Omaha Area Events: Holiday Lighting

Holiday themed poster on wooden wall with dates and locations of different Holiday Lighting in the Omaha area for 2024. Text is below with additional information.

Holiday Lighting 2024

27 November, Wednesday, 6:00 pm

Christmas Tree Lighting & Holiday Parade at Shadow Lake Towne Center in Papillion.

The 17th Annual Tree Lighting & Holiday Parade starts at 6 pm with fireworks afterwards.

More information for this Papillion event at:
https://shadowlaketownecenter.com/

Shadow Lake Towne Center
7775 Olson Drive, Suite 205
Papillion, NE 68046
(402) 537-0046

29 November, Friday

Union Station Tree Lighting Ceremony with music and performances by Camille Metoyer Moten,  Bellevue Little Theater, along with crafts, cookie decorating, scavenger hunt and Santa.

This Omaha event runs 4:00 – 8:00 pm with tree lighting around 7:00 pm.

Best to get tickets early. Register online  or call 402-444-5071 by November 27.

More information at:
https://durhammuseum.org/christmas-at-union-station

The Durham museum
801 S 10th Street
Omaha, NE 68108
(402) 444-5071

29 November, Friday

Lights of Aksarben at Stinson Park features the Stinson Tower lighting, Santa, cookies, hot cocoa, face painting and more!

This Omaha event runs from 6:00 -8:00 pm

More information at:
https://www.aksarbenvillage.com

2285 South 67th Street
Omaha, NE, 68106

30 November

Winter Wonderland in Downtown Papillion has many pre-events happening as early as 10:00 am for an entire day of activities

The lighting ceremony begins 6:00 pm.

For more information and a detailed list of all the events at:
https://www.papillionfoundation.org/winter-wonderland-2024

1 December, Sunday

Santa’s Sleigh Ride & Tree Lighting  starts at 1:00 pm with the tree lighting at 6:00 pm

More information and detailed activities at:
https://www.cityoflavista.org/2165/Santas-Sleigh-Ride-Tree-Lighting

Omaha’s Original Greek Festival, 15-17 August

Enjoy Greek food, music and dancing at Omaha’s Original Greek Festival at Park and St. Mary’s Avenue.

St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox church in background, tent and road closed sign in foreground

This Omaha event runs 15-17 August and has some changes to the previous years.

1. It starts on Thursday.

2. It ends on Saturday.

3. It is cashless.

Thursday: 5:00 – 10:45 PM
Friday: 5:00 – 10:45 PM
Saturday: 11 AM – 10:45 PM

St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church
602 Park Avenue
Omaha, NE 68105

More information at https://greekfestomaha.com

Please share!

Omaha Event: Crossroads Festival, 4-11 August

From our friends at the Crossroads Festival:


We’ve got some thrilling news to share with you!
The Festival is happening right now August 4-11, 2024 and it is totally FREE this year!

Join us and get ready for a groundbreaking collaboration, exciting growth and a musical experience like no other.

The 2024 festival in 30 seconds!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amziWVhsZOw

Check our full schedule here!
Full Schedule
https://nebraskamusicfest.org/?mc_cid=2ca4454681&mc_eid=25a1dde421

with big SHOWCASE concert
at The Gene Leahy Mall at The RiverFront
on August 9th, 7-10pm

Omaha Event: Santa Lucia Festival Photographs

I am at one of my personal favorite Omaha festivals, the Santa Lucia Festival!

Enjoy great Italian food (mostaccioli with meatballs, mostaccioli with sausage, pizza, cannoli), bands and more!

Don’t miss out! Only today and tomorrow left. Weather is great tonight.

Little Italy
10th and William

More at:
https://www.santaluciafestival.com

 

Santa Lucia Arch with statue and throne
Santa Lucia Festival band stand
Special cart at Santa Lucia Festival

Omaha Event: Veterans in Business Forum, 19 July

 

Text for flyer is below

Veterans in Business Forum, 19 July 2024

Guest Speaker: Kiley Phelps

Kiley Phelps is the Small Business Development Centers, (SBDC) center director for the Omaha region. As an Omaha native, Phelps is passionate about helping the community grow. Phelps was previously a business consultant with NBDC and assisted business owners through all stages of the business development process, with focuses on business planning and financial analysis. Phelps also has prior experience in the fields of supply chain management and data analytics. She has earned her BSBA and MBA from UNO.

Nebraska Business Development Center:
The Nebraska Business Development Center (NBDC) provides confidential, one-on-one business consulting services to any Nebraskan entrepreneur or business owner seeking to start, grow, or transition a company through 4 programs of service. Most NBDC services are available at not cost. With locations in 8 cities across the state ensure accessibility of services to all Nebraskans.

During the July VIBF, Kiley Phelps of the NBDC will give an overview of Benchmarking and Market Research. Benchmarking and market research are vital for small business success. Benchmarking allows businesses to compare their performance against industry standards, identifying strengths and weaknesses to drive improvement. Market research helps understand customer preferences, market trends, and competitive landscape, enabling businesses to tailor their offerings and make informed decisions.

Time: 0800 – 0900 (8:00 AM- 9:00 AM)

Location: UNO
College of Business Administration
Mammel Hall, Room 117
6708 Pine Street
Omaha, Nebraska 68182

Contact: Michel Thornhill
info@littlemountainwebdesign.com

All are welcome to attend.
RSVPs are requested but not required.
info@littlemountainwebdesign.com

VIBF: Veterans in Business Forum
www.veteransinbusinessforum.org
402.932.7243

College Word Series Posts

ICYMI, Please enjoy our College World Series posts from this year with more to come!

Charles Schwab Field Omaha at night with white and blue sign lit and state at center

2024

Please check out our posts on the College World Series and share!

Omaha Interview: Alec Woockman, the Executive Sous Chef at Levy Restaurants
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-interview-alec-woockman/

Omaha Event: College World Series Food Tasting, 12 June
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-event-college-world-series-food-tasting-12-june/

Omaha Event: College World Series- Food Tasting-The Fan Food
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-event-college-world-series-food-tasting/

Omaha Event: College World Series Pre-Game Press Conference, 12 June
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-event-college-world-series-pre-game-press-conference-12-june/

Omaha Interview with Amy Hornocker, Executive Director, College World Series of Omaha, Inc.
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-interview-with-amy-hornocker-executive-director-college-world-series-of-omaha-inc/

Omaha Interview: Anthony Holman, Vice President of Championships & Alliances at NCAA

 

Anthony Holman at the CWS Food Tasting

Please, tell us about the NCAA and ways that people aren’t thinking of it, because there’s so much hard work that goes on there.

Yeah. I think one of the comments I mentioned during the press conference was about the excitement that these young men will have. It’ll be reminiscent of when they played Little League, right? They’re still playing for their institutions, for their teammates, and that’s still important to them, so we just want to make sure that that’s not lost in some of the other news media that’s going on around name, image, and likeness to (?) as employees. What you’ll see over the next two weeks is young men playing for the love of the game, and that’s what we’re excited about.

I think the balance of all those things is rather difficult to achieve, so…

Yeah, it is. I think certainly there’ll be thousands of fans here watching and cheering for them, and should they reap some benefits from that? And I would say absolutely. And I think that’s the model that we’re moving to.

Tell us a little bit about your background and how you came into your position.

Well, I’ve been at the National Office for 15 years now, all in Championships. Prior to that, I spent some time in professional sport and amateur athletics and high school association and the Olympic movement, so all in sport for over 25 years. But just working through various groups and departments and connections kind of afforded me an opportunity to join the NCAA 15 years ago.

What baseball memories would you like to share with us?

Oh yeah, so I was a baseball player growing up and loved the sport. It was my first love. I was a catcher and outfielder…really enjoyed the game. I really like the…it’s a team sport, but there’s an individual component. When you’re in the batter’s box trying to figure that out or a ball’s hit to you and how you have to make a play on that, and other people are relying on you. So I remember those lessons learned playing Little League, high school, collegiate league to understand and have kind of a connection with the young men who are playing now. So, but yeah, I could never have played at the level that these guys are playing at, so I’m a huge fan. I just really like to watch and enjoy their talent and their performance.

I think that’s really key and important, and I’m glad that you’re emphasizing the love of the sport and all of that. It’s hard to have that balance between running it and preserving it.

I really enjoy seeing you year after year and all your presentations, and I’m so happy that this is finally the year I was able to interview you. So thank you.

No, no. My pleasure, and thank you for your coverage and your support, for sure.

Thank you.

Omaha Event: College World Series Food Tasting, 12 June

A food tasting event was held after the Pre-Game Press Conference on 12 June.

Alec Woockman, the Executive Sous Chef at Levy Restaurants, presented his and his teams tasty offerings for the College World Series.

Alec Woockman with CWS NCAA sign in background speaking at the CWS Food Tasting

Transcript of Event by OmahaNebraska.com

Alec Woockman: I’m Chef Alec Woockman. I’m the Executive Sous Chef of the buildings here. I’ll walk you guys through everything we do around here.

So, first, on my right here, we have our Ancho Chicken Quesadilla. This is our house-seasoned grilled chicken, cheddar jack cheese blend, pickled jalapenos, cilantro and a chipotle ranch dipping sauce.

Next is our first hot dog. This is our biggest hot dog. We have a Footlong Frank and Bean Dog. So, this is a 100% beef, half-pound Omaha Steaks hot dog. A combination with hot dogs  and campfire baked beans, so we’ve loaded it up with campfire baked beans, bacon bits, diced red onions and some mustard BBQ sauce.

Our next hot dog is our Dinger Dog. Dinger Dog is—once again all of our hot dogs are 100% beef Omaha Steaks hot dogs. This has avocado on it. It has lettuce, tomato, red onions, bacon bits and roasted poblano crema.

Next up, we’re going to talk about our gyros. So, something new this year, we have a portable gyro cart, which we haven’t done in the ballpark yet and we’ll be offering two different types of gyros. So, we’ll have a traditional Lamb Gyro and a house-made Chicken Shawarma Gyro. So, we’ll have both to try. It’s naan bread, house made chicken shawarma, lettuce, tomato, onion. We’ve got cheese and then of course tzatziki sauce on it.

We have one loaded fry this year. Our loaded fry is the Moon-Shot Fries. So, it is crinkle-cut fries, jalapenos, cheddar and jack cheese sauce, sliced kielbasa sausage, bacon and onion jam, which we liked it so much we put that bacon jam on a few items today we’ll talk about, and then some fresh diced jalapenos.

So, next we have our first burger of the day. Our first burger is the Walk-Off Burger. It is a breakfast-themed burger. I think breakfast food, it’s good. Breakfast, lunch, dinner. We don’t have to confine it to just in the morning, but that being said, double headers, we’ll have folks walking around here at 11:00 a.m., so maybe they’ll need something to eat yet. So, we have an Omaha Steaks All Beef Patty. It is nestled between two pieces of grilled French toast. We have pepper jack cheese  and we have bacon, onion, and maple and bourbon jam. And then to round it all out, give a little acidity, we have a cranberry compote on there.

So, next we have our loaded brat option. So, this is our Mediterranean Loaded Bratwurst. So, basically, we take the same toppings we have on our gyros and put it on a brat. So, shredded lettuce, tomato, onion, feta, tzatziki. It’s a fresh take on a brat, which you can find, obviously, in any stadium.

So, next we’re going to talk about our shareable option. We always like every season to come up with something that you could buy and share with your kids or share with a couple of friends. So, this is our Stealing Home Colossal Pretzel. So, it’s this giant soft pretzel. There’s three different types of meat piled everywhere, so we have pork carnitas, chicken tinga, ground beef taco, our jack and jalapeno cheese sauce, and our roasted poblano crema.

We’ll move on over here to a few sandwiches here.

So, our last burger we’re going to talk about today is our Big Kahuna Burger. So, this is a Hawaiian-themed, you know, kind of tropical Asian take on a burger. So, we have that same Omaha Steaks burger patty, we have pineapple chutney, teriyaki aioli, cheddar cheese, and bacon.

Two different fried sandwiches here. First one we’re going to talk about is the Fried Chicken Club. This is more of a classic flavor combination, but just a new take on our fried chicken sandwich here in the stadium. So, we have lettuce, tomato, a heavily dilled ranch aioli, bacon, cheddar cheese on a brioche bun.

And the last sandwich, maybe my favorite sandwich among our concession sandwiches, is our Triple Play Pork Sandwich. This is a fried pork cutlet topped with two other types of pork called the triple play. So, there is smoked pork, and then that same bacon jam we’ve been talking about and some whole-grain mustard aioli.

And last but not least for our concessions’ items, we have our Everything Toasted Turkey Bagel sandwich, another item I think you know for our double headers, we have people walking around at 11:00 a.m. for that breakfast option at any time of the day. So, it is an everything bagel that is toasted, schmeared with chive cream cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickle, and a thick stack of smoked turkey breast. That kind of concludes our concessions food.

We have a couple of premium items too that will be available only in the suites, but I just wanted to touch on a couple of those.

So, we have our summertime fresh mozzarella, cucumber, tomato salad, balsamic glaze, basil. It’s just a nice new fresh salad for our suites. And a new salsa offering we’ll have upstairs is our roasted corn and black beans, salsa, house-fried chips.

And that concludes the food today. So, it’s a lot of concession items and premium things. I think we have a wide selection for everybody out there. So, we’re excited to be able to have all these offerings and hopefully give folks what they want. So, that’s all I have today.

 

 

 

Omaha Event: College World Series- Food Tasting-The Fan Food

Here is some of the food that is prepared for the fans!

Stealing Home Colossal Pretzel

This massive pretzel is sure to steal home and so big it might feed your team of four or more. With a hefty amount of taco beef, pork carnitas and chicken tinga for the base and three more tasting toppings (jalapeno jack cheese sauce, roasted poblano crema, pico de gallo) it is sure to be a crowd please and a win for team Levy and Alec Woockman.

The Big Kahuna Burger

This big boss of a burger is made with an Omaha Steak burger and is topped with bacon, cheddar cheese, crisp shreds of lettuce, and tomato. It also has pineapple chutney, teriyaki aioli delivering big flavor of the Pacific.

Walk-Off Burger(Left) and Mediterranean Loaded Bratwurst (Right)

This walk-off burger was my favorite. A hefty Omaha Steaks burger with a surprise. Instead of a bun, there are two slices of french toast!  No need to add ketchup or mustard, It’s perfectly balanced by the maple-bourbon bacon jam and cranberry compote. Definitely a walk-off for a burger. It’s also so hearty that you may also want to … walk it off.

Grilled Chicken Shawarma Gyro

Grilled chicken nestled in a warm naan, covered with crisp shreds of lettuce, tomatoes and onions. Add feta cheese and tzatziki sauce and you have another of the ethnic inspired dishes for this year.

Ancho Chicken Quesadilla

This was another surprise for me. While I enjoy quesadillas, a lot of them taste the same from place to place. Not this one! It’s the wonderful cheddar-jack cheese blend and chipotle ranch dipping sauce that give this a special depth of flavor that goes so well with the ancho chicken.

Fire Roasted Black Bean & Corn Salsa with House Fried Chips

This was another surprise winner for me. It had an unexpected depth of flavor that with a complexity worthy of an entree.

Footlong Frank and Bean Dog

Franks and beans-always a good idea but you’ve not had them like this before! This footlong hot dog is all beef and weighs in at half a pound. It is covered by crumbled bacon and campfire baked beans. Sounds great, right, but what’s different? It’s the sweet, but not too sweet, baked beans that is different. Not sure how they got so much flavor in the beans and how it’s delightfully a bit sticky, so grab some extra napkins and take this dog for a walk to your seat!

Everything Toasted Turkey  Bagel

You guessed it from the name. It’s an everything toasted bagel with layers smoked turkey. What you haven’t guessed is that it has a hefty schmear of an amazing chive cream cheese that brings this all together with a dill pickle, lettuce, tomato, and red onions transporting it from breakfast to lunch.

Summertime Fresh Mozzarella Tomato, and Cucumber Salad

This one was light and refreshing. The balls of mozzerella were light and fresh. The cucumbers and tomatoes were good sized and very fresh also. The dressing was alsp light and tied the ingredients together well.

Dinger Dog

Amazing cremas on this one make it a dinger. We have a herbaceous and satifying guacamole crema and a delightful poblano crema (my favorite new condiment this year). Next up are bacon crumbles and red onions to make this extra tasty and give some crunch. Now we must not forget the star of the bun-an Omaha Steaks all-beef hot dog!

Crispy Chicken Club

This was another surprise for me. You are thinking tasty, right, but we’ve eaten these before. Not so! This is the best crispy chicken club I have ever had. The breading was perfectly done giving food credit where food credit should be done-to the chicken! The chicken was delicious and complemented by with a dilly-ranch aioli. Add crispy thinly sliced bacon, cheddar cheese,lettuce and tomatoes for the perfect chicken club. This one is the standard to judge the others and if it were a contestant in the Chicken Sandwich Wars, it would win.

Triple Play Pork Sandwich

The triple for this tasty sandwich is pork cutlet, pulled pork and bacon-bacon jam that is sure to win. Add a grainy mustard and let the flavors play across your home plate, I mean palate.

Moon-Shot Friesa

This one was my friend’s favorite. For him, it was the creamy jack cheese sauce that put this shot of crinkle-cut fries over the moon. Add the sausage, jalapenos and of course some bacon jam and your aiming at the stars, for sure.

2024

Please check out our posts on the College World Series for this year, so far,  and share!

Omaha Interview: Alec Woockman, the Executive Sous Chef at Levy Restaurants
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-interview-alec-woockman/

Omaha Event: College World Series Food Tasting, 12 June
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-event-college-world-series-food-tasting-12-june/

Omaha Event: College World Series- Food Tasting-The Fan Food
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-event-college-world-series-food-tasting/

Omaha Event: College World Series Pre-Game Press Conference, 12 June
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-event-college-world-series-pre-game-press-conference-12-june/

Omaha Interview with Amy Hornocker, Executive Director, College World Series of Omaha, Inc.
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-interview-with-amy-hornocker-executive-director-college-world-series-of-omaha-inc/

Omaha Event: College World Series Pre-Game Press Conference, 12 June

The College World Series Pre-Game Press Conference was held this morning.

Speakers included:
Jack Diesing, President of College World Series of Omaha, Inc.
Anthony Holman, Vice President of Championships & Alliances at NCAA
Mayor Jean Stothert, City of Omaha
Marcus Blossom, McCormick Endowed Athletic Director
Roger Dixon, President/CEO MECA

Topics included:
App is available for the CWS.
Cashless Concessions- No cash will be accepted at concessions.
Reverse ATMS- For people needing to turn cash into a card, reverse ATMS will be available.
Clear Bag Policy- Still in effect.
Paperless Tickets- Tickets will be digital. If you do not have a cell phone or computer, you will still be able to attend. Admissions will be open and you can buy your ticket there.
Food- Favorites will be returning from years past.
75 year anniversary_ It is next year not this year.

Transcript of Event by OmahaNebraska.com

Jack Diesing: So good morning, everybody. Thank you all for coming. Welcome to the greatest show on dirt. I wanted to first of all recognize some of the College World Series…my board members that are here: Herb Hames, Tarci Slaybaugh, George Wachtler, Lisa Diesing. Thank you all for coming. As president of the College World Series Omaha, Inc. I’m excited to be here leading off the start of the 74th College World Series here in Omaha, NE. Today is the…really, the culmination of the Road to Omaha Journey. Omaha has become synonymous with the Men’s College World Series, much like Louisville is synonymous with the Kentucky Derby and Augusta, GA, is synonymous with the Masters, and Indianapolis is synonymous with the Indianapolis 500.

We really are proud and privileged to be able to be integral partners with the NCAA in both the past and the successive wonderful championships that this event ends up with. So we’re really looking forward to it. And as one head baseball coach said, “There are no bad days in Omaha.”

So up here with me today are Anthony Holman, Vice President of Championships at the NCAA; Mayor of the City of Omaha, the Honorable Jean Stothert; Marcus Blossom, the McCormick Endowed Athletic Director at Creighton University, the host institution; and Roger Dixon, the CEO of Metropolitan Entertainment, Convention Authority. And all of them will make a couple of comments here in a few minutes.

Just a few other things. We really, as I said, are at the Mecca of college baseball. To be clear, it all started on a much smaller stage: typically, local community fields across the nation, and that’s why every year CWS and the NCAA provide grant money to baseball and softball programs throughout the city. The “Restore the Diamond” program is what we call it. It’s a grant program that’s been supporting the community organizations’ baseball and softball programs since 1972, and this year is no different. This year, we supported eight different fields and facilities across the Metro, surrounding areas, and over the course of time from 1972 we’ve contributed about $5.3 million to these organizations to give something back to baseball and softball in the community, and that’s not to mention some of the larger contributions we’ve been involved with… with the UNO baseball field and soon to be Creighton baseball field, both of which are serving as practice fields for this wonderful event.

Finally, I do want to say—and I hate to use the word announce, but I’ll use it and know I’ll get in trouble for doing that, but we’re going to be celebrating the … College World Series 75th anniversary here in Omaha, but not this year. We missed a year. So this is the 74th of like, old Tom should tell…. He’s a hard guy to get rid of. And I kept telling this was the deal, and he said, “No, they want to do a story anyway,” so… but as part of this process, the planning is going to almost be a year-long process, and you all will be getting more information about this what will be taking place in the coming weeks following this year’s College World Series. So our partners will share a little bit more about what else is happening this year. And now it’s my pleasure to introduce Anthony Holman, the Vice President of Championships at the NCAA…Anthony.

Anthony Holman: Okay, I’ve got a few notes here, and I’ve got to change my glasses because I’m getting older and I couldn’t hit the slider before. They didn’t know that I needed glasses. I’d tell my parents I’d be in the big leagues if only they’d got me glasses earlier.

Jack was so kind to talk about the 75th anniversary that’s coming up and what the College World Series is synonymous with. I get so many calls, emails, text messages from folks that this is a bucket list type of event for them, just like Jack was saying for the Derby and the Masters and other events like that. And part of the reason why that is… it’s not just the location, it’s the people, it’s the community, that’s embraced and taken ownership in those events. And that’s certainly what we have here in Omaha. We’re so thankful for that. So we really appreciate all the support that we continue to get.

So a couple of things that are coming up with the championship. I think everybody… hopefully you’ve seen that the teams that are going to be here, we’ve got a number of institutions that are back for returners, some who were here more recently. We’ve got one that’s making their first appearance, but we’re excited to have Tennessee here for their seventh time; Kentucky is here for their first time. The Aggies of Texas A&M, making their eighth appearance. North Carolina, in for their twelfth appearance. They’re so excited they came yesterday, so we’re excited to have them. Florida State, making their 24th appearance, and the last time they were here was in 2019. And then both Virginia and Florida were both here in 2023, so we’re excited to have them back, and then NC State, excited to have them back, and I’m sure we’ll get questions about the last time that they were here.

But we’re just excited that… how resilient all of the teams are, and the opportunities that they come. There’s been so much talk, and I’m sure you guys are paying attention to it. So we’re not going to ignore the elephant in the room about what’s going on with name, image, and likeness and student athletes as employees and all those types of things. I’ll guarantee you nobody will be talking about that on the field here this weekend, right? Those…the excitement you’ll see from these young men in competing will mirror what you’ll see in August at the Little League World Series, where they’re playing for the enjoyment and the love of the game. And that’s what we want to celebrate over the next two weeks, so we’re excited about that.

A couple of announcements about our fan fest. We’re excited that our fan fest will continue to be available and open at 11:00 tomorrow and then it will be open on each of the days of competition. There’s a number of additional activities that that we would encourage folks to take part in. Thanks to our friends at MECA for helping us secure additional space to add some additional items and activities for our fans to take part in out there, so we’re really excited about that. Our partners, Capital One, AT&T, Coca-Cola, Buick, Great Clips, Rawlings are all returning with baseball activities, photo ops, giveaways, prizes, tons of activities. So we encourage everyone, even if you don’t have tickets, come on down and check that out for sure.

And we’re never sold out. There are always tickets. We don’t say that “sold out” word. Come on down; there’s something for everybody. And one of the other… last things that I’ve wanted to talk about was that we’ll also be inducting our fourth ever College World Series All Star, recognizing outstanding contributions to this wonderful event. And I’m so thrilled and excited that this year we’ll be recognizing one of my mentors and good friend Dennis Pope. And many of you know Denny, who was so integral in the development and the growth of this championship for a number of years for… both in attendance and exposure, and even bracket expansion. We were… folks won’t remember, not everybody remembers, but this was 48 teams for a long time and it went to 64 and Denny helped to usher that in. So we’re excited to have him and Donna and his family here to recognize them during the series, so please come out and help us thank him for his support.

And then the last thing is that if you if you want to stay up to date and in the know on all of the Men’s College World Series games, news, and happenings at the stadium, we encourage fans to download our Men’s College World Series app. My social media and communication team was all over me to make sure I got a plug in for that. So download the app. Plenty of information and activities to follow through that app. So we really appreciate that.

Thank you again, Omaha, for all the continued support and excitement that that we have. Folks come here in droves for a number of reasons. We’ve got tons of people who make this an annual trip and others that it’s a bucket list item for them and they can’t wait to get here. So thank you for your continued support. And we look forward to another great Series. So now I’ll ask our Honorable Mayor Jean Stothert to come up and provide a few remarks.

Mayor Jean Stothert: Good morning, everybody. Thank you, Anthony. I’ll take my sunglasses off. I don’t need reading glasses like you do, and I believe I’m a little bit older than you. But you know, just a few months. But it’s so good to be back at Charles Schwab Stadium, and we are very, very proud to be the host once again of this of the Men’s College World Series. And just thank goodness you don’t ask me to do the first pitch. I did that once at a Storm Chaser game, and I’ll never do that again. That was quite embarrassing. But again, thank you to all of our partners, the NCAA College World Series, Omaha and Creighton University, and of course… back up, the College World Series again brings great athletic competition to Omaha and thousands and thousands of visitors. It also brings Omaha together to make the next two weeks a great success that grows even bigger and better every single year, and we are ready for another record-breaking series.

This year, fans, families, and teams can visit the Heartland of America Park at Lewis and Clark Landing for the first time. It just opened last year, August 18th, and they will have a real treat walking through our new parks. The riverfront parks have exceeded all of our expectations. More than two million people have visited the parks for family movie nights, concerts, live theater, fireworks festival, walking their dogs, and special events. And so it will be a real treat for our fans this year too.

And next year. our fans can use the Baby Bob pedestrian bridge to walk from 10th Street to the Bob Kerrey Bridge and then cross over to Iowa. So those people in Council Bluffs can walk from Council Bluffs all the way to the ballpark, and that should be done later this year, this fall, and it’s another way that we are improving connections to all of our downtown events and venues, and it’s great to be downtown right now.

I would also like to thank the Men’s College World Series for supporting our community. One example of this is their continued support of the Readers Become Leaders program, which I love. Each year the College World Series of Omaha, Inc, and the NCAA partner with our schools to encourage enthusiasm for academics. This year, they partnered with 65 Omaha public schools, 3,700 third-graders, to help increase their reading proficiency. Students received incentives to read and complete reports on books. They earned prizes for their participation, including the opportunity to attend, of course, a College World Series game. Young readers completed more than 30,000 book reports, and that’s really great. Next Monday night, we will recognize Saddlebrook Elementary as the winning school. Thank you for supporting programs that teach young people about leadership and the importance of academics. I look forward to welcoming the student athletes tomorrow night at the opening ceremony and the opening games then on Friday. It’s going to be a good week. I wish I could guarantee good weather, but I can’t. But hopefully we’ll have good enough weather during the whole season this year. So now I am very, very pleased to introduce Creighton University Athletic Director Marcus Blossom. Marcus.

Marcus Blossom: Anthony talked about expansion. You get 88 in there… I think we earn that in there this year. We could talk about that a little bit later, but I do want to start by thanking Anthony and Randy and the rest of the NCAA staff. They do a great job. I happened to work with these two guys when I was at the national office, and it is a lot of work. They work tirelessly throughout the year to make sure we put on a very, very special event. Like the great game of baseball, Creighton University is full of cherished traditions and one of our most favorite traditions is having the honor and privilege of being the host institution for this special event, the Men’s College World Series. I speak for all Bluejays when I say how proud Creighton is to be partners with CWS of Omaha and the NCAA. On behalf of our vibrant community, I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to our President, the Reverend Daniel S. Hendrickson of the Society of Jesus; the entire Creighton Community; baseball head coach Ed Servais; and our dedicated athletic department, who spends tireless amounts of hours helping CWS Omaha and the NCAA put on this great event. Their efforts behind the scenes for the Men’s College World Series are definitely immeasurable. I do want to also acknowledge…I know she’s on the board of MECA, but she’s also our new chair of the board at Creighton, Miss Diane Duran. She helps a lot to bring this event to Omaha and she’s a big partner of Creighton University as well.

And now I have the pleasure of introducing one of the real big partners of Creighton and the one and only President of the Metropolitan Entertainment and Convention Authority, Roger Dixon.

Roger Dixon: Well, Diane, he introduced you, so welcome and thank you for your support. And on behalf of MECA, our extensive team of events staff, baseball management, we are proud to welcome everyone back to Charles Schwab Field. We are thrilled to be entering our 13th year as the home of the Men’s College World Series. Above all else, we are focused on creating an atmosphere here that gives fan baseball fans from far and wide a seamless experience, and that starts with hard-working staff months before the first pitch is even thrown. We are also dedicated to making the guest experience feel new and exciting every year. With the help of our talented and creative concessionaire at Levy, we are once again featuring a menu that caters and customs to the Men’s College World Series. These signature creations will be available to taste following today’s news conference, so make sure you stick around for a preview of this year’s menu.

Aside from the fun food, we want to make sure all our guests are prepared for what our venue has to offer. As a reminder, Charles Schwab Field is a cash-free environment. Only digital or card payments will be accepted throughout the building, including in our concession stands. We have multiple cash machines on site that function as a reverse ATM which will disburse a VISA gift card equal to the amount of cash deposited. Also, the stadium is digital enter only, meaning tickets must be downloaded in advance and then scanned right from the phone. Our box office staff is standing by to help anyone who needs assistance with this process.

Like every year, safety is a top priority for MECA during the Men’s College World Series. Our clear bag policy remains in place. Additionally, each visitor who walks through our doors must undergo a screening process, which will again include walk-through metal detectors at each of our gates to both enhance and expedite the entry.

We also want to remind the public that our guest service desk is available via text message for any issues or concerns that arise during the game. Simply text Omaha space your issue and location to 69050, and we will dispatch the appropriate assistance. However, it is important if you see something that requires immediate attention, never hesitate to alert a nearby MECA staff member or on-site law enforcement. We are thankful to have a productive partnership with Omaha police to ensure this event goes without a hitch. We are looking forward to another fun, exciting, and safe Men’s College World Series and our confident everyone’s visit to Charles Schwab Field will be the best one. Thank you.

Jack Diesing: Well, thank you to Anthony. Thank you to the mayor. Thank you, Marcus, and thank you, Roger, and also thank all of you in the press and everyone else for being here to help lead off the start of the 74th College World Series here in Omaha, Nebraska. Feel free after this is over to ask questions of anybody that you want to, or if you prefer to just go have food, feel free to go do that. And as we said, Omaha is synonymous with the Men’s College World Series, so it’s about time to… let’s go play some baseball, okay? Thank you all for coming.

2024

Please check out our posts on the College World Series and share!

Omaha Interview: Alec Woockman, the Executive Sous Chef at Levy Restaurants
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-interview-alec-woockman/

Omaha Event: College World Series Food Tasting, 12 June
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-event-college-world-series-food-tasting-12-june/

Omaha Event: College World Series- Food Tasting-The Fan Food
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-event-college-world-series-food-tasting/

Omaha Event: College World Series Pre-Game Press Conference, 12 June
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-event-college-world-series-pre-game-press-conference-12-june/

Omaha Interview with Amy Hornocker, Executive Director, College World Series of Omaha, Inc.
https://www.omahanebraska.com/blog/omaha-interview-with-amy-hornocker-executive-director-college-world-series-of-omaha-inc/