"He built better than he knew."
Those words, on a metal plaque in the Shrine Cottage, attest to Tinley
Combs'
place in our Home's history.
It took many people to start this Home in 1920 . . many ideas . . many
contributions
. . many types of involvement.
But Tinley Combs was the leader of these people; he was selected as the
first president of the new corporation.
Born the son of a Methodist minister in Fairfield, IA, in 1870, Tinley
was
orphaned at the age of 7. He was raised by a guardian and then moved to
Omaha in 1889.
He began selling jewelry door to door, saving enough money to start his
own jewelry store in downtown Omaha. The T.L. Combs Company was
incorporated
in 1898 and grew to become one of the finest jewelry stores of its
day.
Mr. Combs was active in the Methodist Church and became very prominent in
Masonic circles. He joined the St. Johns Masonic Lodge and later became
a charter member of Mizpah Lodge. He obtained the 32 degrees of Scottish
Rite Masonry, and was honored in 1915 with his 33rd degree. Tinley Combs
was potentate of the Tangier Temple Shrine in
1919, one fact which helps to explain the tremendous financial support
the
brand new Home was to receive from the Shrine starting in 1920.
It was Tinley Combs who obtained permission from the potentate in 1920 to
use the word "Masonic" in the new Home's name - to show the
allegiance
of the founding fathers.
Tinley Combs served as president for 22 years, until his death in 1941.
Six of the older boys from the Masonic Home served as his
pallbearers.
Our Home grew from the 1920 dreams of many caring friends. Tinley Combs
- truly - "built better than he knew".
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History always pays special attention to who "came
first".
It was not James King's desire to be the first boy in a new home for
children,
certainly - nor was he aware how well known his name would be 75 years
later.
James Alfred King was born November 22, 1910, in Superior, NE. His mother
died when he was 4, and Jimmie was sent to Omaha to live with an
aunt.
He was a 4th grader in Florence School until March 21, 1921, when he was
the first boy to enter the new home.
James did well at Central Grade School, almost all A's and B's, and later
that year, he returned to live with his aunt. And there the story might
have ended - but a chance look
at a Superior phone book 64 years later took the search for our first boy
back to that small town on the Kansas border.
We now know that in the 1929-30 school year, Jim King - a high school
junior
- lettered in football and was a high scorer in basketball, and with
exceptional
abilities in music and dramatics he was in many singing groups and had
leads
in school plays and operettas.
A world of promise and opportunity lay ahead. Or so it seemed.
Newspaper accounts the next year told of a one night hospitalization for
influenza. He had a good night and seemed much improved, so all were
shocked
when his father stepped into his room at 8:30 the next morning and found
him dying.
Just 19 years old and only a high school senior, James King passed away
on September 25, 1930.
This young man, whose life we recall fondly because he was OUR
"first",
was laid to rest in the King plot, Evergreen Cemetery, Superior, NE.
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The J.C. Robinson Seed Company of Waterloo, NE can be called - and
rightly
so - our oldest corporate friend.
The friendship began in the early 1920's when the company offered some of
its most productive ground to the new Masonic Home for the boys to grow
their own produce.
Wonderful movies still exist showing our boys working their way through
the fields - in the background is a milk processing plant, a building
which
still stands east of Highway 275 north of Waterloo.
"I recall all the work was done with a hoe and a corn knife"
George
Bigelow would later write, "I can't recall any mechanical equipment
at all. Weeding was the worst part, the knees would get sore and dirty .
. .".
J.C. Robinson, born in New York State in 1861, had settled in Douglas
County,
NE with his wife Mary in 1886.
He started the seed company in 1888 and by 1905 had prospered enough to
build an 8,000 square foot, 3 story home next to the business. The
elegant
mansion still stands on
Lincoln Avenue - and now serves as a Bed and Breakfast.
J.C.'s friendship for the new Home came about as a result of his love for
children - he had 2 sons who carried on the business - and his love for
Masonry. He was the 1919 Master of Waterloo Lodge, a Shriner and a 33rd
Degree Mason.
Support of the Home continued after his 1928 death, as first his sons and
then his grandsons took the reins. Loaning land to grow crops on gave way
to the donation of
seed corn so even more lands could yield results. Each year the Robinson
Seed Corn Company renews the pledge made by J.C. so long ago . . . that
it will do whatever it
can, whenever asked, to help children in need.
J.C. Robinson . . a man, and a symbol of caring.
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A special debt of gratitude is owed to James A. Noble.
He took over leadership of the Home during its first year of infancy, at
a time when an emergency situation called for an immediate rather than a
gradual, planned takeover.
He guided the Home for 13 years, from 1921 to 1934, and helped move it to
the Megeath House on South 33rd.
And he filmed . . . Mr. Noble was among the earliest "home
movie"
buffs in the country . . . his roaming camera caught hours and hours of
movies of the boys in the Home - a tremendous record of our early
years.
Born in Omaha in 1890, Mr. Noble was the Physical Director of the Grand
Island, NE YMCA before returning to Omaha to become a juvenile court
officer.
This position brought him in contact with the new Masonic Home, which he
was hired to head in 1921.
Ironically, when the Nobles moved to the Home to live, they left a house
on North 47th Avenue, just a short distance from farm land that would one
day be called Inspiration Hill.
His 13 years with the Home were hectic ones; his own family was growing,
and he always had at least 40 other "sons" of all ages and
sizes
to contend with. With a minimum
of help, at least by modern day youth care standards, Superintendent
Noble
carried the load on his broad shoulders.
Crippling arthritis forced an early retirement in 1934, and he took his
wife and three boys to a new home in far northeast Omaha. James Noble
passed
away in 1965.
His legacy lives on, however. Sixty years after the Nobles left the Home,
Harold Noble, James' youngest son, donated the family's beautiful oak
furniture
from the Megeath House era to The Omaha Home for Boys for its new
Visitor's
Center historical display.
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It was not unusual for George W. Bigelow to pose for pictures and
answer
questions about the Home . . .
As the oldest returning alum at our Reunions he was always sought out,
but
each time he graciously gave up his own time and pleasure to help the
Home.
That was the way he was.
Orphaned at the age of 12, George Bigelow found his way to the Masonic
Home
for Boys in 1924 and was to stay until 1929. George's written
recollections
are our best accounts of life in the Megeath House in the 1920's.
"I tell people we were fed, clothed, housed, bandaged and punished
when required", he once wrote, "but no one kissed the sore
finger".
Nevertheless, the foundation George received was to stand him in good
stead
- he graduated from Tech High and then obtained a law degree from Omaha
University in 1939.
Following a stint in the Army during World War II, George moved west and
took up the real estate and insurance business in Cozad, NE. He was on
the
city council, president of the Chamber of Commerce, and active in the
American
Legion and the Presbyterian Church.
He became Judge Bigelow, a Dawson County Judge from 1964 until retirement
in 1978.
Three children came from his 1941 marriage to Kay Johnson, and in 1982 he
married Beth Bowman Wright, who always accompanied him to the Home's
Reunions.
When George Bigelow passed away in February, 1994, many Memorial Gifts
were
sent to The Omaha Home for Boys.
George Bigelow . . . orphan, resident of our Home, lawyer, businessman,
community leader and judge.
In the words of Beth Bigelow - "a very proud man, and much credit
was
given to the 'Masonic Home for Boys'".
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America was moving West - but some stopped to lay roots.
James G. Megeath, a Virginian aged 30, stopped in 1854. He opened a
general
store and this led into a very profitable business as a developer with
the
Union Pacific Railroad. He dabbled in local politics.
In 1895 he built an 18 room mansion, by one account "one of the most
beautifully situated in Omaha". Its address would be 2137 South 33rd
Street at a later date.
James Megeath died in 1906. By then George Windsor Megeath, one of his
five
children, was well established in the coal and mining business. Windsor
School, in the Windsor Addition to Omaha, were named after George W.
Megeath.
In 1923 the Masonic Home badly needed larger quarters, whereby George
donated
the family home in memory of his father, James. For a brief time even, by
request, the Home was "The James G. Megeath Masonic Home for
Children".
At that time, James E. Megeath, George's son, purchased land way west of
town at 90th and Dodge.
There he constructed on his Long View Farm the "last" Megeath
House. Located at 617 North 90th, it was dubbed the "House of a
Thousand
Windows" when opened in 1924.
George W. Megeath lived there until his death in 1931. James then moved
to Wyoming to manage a coal business.
The Megeath House on 33rd was sold to a church in 1945 and is now a paved
parking lot-playground. "The House of a Thousand Windows" is
law
offices - a designated Landmark.
Megeath Office Supply here still bears the family name, but all the
Megeaths
are long gone.
The most imposing family mausoleum in historic Prospect Cemetery also
bears
the Megeath name . . . in it are those who laid roots here, and decided
to stay till the end.
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Our early Superintendents did it all - raised the boys, raised the
funds,
ran the business operations and supervised the facilities. William
Nielsen
was the last of this breed.
He was on the Board of Trustees from 1926 to 1933, while working at the
Union Pacific Railroad. Then, in 1934, he became the third Superintendent
in the Home's history.
For 9 years, from 1934 until 1943, Bill Nielsen and his wife Amelia
"did
it all", as they guided the lives of hundreds of boys and held the
Home together through the worst days of the Great Depression, problems
with
the Elkhorn Farm, and the acquisition and development of the new
property.
Even Father Flanagan had to disband operations briefly during the
Depression,
to send his boys elsewhere to live for a time . . . Bill Nielsen didn't.
His doors stayed open.
It is Bill Nielsen who is fondly recalled by many as the man who
"rescued"
them from Riverview Home - it was he and his wife who fostered the
togetherness
of "family" which rang so true in the Megeath House era.
The Nielsens lived in a small brick building (formerly the Home's
"hospital")
at the rear of the property.
As, one by one, their boys went off to war the Nielsens felt the pride of
parents anywhere. The many letters and pictures sent back showed their
closeness
to the boys they raised. When one, Robert Barnbrook, did not return, the
grief was beyond imagination.
But all things come to an end, and Bill Nielsen left the Home in 1943. He
returned briefly in 1953, as Dean of Boys, but his health was failing. He
passed away late that year.
Bill and Amelia Nielsen - they "did it all" and helped a young
home grow to maturity.
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Earl Collins has always led by example.
"We had the leadership of fellows like Earl Collins" pens one
of our 1940's boys, in an essay on the Masonic Home . . Earl was a
pallbearer
for our founder, Tinley Combs, in 1941 . . four decades later our newly
formed Alumni Association elected Earl its first president.
Breakdown of his family in 1934 resulted in 9 year old Earl Collins
coming
to the Masonic Home to live.
While with us, he did INDEED lead by example and his quiet, self assured
manner held him in good stead until graduation from Tech High School in
June, 1943.
The U.S. Navy followed - at war's end Earl was in a V-6 program to become
a Navy pilot. Returning to Omaha, he enrolled in Creighton University and
graduated in 1950 with a degree in Marketing and Finance.
There was time for courtship and a 1948 marriage to wife Marjorie - four
children and seven grandchildren (at last count) were to come after this
marriage.
Earl's life's work at Guarantee Mutual Life Insurance Company began in
early
1950 and continued until he retired in 1990 as an Assistant Vice
President.
Along the way Earl and Marge found time to serve their church, to travel
all around the country (often visiting other alumni) . . and to spearhead
our Alumni Association.
Earl was at first president by himself, then shared the office with
another
alum, and in 1994 stepped down from his position so "the next
generation"
could take over.
His are some of our best recollections of life at the Megeath House, and
some of our best perceptions of the Home. He continues, whenever asked,
to lead by the example that so impressed the others in the Home more than
50 years ago.
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For more than 2 decades, the entire operation of the Masonic Home had
been under the leadership of the Superintendent - who was the head of
direct
care of the boys as well as all other administrative functions.
It was 1942, the Masonic Home was 22 years old and - finally, the Board
decided - it needed a separate manager for its administrative and
fundraising
business.
The Home was, after all, in a $100,000 campaign to secure pledges for
buildings
on the new campus at 52nd and Ames, and $28,000 was desperately needed
from
the Fall Maintenance Campaign to support current operations.
Jesse Arnold was hired for 6 weeks to coordinate that 1942 Maintenance
Campaign,
and over $33,400 was raised, well above the original amount sought.
He was the right man at the right time. His hiring became permanent - our
first "General Superintendent", a position later to be known as
"Executive Director".
Mr. Arnold was not new to boy care. A 60 year old native of Kansas, he
had
long been associated with YMCA camps in Colorado and in fact had started
his own Byers Peak Ranch west of Denver in 1932.
Jesse and May Arnold moved to Omaha in 1942 when his future with the Home
was made permanent. He led the Home through the completion of its
building
campaign, the
construction of cottages, and the 1945 move to 52nd Street.
"He can properly be called the father of the Home" said John
Changstrom,
after Jesse Arnold's untimely death as a result of a 1949 stroke . . .
"I
don't know what we're going
to do without him . . .".
The Home managed, but Jesse HAD laid a solid foundation. A brass plaque
here proudly honors his memory.
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Darwin Nelson's big toothy grin won a lot of hearts.
As a boy in the Home from 1942 to 1947, his wide smile often found its
way
into the Home's publicity pictures - plus Superintendent Jesse Arnold
liked
to take him home on Sundays to enjoy dinner with the Arnold family.
Things hadn't always gone so well . . .
After the police had picked up 7 year old Darwin at a downtown movie
theater,
he was taken to the Riverview Home detention facility. Riverview, Omaha's
worst answer for
homeless youth, was famous for its "strapping room", where tape
on the floor showed children who were to be punished where to lie.
Small wonder he felt "rescued" when the Masonic Home took him
away from Riverview.
Darwin's years at the Home were busy ones - there was nearby Hanscom Park
to enjoy, the boys' band, Boy Scouts, many close pals - and those Sunday
dinners with the Arnolds.
He was in the Home when it moved from the Megeath House to the new
cottages
on 52nd Street in 1945 - over 40 years later when he visited the Scott
Cottage
he could still name the boys who had lived in each room back in 1947.
Darwin left to live on an uncle's Iowa farm and he graduated from
Clarion,
IA High School in the early 1950's. A year at a Colorado college was
enough
for him.
He returned to Iowa, married a girl from Fort Dodge, and they had 6
children.
In 1955 the Nelsons moved to Omaha, where he has run his house painting
business ever since.
On a visit to the Home, Darwin was surprised and delighted to find so
many
of his boyhood pictures . . . he ordered copies so the boy with the big
toothy grin could be enjoyed by new generations, his children and
grandchildren.
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"Buck boys" - the term will always have a special
meaning.
For almost 50 years, the Buck Cottage was the home of our youngest boys
- 6 to 12 years old. Therefore, "Buck boys" were younger,
littler,
went to bed earlier, enjoyed fewer
privileges . . . in short they were the "small fry" of the
campus
and were treated accordingly.
The term fell out of use in the 1990's when we started to mix boys of all
ages into all cottages.
Earl K. Buck owned and operated shoe stores in Omaha - stores which were
called "Buck's Booteries".
He and his wife Louise lived in the fashionable Saint Regis Apartments at
621 South 37th Street, on the south edge of Omaha's "Gold
Coast"
section.
Their Masonic affiliations, and their love for children, combined to make
them natural friends and supporters of our Home - and during the 1941
campaign
to raise funds for
buildings on the new campus, Earl Buck was one of the first 3 sponsors to
pledge at least $15,000.
His name is engraved in stone as a result, over the front door of the
Buck
Cottage. He also funded a paved play area.
Louise Buck's frequent visits to "her boys" were marked by her
thoughtfulness and caring - when she brought Christmas presents out for
the 16 Buck boys, each gift was wrapped in a separate wrapping paper all
its own. Each boy was different!
Earl Buck passed away in 1973, Louise in 1976. By the 1990's there were
still Buck Shoe Stores on Farnam Street and on South 24th Street, though
the connection with
the Buck family had long since ceased to exist.
But all over the country there are still "Buck boys", testimony
to the enduring memory of Earl and Louise Buck, two loving people who
cared.
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The Megeath House was growing old, and the Masonic Home needed a new
campus. One of the most desirable properties around Omaha was obtained in
1941 in a very fortunate real estate transaction.
The 60 acre Solomon Farm, out along narrow country roads northwest of
town,
was surrounded by a dairy farm and cornfields. There was a beautiful view
in all directions, for the land was located on one of the highest hills
around.
A flagpole was erected on the peak of the Hill in June, 1941 and the Home
built a utility building which was to serve as headquarters for future
growth
at the new site.
Felix Carpenter - known to all as Carp - was hired in March, 1942, to
guide
the development of the new property.
For 3 years Carp and his wife were the lone residents of Inspiration
Hill,
living in the utility building, except for boys from the Megeath House
who
came out to help.
There were trees to plant, land to make ready, and crops to raise. The
orchards
were ripe with fruit.
It was a treat to visit and help Carp, who was a favorite at the Home. He
had a special way with boys.
Carp was joined by the others in July, 1945 as the Home changed campuses.
But history was to repeat, and five years later he moved to the Cooper
Farm
to help establish the Home's presence on that new campus.
He retired in 1956, but continued for many years afterward the fall trips
to Nebraska ranches to pick up calves donated for the growing 4-H
program.
Carp passed away in 1964.
"There should be a monument for Carp" more than one former boy
has stated.
There is . . in the warm memory of this caring man who helped carve our
two campuses out of Nebraska farmland.
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Henry Neef was a man "of steel".
He started his professional career as a draftsman, and later was the
founder
of the Gate City Steel Company.
His pride and joy was his home in the Minne Lusa section of North Omaha.
Located at 2884 Iowa Street, it is a bit of a North Omaha landmark yet.
Built at the junction where Iowa Street runs into Martin Avenue, it is a
large, stately home with unusual steel trim ornaments.
Surrounding the pie shaped lot is a tall steel fence, and . . . true to
his profession, Henry Neef's home was made of steel as well - the steel
is covered by a brick and stucco
veneer which blends in with the older neighborhood.
Mr. Neef later built another home, again of steel, high on a hill on the
River Road north of Omaha.
A member of John Mercer Lodge, Henry Neef became active with the Masonic
Home. He served on the Board of Trustees from 1944 until his death in
1950.
Mr. Neef was Chairman of the Construction Committee for the new campus on
52nd Street - it was this committee's proposal that the new Home start
with
5 cottages for 16 boys each, the plan which was adopted by the Board.
The sponsors of the new Home's first cottages each contributed $15,000
toward
building construction; then the sponsor's name was placed over the front
door for all time.
The Henry B. Neef Cottage was one of the original three cottages built on
Inspiration Hill.
Mr. Neef was President of the Board of Trustees at the time of his
passing
in October of 1950.
On Memorial Day, 1951, residents of the Neef Cottage held hands in a
circle
as Henry Neef was remembered with the planting of a oak tree - to honor
the man "of steel".
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"There are 4 corners on my bed, there are 4 angels overhead.
Matthew,
Mark, Luke and John, please bless the bed that I lay on. . . Now I lay me
down to sleep . . .".
It was ritual in the Buck Cottage, as Mabel Stoft went from room to room
to lead her boys in their nightly prayers.
Many people, boys and staff alike, have fond memories of this special
lady
who touched a lot of lives at our Home.
At 60 years of age, she lived in her comfortable home in the Minne Lusa
section of North Omaha when she became an employee of the Masonic Home on
August 1, 1943.
Mrs. Stoft used her experience raising children to good effect in the
Megeath
House, where there were over 40 boys of all ages at any given time. She
was the matron, but one of her additional duties was as breakfast cook as
well.
One young fellow with special memories recalls being chosen quite often
by Mrs. Stoft to make the toast for the day - by placing sliced bread on
flat pans which were headed
into the oven. No elaborate toaster for the Megeath House.
Then came the move to the new campus in July, 1945, and Mrs. Stoft was
placed
in charge of the Buck Cottage - all alone, the housemother for our 16
youngest
boys!
She was up to the task.
Mrs. Stoft was made a relief housemother in 1955 and placed in charge of
the clothing program. She continued to work for the Home until October,
1968 - an almost unheard of
25 years in direct child care. Retirement at age 85!
On her departure, the Board honored her with a written proclamation and
by funding a trip to visit relatives.
Mabel Stoft - mother to hundreds, remembered by all who knew her. She
was,
indeed, up to the task.
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Each year they keep coming.
Nowhere is the tradition which means so much to our Home more evident
than
in the actions of our Sewing Ladies.
Their story of support goes back to our very founding, when the
"ladies'
touch" kept our young boys in the clothing they needed to appear in
public.
Coveralls were "standard issue" for boys in the 1920's and
1930's,
but each youngster always had his "Sunday Best" as well. There
were always socks to mend, and rips or tears to repair . . . and patches
went on patches in those days.
The gracious ladies of the Eastern Star Chapters and York Rite and
Scottish
Rite Women's Clubs really got organized in 1923.
Each year, since then, they have met in an annual ritual which has become
a tradition all its own.
A special breakfast is held in February, hosted by the Executive Director
and the Director of Campus Programs. At it the representatives of each
organization
"pass the hat" and draw out the month for which their group
will
be responsible.
One of our smallest boys salutes them all in a written proclamation which
declares our gratitude for their service.
And then . . every Thursday morning . . the ladies start coming, each
group
during its appointed month. Clothing to be mended has been left in the
Dining
Hall . . the ladies come, do their work, eat lunch and leave for another
week.
A very favorite Thursday is the one when the ladies bring birthday cakes
so the evening meal can celebrate all the birthdays for the month
together.
These wonderful ladies are a part of the tradition that makes us strong
- with a sense of love and caring, and devotion to boys, which goes on
from
year to year to year.
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His was a life which ended too soon.
Richard Bennett was born in Omaha in 1932, the oldest of 7 children. Each
of the Bennett children was eventually adopted out to a new family or -
in Dick's case - placed
first in Riverview Home and then the Masonic Home for Boys.
He entered our Home July 23, 1943 - 10 years old.
The camera almost never caught Dick with a smile on his face - he
appeared
"older than his years" - but by most accounts he was a happy,
outgoing child. And full of life.
Many recall his artistic ability - Japanese warplanes were a specialty -
and the way he raced cars across the basement of the Scott Cottage. They
tell of the time the boys strung a wire from a window to the slide in the
playground, and lit model planes afire as they made their way down the
wire.
Surely Mrs. Herrin, the housemother, never knew that.
Poor Mrs. Herrin, the victim of Dick Bennett's most famous prank. One
evening
as she listened at the bottom of the stairs to see if the boys were
quieting
down in their rooms, Dick helped to lower a fishing line from the railing
atop the stairway and snatched off Mrs. Herrin's wig!
By the time she charged up the stairs and began a room to room search for
the culprit, Dick had exited the window, re-entered another room by the
fire escape, and was "sound
asleep" when Mrs. Herrin finally got to his room.
A classic. Even Mrs. Herrin must have laughed - later.
Richard Eugene Bennett - 15 years old and with a future as bright as
anyone's
- was hospitalized for a kidney ailment in February and he passed away
April
15, 1948. His funeral was held in the lounge of the Shrine Cottage two
days
later.
A life which ended too soon, the promise of a brighter tomorrow never to
be realized.
But also never to be forgotten. His grave in Forest Lawn Cemetery is
visited
faithfully by a few who remember, and during a recent trip to Omaha a
brother
and sister of Dick
Bennett came to the Home . . to look at pictures, to talk . . and to
visit
the Scott and the Shrine Cottages.
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"Come down out of that tree!" yelled Cal Reichart.
"You can't make me!" came the response.
"That was all I needed to hear" Cal declared about 40 years
later.
"The only thing slowing me down going up that tree was taking off my
belt at the same time . . .".
Youth care - 1950's style - was applied quickly, and the two were the
best
of friends ever after.
Cal Reichart started work at the Home in 1948, when he was hired as
Assistant
Superintendent. The 52nd Street campus was only a few years old, and a
"new"
Home was emerging.
He always carried a thermometer with him in those days - you never knew
when that would come in handy - and at the end of his work day each
evening
he made his nightly rounds, stopping at each cottage to make sure
everyone
was alright.
A favorite visiting place was the stairway in the Buck Cottage, listening
to our smallest boys say their prayers upstairs - Cal's eyes would
moisten
decades later as he mentioned this special memory.
There was never a truer friend to the boys in our Home.
Cal and Leona left the Home for a few years and then returned, to become
houseparents in the Herd Cottage and later at the Cooper Farm.
Retirement came in 1985, and the Reicharts left Inspiration Hill for an
apartment in northwest Omaha.
But Cal visits often - how else could he make a squirrel feeder for the
Buck Cottage, bring ice cream bars or watermelon for the lawn crew on the
hottest days, or help in the 4-H gardening project?
He was honored in 1993 when an annual award was started in his name - the
Cal Reichart Hard Worker Award.
Cal Reichart . . . one of a kind . . . an OHB Classic.
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It was June, 1951, and hundreds of people had gathered for a barbecue
and a chance to see the boys' new living quarters at our new farm
campus.
The speaker was too long-winded in his praise of the man who had made the
whole event possible.
Bob Cooper had heard enough.
"Pipe down, let's eat" he bellowed, abruptly cutting short the
formal part of the day's program.
That was the way Bob Cooper was, a no-nonsense "let's get it
done"
type of man.
That was the way it had been 3 years earlier when his barber at the
Livestock
Exchange Building had first interested him in a home for boys on North
52nd
Street.
Cooper then visited on a Sunday morning and he chuckled when Cal Reichart
guessed we could handle as many as 7 calves in our rabbit hutch. Seven
calves
were donated to the Home shortly thereafter for the start of a 4-H
program.
But a rabbit hutch wouldn't do for what Bob Cooper had in mind - in 1950
he donated his 80 acre stock farm on Mormon Bridge Road to the Home for
its second campus.
And beginning in 1951, hundreds and hundreds of boys came to enjoy the
advantages
of life on the farm, doing daily chores, working with animals, away from
the hustle and bustle of the city.
Bob Cooper . . . cattleman, bank owner, and a friend of boys . . . died
in an automobile crash in early 1957. He is buried in the family plot in
the cemetery in Pilger, NE.
The Cooper Memorial Farm - 4-H training ground, popular picnic location
for thousands of visitors every year, and the home of Cooper Village -
stands
as his monument.
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Ed Young is grateful, and he shows it.
His association with the Home goes back to 1950 when - with brothers
Dennis
and Ron - he came here to live.
The association continues today - when we wanted a narrator for our
second
video, "A TIME FOR PRIDE", thoughts turned to Ed, who was
delighted
to help us out.
And each summer, as Omaha hosts the 8 teams competing for the
championship
of the College World Series, Ed is instrumental in getting one of the
teams
to come to the Home for a steak fry and for an evening of mixing with our
boys.
It is one of the year's highlights here, and no one has more fun in the
crowd of college athletes, coaches and our boys than Ed Young.
Ed graduated from high school in 1958 and then attended the University of
Nebraska at Omaha, where he received a B.S. degree in Business
Administration.
After college he worked for the phone company for a few years, had a
brief
career in the radio business, and then, he says "I became intrigued
with real estate business and decided to enter that field".
It was a choice well made.
In real estate since 1971, Ed is Chairman of the Board of Home Real
Estate,
Omaha's largest residential real estate company.
Wife Diane - they were married 30 years ago - and Ed recently moved to a
new home in a Southwest Omaha subdivision developed by, of course, Home
Real Estate. They have 3 children and are "proud
grandparents".
"I am forever grateful to the Home for the care and attention
provided
me . . ." says Ed Young - and he shows that gratitude in more ways
than one.
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In her own words . . . "a frightened widow walked up the cinder
path through the pasture and made her way around the Circle and to the
front
door of the Shrine Cottage..".
It was September, 1949, and Margaret Staska had walked to the Home to
apply
for a job. She was hired as a secretary by Superintendent John Glassey,
and together they worked out of the Home's "office", a small
room
just inside that Shrine Cottage front door.
It must have been meant to be, for Margaret Staska was to spend the rest
of her working days - 35 years - here.
One thing was for sure, the "frightened widow" who walked up
the
cinder path was to put her mark on the Home.
Margaret became an institution . . . to more than 1,400 boys she helped
raise, to the many bosses she outlasted, and to others she encountered as
she scurried about the Home's business.
A fast pace was her trademark, for it was not her style to waste time. In
one famous episode she entered one door of the Executive Director's
office,
stated her opinion, and got an "OK" before she was out the
other
door - ready to tackle another pressing issue.
To most this lovely lady was known, simply, as "Staska".
A problem in the Buck Cottage? Call Staska . . . Al could use a little
extra
money for the prom? See Staska . . . The Alumni need a sparkplug to get
organized? Get Staska.
Margaret Staska retired in 1984, and a few hundred friends and associates
hid in the basement at the Cooper Farm to honor her with a surprise
"This
Is Your Life" salute.
"I feel that the Good Lord blessed me when He sent me up that path
in '49", she was to write later.
How many people shared in that blessing!
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The Home needed a more businesslike approach. We had become a big
business,
after all. It was 1952, and we had two flourishing campuses, a nationwide
base of support, and the boy count was at an all time high.
It was time to put this new force, this new, growing "national"
home for boys, on a sound, businesslike approach.
John Changstrom, a bank vice president and member of our Board of
Directors
since 1929, was appointed in an extraordinary move to become General
Manager
of the Home.
In this function, by Board Resolution he was given "full authority
to manage and supervise all operations of and all personnel employed by
this Corporation".
John Changstrom went about his business by separating the Home's
functions
into working departments, establishing an independent fund raising
subsidiary
- the Inspiration Hill Department - and by establishing budgetary and
monetary
controls over all phases of the business.
It was, truly, a businessman's businesslike approach . . . just what was
necessary as the Home was growing to maturity.
His two year stint as General Manager capped nearly 30 years of service
to the Home: Board member 1929-57. . Treasurer 1929-54 . . a leader in
acquiring
the 52nd and Ames property in 1941, selling the Megeath property in 1945,
starting the endowment fund in 1946, and founding the trademark name
"Inspiration
Hill" in 1953.
There was a "John Changstrom Day" celebration at the Home in
1954,
and an appreciation dinner was held on May Day, 1960, to honor him for
his
many years of dedication.
John Changstrom, the author of our modern day procedures and
organizational
structure, moved to Englewood, FL where he passed away in 1984 at 100
years
of age.
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"Charlie, you can never thank people too much . . ".
That was Harry Bruner's advice to Charles Amidon, his successor as
Executive
Director in 1976.
Mr. Bruner should have known, too, for he was the man who guided our Home
from 1949 through 1975 - from an Omaha based children's' home with a few
thousand Masonic supporters . . . to a "national" home with
hundreds
of thousands of supporters all over the nation. Many people to thank, and
often.
William Harrison Bruner was, in the 1940's, active as a Boy Scout leader,
and a pillar of Kountze Memorial Lutheran Church, Optimist International,
Florence Masonic Lodge and the Scottish Rite.
He was chosen in 1949 to be the Home's Executive Director following the
sudden death of Jesse Arnold.
The next 26 years were a storybook in child care . . . and in
administration
of a boys' home. To the millions of people who responded to his appeal
letters
in that time, he was
"W. Harry Bruner", the man whose letters - often sprinkled with
Biblical phrases - touched the nation's heart.
To the boys here, he was "Mr. Bruner", a friend they could
count
on. To the employees, "Mr. B", and to the Board, well,
"Harry
Bruner" was their kind of man.
In his tenure, we grew to 2 sites, doubled the size of each campus,
expanded
the opportunities offered to our boys, and set our Home on a solid
financial
base.
Everyone loved Mr. Bruner . . he retired in 1975, and our newest
residential
cottage bears his name.
His death, a tragedy during a blizzard in 1981, brought us all to tears.
In his memory, we recall Matthew 25:21: "Well done thou good and
faithful
servant . . Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord . .".
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When Tim Streitwieser takes on a job, he does it so well that others
won't let him quit . . . ever.
Several Alumni Reunions ago (we hold nationwide reunions every 3 years)
Tim was a committee of one to make all the food arrangements for our
hundreds
of guests.
Now, every 3rd year . . . "That's Tim's job" is all that needs
be said in our Reunion planning sessions. And Tim, as usual, did his job
- and well - at our August, 1995 Reunion.
Putting a vote of confidence in Tim Streitwieser is nothing new.
He came to our Home in 1962 at the age of 10, with younger brother Kevin
and older brother Jary - from a Nebraska town so small it eludes all road
map listings. And that's small.
Tim established a fine record at the Home, setting good times while
running
for the track team and posting high marks in school too - steady honor
roll
marks.
"Tim is one of the finest all around boys that we have had at the
Home"
reads a counselor's report in his file - that vote of confidence from a
longtime employee of our Home.
After finishing high school, Tim moved on to the University of Nebraska
- Omaha with help from the Harrison Scholarship set up in the Home's
scholarship
fund.
He found time to court future wife Bev during his college days - they
were
married in 1975 and a degree in Sociology came in late 1976. There are
two
sons, Tim and Jeff.
Since 1978 Tim has been employed by the Omaha Fire Department. And in,
1986,
the Department's vote of confidence resulted in his promotion to Fire
Captain.
Very soft spoken, Tim is a quiet, effective worker at any task he takes
on. It can truly be said he gets those votes of confidence the old
fashioned
way . . . he earns them!
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Fred Bromley came from the East Coast, bringing with him a pronounced
accent, and his never ending sense of humor.
"This would be a great place to work if it weren't for the kids and
the telephones" . . he was famous for that one. Or, taking a tape
measure,
"Let me see how long I've been here."
Coming from a children's home in Kansas, he was named our Assistant Dean
of Boys in 1963. Six years later he was appointed Dean of Boys, a
position
he held for 12 years.
The years were not dull - hundreds and hundreds of boys went through the
Home during Fred Bromley's time, but he was a man whose path they dared
not cross.
Of course, the Dining Hall was always alive with activity around dinner
time. And there Fred Bromley sat, in his corner chair in the foyer, a
half
an hour before and a half an hour after mealtime . . . keeping the
peace.
For minor infractions against the law, a boy stood under the clock in the
Dining Hall. For something more serious, he was put "on campus"
- no privileges and working without pay.
For the most serious problems, there were quiet rooms for the boys to be
in, time to think about the behaviors which got them there - or unusual
clean up jobs at Cooper Farm.
One can still see Fred Bromley - ringing the Dining Hall's bell to get
total
silence, the proper atmosphere for prayer.
Fred lived with his wife and four daughters in the High Twelve residence
- one of his proudest moments came as he walked daughter Emily across the
campus to her wedding on the patio where our flagpole stands.
He left in 1981 and eventually returned to his home state of Connecticut,
where his accent doesn't stand out, there aren't "those kids and the
telephones" . . . and he doesn't have to keep the peace anymore.
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In late 1969 a gift of $2,000 was received to start an annual award at
The Omaha Home for Boys.
The stated intent was to honor the Home's outstanding 8th grade boy,
selected
each year by a vote of the staff.
Jack Liike had come to us in 1963, a 7 year old boy from Iowa. He
compiled
a fine record in his first 6 years here and was "a natural" to
be, in 1970, the first boy to receive the very prestigious Wayne E.
Decker
Award.
He was "a natural" in other ways as well - he was a whiz in the
beginning electronics classes in high school, he attained the rank of
Eagle
Scout, and he was our highest ranking senior in the Benson High Class of
1970.
Following high school, Jack joined the Navy. He attended several years of
electronics schools before service on the submarine U.S.S. Lapon out of
Norfolk, VA.
When his enlistment ended in 1981, Jack decided to stay in the field of
electronics, and to remain in Virginia.
He obtained as Associates Degree in Electronics Technology and began a
career
with Bendix Electronics. After 14 years with the firm, Jack has been -
since
1992 - a Maintenance and Production Supervisor.
He is currently working toward a longtime goal - a college degree in
Business
Administration/Computer Information.
Jack has remained single through it all and resides in Hampton, VA, with
hobbies of music, animals (2 parrots, 2 cats and a dog), snow skiing and
bicycling.
Jack Liike - our first "Outstanding Eighth Grader" winner a
quarter
of a century ago - had never been able to attend a Home Reunion before
this
year's Special 75th Anniversary celebration in August.
And were we delighted to welcome him "Home" at last . . .
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Thank heavens he couldn't stick a needle in people. John Savage, born
in Denver in 1905, moved to Omaha as a youngster. After Omaha's Tech High
School he entered the
University of Nebraska as a pre-med student.
While he wanted a medical career, he found he could not stick anyone with
a needle - so a change of plans became necessary. He turned to the field
of journalism.
A reporting job turned to a career in photography when it developed that
no photographer could - or would - accompany him into the heat of battle
to get the picture. "He thought nothing of risking his life for the
picture" said one editor.
He became one of the premier news photographers in the country . . . a
photographer
of presidents, the winner of many awards. His pictures appeared in
national
magazines.
After 48 years in the newspaper business, mostly with the Omaha World
Herald,
50,000 negatives from pictures he took were donated to the Western
Heritage
Museum.
It is one of the finest collections in the country.
John Savage's Masonic ties - membership in Covert Lodge and active
participation
in the Shrine and the Scottish Rite - acquainted him with The Omaha Home
for Boys, and he became one of its strongest supporters.
He served as a member of the Home's Board of Trustees for an 8 year span,
from 1977 to 1985.
And he was a leader in the annual Maintenance Fundraising Campaign for
well
over a quarter of a century. Senator Savage (he served 2 terms in the
state
legislature as well) was a familiar face at campaign dinners until his
death
in 1989.
How fortunate for so many that a dislike of needles altered the life's
path
of this journalist, photographer, public servant and friend of the
Home.
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The late 1960's were troubled times around the country -
assassinations,
war protests, riots in the cities, youth rebellion . . . everyone seemed
to be mad at everyone else.
Just the time, in 1968, when 13 year old Mike Westphalen and his older
brother
Tony entered The Omaha Home for Boys.
Mike and some other Cooper Farm fellows decided to make their mark -
their
statement of youth rebellion, however mild - in music. They entered their
band in the local 4-H contest.
Only John Hlavka's account of this contest elsewhere in the book - his
vivid
description of what took place, and the reactions that followed - do it
justice.
There was Mike banging on the drums, shirtless due to the heat but with
a necklace of chains draped around him - not the image 4-H officials, who
anticipated patriotic or religious themes, wanted to portray.
No first place ribbon here, no matter how much the crowd had cheered the
performance. A white ribbon, last place, was the boys' reward for daring
to step out of the mold.
But the music went on. The fellows continued to practice, and following
high school graduation, their band played spots in Iowa and Nebraska
until
1977.
They then went their separate ways . . . Mike got married and settled
down
in a comfortable house in the Florence section of Omaha - 2 miles due
east
of Cooper Farm.
The necklace of chains is gone, and Mike is now a welder, a solid asset
to the community in which he lives.
Whether coaching his children's athletic teams, carting players to games,
serving spaghetti dinners in a church basement, starring in the annual
Florence
Melodrama, or
serving on the OHB Alumni Committee, he's always there.
A child of the 60's grown to a leader of the 90's.
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A most interesting character was Mr. John Owens.
"Character" meant in the very best sense of the word. John
Owens
was born in the Deep South, one of several children in a large family. He
served in the uniform of his country - he was particularly proud of that
- and he moved to Omaha where he became, ultimately, a chauffeur.
In 1973, John Owens took his last job - van driver for The Omaha Home for
Boys. Here, his job was to pick up the morning mail, make runs to and
from
businesses the Home had dealings with . . and of course to transport the
boys around to medical and dental appointments, or to special meetings or
obligations.
He was always on the move - maybe at a pace he chose to set - but always
on the move. Some of the outrageous caps he wore became OHB legends in
their
own right, and the high pitched "hee hee hee" that sounded when
he chuckled to himself cannot be done justice to in written
description.
But John Owens CARED, and when he had the undisputed attention of a boy
in their trips across town somewhere, the youngster knew he had a
friend.
John always supported the Home, and he came to its special events
"dressed
to the nines". The triple lot yard around his home, while not in the
best neighborhood in Omaha, was as neat as a pin, as immaculate as any
around.
His yard and his old Thunderbird - and wife Becky - were his pride and
joy.
John and Becky's farewell gift from the boys at his 1985 retirement was
- appropriately - a long limousine ride around town followed by dinner in
the best restaurant around.
Six years later, when Becky called to say "our John's not going to
make it", we paused in sorrow, remembering all this kind and quiet
man had meant to everyone at our Home.
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"Good morning, Al Maple here . ." the distinguished voice
resounded
over the phone.
It was to be our last direct conversation with Col. Alpheus Maple, a
longtime
friend of the Home.
By 1993, the Colonel had outlived everyone in his family, and he was
calling
to see if the Home would accept the memorabilia he had collected over a
long, colorful life of 90 years plus. We could tell there was little time
left to plan.
We were proud, of course, to agree to receive the entire Estate of Col.
Maple which was to consist of furniture, jewelry, guns, books, artwork,
china, foot lockers whose decals told of journeys around the world,
articles
he wrote, and his memoirs and pictures of a fascinating life.
Following college at the University of Chicago (we have his football
season
ticket for the 1923 season) Alpheus Maple led a life of many varied
interests.
He was a pilot, worked in New York City in public relations, he was a
professional
photographer, an artist, and a bridge builder for the U.S. Army in Africa
in World War II.
Alpheus Maple was a Mason, and he was born in Nebraska - two good
reasons,
he thought, to support our Home. He funded scholarships for our boys in
his late wife's name in the 1980's and he left funds for two $5,000
scholarships
to be awarded annually from now on.
Mementoes from the Colonel grace many of our buildings, and the prized
foot
lockers have accompanied Maple scholarship winners on to their chosen
colleges.
Not long after Col. Maple's phone call, we received the fateful news from
Virginia. This great friend of boys was buried with full military honors
in Arlington National Cemetery, August, 1993.
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On October 12, 1965 the 45th birthday of The Omaha Home for Boys was
celebrated happily in Omaha.
On that same day, half a world away, Quyen David Tu was born in Saigon
into
a world of war, family disruption and - at times - starvation. In the
roughest
of times, wild dogs and stray cats were eaten in order to survive.
South Vietnam fell in 1975, and 9 1/2 year old Quyen made it out just in
time . . he was brought to this country knowing 2 English words -
"Omaha"
- the city where he was to live, and "Conroy" - the family
which
would take him in.
But Quyen Conroy's rocky times were not over - after problems within the
family he was admitted to The Omaha Home for Boys in September, 1979.
On more than one occasion, Quyen "tested the system" at the
Home.
At one point he was near the end of his rope; only a handwritten note to
the Dean of Boys, asking for one more chance to make good, kept him
here.
He became a U.S. citizen in December, 1982, graduated from Benson High
School
in 1983, and immediately went to the University of Nebraska - Lincoln to
study accounting.
Four years of hard work, with a B+ average even while working part-time,
earned Quyen a degree in 1987. He then set his sights on California to be
near a brother, but first there was an emotional farewell at the Home .
. . his thank you for "a second chance, and even a third chance, to
make something of myself".
Quyen David Tu, who was pictured in the February, 1988 "Changing
Times"
magazine, now holds a fine accounting job in the Los Angeles area.
His life - from the streets of Saigon, at the Home, and in California -
is the fulfillment of the American Dream.
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Someone should write a book about Minnie Beedle . . .
A more staunch supporter of the Home never lived. Minnie Beedle was
widowed
at a relatively young age and left to raise her children alone. Her
children
. . . and countless numbers of the Juvenile Court's children as well.
For years she was a waitress in one of Omaha's larger downtown hotels and
then went home to care for her own family and to take in wards of the
Court
to raise as well.
"Someone had to take them in - we're all God's children, you
know"
she would say in later years.
Her reward, in addition to the small stipend county government gave for
such care, was calls, visits and loving "thank you" notes and
letters for decades afterwards.
It was our Home's good fortune - and the boys who lived here from 1973 to
1989 - that Minnie Beedle came our way.
She was the evening phone receptionist, she coordinated the volunteer
sewing
ladies who come in each Thursday, and she spent the better part of every
August "fitting boys to
clothes" for the new school year. Each boy was allotted only a
certain
amount of clothing for the new year . . and woe be unto him if, as
occasionally
happened, he tried to put one over on Minnie Beedle. No way.
Schoolgirls called during Minnie's watch to talk to our boys - a no-no,
which Minnie took delight in quashing. "They're up to no good, those
varmints" she'd laugh.
Minnie's fudge, jellies and pumpkin bread were famous - her gifts going
to boys who needed a lift after a hard time.
Boys cried on her shoulder, and she cried back with them.
Minnie Beedle retired her singsong "Omaha Home for Boys" phone
greeting in 1989; she passed away in 1993, and when she did a colorful
part
of our history left us forever.
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The Masonic Home needed additional help . . .
It had been financed from its start by pledges of support from many local
Masonic organizations. But only a few years later, some groups could no
longer meet their pledges.
The minutes of the Board of Directors show that it was decided in 1926 to
start solicitation each fall of INDIVIDUAL members as well. It was to
become
a fall ritual at the Home - the annual Maintenance Campaign.
The Maintenance Campaign is misnamed - it has nothing to do with
maintaining
buildings and grounds.
Rather, it has EVERYTHING to do with raising boys.
Its name aside, this yearly fundraising event - carried on by workers
representing
the various Lodges who "hit the streets" to secure gifts from
individuals and business concerns - was the lifeblood of the Home for
decades.
In the earliest years, the campaign provided the bulk of the funding for
the Home's program . . . and well into the 1950's it still provided at
least
half the annual budget.
The nationwide direct mail program changed all that . . . but the
Maintenance
Campaign exists to this day.
Its workers are our best local goodwill ambassadors.
And each fall, as a new campaign begins by setting goals and distributing
prospect cards, the commitment and dedication of this army of volunteers
is charged anew.
And the names of some of the storied leaders of the past - Claude
Clifton,
Chet Winslow, Wes Lindahl, Rudy Larsen, and Frank and Marie Dinges - are
linked with current leaders - Harold Irvin, Ed McLaughlin, Lyle Ward, the
Holmans, and Ted Phelps - in a common bond . . . helping children in
need.
And that is what, in its purest sense, The Omaha Home for Boys is all
about
. . . people helping people.
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