Howdy, Omaha — it’s Jeremy.
Earlier in my career, I feared the courtroom. The baffling procedures, the black-robed judge, the blankly staring bailiff, the strict no-phones rule — all of it intimidated the young reporter I used to be.
When I finally began spending time observing court, I realized why so many journalists have made careers out of it. If you know what to watch for, it’s a place where dramatic and important stories constantly reveal themselves. Maybe Dick Wolf (of “Law & Order” fame) was onto something.
A few months ago, I was sitting in immigration court — perhaps the hardest to follow of all courts — when I heard a judge remark to a lawyer that the court was “so backed up” with cases.
It reminded me about a story I had read years earlier about the Omaha court’s nation-leading backlog. If the backlog was massive back then, what did it look like now amid the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown?
After poking around and sitting in more hearings, I found that a subset of the hefty docket was dominating the court’s attention in a way I’d never seen. The detained docket, where jailed immigrants with pending cases end up, had grown exponentially since Trump’s return to office, requiring an all-hands-on-deck approach from Omaha’s three main judges.
Immigration lawyers say their clients are now waiting longer behind bars, leading many to submit to deportation. Meanwhile, ICE is urging undocumented immigrants to self-deport before they ever get taken to jail.
Read my story here (or click the photo above).
— Jeremy Turley, Flatwater Free Press
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Omaha’s got some great events coming up in early December: from spiritual cacao ceremonies to neighborhood power hours, cultural food justice, holiday block parties and even dogs begging (politely) for story time. Whether you need grounding, giving, culture, creativity or a little furry therapy, Omaha’s got something that will pull you off the couch and into the moment. Don’t worry about choosing wrong; every event on this list is a win for your soul.
Neighborhood Power Night: Giving, Growing, and Grounding Together
One Omaha is rolling out a night that blends celebration, strategy and the kind of neighborhood magic you can’t fake. They will award $10,000 in mini grants, debut their next decade’s strategic plan and double every dollar donated up to $5,000, because Omaha’s power grows block by block. Expect light bites, bold ideas and storytelling that will make you want to join a committee and call your neighbors.
When: Dec. 2, 6-8 p.m.
Where: 2120 N. 30th St.
Ceremonial Cacao Meditation at Lauritzen Gardens
Step into Lauritzen Gardens for a 90-minute reset that feels like a warm hug for your nervous system. This ceremonial cacao meditation blends guided breathing, journaling and a rich, antioxidant-packed drink that’s basically hot chocolate with a passport and a purpose. Come ready to release stress, spark creativity and leave feeling like your spirit finally caught up on sleep.
When: Dec. 2, 6-7:30 p.m.
Where: 100 Bancroft St.
Furrrst Friday
Kick off your Friday by reading to pets who think you’re basically Beyoncé with a book. Kids and adults can grab a story, pick a pup, cat or critter and help lower their stress levels while boosting your own. Expect treats, library surprises and enough furry eye contact to warm your whole month.
When: Dec. 5, 3-6 p.m.
Where: 8929 Fort St.
15th Annual Christmas in the Village at 24th & Lake
North Omaha’s biggest holiday tradition returns with five hours of pure joy, where the streets fill with music, local vendors and the kind of neighborhood energy that makes you feel like you’re walking inside a Christmas card. From kids dancing in puffy coats to elders catching up over cocoa, it’s the annual reminder that culture, community and celebration live right here at 24th & Lake. Come ready to shop, laugh, reconnect and catch a little holiday magic.
When: Dec. 6, noon-5 p.m.
Where: 24th & Ohio to 24th & Burdette
All People’s Pantry: Culturally Inclusive Food Pantry & Free Health Clinic
Start your Saturday with heart, culture and a grocery list you won’t find at any traditional pantry. All People’s Pantry offers everything from teff and fufu flour to fresh produce and rice noodles, plus free health screenings and flu shots, because care should match the community it serves. Doors open early, the welcome is warm and the mission is dignity for every neighbor.
When: Dec. 6, 8:30-11 a.m.
Where: 4444 Frances St.
— Xavier Jackson is an Omaha-based entrepreneur who connects creatives and forges more opportunities for them through his organization Local Art Plug.
Before I started auditing an aviation class at UNO earlier this year, I had never really thought about how pilots are made. I guess I figured some babies were born with Aviators on their faces and deep, droning voices to tell passengers “We’re beginning our descent into Dallas, 74 degrees, partly cloudy …”
In fact, becoming a professional pilot is an arduous and costly endeavor that chews up and spits out most people who attempt it.
Recently, I caught up with two of UNO’s ace students, Tyler Thieman and Thomas Reid, to learn what it takes to earn one’s wings.
Tyler’s introduction to the profession came in fifth grade, when he researched and made a presentation on becoming a pilot for a school assignment. But for the Malcolm native, it felt more like a faraway dream than an attainable goal, he said.
At 17, his dad offered to let him take a discovery flight with an instructor in Beatrice, and it changed the course of his life.
“That was a mindset-altering thing,” Tyler said. “Everything else just fades away, and your sole purpose is flying the plane.”
Thomas, the son of an Omaha pizzeria owner, picked up an interest in flying from an unlikely source: the YouTube algorithm.
As a youngster, Thomas got hooked on videos of mid-air disasters, and the algorithm just kept feeding him more airplane videos. He took his first discovery flight at 12 and got hooked on flying a real plane.
Thomas chose to attend Burke High School because of its unique Air and Space Academy, where he studied under Patrick Ryan, the same instructor who taught us to use the flight simulator in Part Two of this series. During his senior year, Thomas joined an elite group of the program’s alumni to get his private pilot license before graduation.
When asked to describe the life of an aviation major, they both landed on the same word: “Busy.”
UNO’s pilots-in-training must complete 120 credits like other students, but they also have to earn certifications that require time behind the yoke.
After the private pilot license, you still need an instrument rating (for flying in bad visibility), a commercial license, a flight instructor rating and a certification for flying multi-engine planes.
Just to get the commercial license that allows them to make money, students need 120 hours of flight training, and they don’t come cheap. The going hourly rate for renting a Cessna 172 around Omaha is $178, plus $55 an hour for an instructor, Tyler said.
The high costs and rigorous coursework cause many students to drop out, but for those who make it through, getting paid to fly is finally within reach. After working as an instructor and then at a regional airline, pilots can move up to the “majors” — big airlines like Delta and United.
Tyler said he might like to fly corporate one day and take executives from a private company wherever they need to go. Thomas dreams of flying a hulking “wide body” to international destinations.
“Mainly, I’m just looking at staying at the airlines, building seniority and eventually flying overseas like three times a month,” Thomas said. “I want my Biscoff, flying at 35,000 feet to Europe.”
Despite the hurdles to becoming a pro pilot, Tyler and Thomas said they feel lucky to be UNO aviation students. A reminder of that came for Tyler last week when he rented a plane and got a bird’s eye view of the Northern Lights.
“That’s something you can’t do if you’re another major,” Tyler said. “We get awarded opportunities that wouldn’t be possible if we weren’t doing this program.”
Join us next time when I’ll tell you about an incredible extracurricular that Tyler and Thomas have taken on to compete with other young pilots. Click these links to read Part One, Part Two and Part Three of the series.
I’m a big fan of karaoke. If I’m in a new city with a group of friends, finding a place to sing to a captive, slightly tipsy audience is always high on the to-do list. I’ve gotten pretty good at “Don’t Stop Me Now” by Queen and “Wuthering Heights” by Kate Bush. And I’ve honed those skills at the best place in town.
Every third Saturday, Pageturner’s Lounge at 50th and Dodge hosts karaoke. My good pal Carl Erickson is a consummate KJ (that’d be karaoke jockey for the uninitiated). You don’t seem to get many showoffs there. Some people bomb. One night after Bright Eyes canceled a show, the Conor Oberst pilgrims migrated to his bar to sing angsty deep cuts much to the dismay of the regulars. But that’s what makes karaoke fun. It can be good, bad, painful and funny (sometimes all at once), but above all, it’s always a good time.
I missed last week’s karaoke night, but I’ve got Dec. 20 circled on my calendar. Hope I see you on stage, and always remember to tip your KJ.
— Chris Bowling, Flatwater Free Press
Omaha Public Schools faces a $61 million budget shortfall to make up for an overpayment in state aid the district received last year. The district’s CFO said the magnitude of the mistake, and what it will take to fix, is difficult to comprehend. The district can make up about $54 million of the shortfall by maxing out levy increases, writes Luna Stephens at the Omaha World-Herald. (You may need a subscription to read this story.)
Federal authorities accused 13 people of murder, assault, firearms trafficking and maintaining a criminal enterprise as part of their alleged connection with an Omaha gang. The 23-count indictment is the largest prosecution under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO, in Nebraska in nearly a decade, writes Molly Ashford at Nebraska Public Media.
The Omaha Public Power District has proposed increasing rates by at least 5% every year until 2030 due to rising costs and energy demand, John Chapman at WOWT reports.
The Omaha Streetcar Authority is considering giving companies up to $4.5 million in bonuses if they can speed up streetcar construction, which has taken a toll on local businesses, reports Jill Lamkins at KMTV.
Reporters, community members and city leaders got their first look inside Omaha’s new main library at 72nd and Dodge streets. The $158 million project is one of the largest recent library investments in the U.S., writes Jessica Wade at The Reader.
A group of men have found camaraderie and lessons in perseverance through a run club at an Omaha prison, writes Nebraska Public Media’s Ashford. Recently, they completed a half-marathon after running 26 laps around a public service road at the Omaha Correctional Center near Eppley Airfield.
The Flatwater Free Press is published by the Nebraska Journalism Trust, a 501(c)(3) public charity