Historic Omaha

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THE OMAHA
HOME FOR
BOYS
Right: Jimmie King, the Home’s first boy.
Bottom, left: The boys with the Home’s
Superintendent from 1934 to 1943, William
Nielsen.
Bottom, right: The boys enjoying a lunch
break at the farm during the 1930s.
Past Presidents of the
Omaha Home For Boys
James A. Noble
1921-1934
William M. Nielsen
1934-1943
Jesse G. Arnold
1944-1949
Strengthening Youth & Families Since
1920. Nestled in a northern corner of the city
lies one of Omaha’s best-kept secrets. The
well-manicured lawns, tree lined streets, and
lovely brick homes have been home to more
than 5,000 boys since 1920.
It was Columbus Day 1920 in the turbulent
years following World War I, twelve men were
meeting, all members of Masonic Lodges in
Douglas County, to address the growing need
of caring for neglected, orphaned, and
abandoned youth. The meeting that evening—
a climax to months of hopes, plans and
dreams—resulted in the incorporation of what
is known today as The Omaha Home for Boys.
That spirit of community involvement and
heartfelt need, put into action in 1920,
continues to be its hallmark today.
Boys have come from every corner of the
United States, beginning with the first boy,
Jimmie King. King’s mother died when he was
four years old. Jimmie was sent to Omaha to live
with an aunt until his fourth grade year when he
became the first boy to enter the Home.
Tinley Combs, an orphan himself at the
age of seven, was the first president of the
Home. Combs, a prominent Omaha jeweler,
truly understood taking diamonds in the
rough and mining jewels. At his funeral in
1941, six of the older boys from the Home
served as his pallbearers.
The legacy has continued. A number of
prominent local citizens have provided
leadership to the Home throughout its history.
Following Tinley Combs, the Reverend Carl
M. Worden, James A. Noble, Harry Bruner,
Charles W. Amidon, and the current President
John Furstenberg. Under their leadership, and
the board of directors, the Home has grown
from that first house acquired in 1921 to
today’s graceful, spacious fifty-two-acre
campus at Fifty-second and Ames; from the
nineteen boys in residence that first year to the
thousands who have found comfort here since.
Each year the Home cares for more than a
hundred boys. The campus provides a haven
for the abused, abandoned, and neglected.
Helping these boys to thrive, becoming better
neighbors, friends, sons and fathers.
The campus is more than a place to live; it
is a place where the boys are treated as family.
All of the boys attend public schools close to
the Home and are encouraged to attend their
preferred House of Worship each week.
W. Harry Bruner
1949-1975
Charles W. Amidon
1976-1990
John C. Furstenberg
1990-Present
HISTORIC OMAHA
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