classics as The Music Man. “I didn’t make it through the whole movie,” says the former Omaha Magazine editor. He also remembers his parents struggling at a drive-in when rain poured down. They kept the windshield wipers going and worried about running out of gas.

Weather was always a concern when it came to a night at the drive-in, agrees Gary Willis. “Sometimes it got hot, really hot,” Willis says. “So we sat on lawn chairs outside the car.” In the spring and fall, car heaters at the 76h West Dodge Drive-in made a night under the stars bearable. Willis also remembers visiting the Q Twin Drive-in near 120th and Q streets and the Airport Drive-in at 11th and Locust. Drive-ins were cost-saving, notes Willis: “You could bring your own goodies with you. And my parents didn’t have to hire a babysitter.” One of seven children living in Ralston, Helen Jordon says her family also found drive-in movies to be cheap entertainment. “You could take a whole load of kids, and it didn’t cost much.” Jordon remembers sitting in her parents’ 1949 Plymouth while Charles Laughton lurched his way through The Hunchback of Notre Dame at the 84th and Center Drive-in. “All I remember is how horrible-looking he was as the hunchback,” Jordan says. “He had bells on him to warn people because he was so ugly. Whenever I’d hear the bells, I’d hide in the back seat so I didn’t see him.” One moviegoer who prefers to remain anonymous recalls the risks of sneaking into the Grandview Outdoor in Bellevue. His stunt was quickly punished, but not by theater management. For what seemed an eternity after their arrival, his friends left him locked helplessly in the trunk. OMAG omaha magazine • may/june 2015

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omaha magazine • may/june 2015

MAY/JUNE 2015

Always Local, Always Beautiful

LIFE AT THE LAKE IS BETTER BROWNVILLE

Short on Population, Long on Culture

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THE KNOTTY PALLET Industrial Meets Rustic

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May/June 2015 VOLUME 5 • ISSUE 3

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OmahaHome

TABLE OF CONTENTS

H26

H32

H20

FEATURES

DEPARTMENTS

H20 At Home With the Carles

H32 Life at the Lake is Better

H10 Statements

Everything in its Place

The Walvoord Family Motto

H40 The Knotty Pallet

Industrial meets rustic in these clever designs.

Editor Letter Celebrating Spring Lori and Lindsey Anderson of Anderson Interiors

H16 Trending

Reverse Nostalgia

May/June • 2015 | H7 | bestofomaha.com

H18 Home Smarts

Insurance: The Calm After the Storm

H26 Neighborhood Profile

The Spirit of Brownville

H44 Transformations

Elena Kerwin Our Home, Our Way

May/June 2015 VOLUME 5 • ISSUE 3

ACCOUNTS Publisher TODD LEMKE Publisher’s Assistant & OmahaHome Contributing Editor SANDY BESCH-MATSON Vice President GREG BRUNS Executive Vice President Sales & Marketing GIL COHEN Senior Sales Executive & 60Plus in Omaha Contributing Editor GWEN LEMKE Branding Specialists KYLE FISHER GEORGE IDELMAN ANGIE HALL Sales Associates JAMIE COLE JESSICA CULLINANE DAWN DENNIS ALICIA SMITH HOLLINS JUSTIN IDELMAN JESSICA LINHART

402-333-5722 • sw-fence.com

OPERATIONS Vice President of Operations TYLER LEMKE Event Director ERIN COX Accountant HOLLEY GARCIA-CRUZ Distribution Manager MIKE BREWER For advertising & subscription information: 402.884.2000 All versions of OmahaHome are published bimonthly by Omaha Magazine, LTD, P.O. Box 461208, Omaha NE 68046-1208. Telephone: (402) 884-2000; fax (402) 884-2001. Subscription rates: $12.95 for 6 issues (one year), $19.95 for 12 issues (two years). No whole or part of the contents herein may be reproduced without prior written permission of Omaha Magazine, excepting individually copyrighted articles and photographs. Unsolicited manuscripts are accepted, however no responsibility will be assumed for such solicitations. Best of Omaha®™ is a registered tradename of Omaha Magazine. OWNED AND MANAGED BY OMAHA MAGAZINE, LTD

May/June • 2015 | H8 | omahamagazine.com

OmahaHome

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR “ May flowers always line your path and sunshine light your day."

THANK YOU OMAHA for Voting Us Best Residential & Commercial Lawn Care

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AY DAY IS CELEBRATED

in many parts around the world. While the traditions and stories surrounding this rite of passage into a new season vary from culture to culture, most share a common bond—the use of flowers!

With Mother’s Day right around the corner, my own tradition has been to pot my flowers for spring. Shown below is something very easy and quick I put together just before Easter to spruce up and add some color to my front entry. Need some color inspiration? Inside this issue of Omaha Home, you will get to peek inside two great homes. Both are warm and cheerful, with special splashes of color. Thanks to the Carle and the Walvoord families for allowing us to share your beautiful spaces with our readers! And don’t forget Father’s Day! Looking for something different to do? Check out Omaha Magazine’s Fried Food Festival the day before Father’s Day down on the river at the Storz Trophy Room.

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US ON

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Happy springtime!

Sandy Sandy Besch-Matson Contributing Editor OmahaHome Sandy.Besch@omahapublications.com Over 41 years of selling Nebraska and Iowa

Duane Sullivan

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duane.sullivan@cbshome.com

May/June • 2015 | H9 | bestofomaha.com

OmahaHome • Statements

ALL IN THE FAMILY

A mother-daughter design team shares their creative process. WORDS BY JENNIFER LITTON PHOTOGRAPHY BY BILL SITZMANN

F YOU’VE HUNG out at The Lounge, a

sophisticated eatery at the Magnolia Hotel, or sampled the fare at the newly-renovated Jams, you’ve experienced the unique design stylings of Anderson Interiors, an Omaha mother-daughter design duo. Lindsey Anderson has been helping her mother, Lori Anderson, with design since she was 4 years old when she would tag along to the Designer Showhouse project. “When she went off to college and decided to go into interior design, it was not a surprise to anyone,” Lori says. “I had always worked with her, so it just fell into place,” Lindsey adds. The two are enmeshed in their working relationship and both hold degrees in interior design from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. “Being a mother-daughter team, we don’t have much of a filter on expressing our likes and dislikes,” Lori says. “Sometimes my taste will be exactly the opposite of my mother’s,” Lindsey says, but they

don’t let opposing views hinder their creativity. “We’re both always asking each other’s opinion,” Lori says. It is this effortless exchange of ideas that allows them to design spaces that they describe as “timeless, not trendy.” “On a daily basis, we are constantly bouncing ideas off each other,” Lori says. Because they work in so many genres, it is hard to pinpoint one signature style that could encompass their body of work. They currently have at least 20 different design projects on their plate. “Regardless of whatever style a client might be after, we can hit any look,” Lindsey asserts. When meeting with a client about a new project, Lori says that determining how a potential space will be used is the first piece of information she seeks. “The function is probably the first conversation we have…how the space will be used in a residential situation by the family. If it’s a hospitality situation, what are the goals for the business?” >

May/June • 2015 | H10 | omahamagazine.com

Lori and Lindsey Anderson of Anderson Interiors May/June • 2015 | H11 | bestofomaha.com

OmahaHome • Statements

Anderson Interiors’ Latest Project, The Burlington League Gastropub at 10th & Mason May/June • 2015 | H12 | omahamagazine.com

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< “It’s a process of getting to know each other,” Lindsey says. Lindsey explains that gathering images of ideas the client desires is crucial in their research. “One person’s idea of modern might not be my idea of modern, so it helps to see pictures of what ‘modern’ means to them or what ‘traditional’ means to them.”

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Lindsey’s extensive research on every project and knack for hunting down new trends online or out and about has served as a revitalizing boost to a business that has developed a burgeoning client base for residential, commercial, and hospitality design for more than 25 years.

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“We snap pictures a lot when we’re traveling and bring it back to our clients,” Lindsey says. “Lindsey has found a lot of things that I never would have even thought of or found until she brought them to us,” Lori says.

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The two keep a library of ideas on hand that they gather while they are out absorbing the world through travel. They love getting away from their Rockbrook Village studio to scout for ideas. “We enjoy traveling the globe, exploring cities, towns, and cultures,” Lori says. >

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OmahaHome • Statements

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“Our clients become clients for years and years and years,” Lori explains. “I’ve had clients that I’ve done the home they live in and they’re getting to be in their 50s and 60s. You watch their kids grow up, and they starting

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to think about downsizing. I end up doing their second house or condo too.” “We make a bond with the family,” Lindsey adds. Many times their clients will repeatedly call upon the expertise of the Andersons to spruce up their living spaces. “We might not hear from them for a year, but the process never really ends,” Lindsey says. “It seems that you’re always adding to a space, or then they decide to do an addition onto the house or they decide to finish another room,” Lori says. The duo have formed a solid partnership that no doubt learns lessons along the way while also strengthening the special bond only a mother and daughter can have. “Working together is not effortless, but we are both creative, hard-working, and love what we do, Lori says. "We are very fortunate to have that.” OmahaHome

May/June • 2015 | H15 | bestofomaha.com

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06 WORDS BY DAVID WILLIAMS PHOTOGRAPHY BY BILL SITZMANN

HE EARTHY AROMA of freshly dis-

turbed loam. The slight but oh-so satisfying stiffness of the joints earned in the garden. The droning hum of a darting bumble bee. Call it reverse nostalgia, that odd sensation that sweeps over you when the realization hits that, in the passing of only a few short months, you will look back at your own enactment of a frozen-in-time scene like this one and ache for the sights, smells, and sounds painted on the canvas of Spring, the season when all was new again. OmahaHome

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May/June • 2015 | H16 | omahamagazine.com

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OmahaHome • Home Smarts

THE CALM AFTER THE STORM

Spring weather can be traumatic, but your insurance experience doesn’t have to be. WORDS BY DAVID WILLIAMS

HE SPRING STORM season has the

potential to introduce the most unpredictable of problems for homeowners. We checked in with Lisa and Regi Powell of Powell Insurance, a Farmers Insurance agency, for their best advice on how to navigate the process if you home sustains storm damage.

THE MOST COMMON MISTAKE? Lisa: “Automatically turning in a claim. Every claim stays on your record for three years, even if you end up later saying, ‘Never, mind, it’s not worth collecting on it after my deductible.’ Many people may not understand that it is still counted as a claim. We recommend getting an estimate outside of the insurance process in order to make the best decision about whether or not to proceed with an actual claim.”

HOW TO BEST PROTECT YOUR RIGHTS AND YOUR PROPERTY?

OKAY, SO NOW IT’S TIME TO MAKE REPAIRS

Regi: “Each state has a different statute of limitations on claims. Get a good estimate from a reputable contractor. That cost is reimbursed in the process if a claim is, indeed, later filed. You wouldn’t want to find much later on that, for example, you have water problems from a damaged roof. Now you’re faced with bigger, costlier issues.”

Lisa: “We have what we call a Preferred Provider program…a list of trusted contractors. A lot of companies have similar programs. The financial relationship is still between the homeowner and the contractor, but those that make it onto our list have gone through a thorough vetting process. They’ve jumped through a lot of hoops to make the cut and be on that list.”

Lisa: “Water is one of the things you should be most concerned about as a homeowner. It is stubborn, persistent. If you don’t fix a roof after a storm, over time water leaks or damage may occur. This water damage may not covered it you didn’t take the proper steps to repair the original storm damage.”

Regi: “This is also important because claims frequency can effect your premiums, even your eligibility. When in doubt, talk to your agent first. That’s what we’re here for.” May/June • 2015 | H18 | omahamagazine.com

Regi: “And don’t forget some of the simplest tips when making repair decisions. Talk to your friends and neighbors. What great experiences have they had with contractors? Who do they trust? If some guy shows up in your driveway offering to do work, check his truck’s license plate. If it’s from Florida or Alabama…well, there are a lot of stormchasers out there and they, like any business, can be all over the map in terms of ability, reliability, even honesty.”

I Can’t Wait to Spread My Paint

WHAT DOES MY INSURANCE COMPANY NEED TO KNOW? Regi: “Keep them updated throughout the process. Your contractor may point out, for example, that you need to replace a skylight after, say, some hail damage. But if that sky light wasn’t identified in the original adjusting process, it causes problems later. If additional damage is found, let’s be sure to get that into the claim so you will be paid accordingly.”

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Lisa: “Which is a good reminder to take a comprehensive approach to any claim. Our adjustors are trained to inspect the entire property. Do you have a pool? A tool shed? Ask your claims adjuster to inspect your entire property, not just the roof or siding. An adjuster may often find damage you didn’t know existed.”

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Regi: “It’s just human nature to believe that bad things will never happen to you, but there’s a reason we send update offers and call people to review policies. That’s one of the tougher parts of this job—a homeowner learning too late that their policy didn’t meet their needs.”

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Regi: “It is really gratifying to help people through these things. Just like being in an auto accident, storms can be traumatic and you may have more important things to worry about than the roof over your head. This is what your insurance agent lives for. When in doubt—and especially if you’re in any way confused about the process—call your agent. That’s what we’re here for.” OmahaHome

Lisa: “There are so many factors that go into recovering from storm damage. We recognize that it’s a stressful time. This is your home. It is important to you…and it’s important to us.”

FINAL THOUGHTS?

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OmahaHome • At Home

May/June • 2015 | H20 | omahamagazine.com

EVERYTHING IN ITS PLACE (And a Place for Everything) WORDS BY TOM MCCAULEY PHOTOGRAPHY BY COLIN CONCES

HEN YOU FIRST pull up to Zach and

Courtney Carle's home off 192nd and Dodge in Elkhorn, you might think, “Wow, they have a really nice house.” You'd be right. But when Courtney greets you at the front door, you won't enter one of those cavernous McMansions that embodies the worst aspects of American housing over the past couple decades. Instead, you're welcomed into a home that balances light and dark, friendly and ambitious, modern and traditional. Think natural stone chimney, hardwood floors, and a purple chalkboard wall for the oldest daughter. The place is gorgeous, yet understated and slightly quirky, like George Clooney. “Organized chaos” is another way to put it. The Carles will repeat that phrase several times over the course of our walkthrough.

Zach, a pharmaceutical sales specialist, and Courtney, a nurse, are the parents of four active children; Izabella (4), Camden (7), Jaxson (11), and Olivia (14). Dolls, action figures, sports gear, LEGOs, stuffed animals, art, homework, and digital devices abound. As the family grew, the Carles realized their old house simply couldn’t keep up. They needed a place to organize the chaos. So, a few years ago, they started working with Greg Frazell of G. Lee Homes. This proved to be a wise choice. As a father of five, Frazell understood the organizational challenges a large family faces. One of the most vital issues? Food. Both Zach and Courtney spend a lot of time travelling around Omaha for their professions and have little time to visit the grocery store, so Frazell sketched up what he thought would be an ample pantry. “I told him to go back to the drawing board,” Courtney chuckles. The original design was half the size the family had envisioned. >

May/June • 2015 | H21 | bestofomaha.com

OmahaHome • At Home

Izabelle, Jaxson, Camden, and Olivia Carle < Frazell took it to heart. Honeycombed with shelves, the pantry as built could pass for a small food bank. Industrialsized cereal boxes loom high overhead—telltale signs of a Costco membership. The rest of the house follows suit, maximizing every nook and cranny of interstitial space to keep clutter at bay. Clothes, shoes, toys, and the attendant supplies of modern life seem vacuum-packed into cubby holes. It all looks simple enough (ingenious things often do) but the overall effect is one of logistical brilliance. With the family’s potential morass of physical matter under control, the house is free to breathe. Indeed, if a house can be said to flow, this house flows. A cozy entryway beckons you past the home office, where a sliding barn door offers solitude, and into a living room capped by a 20-foot-high ceiling. Echoing the myriad storage elements throughout the house, the living room is checkered with windows that offer a perfect view of summer storms. From there, the house spills into an open-concept kitchen where a granite-topped island sink splits the flow into two branches. One course leads to the three-car garage and the other to the pantry and dining room, which is recessed from the kitchen and vaulted like a nave. Hung from the apex, a stunning chandelier flashes bits of sunshine at the visitor. This placement is strategic: hung in the entryway, the chandelier’s beveled tears might look gaudy—like an earring worn by a Godzilla-sized Elizabeth Taylor. But above the dining room table, the fixture brightens the space without ostentation. The spacious living room/kitchen/dining area serves as the nucleus of the house. It’s custom-built to encourage interaction between the Carles, their kids, and the innumerable neighborhood children who breeze through on any given day. The neighborhood is a tight-knit community, so it’s crucial for Courtney to be able to pursue her passion for cooking while still getting to hang out with everyone. > May/June • 2015 | H22 | omahamagazine.com

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OmahaHome • At Home

Zach and Courtney Carle < In fact, besides Elkhorn Public Schools’ reputation for a rigorous education, the frenzy of youthful activity is what initially drew the Carles to the neighborhood two years ago. “We loved that there were 5,000 kids running around the streets when we pulled in,” Courtney says. With sometimes up to nine extra kids in the house, bathrooms were a key design consideration. Brothers Camden and Jaxson share one, as do sisters Izabella and Olivia. Nobody has to fight for a sink. Downstairs, Mom and Dad have what could pass for a spa, with its huge echo-chamber shower, presidential bathtub, and hexagonal flooring, a throwback look you’d expect to find in a home in Dundee, not out here on the edge of cornfields. “We didn't want it to age or succumb to what's trendy now,” Zach explains, tapping the tile with the heel of his shoe. “We like the white subway tiles.”

Olivia finds a quiet moment.

This urge toward practicality and timelessness sums up the philosophy on which the house is built. As does the sign in the pantry entryway: “Today’s Menu: Eat it or starve.” OmahaHome May/June • 2015 | H24 | omahamagazine.com

COMMUNITY IS

SHARING WHAT WE KNOW As much as we read books and take classes, we learn the most from each other. This is how we grow. So that one day, we can pass on all that we’ve learned. We filmed stories that show this and other values of community. Watch and share at WhyCommunityMatters.com.

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May/June • 2015 | H25 | bestofomaha.com

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OmahaHome • Neighborhood Profile

The Flatwater Folk Art Museum

THE CREATIVE SPIRIT OF BROWNVILLE

George and Eva Neubert of the Flatwater Folk Art Museum Antiquarium Owner Tom Rudloff

Short on Population, Long on Culture

WORDS BY TOM MCCAULEY PHOTOGRAPHY BY BILL SITZMANN AND JAY TALLMON

May/June • 2015 | H26 | omahamagazine.com

HAT’S THERE TO do in Brownville?”

wonders Tom Rudloff, owner of The Antiquarium Book Store and Bill Farmer Gallery in Brownville. “Not much. Seven museums, five art galleries, a theatre, a concert hall, an arboretum, a winery, and three bookstores. So, not much.” Maybe you haven’t heard of it. Maybe you’ve been meaning to get there. Maybe you’ve already fallen in love with the place. Regardless, Brownville might be America’s only town of 130 residents that a 1,200 word article can hardly begin to synopsize. Seventy-eight miles south of Omaha, Brownville is anchored like its own historic steamboat, the Spirit of Brownville, in the windblown hills above the Missouri River Valley. It’s one of the few places where you can wake up on the water (River Inn Floating B&B), shop for curios (Gypsy Jack’s Antiques & Oddities), buy rare books from a self-confessed “crazed grammarian” (The Antiquarium), sip locally crafted wine while touring pre-Prohibition era underground brewing caves (Whiskey Run Creek Winery & Vineyard), ponder the horrors of frontier dentistry (Dr. Spurgin’s Dental Office Museum), and purchase a fine broom (Country Brooms Everlasting)…all in the span of a few hours.

The Brownville Flea Market

Founded in 1854 by Richard Brown, Brownville fell prey to the boom-and-bust cycle that crippled countless frontier towns. Within 20 years, the town had acquired a flatboat ferry, flour and lumber mills, two newspapers, a telegraph line, a high school, a medical college, three brickyards, and the promise of a railroad connection. Then, things fell apart. The railroad went bust. The county seat moved to nearby Auburn. In 1880, the population hit its high-water mark of 1,309.

A 1903 fire and multiple floods destroyed several buildings along Main Street, almost destroying any hope of revival. “Billy the Kid stayed here once,” says George Neubert, former director of Lincoln’s Sheldon Museum of Art and current curator/owner of the newly opened Flatwater Folk Art Museum. “He was going to rob the town, but when he realized we had no money, he went to Missouri.” That’s not the end of the story. Brownville lay dormant. Slowly, driven by arts, crafts, niche entertainment, historical preservation, books, local restaurants, museums, and the sublime geography of the river valley, the town began to flourish again, albeit in a more contemplative, meaningful way.

“BILLY THE KID STAYED HERE ONCE. HE WAS GOING TO ROB THE TOWN, BUT WHEN HE REALIZED WE HAD NO MONEY, HE WENT TO MISSOURI.” -George Neubert

I’ve been meaning to visit for several years. When I finally do come down to explore the village, which is supposed to have the most vibrancy per square inch than anywhere else in the state, I’ve chosen the wrong day. Almost everything is closed Mondays. So, instead of entering galleries and historic buildings, I walk around admiring the wellpreserved architecture, peering into darkened windows, and scribbling. As I press my cheeks against a glass bulletin board to read the schedules, a grey minivan captained by a senior couple rolls up behind me. >

May/June • 2015 | H27 | bestofomaha.com

OmahaHome • Neighborhood Profile

Brownville Concert Series The Silver Anniversary Season

WORDS BY DAVID WILLIAMS

Ronny Cox

FIVE-TOOL PLAYER IN baseball is defined as one who

can hit for average, hit for power, run, field, and has a great arm. For a quarter century now, the Brownville Concert Series has proved its prowess as a five-tool (cabaret, Broadway, jazz, classical, and bluegrass) MVP in the musical world with an internationally acclaimed line-up of artists. On the bench ready to pinch hit is even the occasional rock act. All this from a town with a population number that hovers at the “very superior” level of IQ quotients (130). Celebrating its silver anniversary in a quaint refurbished church, the series has long been a regional magnet for cabaretstyle intimacy where audiences get up close and personal with the visiting musicians. “Our artists know how to charm an audience,” says Jan Chism Wright, who describes her role as chief volunteer and bottle washer. “And they’re not whisked away to a waiting tour bus that has its engine already running the moment the show is over, either. They mingle. They chat. They sign autographs.”

The remainder of the 25th Anniversary Season boasts such notables as KT Sullivan and Jeff Harnar. Their show, Sullivan and Harnar Sing Sondheim, won gaga reviews in New York, and Stephan Sondheim himself is said to have echoed the sentiment when he attended one of their gigs. Also coming up is Ronny Cox, whose unforgettable “Dueling Banjos” scene was seared into your memory in the 1972 film, Deliverance. The building itself is one of the stars of the Brownville Concert Series. “That’s one of the great things about this place, Chism Wright explains. “The hall is such a small, cozy venue. It creates a warm, personal space in the best traditions of the very finest cabaret venues. The repartee with the audience is tangible, relaxed, natural. Every evening is an audience-participation performance because they sing directly to you, not at a crowd. And the artists love it, too. This kind of intimate interaction with audiences is what they live for, and it shows in their performances.”

The Rivertown Ice Cream Shoppe < “Are you an architecture student?” says the amiable man behind the wheel. “No, I’m writing an article about Brownville.” “Oh, we thought you might be an architect,” the woman says. “A bunch of UNL students have been coming down here for a class project. Is this your first time? Do you want us to show you around? We’ll drive you.”

“WHEN YOU CONSIDER A TOWN OF 130, YOU’VE GOT MORE THINGS HAPPENING CULTURALLY—PER CAPITA—THAN ANYWHERE ELSE IN NEBRASKA.” -George Neubert

Being the kind of person who accepts rides from strangers, I enter the van. Moments later, I’m now friends with George and Eva Neubert, owners of the Flatwater Folk Art Museum. Flatwater specializes in art “that doesn’t have a label next to it,” George explains. As a former director of Lincoln’s Sheldon Museum of Art, he knows art, art history, and curation. And he believes that the most exiting work is what goes on outside the mainstream. “There’s an authenticity that I found in a lot of folk art that the thousands of MFA students producing wonderful, wellsculpted, products didn’t have the kind of angst that true folk art had. Plus it’s one of the most ethnically diverse collections in America.” >

May/June • 2015 | H28 | omahamagazine.com

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May/June • 2015 | H29 | bestofomaha.com

OmahaHome • Neighborhood Profile

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“When you consider a town of 130,” George says, “you’ve got more things happening culturally—per capita—than anywhere else in Nebraska.” Across the village on the hill at 309 Water Street in the historic Nebraska State Teachers’ Association building, Tom Rudloff ’s Antiquarium contributes heavily to the cultural fabric here. After nearly 40 years as Omaha’s de facto den of intellection, the Antiquarium relocated to Brownville in 2008. The new place contains over 150,000 rare and used books and is modeled after the famed Long Room of Dublin’s Trinity College Library. Despite moving to a little-known town bordering the state of Missouri, the Antiquarium still attracts visitors from around the world seeking what they won’t find anyplace else. Together with the Brownville Concert Series (see related story), the Antiquarium is making this village a global destination spot. “The scenery is lovely and so is the air,” Rudloff says. “At least before the nuclear plant blows apart. Do I sound cynical? I’m a loudmouth, that’s what I am! At 76, how’s it going to get me in trouble?” I ask what the store hours are. “We don’t have hours,” he declares triumphantly. Then, popping up from his chair, he glides over to the old-time, hand-cranked cash registers and returns with a more definitive answer, which he reads aloud:

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OmahaHome • Feature

Scan the page with the LayAR app to view more photos of the Walvoord home.

May/June • 2015 | H32 | omahamagazine.com

WORDS BY DAVID WILLIAMS PHOTOGRAPHY BY COLIN CONCES

INDING YOUR WAY home from a friend’s

house normally isn’t much of a challenge for kids old enough to navigate a neighborhood without adult accompaniment. That doesn’t change the fact that things were, at least for a brief time about a year ago, a little iffy for the Walvoord children; Ava (6), Jackson (8), and Olivia (10). After the family’s move last July, parents Timmery and Brandon joked that their kids were in danger of paying an unexpected visit on the neighbors by inadvertently stumbling through the wrong front door some evening. It just goes with the territory when a family relocates by moving literally right next door. No lumbering moving trucks for this clan. It was an old fashioned bucket brigade of friends and neighbors who schlepped the family’s belongings a few paces to the South to get them situated in their new place, one that offers a dramatic view of the waters of Mallard Landing, a lakeside development near Valley. >

May/June • 2015 | H33 | bestofomaha.com

OmahaHome • Feature

Olivia, Ava, and Jackson refuel for summer fun.

< “We were looking at other lake-living places around the area,” explains Timmery, “but the kids really made the decision for us because they didn’t want to switch schools.” While the move may have been an easy one, what led up to it was anything but. A true labor of love for the Walvoords, the home was designed and constructed by Brandon with the help of Timmery’s father, a builder. “You learn a lot of things when you build your own home,” says Brandon in declining to single out any given project task as having been a particularly vexing obstacle. “Of course there was the…” he adds as his voice trails off before yielding to a chuckle. “No, let’s just leave it at you learn a lot of things.” The lake itself is at the heart of the design for this 5,700 square foot home, one inspired by a French-Country-meets-modern motif rendered in neutral shades and outfitted in casual/ contemporary furnishings. From the sandy stretch of private beach up to the house it is a zig-zagging, one-two-three-level ascent past handsome landscaping interrupted midway by a gurgling water feature. An expansive, wrap-around patio area, the site of countless “dining out” evenings, is partially nestled below a first-floor deck topped by another above. The elevated orientation of the lot and home in relation to the water tricks the eye into perceiving the lake-facing facade to be even more imposing, more towering than its three levels would otherwise suggest. > May/June • 2015 | H34 | omahamagazine.com

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OmahaHome • Feature

The Secret Room < “The upper deck is amazing for watching fireworks, and they seem to go on forever,” Timmery says in gesturing to the sweeping vista far in the distance that forms the ridge line looming over the Elkhorn River Valley.

“THE UPPER DECK IS AMAZING FOR WATCHING FIREWORKS, AND THEY SEEM TO GO ON FOREVER.” -Timmery Walvoord

Back inside, Olivia appears to have gone missing. She is discovered in what might be Brandon’s crowning achievement in the home’s design—a room hidden behind a bookcase. “I want to be a teacher someday,” Olivia explains as she conducts lessons for Ava in their double-super-secret, straight-outaHogwarts space. “This is my favorite room in the house.” Not to be outdone, Ava begins a tour of her room (the site of the occasional giggle-infested slumber party) with what is an entirely selfevident declaration.“Pink,” she says of the space that is a veritable explosion of lavender, mauve, fuchsia, and everything in between, “is my favorite color. Isn’t is just beautiful?” >

May/June • 2015 | H36 | omahamagazine.com

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< As dusk approaches in dappling the lake with a kaleidoscope of shimmering reflections, the boing-boing-boing of basketballs echo throughout the neighborhood in competing with the boing-boing-boing of Ava and Olivia bouncing on a trampoline down on the beach, both sounds now competing with Jackson as he drains 3-pointers into an electronic, arcade-style hoops set-up. “Thirty,” he proudly replies when asked what his record is for consecutively made shots. “C’mon,” he beckons as we head downstairs to his first-floor bedroom. “Let me show you my drum set.” Hey, isn’t lake living supposed to be the picture of placid serenity? How about a little peace and quiet? “Things can get a little noisy around here with the kids,” Brandon says with a smile. Or was that a grimace?

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“Just wait until we get the boat out" if you want more noise, adds Timmery in nodding to the dock that is the launching point for a you-name-it array of splashy aquatic fun. An oversized work of art made by Timmery hangs in the kitchen. She constructed it of discarded palate pieces and painted it in a wash to achieve a weathered, rustic vibe before then printing big, bold letters that spell out what could easily be the Walvoord family motto. “Life at the Lake,” Timmery reads from the words on her creation, “is Better!” OmahaHome

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OmahaHome • Feature

Dan and Lori Weber with their sons, Corey (left) and Casey.

May/June • 2015 | H40 | omahamagazine.com

THE KNOTTY PALLET Industrial meets rustic in these clever designs. WORDS BY JENNIFER LITTON PHOTOGRAPHY BY BILL SITZMANN

ITH EACH CLICK of a customer’s “order” button,

a Bellevue couple is transforming cluttered spaces across the nation into visions of organized neatness, all with a twist of style. “I love storage and I hate clutter,” says Lori Weber, one half of the online design duo behind Knotty Pallet. The idea for their business began out of necessity more than a decade ago. Lori and her husband, Dan, who are both retired Air Force musicians, converted a crate that was used to ship CDs into a conversation piece for their kitchen—a suspended wine rack.

"A LOT OF PEOPLE THINK PALLETS ARE REALLY BAD, BUT THEY ARE ACTUALLY SOMETIMES MADE OF NICE OAK.” -Dan Weber

As wine lovers, they needed a place to store their bottles and glasses. “The wine bottles just fit right in the little pallet nooks,” Lori says, “so Dan cut it in half and we just suspended it from there and we’ve had it for 12 years.” Out of necessity grew the roots of a creative business idea. Soon after, friends requested the couple make them a wine rack, too. “We like repurposing things. We were like scavengers. We would find pallets here and there,” she says. >

May/June • 2015 | H41 | bestofomaha.com

OmahaHome • Feature

< Lori eventually learned when choosing her materials how to pick the diamond in the rough. “You just kind of become a pallet snob,” Lori says. “A lot of people think pallets are really bad,” Dan adds, “but they are actually sometimes made of nice oak.” They soon moved on to larger pallet projects, such as designing a base for a granite countertop island in the kitchen and a handy shoe organizer for their neighbor. Each item is stained and finished with three coats of environmentally friendly polyurethane. “Everything is basic and simple and it has little nooks,” Lori explains.

The wine rack that launched a business.

The whole family gets involved. Dan does the majority of the construction with help from their two sons while Lori handles the business side of things. The company’s almost overnight popularity has made Dan’s head spin. “It was just all of the sudden order, order, order.” He says. “We’ve been growing and growing. Right now, we’re about three weeks out with our orders.” After the Knotty Pallet featured a booth at the popular vintage goods festival, Junkstock, their social media took off. “I remember my heart just going ‘ba-boom,’” Lori says. “We went from 400 likes on Facebook to 2,500 overnight.” All of the attention literally crashed her Facebook page. “It was a real eye-opener,” she says.

May/June • 2015 | H42 | omahamagazine.com

Each day after returning home from the three-day festival, the Webers worked feverishly through the wee hours of night in creating more items to sell. “We were just like little cobblers out in the garage making more stuff,” Dan says. “We knew were kind of on to something.” He says they draw a lot of inspiration for their designs from open-ended custom requests. “They don’t really know what they want” beyond the “can you help me organize this” basics. “Then we sit down and come up with a design” based on those needs. Lori admits that a number of her favorite designs come almost by accident, just like with the wine rack that started it all. “That’s what we strive for,” she says. “Things that look cool, yet serve a purpose.” OmahaHome

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May/June • 2015 | H44 | omahamagazine.com

MEET THE DESIGNER Elena Kerwin, Allied ASID, Design Gallery Nebraska Furniture Mart

Transformations is a regular feature of Omaha Home that spotlights a recent project by a local ASID interior designer. The copy and photos are provided by the designer. Homeowners’ names may be withheld for privacy.

OUR HOME, OUR WAY

Designer’s Dream House in Fairacres WORDS BY ELENA KERWIN PHOTOGRAPHY BY CHRISTOPHER TIERNEY & BARRY COHN

HE FIRST TIME that I drove through

Fairacres, I fell in love with the neighborhood and instantly knew that my husband, John, and I would one day make our home there. Only a few years later we found the perfect house: a Mid-Century, two-story home that needed a complete renovation. The residence came with a gorgeous European crystal chandelier that had been retrofitted for electricity. It became my favorite element in the space and served as something of an inspiration to guide me in the broader design task ahead. >

May/June • 2015 | H45 | bestofomaha.com

OmahaHome • Transformations

MAJOR INFLUENCERS WERE OUR ART COLLECTION AND ONE-OF-A-KIND, HEIRLOOM COLLECTION OF VINTAGE TRAVELING ACCESSORIES AMASSED FROM MANY GLOBAL WANDERINGS. < Other major influencers were our art collection and oneof-a-kind, heirloom collection of vintage traveling accessories amassed from many global wanderings. And we both love entertaining, so these multiple themes acted as our starting point. The canvas for much of the work would be a sleek, Parisian motif where white walls are generously accented with moldings as the backdrop for the artwork and surrounding furnishings. Additional crystal chandeliers above streamlined furniture completed the look, one of a timeless European vibe that is at once classic and eclectic in evoking the best of world design. Carrying on that idea, the entry area is executed in a timehonored diamond pattern of black-and-white marble to accentuate the French doors that we felt were perfect for a sense of the dramatic blending with the understated. For the living room, we selected a Barbara Barry sofa and chairs that employ natural colors, but in multiple textures so as to add visual interest. The accent tables are a mix of espresso finish, brass, glass faux paint, and antique mirror. When taken together, the surfaces reflect a mash-up of Moroccan, Art Nouveau, and modern classic styles, all framed by an antique secretary and miniature chair that belonged to John’s family. Every room needs a statement piece, and ours is an Asianinspired Indochina Century Furniture cocktail table. Besides being a beautiful object in its own right, it grounds the space and acts as a balancing agent against a nearby masterpiece work by Fernando De Szyszlo, perhaps Peru’s most noted artist. The adjacent formal dining room was mainly designed to showcase the aforementioned chandelier. The Drexel dining room set came from the Dalliance collection, which is described as a timeless design with hints of glamour. The vintage-inspired, reclaimed wood sofa table showcases the travel theme by housing a collage of art by local artists from their favorite vacation places. > May/June • 2015 | H46 | omahamagazine.com

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OmahaHome • Transformations

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The final touches were the Louis Ghost arm chairs by Philippe Starck. Never afraid of strong statements, the bold accent color here was a vibrantly striking pop of red. John and I are very pleased with the results, and it’s somehow very strange to write about our place this way for a magazine. After all, we just call it “home.” OmahaHome

May/June • 2015 | H49 | bestofomaha.com

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“I’ve loved the tiny town ever since I began working here eight years ago,” Robertson says. “If you are a person who loves nature, history, and homes with character, Brownville is the perfect town. My two kiddos and I enjoy walking down to the river, walking the Steamboat Trace Trail and the Whiskey Run Creek Trail, which is an absolutely gorgeous little trail, especially in fall.” During the summer, Robertson and her family attend the Brownville Village Theatre, listen to weekly live music sponsored by Whiskey Run Creek, eat treats at the local ice cream parlor, enjoy Fourth of July activities, and search for treasures at the Brownville Flea Market.

If Billy the Kid came back to Brownville now, he’d find plenty to steal. OmahaHome

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< From page H30 On my most recent trip to Brownville, I end the day with a burger at the Lyceum Café, a diner/bookstore/gallery that serves as the village focal point. On this Saturday evening, waitress Ashley Robertson zigzags between dining room, cash register, art gallery, and kitchen, balancing six huge plates while still moving and greeting people by name.

Everyone I’ve met has mentioned the flea markets. They’re a huge deal, shutting down Main St. for three days while tourists and vendors flood the town. This year, the 59th Annual Spring Flea Market runs May 23 – 25. Over 260 antiques & collectibles dealers, food vendors, artists, and craftspeople will attend this year’s events. If you want to stay the whole weekend, you have 11 accommodation options, including places called The Actor’s Residence and Gypsies Nook. Look out for the 60th Annual Fall Flea Market, which runs September 26 – 27.

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2 CELEBRATE

1. Fr. Tom Fangman, Pastor of Sacred Heart School and president of All Saints Catholic School, recently received the National Catholic Education Association’s Elementary Schools Distinguished Pastor Award. Marcia Regan, an 8th-grade teacher at St. Stephen the Martyr School, also received the organization’s Elementary Schools Distinguished Teacher Award.

LISTEN

2. Michael Campbell, a singer-songwriter known for purposeful melody and evocative storytelling, introduced My Turn Now—his fist CD in 15 years—in a release party at the Om Center. His previous solo efforts include Anything for You (1990), Arborville (1993) and Used Without Permission (1998). 3. Rock NYC called it “The real deal for a world that doesn’t realize it misses the real deal.” We just call it Underwater, the new offering from Omaha Magazine and Encounter music writer, Matt Whipkey, that was launched in a release party at Slowdown.

HOWL

4. Celebrate all things eerie, spine-tingly, and otherwise otherworldly on Saturday, May 2nd; National Paranormal Day. Tip # 666: Rearrange your furniture and then deny any knowledge of how things got the way. Those darn poltergeists!

COOL

5. It wouldn’t be summer— and it certainly wouldn’t be College World Series season—without a pilgrimage to Omaha’s iciest iconic site, the legendary Zesto. Rub elbows and swap cones with a bevy of ESPN commentators and crew at this proverbial June hot spot.

READ

6. Britny Doane, aka The Old Market Poet, plies her words-words-words on the streets of the Old Market by stopping passerbys with an offer to customize a personal, on-the-spot piece of magic on a click-clackety Remington Rand No. 1 typewriter. Now she’s hit the presses with the release of Wingmakers, her first book of poetry.

7. Just in time for capitalism’s Lollapalooza—the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders Meeting—John Prescott has authored The Oracle’s Fables (illustrations by Tom Kerr), a book in the style of Aesop’s Fables that uses quotes from Warren Buffett to deliver life lessons for kids.

HARVEST

8. It’s farmers market season, and one of our faves can be found at the historic Florence Mill, which was built by Mormon pioneers in 1846. The Florence Mill features a robust slate of veggies, art, crafts, music, pony rides, and all-around family fun all through the season.

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

117

SPORTS

by sarah wengert • photography by john gawley • hair and makeup by ann luchsinger

day at the

Lauren Sieckmann develops new talents on the West Coast.

beach has a different meaning for Lauren Sieckmann than it does for most folks. For the majority it conjures images of sun, sand, and fun; vibes of recreation and relaxation. But for 21-yearold Sieckmann—college student, sports and fitness model, and pro volleyball player-in-training —the beach means all work and all play. “Everything I do with school, training, and modeling, is fun for me,” says Sieckmann. It doesn’t feel like a job. It’s just what I do. It’s a way of life.” Sieckmann, a University of Southern California junior, grew up in Elkhorn and began playing volleyball around age 12, late for those who aspire to greatness in the sport. She quickly drew many accolades, including a national title with the Nebraska Elite 121s

club team and being named Nebraska High School Gatorade Player of the Year after leading Marian High to a 2009 Class A state title. Sieckmann transferred to Elkhorn South to graduate a semester early and kickstart her career at UNL. But after a semester in Lincoln playing indoor volleyball, she decided that what had been her dream wasn’t the right fit. “I really wanted to try beach volleyball and venture out, so I decided to come to California,” says Sieckmann, who’s embraced the transition. “It’s more ‘me’ than indoor and I love it,” she says. “You do it all in sand volleyball. It’s 2-on-2; you’re covering the whole court. I like the competitive nature, the atmosphere and environment and to practice at the beach all day…I can’t complain about that!” Sieckmann played for USC last semester but now trains professionally in lieu of the school squad. “Now I practice at the beach and train with Misty May,” she says. That would be Misty May-Treanor, the retired pro beach volleyball player, three-time Olympic gold medalist, one of the most successful female players of all time, former

volunteer assistant coach at USC, idol of volleyball girls everywhere—and now mentor to Sieckmann. During of fsea son Sieckmann trains about twice weekly each with May-Treanor and other pro players with whom she scrimmages—which means hitting the beach four times weekly, in addition to school and her budding modeling career. Sieckmann recently signed with Sports Lifestyle Unlimited and had her first booking and shoot in February. Most recently she signed with modeling giant Wilhelmina International. “[SLU] does lots of sports and fitness, lifestyle, and some fashion. It’s a bit of everything, and seemed like a good fit for me,” says Sieckmann, whose mother, Deb, was a fashion model. In addition to volleyball aspirations, Sieckmann dreams of following in her mother’s footsteps. “I always thought I’d get into [modeling] eventually,” she says. “One of my biggest goals with it is to represent being strong, fit, healthy, and beautiful—not just excessively thin.” Sieckmann says she’s witnessed negative effects of body image issues and hopes that her work promotes a healthier body image among young girls. “I want to make an impact with my modeling,” she says. “That’s why I’m going in the direction of sports and lifestyle work—to show girls that being strong and healthy is beautiful.” OMAG

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STYLE SHOT Hat & Sweats: Urban Empire Turtleneck Hoodie: H&M Footwear: Vlado Professional Dance Shoe

Scan this page with the LayAR app to view a behind-thescenes video of the photoshoot with Joey Reed.

by david williams • photography by laurie and charles photographs

ixteen-yearold Joe y Re e d, who

just completed his freshman year at Bellevue East High School, is an all-styles dancer, hip hop choreographer, and teacher. While he’s performed before a pack-‘emin concert crowd of 10,000 in Southern California, he’s probably more familiar locally for his frenetic appearance on America’s Got Talent and his December gig at the Ralston Arena with Vine superstars, Jack & Jack (Omaha Magazine, July/ August 2014). OMAG To view a behind-thescenes video of Joey Reed’s Style Shot session at Laurie and Charles Photographs, scan page 120 with the LayAR app on your digital device. Download the LayAR app in the Apple App Store or on Google Play. omaha magazine • may/june 2015

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ART+CULTURE â€˘ VIDEO

Scan this page with the LayAR app to view more photos from the shoot with Taylor Tracy.

MAKING THE CUT

by leo adam biga • photography by bill sitzmann

Music Video Editor Taylor Tracy

ilm and video production is still

a rather male-centric domain, but the realm of editing is much more gender-balanced. Omaha native Taylor Tracy, a music video editor for L.A.-based London Alley, feels right at home in a long lineage of women cutters. “At the start of the film industry, women were very prominent as film editors,” Tracy says. “It was an extremely delicate process. They used scissors to precisely cut the film. It’s interesting how that role for women as editors has carried through to today’s digital revolution.” Tracy, whose work can be seen at TaylorTracy.com, has edited videos for Nicki Minaj, Busta Rhymes, Future, Rich Gang, Ciara, K. Michelle, SoMo, Ariana Grande, and Jess Glynne. Even in the youth-driven music video field, the 2007 Millard West graduate is young at 25. Before landing on the Left Coast, this lifelong music lover earned her chops in music, theater, dance, and photography, teaching herself to shoot and edit video. She heeded her creative instincts making comedic shorts that gained YouTube followings. She honed her craft at Omaha Video Productions. “I knew I wanted more,” says Tracy, who moved to L.A. in 2013 to intern with London Alley director Hannah Lux. It was a homecoming for Tracy, who was born in Long Beach. She shadowed Lux on set and

performed post-production duties. She’s still enjoying the ride. “I love doing music videos because you get to be so creative with your edit,” Tracy says. “With each project I’m trying to find a new style for the specific video and push and grow my style personally.” All editing is about rhythm, perhaps especially so for music videos. “I love to let the music guide me. I listen to the undertones of the songs, I follow what I feel in the music. If there’s a nice, long instrumental, I love to see slow motion footage, maybe a nice gradual close-up rather than very quick cuts and lots of movement.” She says the “demanding, fast-paced environment” allows only a week to condense hours of footage into a three-minute video. Tracy also assists with visual effects and coloring. Additionally, she helps directors complete visual treatments for pitching labels and artists. Tracy meets some of the artists whose videos she cuts. Despite their often misogynist personas, she says the male hip hop and rap musicians she’s met have been “gentlemanlylike and professional.” The most viral of videos she’s worked on are Future’s “Move that Dope” and Ariana Grande’s “Love Me Harder.” Her personal favorite is Grammy-winner Jess Glynne’s “Hold My Hand.” “I really enjoyed the pacing of it. It starts out very slow, with very long cuts. It’s like you’ve spent an entire day with Jess Glynne. I love getting inside the artist’s head and really giving the viewer a chance to see who the artist is and take them on a journey.” Tracy has ambitions beyond editing music videos. “I’d love to experiment with television—editing a TV show.” Directing interests her, too. “That’d be a really great step,” she says. “Seeing the directors in action on set, I’ve learned exactly what goes into making a production happen.” OMAG To view more photos from the shoot with Taylor Tracy, scan page 122 with the LayAR app. Download the app on your digital device from the Apple App Store or Google Play. omaha magazine • may/june 2015

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n 2007, hair stylist and makeup artist

Omar Rodriguez left his native Puerto Rico for love. He moved to Omaha to be with his then-partner, a hairdresser from here he met in his island nation. Back home, Rodriguez cultivated a background in theater, dance, music, and beautyfashion. As a singer he toured with the boy band Concepto Juvenil, doing his bandmates’ hair on the side. This son of a butcher father and secretary mother was a fast-rising talent

by leo adam biga • photography by bill sitzmann

who then worked for leading salons Avante and Wanda Montes. His celebrity clients included Benicio Del Toro, Paulina Rubio, Jon Secada, and Ricky Martin. He was the stylist for Secada’s Amanecer album cover and Martin’s Black and White Tour CD cover. Rodriguez worked various fashion shows and taught at a beauty academy run by a former Miss Universe Puerto Rico–Desiree Lowry Rodriguez (no relation). He was a Sebastian Beauty representative and trainer. Once over the “culture shock” of Omaha, he built a loyal following as a star Fringes Old Market salon stylist. He collaborated with top Omaha Fashion Week (OFW) designers Dan Richters and Buf Reynolds. But when the romantic relationship he was in ended, he returned home with a broken heart. Three years ago he came back at the urging of Fringes owner Carol Cole. “Carol is a very inspirational and passionate person,” he says. “I don’t know if I would have come here if she hadn’t called to bring me back.”

When Hair, Makeup, and Style Become Art

Rodriguez trained Fringes staff for the 2012 Battle of the Strands in Las Vegas. The Omaha team he competed on won People’s Choice and Best Makeup awards. He’s since resumed work with OFW and now also reps a major makeup brush brand while consulting for a reality TV show. He works with many Omaha photographers and is a champion of Omaha’s creative culture, he says. “I’m impressed by how much talent we have here. I really love that part of Omaha.” He nurtures talent via OStyles Omaha, “a community of artistic professionals” he created “to do collaboration and innovation and to inspire the cultural scene. We are dreamers. We are believers. We have the drive and passion to produce the extraordinary.” When friends and colleagues outside Nebraska ask why he’s in the Midwest and not in some fashion capital, he says his response is always the same. “I could go to New York or California and I could do great, but do I want to swim with the sharks? I want to motivate and create something here in Omaha. I want to position Omaha as a real leader in fashion.” The styling he did for Clark Creative Group’s promotion of Opera Omaha’s 20142015 season attracted national attention, especially the Surrealist hair piece he fashioned for A Flowering Tree. “It was an amazing photo shoot,” he says. “I love how you can achieve what you visualize. I like to innovate. I do pretty, I do commercial, I do avant-garde. When I design hair I consider myself an artisan because I’m working with my hands. I mold. I bring color. I give contrast. I add texture. I create a figure and I finish that figure with paint–the makeup.” Rodriguez enjoys the notoriety his work brings, but says, “I prefer being a king without a crown.” Besides, he says, “I’m always going to be a student for life. I push myself and what I learn, I give it back.” OMAG

Omar Rodriquez omaha magazine • may/june 2015

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lasting so long, and he has an appointment at Children’s Hospital he doesn’t want to break. The internationally renowned glass artist has been working on large-scale cloud pieces for a new pediatric wing, and although he’s technically completed them, an 8-year-old girl is contributing the finishing touches. “She has cancer, and her father says she used to hate going to the hospital,” he explains, “but now she can’t wait to come” because of this project. > contineud on page 128

alf-way through our interview, Therman Statom apologizes. He didn’t anticipate our conversation

Artist and Children’s Advocate Therman Statom

Through a Glass Brightly

by kim carpenter • photography by bill sitzmann

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contineud from page 127 < That’s why we take an hour-and-a-half break. The young girl is meeting Statom to talk about the project, and he doesn’t want to cancel or keep her waiting. That commitment to children defines much of the artist’s career. He may be acclaimed for his airy glass houses, chairs, and ladders, but it’s his passion for making a difference in young people’s lives for which he’d prefer to be known. That passion goes back to his own formative years growing up in Washington, D.C. Although the son of physician, he was a typical “problem child,” going through high school after high school. Unlike most troubled kids who had run-ins with the law, however, Statom did something different: he hung out at the Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery of Art. “The Smithsonian was like a home to me. It was like an extra room in my house. It’s where I found myself,” he recounts. “I was there so much, I got befriended by a curator, and he got me a job mixing clay.” That job triggered an interest that eventually led to his attending the Rhode Island School of Design in the early 1970s, where he pursued clay as an artistic medium. “In clay I made a bunch of ugly pots. They were all brown,” he laughs. “Then I started blowing glass, and I went from very traditional to really exploring. Glass was immediate. You didn’t have to fire it two or three times. You could go into the studio and have something the next day.” He soon discovered a particular talent for working in his new material. Statom created an arced sculpture out of clear glass cones, which earned him advanced standing at the school and enabled him to graduate early. From there, he went on to earn his MFA in 1978 from the Pratt Institute School of Art and Design, where he made the jump from blowing glass to working with sheets of it. “I didn’t want to be limited,” he explains. “It’s about exploring and questioning creatively and the actual act of making. It’s about challenging yourself and learning as an individual. I have a real interest in that.”

therman statom

That interest prompted him to push the boundaries of glass as art, often using the material in unexpected ways. “I like to paint on translucent surfaces,” he says. “I consider myself a painter, and I think of glass as a canvas. If I had it my way, I’d paint on air.” For years, museums have been taking notice of Statom’s unorthodox approach, and today his work is in the permanent collections of, among others, the Detroit Institute of Arts, the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, GA, the Cincinnati Art Museum, and the place where it all began: the Smithsonian, which features one of his signature painted pieces in the Renwick Gallery at the American Art Museum. For as important as his own creative success is, however, Statom isn’t interested in his identity as an artist. “You don’t do anything unless you’re actively making a difference,” he emphasizes. “It’s not just narcissistic. It’s about making kids happy here and now. You have to engage. I’m more intrigued with helping people.” To that end, he’s worked with children through a broad range of organizations, including a children’s hospital in Norfolk, VA, and the U.S. Department of State’s Art in Embassies program, through which he’s led workshops in such far-flung places as Mozambique and Turkey. Closer to home, he’s worked with the Omaha Public School’s Native American Indian Education Department, Kanesville Alternative School in Council Bluffs, Yates Alternative School in Gifford Park, and even local Girl Scout troops. No matter where he works with kids, the goal remains the same: to affect change in children through art. “I have kids who claim that activities in art save their lives,” Statom says. “That’s pretty big.” Another hour into the interview, Statom glances at the clock. “It’s time to go,” he announces. There’s another girl he doesn’t want to keep waiting—his daughter. She’s about to get out of school, and just like the little girl at the hospital, he has no intention of keeping her waiting. OMAG

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Dream Weaver

by james walmsley • photography by bill sitzmann

DreamDream Weaver Weaver Dream Weaver

The Death and Rebirth of Orenda Fink

s Orenda Fink awoke one

morning from uneasy dreams, she found herself transformed into a 15-year-older version of herself. The Kaf kaesque revelation, which was triggered by the death of her beloved dog, Wilson, sent the dream-pop singersongwriter, then 36, tumbling into existential despair. > continued on page 132

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continued from page 131 < “I didn’t really have anywhere close to an idea of a concrete framework for thinking about death—I just never really thought about it,” says Fink, now 39, who is also half of the on-again, off-again Saddle Creek Records duo Azure Ray. “You think about it all the time, but you never really think about it.” Unbeknownst to the grieving dog mom at the time, she says, Fink’s white chihuahuaterrier mix had come to unconsciously symbolize, in a sort of Jungian slip, everything she had experienced throughout most of her 20s and 30s. So when the arthritic, cancer-ridden Wilson—whom she named after the genius behind The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds—was eventually euthanized, Fink says, it was as if her entire adulthood had been put down, leaving Fink in a deep depression that even anti-depressants couldn’t tame. “I feel like I died—that something in me died with him,” she says. “He was like a time capsule for all these experiences.” Despondent, desperately clinging to any clues that could define who she was, how she fit into the cosmos, Fink did what any musician of her caliber would do: She wrote a record. But before her third solo offering, Blue Dream, could manifest, Fink would have to endure a yearlong journey into the darkest parts of her being and extract, through dream therapy, answers that she says had always been with her. “I am walking down the street, wrangling three dogs with no leashes,” Fink writes in her dream journal just after she began therapy in 2013. “The first dog is Wilson as a puppy, the second dog is Wilson old and infirmed. The third dog, the most haunting, is Wilson as a white blur of a dog with no discernible edges or lines.” Fink says her first vivid dream about her dog started a night or two prior to her first therapy session. Each dream thereafter included Wilson in some form or another, she says, symbolically conveying messages that she’d then decode with professional help. “The therapy started with dreams and it ended with dreams. All we talked about were dreams throughout the course of the year,” Fink says about opting to heal her depression solely through Jungian dream therapy. The self-described Type-A Virgo, already prone to anxiety and impatience, says she furiously wrote in her prescribed dream journal

orenda fink

with the sense that she was communicating with her collective unconscious, or the pool of cumulative knowledge that psychiatrist Carl Jung believed (or “knew,” as Fink points out he’d say) was inherent in all of humankind. “It was just a phenomenal process,” she says. “Because when I got it, when I understood what the message was, it was immediate sobbing, weeping—transcendent sobbing.” During her spiritual awakening, Fink says she started writing music again, which had become an almost lost art form to her in the wake of Wilson’s death. “All of a sudden, I had this little pile of songs that I realized were about what I had just gone through, and it was essentially the whole story,” she says. Fink named her aural tale Blue Dream, which she released on Saddle Creek Records in 2014. The polished yet surreal eulogy to Wilson—and to her former self—plays like the soundtrack to a lost episode of David Lynch’s early-‘90s serial drama Twin Peaks. The woeful tunes were produced by Ben Brodin (Mal Madrigal, McCarthy Trenching, Our Fox, The Mynabirds) and Fink’s husband, Todd Fink (The Faint), who says he witnessed his wife overcome much of her distress through the album-creating process and her discovery of a universal, timeless consciousness. The Faint front man says he was initially skeptical of what he calls Fink’s “prophetic dreams,” but that those days are now long gone. “I think it makes perfect sense to look for answers in your dreams when you have a relationship with your subconscious like she does,” says Todd. “I’m just glad she found what she needed.” With an oversaturated music-producing market, including technological advances that have facilitated the production and distribution of songs, Fink’s next battle might take place well below the apex of self-actualization on the hierarchy-of-needs pyramid. But food, shelter, and…well, a good life…won’t be hard to find as a working musician, Fink says, just so long as she can stay true to the artistry of her work and keep it “as pure as possible.” “I guess I’m just, as hokey as it sounds,” Fink says, “a believer in the universe taking care of you, however that’s supposed to be. If I’m meant to create music and I have things to contribute, then the universe will somehow keep that going.” OMAG

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hether he’s giving

the scoop, dishing the dirt, spilling the beans over the airwaves, or just delivering a friendly “hello” at his local supermarket, Craig Nigrelli is always on. It might sound exhausting to some, but for the KMTV news anchor who has been serving Omaha his buffet-style brand of broadcast journalism for almost seven years, it’s just another perk of the job. “I think when you’re in the public eye, you always have to be aware that you’re on the air,” Nigrelli, 48, admits in a dynamic tone that makes everything he says sound newsworthy. “People are always watching you no matter where you are. It’s what I signed up for. It comes with the territory.” Known as “Ron Burgundy” or “Newsboy” within the ranks of his hockey buddies, Nigrelli says he’s been tirelessly engaging his new home as his station’s “Steady Eddy.” But perhaps the Buffalo native’s most appropriate nickname derives not from his profession, but from his habitual nature, which he says has allowed him to consistently bring high energy to his news teams for over two decades. “I’m a man of routine, and I get that from my father,” Nigrelli says. “My wife calls me ‘Mr. As Is.’”

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Nigrelli’s as-isness, he says, manifests itself in taking the first half hour of a day in silence, pumping iron four times a week, playing hockey twice a week, and watching his wife, Omaha Magazine contributor Carol Crissey Nigrelli, play the cello at their church every Sunday. “As soon as you step outside the house and as soon as you step into the subterfuge of the daily [routine],” Nigrelli explains, “you’re on. You’re in the spin cycle from 10:30 in the morning till when you get home at 11:30 at night.” Nigrelli’s dedication to an unwavering,

controllable routine lends balance to the often chaotic world of news reporting. “For better or for worse, the world never stops spinning.” As a master storyteller, Nigrelli is resigned to the fact that he must often report on doom and gloom to the viewers he likes to consider his neighbors. “People are curious—they want to know why there’re flashing lights. They want to know why a road was closed. We live in a curious world.” As part of his professional regimen, the anchor says he writes almost all of the reporter introductions for all four of his daily newscasts. The humanizing aspect of Nigrelli’s style, which seems to break a fourth wall at times while making an emotional connection with audiences instead of just an informative one, is how he says he’s comfortable selling his station’s content. “Because if I’m bored, the viewer is bored,” Nigrelli says. “If I’m engaged and I’m energetic and I’m driving the content and I’m excited about it and I’m taking viewers on my shoulder for a ride like it’s a roller coaster… then they’ll probably enjoy it.” OMAG

by james walmsley • photography by bill sitzmann

COVER FEATURE

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by carol crissey nigrelli • photography by bill sitzmann and provided by the omaha storm chasers

The Omaha Storm Chasers: Minor in Name Only The Royals Triple-A Team Provides a Pipeline of Champions

COVER FEATURE

HAT A DIFFERENCE

a year makes. Last year, Werner Park, a beautiful gem of a baseball stadium nestled in rural Sarpy County and home to the twotime Triple-A National Champion Omaha Storm Chasers, padded its reputation as a premier destination for families. With typical minor league zest and a marketing strategy to attract customers that would make P.T. Barnum proud, the Storm Chasers, Kansas City’s top farm team, appealed to even the most casual baseball fan. Here is where children devoured cotton candy and played wiffle ball; nursing home residents enjoyed hot dogs with a side of bingo; adults contemplated the laws of physics at the Bottoms Up beer dispensary as their glasses filled from bottom to top; couples seated on the berm beyond the outfield wall cooed under the stars, and corporate managers wooed clients in the Hy-Vee Pavilion picnic area. Oh, and the baseball was pretty entertaining, too. A few number crunchers sat 138

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in sun-drenched stadium seats and, armed with pencil and score sheet, feverishly filled in box scores as the Storm Chasers lit up the scoreboard. The team captured the Pacific Coast League title and the national title for the second year in a row under new skipper Brian Poldberg. The champagne flowed. Then the age-old narrative, “The Storm Chasers are so much better than the Royals,” began to unravel. On September 16, the night the Chasers captured the one-game Class AAA crown against the Pawtucket Red Sox, their parent club was nearing the end of the regular season, still in contention. Let’s play that back: the Royals were still in contention. For 29 years, since George Brett became a folk hero in the 1985 World Series, the Royals had been one of the saddest teams in baseball—perennial basement dwellers and sufferers of multiple 100-loss seasons. Had “Wait ‘til next year!” finally arrived? Midlanders and their playoff-starved brethren along the I-29 corridor between Omaha and Kansas City held their breath

as the Royals made it to the end of September with an American League Wild Card berth in hand. Overnight, the Royals went from punchline to headline. They also went on a tear. With clutch hitting, aggressive base stealing, a shut-em-down bullpen and acrobatic defensive plays, the Royals sliced through the cream of the American League with the precision of a sushi chef, setting an MLB record by winning eight playoff games in a row. When they completed a sweep of the Baltimore Orioles and punched their ticket to the World Series against the San Francisco Giants, Kauffman Stadium erupted into a pandemonium only pent-up, pure joy can create. Heck, even nice-guy actor Paul Rudd, a native of Overland Park, Kan., went on camera and invited all Royals fans to his mom’s house for a kegger. The glitter from that joyous American League pennant celebration drifted north and settled over Werner Park in Papillion. Or was it the other way around? “Oh, you’re talking about the Storm

omaha storm chasers

Chasers South?” cracks Martie Cordaro, president and general manager of Omaha’s minor league team. “That’s what I call the Royals: Storm Chasers South,” he says with tongue only half in cheek. Cordaro’s point is well taken. Consider this: 14 players on the Royals’ World Series roster came through Omaha at one point or another. The Giants listed three. The Royals’ farm system was showing some teeth. “Kansas City and [Royals’ general manager] Dayton Moore started their draft process in 2007 and three years later those draft picks started to develop into Triple-A players,” says Cordaro, who came to Omaha in ’07 when the team was known as the Omaha Royals and played at the beloved but aging Rosenblatt Stadium. “By 2011 this franchise, under manager Mike Jirschele, started to put it all together.” April 16, 2011, proved historic on many levels. Omaha’s Triple-A team debuted a new name, a new $36-million ballpark, and several players who would eventually play key roles in the Royals’ championship run. Anyone who

joined the sellout crowd at Werner Park on Opening Day that year saw Eric Hosmer go 3-for-3, Mike Moustakas drive in a run and left-hander Danny Duffy hurl four innings of one-hit ball. Lorenzo Cain was also a member of the ’11 squad. In a preview of things to come, the team made it to the minor league title game, losing to the Columbus Clippers. Duffy, who showed up at spring training this year with a revamped physique, looks back on his year in Omaha with pride. “I actually got to throw the first pitch in the new park,” a called strike right down the middle. “We had an amazing team that year with Hosmer and Moose. We really got it rolling,” the 26-year-old says. “Now you look at the team with its three PCL titles and two national championships in four years and it feels really good to be a part of the group that got that run started. It speaks to the coaching staff and how great they are.” As the Triple-A team collected playoff hardware, its parent club began to get incrementally better because the pipeline from Omaha to Kansas City started to funnel

players who have known nothing but winning at every rung of the baseball ladder. “I coached those guys in 2010 when we won the Texas League Championship,” says Poldberg, who coached the Royals’ Northwest Arkansas Double-A Naturals for six seasons before replacing Jirschele in Omaha last year. “We sent Hosmer and Moustakas and Johnny Giavotella (now with the Angels) and all those guys up here to Omaha in ’11,” says Poldberg. What helped turn things around for the Royals? Poldberg thinks it’s the same intangible that made the Storm Chasers champions: “Chemistry. The guys get along as well as any team I’ve ever had. They enjoy being together on and off the field, and they care about each other,” says the a baseball lifer who has been with the Royals organization 30 years. “Talent and ability take you a long way, but the camaraderie these guys had was just phenomenal.” > continued on page 146

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feature

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by robert nelson

•

photography supplied by the falls city journal

“Flush Him Down The Toilet.”

Michael Ryan and Richardson County Sheriff Cory McNabb leaving a courtroom in Falls City, Neb., after Ryanʼs arrest in 1985.

omaha magazine

I hadn’t talked to Dennis Ryan in more than two years when I called him in early March. In that earlier discussion in late 2012—15 years after his release from prison for torturing and killing James Thimm near Rulo, Neb.—we talked about the usual, catching-up stuff. Same this time. His wife is well, his son is doing well in school. Dennis said he is making the best money of his life as a long-haul truck driver. He joked that the days on the road were actually strengthening his marriage: “You know what they say: Absence makes the heart grow fonder.” He said he is becoming a serious audiobook junky. He particularly enjoys John Grisham books. Bronson Pinchot is his favorite narrator. “Wasn’t he in some squirrelly ‘80s show?” I asked. “Sure. But just listen to him,” Dennis said, sounding a bit miffed as if I had insulted a friend. “He’s the best out there at bringing the characters to life.” Amid all the catching up, I almost forgot the main reason I had

By Robert Nelson Photography supplied by Jason Schock of the Falls City Journal

called: I wanted to know his thoughts on his dad’s failing health. “What’s wrong with him?” He asked. “You haven’t heard?” “I don’t hear anything about him,” he said. “No connection. Don’t want one. Last I heard from him he told me I was going to hell.” “He’s dying of brain cancer,” I told him, realizing as the words came out that I was informing a man that his father was dying. “Just got announced in some Legislature debate on the death penalty. Your dad probably has a couple months left.” There was a brief pause. “So he’s finally going to die,” Dennis responded, his tone cold and steady. “Best for everybody. Good riddance. Flush him down the toilet for all I care.” — Michael Ryan and his son, Dennis, were both convicted in 1985 for the murder of James Thimm on a farm near Rulo. The story of the Ryans’ bizarre doomsday cult made national news and has remained one of the most notorious crimes in Nebraska history. Michael was sentenced to die

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for the murder (He also pleaded no contest to second-degree murder in the killing of 5-year-old Luke Stice). Dennis, only 15 at the time of his arrest, was sentenced to life in prison, a sentence many both inside and outside the criminal justice system believed was far too severe for a teen who had been thoroughly brainwashed by his father. At the small cult’s secluded compound on a high bluff above the Missouri River, Michael taught Dennis to fire automatic weapons and kill with his hands. Dennis 15-year-old Dennis Ryan leaving a Richardson County courtroom in Falls City, Neb., had to be ruthless, he faafter a bond hearing in 1985. ther explained, because Dennis would soon be leading the elect few against the a long-haul truck driver for the told me he was not allowed to forces of evil during the coming last five years for a company based comment on the medical condibattle of Armageddon. in Nebraska. tion of inmates, two other sources In 1997, due to a legal techniHis father has remained on have confirmed that Ryan likely cality, Dennis was released after death row for 30 years. In early has only a few months to live. 12 years in prison. For the last 18 March, Thimm’s sister announced — years, he has lived a quiet life with that she had learned that Michael In 1997, while working for the his wife of 17 years and high- Ryan has terminal brain cancer, a Omaha World-Herald, I called school-aged son in south-central diagnosis State Sen. Ernie Cham- Dennis’ attorney, Tim Nelsen, Kansas. Dennis, who has lived in bers repeated during a state legis- asking if there was any chance Kansas near his mother and lative debate on the death penalty. Dennis would talk to me. > on page 142 brother since his release, has been Although a prison spokesman continued

Cult leader Michael Ryan is dying of cancer on death row. Good riddance, his son says.

omaha magazine • may/june 2015 • feature • by robert nelson • photography supplied by the falls city journal

The crimes drew law enforcement officials and reporters from across the country.

continued from page 141 < I hoped to follow him on-and-off through the first year after his release. My rationale: What is freedom like for a man who spent his childhood in a doomsday cult and his formative and early adult years in prison? How would he adjust to being dropped into the real world at age 27? I tried to play a homeboy card: I grew up in Falls City, nine miles from Rulo, I told Nelsen. I was a senior in high school when Dennis was being tried in the courthouse a few blocks down from my home. — Dennis agreed to talk to me. He suggested we meet at a lake in northeast Kansas. He had fished at the lake as a kid. He had always dreamed of going back there. I brought my tent and other camping gear. We talked and fished late into the night. He was 27, but, having spent his childhood under his father’s thumb and the rest of his life in prison, he was coming into freedom with the fresh 142

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energy and idealism of a college freshman just unbound from home. He wanted to go to college and major in psychology. He wanted to help at-risk kids from troubled homes. He figured he knew something about troubled upbringings. He was starting to learn, though, that universities were not interested in 27-year-olds

with prison GEDs and murder convictions. And he didn’t have any money. He just needed to get a job working for anyone who would take him. He was awkward with women; some men were scared of him. He knew many people looked down on him. Potential employers weren’t thrilled about hiring a convicted felon,

let alone a man who had tortured a man to death. He was struggling with frustration and anger, emotions he knew could destroy him if he couldn’t stay calm and focused on his goals. He said he might be willing to partially forgive Michael if he would apologize to those he had harmed and take responsibility for his actions. Instead, the last time Dennis had contact with his father, Michael blamed him for “not completing the circle.” Michael said that Dennis’ loss of faith and testimony against his father in 1985 were the reasons Michael’s end-of-days prophesies had not materialized. Michael even convinced Dennis’ grandmother that Dennis was the reason Michael was on death row. “She called me a snitch,” Dennis told me. At that time, Dennis was still, in a few instances, sympathetic to Michael. He said his father had a tough childhood. Michael, he pointed out, had been brainwashed himself by the rabid teachings of James Wickstrom, a radical Christian identity minister and white

Investigators placed a canopy over the burial site of James Thimm and 5-year-old Luke Stice.

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supremacist. Later, as we sat by our campfire, Dennis scared me for the first time. He was talking with his usual intensity about his mindset during his three years at the farm north of Rulo, a time he thought he was the Son of God, a time during which he was willing to partially skin a man and thrust a shovel handle up the man’s rectum at his father’s bidding. In the dancing firelight, Dennis’ strong features took on a menace I wasn’t sure was wholly unintended. In a deep, booming, agitated voice he told me what it feels like to think you’re a god. “I felt powerful. I felt important,” I remember Dennis saying. “How could you not? I was 15 and being told I was ‘The One.’ How could it not feel good?” Then, he said, soon after believing he was God’s chosen one, he learned he was living a sick lie. In fact, he learned he was a lowlife pariah who, instead of going to high school, would be spending the rest of his life in prison. “How would you feel?” He asked, leaning toward me. “I would have hanged myself,” I remember responding. Dennis told me soon after those comments that he had forgotten to bring a tent. So, we bedded down beside each other in my tent for the rest of the night. He snored. I know that because I was awake those few hours before dawn wondering if I had just made my own deathbed. The next morning we cooked bacon and eggs. We fished and talked. In a strange moment of small-world bonding, we discovered the man who first attempted to rape him in prison in Lincoln > continued on page 144

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omaha magazine • may/june 2015 • feature • by robert nelson • photography supplied by the falls city journal

continued from page 143 < was in fact a 3rd-grade classmate of mine in Falls City. We agreed Richardson County, also home to the murders made famous in Boys Don’t Cry, has a pretty seedy underbelly. Increasingly, the conversation was nothing more than the jabs and banter of two buddies on a fishing trip. I suggested he might want to cut down on the number of f-bombs he dropped in each sentence. “I know,” I remember him saying. “It’s f***ing tough not to cuss when you’ve been in prison for 12 years.” In the 18 years since that night, I’ve never once felt frightened by Dennis. In fact, as he increasingly succeeded in building the normal life he craved, I began to deeply admire him. — That year, I visited Dennis two more times in Kansas. We spent a few days together each visit, playing video games, watching sports, visiting a nearby bar. In time, we talked less about the past. He was becoming increasingly frustrated trying to find gainful—let alone meaningful—employment. He had gone on dates a couple times, but there hadn’t been second dates. I increasingly found myself giving what I fancied was sagely advice. I don’t have a little brother. I was 29. He was 27 with no realworld experience. I imagined I could help him navigate troubles. In 1998, I wrote about that first year out of prison. It had been a frustrating stretch for him, but he was settling into a rhythm. Life was pretty dull and uneventful—a mundane “boy-meets-world” kind of year. In his case, though, at least in my eyes, uneventful meant wildly successful. Soon after that, I moved to 144

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Arizona. In 2004, Dennis was going to come visit me in Phoenix. We made plans to go fourwheeling in the Sonoran Desert. I don’t remember why that never happened. Dennis got married not long after I wrote that first story. I remember telling him he

spoke less and less about life before 1997. In fact, that recent March phone call was probably the longest time we spent talking about his father in 18 years. — Michael Ryan came within two weeks of being executed in

Law enforcement officials found a large cache of weapons at the Ryan cult compound.

should wait. But he was in love. His son was born a year later. Over the years, we talked about coaching youth sports, the newest video games, and the mercurial rhythms of married life—the usual stuff. Of course, there was ribbing about the highs and woes of local sports teams. He’s an insufferable Kansas Jayhawks fan. Sometime after I moved back to Nebraska in 2007, we planned to meet up for a day at Worlds of Fun in Kansas City with our kids. For the usual reasons amid busy lives, those plans also never gelled. In our talks after 1997, we

2012. In the weeks prior to his execution date, Michael, who is housed at the Tecumseh State Correctional Facility, reached out to a cousin of Dennis’ to discuss where his body should be buried. The cousin called Dennis to discuss the topic. By that time, Dennis had only contempt for his father. He didn’t deserve a proper burial, Dennis said. He belonged in the sewer with the rest of the human excrement. But, like numerous condemned inmates around the country, Michael’s execution was stayed due to problems with how prison officials ob-

tained one of the three drugs needed for a lethal injection. Although Ryan has exhausted nearly all of his appeals, the state still has failed to obtain one of the three drugs, a drug that companies around the world now refuse to produce for ethical reasons. — Michael Ryan refused to be interviewed for this story. In response to a request I made in 2007, I was told he said he also had no intentions of speaking with his son. Dennis said he’s not sure how he would react if his father called one last time before his death. “It would probably sound pretty ugly,” he said. “But he won’t call. He’s a coward.” Dennis last spoke to Michael in 1985, the year they were arrested. Michael told him, “The circle is not complete. You’re with Satan now.” A few years later, a prison psychologist suggested Dennis write a sort of farewell letter to Michael and “be done with him.” “I tended to always write song lyrics to express things back then,” Dennis said in March. “I just sent him the words to ‘I Don’t Care Anymore’ by Phil Collins. They seemed perfect at the time.”

—

I don’t care what you say, I don’t play the same games you play.

“The circle is not complete.” Thirty years later, Michael’s hateful words are taking on new meaning for Dennis. The self-professed prophet accidentally got it right. The circle is not complete. The son didn’t become the father. Dennis has taught me that even disastrous nature and nurture can be overcome by will and love. Back in 1997, I remember

asking Dennis’ mother what differences she saw—differences that would be critical to Dennis’ survival—between her ex-husband and her son. Months before at the lake I felt I had seen in his agitation the brewing of a storm. I was wrong. At that time, his mother, I believe, already knew why Dennis would succeed against such terrible odds. “He cares,” she said. “He’s around people who care about him now. He has goals. I believe he can make it. “And here’s something big: Dennis is not mean,” she told me then. “Simple as that.” Eighteen years later, pondering the death of his father, Dennis brought up that widely held concern in 1997 that he would, at best, flounder, and at worst, kill again. “I’m demanding,” he told me. “I’m selfish. I’m a hard person. It’s good that I’m on the road a lot. I joke that I’m a typical Virgo. Just your typical pain-in-the-ass Virgo. “But I’m driven. And I’m not mean. You know that. Anybody who knows me knows that I’m not mean.” I’ve never known him to be mean. I have never heard anyone who knows him say he is mean. In my mind, he is remarkable. These quiet years quietly attest to that belief. “Michael was mean,” Dennis said. “Terribly mean. I assumed that he wasn’t always mean, but mom says, ‘No, he was mean from the start.’ He was abusive. That’s who he is. “And that isn’t me. The proof is in this life. “When he’s dead, it’s over. It’s time for it to be over.” OMAG

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continued from page 139 < No one better exemplifies the kind of “character player” the Royals try to draft than Nebraska’s own Alex Gordon (profiled in the July/August 2014 issue of Omaha Magazine). When the Royals switched his position from third base to left field in 2010, Gordon, already on a rehab assignment in Omaha, showed up at Rosenblatt Stadium every morning and drove himself mercilessly to learn how to field a ball pinging off a wall. So how fitting was it that the Lincoln native, the winner of four consecutive Gold Glove Awards, would get the last hit of the World Series? Game 7, bottom of the ninth with two outs and the score 3-2. With the Royals trailing by a run, Gordon comes to the plate. He faces a freak of nature named Madison Bumgarner, the most dominant pitcher of the playoffs. Gordon connects and drives a single up left-center field. The ball bounces past Gregor Blanco and dribbles to the wall. Gordon motors to second and then heads to third, where third base coach Mike Jirschele, who had been called up by the Royals at the beginning of the season, holds him on the bag. “I just put my head down and kept running, looking at Jirsch,” Gordon told reporters later, adding he never doubted Jirschele’s decision not to wave him home. Gordon remained stranded at third, 90 feet away from tying the game—90 feet from pulling out another improbable play in a season full of them. But the World Series loss didn’t invalidate the Royals’ resurrection, nor dim the spotlight suddenly shining on the Storm Chasers. This year, Werner Park has assumed an extra dimension: a destination for serious baseball fans. “The demeanor of the whole organization has changed,” says Poldberg, who still lives in his hometown of Carter Lake, Iowa. “Now, our guys expect to make the playoffs and our fans are coming to see them before they make it to the majors and become stars.” The love affair between Omaha and baseball began 90 years before the Royals organization came on board. Minor league records show the Omaha Green Stockings played in the Northwestern League in 1879 before folding after one year. The Green Stockings were followed by a steady series 146

omaha magazine • may/june 2015

omaha storm chasers

of independent teams beginning in 1885. Various incarnations included the Omaha Omahogs, Indians, Rangers, Rourkes, Buffaloes, Crickets, Packers, and Robin Hoods. In 1947, Omaha became part of the St. Louis Cardinals’ farm system. Omaha native and Cardinals pitching legend Bob Gibson made his Triple-A debut here in 1957. (Werner Park unveiled a statue of the Hall of Famer two years ago). The Omaha franchise then became affiliated with the L.A. Dodgers in ’61 and ’62. Kansas City ushered Omaha into the modern era in 1969, the same year the Royals became an American League expansion team. “Our affiliation with the Royals is the longest Triple-A affiliation in the country,” Cordaro points out. The continued success of the 45-year relationship, he believes, hinges primarily on the Chasers’ outreach in the community. The team may focus on player development, but Cordaro focuses on people. Given his Sicilian heritage

and upbringing in the Deep South, Cordaro respects the importance of families and is a natural at creating a fun venue for them. While many Omahans cling to fond memories of the now-demolished Rosenblatt Stadium and the neighborhood around it, Cordaro and his crew work hard to create new memories at Werner Park. This year will offer highly engaging entertainment. On May 27, the Royals’ production team brings their promotions, music, and mascot for a “Salute to the Royals” night during the Storm Chasers game. “That show is the extension of the Royals’ playoff success and our closer relationship,” says Cordaro. “The Royals now realize what a growth area Omaha and Nebraska are.” In another sign of respect for Omaha, the 2015 Triple-A All-Star Game comes here

for four days in July, beginning Sunday, July 12. Cordaro is particularly proud of securing Minor League Baseball’s biggest event. “The All-Star game has never been played here in Omaha,” he says. “It’s going to be great exposure for the Metro community.” The MLB network will televise the game July 15. What else is new at Werner Park? A sixhole mini golf course down the right field line, and something else that’s very hard to miss: a brand new state-of-the-art, high-def LED scoreboard with wide angle visibility— twice as big and twice as clear as the video board it replaced. Another flashy sign of the Chasers’ success can be found on fingers. Executives, front office staff, and premier sponsors received their 2014 Triple-A championship rings during a ceremony at Borsheims on March 12. The players and coaches received theirs a week later in Surprise, Arizona. The team collaborated with the fine jewelry store on the design, just as they did for last year’s championship rings. Made of stainless steel and encrusted with sapphires and crystals, the rings say “Back to Back National Champions” around the depiction of a fittingly stormy vortex. Each recipient’s name is engraved on the side. Storm Chasers co-owners Gary Green and Alan Stein attended the ring ceremony in Omaha, clearly caught up in the moment. “I’ve owned a lot of teams through the years and I’ve gotten some rings,” says Stein, “but this is by far my favorite.” Addressing the 50 or so people in attendance, Green told them, ”Yes, the rings are big and bulky (laughter), but that’s on purpose—to show our pride in them.” What difference did a year make? Closeted Royals fans have taken the paper bags off their heads and proudly wear their team’s gear, high-fiving each other in public places; Omaha fans thump their chests, reminding Royals’ Nation, “We knew those guys before you knew those guys;” national media requests for Royals coverage have doubled; the Storm Chasers have cemented their elite status; and Martie Cordaro envisions the ring ceremony as an annual event. Everybody loves a winner. OMAG

May/June

•

2015

Dr. Antoinette Turnquist: “A Living Legend” of OPS

Past Lives

Omahans are increasingly digging into their family histories.

Iron Woman World-Class Triathlete Marianna Phipps

november/december • 2014

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Time Travelers This issue has history stories that remind me of my father—a man ahead of his time, and, also, a man sometimes looking at the past. When he was in his 80s, he did extensive research on his family’s history, tracing it back to the Mayflower, the American Revolution, and the Civil War. He became a member of the Sons of the American Revolution and Descendants of the Mayflower. He had plenty of stories to tell from that research, like the tale of John Howland, our ancestor who was the famous “man overboard” during the Mayflower’s journey. My father put everything into a book for me and my two sisters. It included some fascinating treasures; photos of relatives, of course, but also some letters from soldiers writing back to loved ones as they fought in the Civil War. To have that epic conflict from a century before come to life in an ancestor’s words was a powerful connection to our past. When I would visit him he would always get out “the book” (he kept the original) and we would talk about the memories. He lived to be 102. In this issue of 60Plus, you’ll learn about the boom in the number of people in Omaha who, like my father, are researching their family histories. As my father showed us, you can find some pretty interesting things if you’re willing to take that dive into your past.

Contents

volume 3 • issue 2

ACTIVE LIVING World-Class Triathlete Mariana Phipps.................................. S4

HOBBIES Omahans increasingly are digging into their family histories...........................S8

HISTORY Omaha’s First Black Fire Crew..................S10

COVER FEATURE Dr. Antoinette Turnquist............................S14 Until next issue!

Gwen

HEALTH Keeping Knees Healthy.............................S18

Gwen Lemke Contributing Editor, 60PLUS In Omaha

FACES “Mr. Memories” Joe Taylor.........................S20

THE GRANDPA CHRONICLES The Torn Page...........................................S22

may/june • 2015

60PLUS S3

60PLUS active living by ryan borchers •

photography by bill sitzmann

Iron Woman Mariana Phipps: Grandmother. Reformed Chain Smoker. World-class Triathlete.

may/june • 2015

60PLUS S5

60PLUS feature

HE IRONMAN TRIATHLON CONSISTS of a 2.4-mile swim,

112-mile bike ride and a 26.2-mile run. Surely, one might think, such a feat of athleticism would explode the joints of a human over, what, 40? Not so, at least for the super-human. Mariana Phipps will be 71 this coming May. She’s a mom to three boys. Heck, she’s grandma to six children. Yet, she’s still a top competitor in one of the world’s most grueling test of human endurance. Phipps was a swimmer as a girl, but couldn’t compete in high school or college in pre-Title IX days. By the time she started taking classes at Creighton University, it seemed that her serious days as an athlete were behind her. “I was a pretty good, heavy smoker, and didn’t even think about doing any sports,” she says. “I had kids and I was busy.” When her husband found out he had heart disease, they both quit smoking. However, she says, when you quit smoking, you need to do something else, “otherwise you blow up pretty fast.” She got back into swimming, and since many of her fellow swimmers were runners as well, she took up running and, later, bike riding. Phipps ran her first marathon at age 51 in 1995 in Lincoln. She did her first Ironman at age 56 and qualified for the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii in her first year of qualifying. She routinely finishes in first or second place for her age group in triathlons and won the World Championship for her age group in Hawaii in 2005. Kurt Beisch, who works as the race director for Race Omaha, a Nebraska non-profit organization in the multi-sport industry, says the World Championship in Hawaii is like the Super Bowl for triathlons. Race Omaha puts on several annual racing events, including the Omaha Triathlon, the Omaha Women’s Triathlon, and the Omaha Kids Triathlon. The competitors, Beisch says, are definitely an eclectic bunch. “They range from newbies, first-time multisport athletes, to very decorated nationally ranked athletes,” he says. The women’s triathlon field is made up of about 38 percent first-time athletes, which makes for a great amount of camaraderie. Indeed, Phipps says, the triathlon competitors make the sport a very social one. S6 60PLUS

may/june • 2015

This may seem a bit odd for an activity that, on its surface, seems to depend entirely on the individual’s stamina and endurance. But competitors feed off each other’s enthusiasm. “We have a very good brotherhood of triathletes here in Omaha,” she says. “And I am fortunate enough to know a lot of younger ones and more mature ones.” Beisch, who is also a decorated triathlete, estimates that about 15 percent of the participants in the field at the events are aged 50 or older, and some of them are some of the most accomplished athletes in the country. “[They] make me look like a gradeschool triathlete compared to the achievements they’ve had in the course of their lifetime,” he says. Older competitors, he says, have an advantage in qualifying because there are fewer of them, so there’s less competition. But more so than the competition, Beisch says, triathletes experience a great sense of accomplishment and that “coming across that finish line is an event. “You have covered a lot of ground, you have pushed yourself in different ways and you have competed in three events,” he says. Phipps has worked for Nebraska Furniture Mart for the last 39 years, and the company has been very flexible with her hours to allow her maximum training time. When getting ready for a triathlon, her weekly schedule involves two swims, two bike rides, and two runs. She trains 10-20 hours a week for an

Ironman and may bike up to six hours a day (though shorter triathlons don’t require as much training time). She gives the impression of someone who really knows her stuff. In spite of the many jokes she makes about her age, there’s a quickness and vitality to her manner. She’s also, it seems, just about unstoppable. She has a plate and several screws in each arm and a visible scar running down from her wrist. Before one event she broke her foot and couldn’t take painkillers because painkillers can cause kidney damage. She competed anyway. This year, she plans on competing in the Boston Marathon for the sixth year in a row. In 2013, she was having a great race and was approximately four blocks from the finish line when the race was stopped and she was escorted to safety. Later, she saw the local Boston media’s coverage of the bombing from her hotel room. “It was grotesque. Just blood everywhere. Obviously, people crying and moaning. It was just horrible.” However, there wasn’t any hesitation about returning the next year. “It wasn’t even a question about going back,” she says. “We weren’t about to let the enemy stop our dreams.” So what keeps her going? Part of it, Phipps says, is that you compete against yourself. “You can’t compare yourself to what you were 10 years ago, 20 years ago, 30 years ago,” she says. “Every time you enter a new age group you have to think it’s almost like a whole new ballgame. “Luckily, they have age groups every five years. You think of yourself as trying to stay as fast as you can in that age group, and it’s the one thing that you look forward to getting older…because let’s face it, getting older is not fun. But, when you do go over that next hump, into the next age group, then you realize it’s a whole new set of personal records for your age. That helps a lot.”

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60PLUS S7

60PLUS hobbies by ryan borchers

Past Lives Omahans Increasingly Are Digging Into Their Family Histories S8 60PLUS

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HEN WE RESEARCH OUR genealogical histories, we sometimes

find we’re related to some pretty interesting people, says Max Sparber, Research Specialist for the Douglas County Historical Society. Before Sparber, who is adopted, investigated his own history, he knew his biological parents’ ethnicities. But that was it. Then he did some digging. “I found out that I have a great deal in common with my biological mother,” he says. Sparber and his mother both attended the University of Minnesota where they studied theater and journalism. She became an expert in Irish studies. Sparber writes frequently about Irish-American studies. He also learned he had long owned a book written by his biological mother long before he knew who she was. The thrill of discovering such an ancestor—or maybe learning that you’re related to someone famous—may pique many people’s interest in family history. Regardless of the reasons, though, genealogy has turned into a wildly popular pastime in the United States. >

< According to ABC News, as of 2012, genealogical research is the American people’s second favorite hobby behind gardening. It’s an industry worth about $1.6 billion. “I think everyone has their own reasons,” Sparber says about why so many people are interested in genealogy now. “[They’re] just looking for their own story.” Sparber says the interest is driven by popular media like the television show Who Do You Think You Are? There’s an attraction to discovering your ethnic identity, and many enjoy the elements of mystery and puzzlepiecing. Ease of use has played a big role, too, with things like birth records and newspaper articles going digital. DNA tests can help pinpoint who your ancestors are. Two or three years ago, such tests might have cost $1,000, but now popular websites like Ancestry.com and Family Tree DNA will perform them for less than $100. For Omahans interested in learning their genealogical histories, resources like the Greater Omaha Genealogical Society, which is affiliated with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, may help (the Church has long been interested in genealogy and can accept members into its faith posthumously). The Douglas County Historical Society, Sparber says, fields requests related to genealogy daily. Twenty to 30 percent of what the organization does involves genealogy, and it has access to many records that haven’t been uploaded digitally. The society’s archives hold Douglas County records that date back to the mid-1800s, including city directories that identify where people lived and what they did for a living. Most people who investigate their genealogical histories hope to find that they’re related to royalty or movie stars, Sparber says. In Omaha, people sometimes hope to be related to criminals. Locals come with family stories about ancestors who were bootleggers or brothel owners, and they often hope the stories are true. One woman, Sparber says, wanted to find some information about an ancestor from early Omaha who was a doctor. Sparber found a newspaper article that identified a man who went by the same name as the woman’s ancestor and who was, indeed, a doctor. He was also the first man in Omaha to be arrested for murder, though he claimed self-defense and was never charged. Sparber says the woman was “thrilled.”

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Speaking Out and Standing Up The story of Omaha’s first black fire crew

Marvin Ervin

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60PLUS history by robyn murray •

photography by bill sitzmann

ARVIN ERVIN KNOWS HIS history. When I first

met him at a Hot Shops exhibit in 2012, he carried a black folder brimming with photographs and old documents under his arm. “I keep my history around with me,” he said with a grin. Ervin had worked on a display of his collection that details the story of Omaha’s first African American fire crew. Established in 1895, it was not the first black-only crew in the country (though it was among them), but it was the first to succeed. Its founding is a story of a great orator and a community willing to stand up for what it needed—it’s a proud history that Ervin wants remembered. Now retired, Ervin was as a longtime fire captain in the Omaha Fire Department. He grew up in segregated South Carolina where he saw the country’s tense racial history unfold first-hand. (His high school class in Anderson was one of the last to be integrated.) In Omaha, he started digging into this city’s racial history, and after years gathering documents by word-of-mouth and scouring old newspapers and tattered photographs, he has built up a small treasure trove. It’s currently exhibited as a portable display, and Ervin, along with the Omaha Black Firefighter Phoenix Foundation, is in talks with Great Plains Black History Museum to find a permanent home.

“There’s nothing “like learning your own history.” ”

The story Ervin has accounted begins with his favorite character: Dr. Matthew Oliver Ricketts. Nebraska’s first African-American state senator, Ricketts was born to enslaved parents in Kentucky. After moving to Omaha, he became one of the first African Americans admitted to Omaha Medical College, and in 1892, he was elected to the state legislature, where he served two terms. In a handbook published in 1895, Ricketts was described as “one of the best speakers in the house” and a “ready debater.”

“What really amazed me about him was they were talking about his oratory skills,” Ervin says. “He was probably one of the top legislators in the state of Nebraska at the time. He came from slavery, educated himself, and then [became] the best at what he did.” Ricketts made his mark in the legislature. He was instrumental in Nebraska passing a civil rights statute in 1893 (even while the South set up Jim Crow laws) that prohibited discrimination and provided “equal privilege” to all Nebraskans. When he petitioned the state to establish an all-black fire crew, the community rallied behind him. “The African-American community back in 1895 had enough…power that they could go and petition the city and…get black firefighters hired,” Ervin says. “They had businesses and homes, and they wanted some protection.” The Omaha Negro Fire Department Company moved into its new fire station at 27th and Jones streets in 1895. Other cities had hired black crews, but they didn’t last. Omaha’s succeeded until it was officially integrated in 1956. But the men had to work by different rules. The black fire crew was always

the first to arrive and the last to leave. The men had to clean their own equipment and that of all the other stations. And sometimes, they had to stand outside while a building burned. Some white patrons didn’t want black firefighters to enter their homes, so they had to fight the fire from outside until the white crews arrived. When Ervin joined the fire department in 1992, he could still feel the impact of its history. He was 38 years old at the time; he had 20 years of military experience, a bachelor’s degree, an EMT certification; he scored well on written tests and passed the physicals. But he was still an affirmative action hire. And he was often the only black firefighter in the station. But being able to place his experiences in the context of history encouraged him to get past them. “Even the small things that happened to me, I could kind of laugh at it and move on,” Ervin says, “because of what I know those guys had to put up with before me to get me to where I got to be. “There’s nothing like learning your own history.” may/june • 2015

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60PLUS cover feature by sandra martin • photography by bill sitzmann

Dr. Antoinette Turnquist “A Living Legend” after 51 years with Omaha Public Schools

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HE ’S BE E N DE SCRIBE D AS “Dynamite.” “Amazing.”

“Unique.” “A Living Legend.” These are just some of the words Dr. Antoinette Turnquist’s former students use to describe her and the difference she has made in their lives. What makes one teacher stand out among so many others, and make such an impact on his or her students…an impact felt even years later? It might be her basic teaching philosophy: “Every student matters; every student can learn,” as she puts it. Or, her “great joy in watching them learn…watching them discover things.” Whatever the reason, these glowing remarks are about someone, surprisingly, who never even wanted to be a teacher. Dr. Turnquist, a teacher in the Omaha Public School System for 39 years (19642003), says she had planned to go directly to graduate school for a Master of Fine Arts degree. “I wanted to become a producing artist,” she explains, “but I took just enough

education courses to be certified as a kind of insurance policy.” That, of course, was before she ever stepped into a classroom. “I did my first semester of student teaching,“ she recalls, “and fell in love with it…with the kids, with the process, with the whole concept of public education.” She adds, “I myself was a product of public education, but I had never fully comprehended the significance of it until I stood there in front of all those waiting faces.” Her long and illustrious teaching career began with three years of teaching in both the old Monroe Junior High and McMillan Junior High schools and ended at Omaha South High School, where she taught for 36 years. And though her teaching days are over, (she admits she misses her students), she is still indirectly impacting them…52,000 of them, to be exact. In 2003, her dedication to public education led her, quite naturally, to the Omaha Public Schools district office, where she served as

Coordinator of Business Services. In 2008, she was named Director of Business Services, and today, she is the Executive Director of District Operational Services, responsible for the many support services for all district students. Todd Andrews, who works with her as communications director at the district office, says, “At 50-plus years with OPS, Dr. Turnquist is one of the living legends of the district. She has humbly and energetically dedicated her entire professional life to educational excellence. The district is extremely fortunate to have her.” Looking back on her teaching days, Dr. Turnquist fondly recalls that “one of the first things I discovered at South High was their wonderful diversity, which included Hispanic and Latino as well as Caucasian students, and the whole philosophy at South, which was to implement programs for every student.” She started out as an art teacher, serving as department chair for the Visual Arts > may/june • 2015

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war & Chuck Hagel battles for a future free of the quagmires of the past.

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Peace

< department. One of her former students, Jeff Koterba, a 1979 South High graduate, also recalls those days: “I took Toni’s art classes, and if not for her, I wouldn’t be the artist I am, but more importantly, the man I am,” says Koterba, the longtime editorial cartoonist for the Omaha World-Herald. “Because of her belief in me, her patience and her wisdom, I found a better path, the path I was meant to follow.” Eventually, she chaired the newly-created Fine Arts department, which included Visual Arts, Theater, Drama, Vocal Music, Instrumental Music, and Humanities, giving students many new opportunities, including working at Opera Omaha on local productions. “It was an exciting time to be a teacher,” she recalls, “as we looked for new avenues of education for our students.” That goal, in fact, led to her and another teacher creating a new course for young women, so they could see what opportunities were available to them, and also to learn about their own history. They called it “Women’s Studies,” and “it proved to be a very popular class.” Another former student, in fact, can personally attest to that. Lenli Corbett, a 2001 South High graduate, says, “Dr. Turnquist’s Womens’ Studies class was incredibly important to me, to my development as a woman and as a future professional. She brings out the best in you…not every teacher is able to do that.” When asked if she considers herself successful (her list of achievements include Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers (1994), among many others), Dr. Turnquist quoted Lee Iacocca, who said, ‘Your legacy should be that you made it better than it was when you got it.’ Thus, I would say yes, I think I have been successful both as a teacher and as a central office administrator. What anyone else might think about my success along that line is anyone else’s call, not mine, and I am quite comfortable with that.” Turnquist says she has no plans to retire anytime soon, either from OPS or her 50-plus years of working as a visual artist. “Some may think it’s strange,” she says, “but I still like getting up every day, getting dressed, and trying to make a difference.”

When it’s time to talk, we can help. Sometimes the only thing more uncomfortable than having the conversation about retirement living, is not having the conversation about retirement living. Fortunately, we’re here to help with information and advice that can make a potentially awkward situation—just a little bit easier. Now is the perfect time to give us a call at 402-829-2900 or visit ImmanuelCommunities.com. Together, with your family, we will help you find a place that’s uniquely your own.

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60PLUS health by Susan Meyers

Joint Griefs How to Keep Your Knees Healthy and Pain-Free

F YOU’VE NEVER COMPLAINED of

knee pain, consider yourself lucky. The knee is the largest joint in the body and one of the most commonly injured. While acute or overuse injuries are the most common causes of knee pain, arthritis is also a common source of discomfort. To avoid knee pain and injuries, there are some things you can do to help keep your knees healthy and strong, says Dr. Beau Konigsberg, an orthopedic surgeon at Nebraska Medicine. One of the most important of these is to maintain a healthy weight, says Dr. Konigsberg. Losing as little as 5 percent of your body weight can dramatically reduce your chances of developing knee arthritis, which is the most common cause of knee pain among people in their 60s and 70s, says Dr. Konigsberg. It is estimated that every extra pound you pack on puts about four extra pounds of pressure on your knees. S18 60PLUS

may/june • 2015

Staying active is also key to keeping the knee joint supple and to prevent injury, he says. A knee that isn’t used stiffens and the muscles around it will weaken. Maintaining flexibility, as well as regular strengthening exercises is also important. Focus on the muscles and tendons that connect directly to the knee, such as the hamstrings and the quadriceps, which help support the knees and reduce stress on the knee joints. There has also been a lot of attention in the news surrounding glucosamine and chondroitin. “While there have been no studies that have proven these supplements can regrow cartilage or slow the degenerative process,” says Dr. Konigsberg, “some people swear that they provide some relief of knee pain.” If knee pain becomes debilitating, it might be time to consider a knee replacement. Thousands of knee replacements are performed each year, and for many people,

they provide significant relief and a return to mobility, notes Dr. Konigsberg. If you have lost weight, tried anti-inflammatories and cortisone injections and still have significant pain that may be waking you up at night, it may be time to consider a knee replacement. “A knee replacement is considered only after all other treatment options have been exhausted,” says Dr. Konigsberg. For 70-year-old Dennis Chin, a knee replacement allowed him to resume his favorite pastime—playing golf. Chin had injured his knee several times in high school sports and had undergone several arthroscopic knee surgeries. Over the years, the pain in his knee returned and gradually got worse. When he retired, he stepped up his golf game, which made the pain worse. “I was using my club as a crutch and taking Aleve everyday,” he says. But when the pain began waking him up at night and he could barely get through a golf

game, Chin knew he had to do something. Dr. Konigsberg took X-rays and said there was so much damage that his only real option was a knee replacement. Chin had a knee replacement in January 2013 and was back on the golf course by March. Now he plays five times a week and sometimes twice a day. “I have no pain and I’m not limping anymore,” says Chin. “No one can even tell that I had an operation.” Chin couldn’t be happier. He’s doing what he loves and that’s what retirement is all about.

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60PLUS faces by april christenson •

photography by bill sitzmann

Memory Lane “Mr. Memories” Joe Taylor croons the classics.

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HE WAY JOE TAYLOR became

“Mr. Memories” sounds a little like a scene from a movie. One afternoon in the spring of 1994, he was working in the Council Bluffs thrift store he’d owned for many years. In walked a woman who would change his life forever. She was a special education teacher planning an event for 300 students and her entertainment had fallen through. “Heck, I can come down and do a show that will fill in about 30 minutes for you,” Joe offered. That might sound a little crazy, but this wasn’t Joe’s first time on a stage. In fact, you might say he’s a born performer. As a kid, growing up in 1930s and ‘40s, he’d climb on a bench in the backyard of his family home and pretend he was on stage. Later, as a teenager, his older brother and sister would take turns driving him to resorts in the Catskill Mountains where he’d sing with the house bands. He always dreamed of making it big as a singer, but life had other plans. He met and married his wife of nearly 60 years, Jan, and they started a family. Joe’s musical ambitions took a back seat to the responsibilities of being a husband and father. Then, on April 28, 1994, after a near-40year hiatus, Joe put on a tux, dusted off his singing voice and became “Mr. Memories.” He sang the songs of his heyday—Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and the like—and by the end of the month he’d booked three more shows. During his third performance, a hat was passed around and, at the end of the show, there was 31 dollars inside. “I went home and told Jan ‘They paid me!’ and I’ve been singing ever since,” he says with a chuckle. Soon he was making more money performing than he ever had operating the thrift store, so in 1996, he sold it and became a full-time entertainer. Today, he books from 10 to 20 shows a month—for the elderly and disabled, corporate events, birthday parties, weddings, and more. He gets paid for doing what he loves and it can be incredibly rewarding. Once during a performance at a retirement center, Joe remembers a woman sitting in the front row who looked thoroughly unentertained throughout the show. But then, afterward, something surprising happened.

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She came up to him and, with a tear in her eye, said, “Thank you for helping me remember that I was young once.” “You can’t put a price on that,” he says. Another woman hired him to sing at her birthday party every year from the time she turned 102. She lived to be 108. “Every year she’d say, ‘See you next year, Joe!’” he laughs. “I was starting to think she’d outlive me!” Hanging in his home, among photos of him performing at various venues, is a cartoon drawing of Mr. Memories being trailed by three little old ladies with cartoon hearts floating above their heads. He loves every minute of it. “If you love what you’re doing,” he says, “you never work another day in your life.” may/june • 2015

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photography by bill sitzmann

The

Torn Page M

Y KIDS GREW UP not

knowing the complete story of the Dr. Seuss classic, The Cat in the Hat. And until recently, my preschool-age grandsons didn’t either. That’s because the last leaf of our copy of the book, the one containing pages 59 and 60 of iconic illustrations and copy in the author’s trademark bouncy cadence, had been torn from this childhood masterpiece in the long distant past of at least 50 years ago. The copy that my wife and I had read to our own kids was a prized hand-me-down from her family’s library, a treasure trove of musty children’s literature. We had scored this forgotten stash in 1980 simply because we were the first in my wife’s family to reproduce. The funny thing is that it mattered not to us that our kids never knew, as the legendary commentator Paul Harvey was prone to say, “the rest of the story.” The good doctor’s magnum opus, you see, is actually better with its final two pages missing. Read it to you own kids or grandchildren that way and I think you will agree. S22 60PLUS

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In our truncated world of the impish feline that unleashes havoc with Thing One and Thing Two, the story ends: Then we saw him pick up All the things that were down. He picked up the cake, And the rake, and the gown, And the milk, and the strings, And the books, and the dish, And the fan, and the cup, And the ship, and the fish. And he put them away. Then he said, ‘That is that.’ And then he was gone With a tip of his hat. Done. Game over. Fade to black. Read the unabridged version of the story and the perfect symmetry of the book is interrupted by shifting the focus from where it belongs—the circular arc of the narrative where a series of crazily convoluted hijinks is sublimely bookended by the most dramatic of entrances and exits.

Besides, there is no power in having a character—the mother, in this case—speak for the very first time only in the last-gasp stanzas of a work. And have you ever noticed how she is given almost the final word when she is, in fact, much better left to be something of a cypher, that disembodied set of nylonclad legs in high heels that only suggests the presence of a calming authority figure in the author’s otherwise chaotic world? After all, it is her very absence that drives the plot. Mostly to preserve and protect for future generations our moldering copy of our grandsons’ favorite book, we finally caved and bought a crisp, new, un-smelly version. I have read The Cat in the Hat in its entirety to the kids exactly once before since abandoning that anticlimactic last leaf. Their puzzled looks were more than just a reaction to the introduction of what, to them, represented an incongruous, even silly, plot twist. No, these discerning young minds know a good story when they hear one.