Tag: Rosenblatt

Omaha Interview: Jenny Peters, Marketing Director for the Omaha Baseball Village

OmahaNebraska.com’s  Interview with Jenny Peters, Marketing Director for the Omaha Baseball Village

Jenny Peters,

OmahaNebraska.com, here with…

Jenny Peters, Marketing Director for the Omaha Baseball Village.

I have seen the Omaha Baseball Village for many years now, but I didn’t explore it until recently. I was impressed, so I would love to tell everybody about it.

Thank you for sharing the goodness that we have here at OBV. We are a fan event during the College World Series. We’re located directly across the street from Charles Schwab Field, and we host over 100 vendors. We have a shopping village. We have a beer garden area that’s family friendly all day and for age 21 and over after 9 p.m. We have a food court. We have a corporate tent where our anchor is the Old Mattress Factory, and we have a VIP experience there. Pretty much anything that anyone wants to do during the summer, that’s what we do. Our client base is from age 2 to 92. It’s open to the public. It’s free, other than at night when there’s a cover charge to get in for the music and everything. But it’s games and food and fun and video walls, and we cover the College World Series games on a video wall. A lot of shopping, a lot of competitions and interactive-type things to keep people busy, and that includes kids of all ages. It’s not just little kids. We see the adults playing a lot of our games. We’ve got golf, we’ve got soccer here, we’ve got a lot of baseball, and then we have a lot of spinning wheels with amazing prizes.

How long have you been doing this?

This is our 16th year. We initiated Omaha Baseball Village in 2011, the year the stadium was open downtown for the first CWS game to be played at this one, and it has been just a whirlwind. It started as an idea—a collaboration of the owners at the Old Mattress Factory—and became the new 13th Street. We really wanted to bring the fun that was happening down by Rosenblatt here to the downtown neighborhood and just welcome fans from all over the nation for some great baseball in Omaha.

What are some of the fun things for this year that you’d like people to not miss out on?

Well, we’ve got so much happening on our stage this year, even during the day. We welcome people to come down and enjoy. First of all, opening night, Thursday the 11th before the games even begin, we do our Flying Flags for Charity night, which is opening ceremonies. We’ve got First Responders Foundation coming with all kinds of their vehicles and mounted police and the dogs, the canine unit that do all the amazing things. That’s when we hoist the flags on the original eight flag poles from Rosenblatt. And we recognize eight local groups here in Omaha that are doing nonprofit work, so we’ve got some fabulous ones. This is our 15th year of doing Flying Flags for Charity. Outside of that, during the Village, everywhere you turn, there’s going to be obviously College World Series merchandise. There’s mini golf. We’ve got glow ball, which is a kind of glow-in-the-dark baseball this year that is going to be amazing. We have backyard baseball, which has made a comeback, and they are putting in a gaming studio and bringing their mascot, the infamous Pablo Sanchez. And we have of course the best food—all kinds of festival food and things like that. On opening Saturday we’ll have two very special guests. Jordan Larson will be here, and any volleyball player knows exactly who she is. We are hosting the College Baseball Foundation winners of the Buster Posey Award, the Skip Burton Coaching Award—all of those top NCAA award winners will be with us on our main stage. Every day there’s something exciting happening, but the shopping’s great, and the fun. We have a surprise happening in the center of our property that kids will come and see and be blown away by what’s happening there. I can’t give away the secret, but there’s going to be a treat.

What day will the surprise be revealed?

It will be revealed probably on opening day if it’s up and running, if not, on Friday the 12th for sure.

What nonprofits are being recognized? Is it too soon to say that?

No, we’re happy to promote them. The goal of Flying Flags for Charity really is to create and generate awareness for these nonprofit groups, large or small. We’ve worked with over 80 nonprofit groups over the years here in Omaha. We have one coming this year that’s not from Omaha, but their mission is so beautiful and aligns so well with baseball that we have them. We have the First Responders Foundation. We have League of Angels, which is out of Knoxville, Tennessee, and they take adults and children with developmental disabilities so that they can play baseball in major stadiums across the country. We’re hoping that they will bring a team here someday just to play and have a great experience. We’ve got Foster Heart and Hope. We have the Christopher Bremer Foundation. On Monday, we have Mosaic, which has been around since 1919. Who knew that?

I did not.

It’s amazing, and they’re a great organization. We have Season Heavenly Peace, we have Masons’ Day, and we have Bags of Fun, who create backpacks of all kinds of toys and things to keep kids busy when they’re in long-term hospital care. The best part about all of it is that our vendors are the contributors to this. So the fans come, and the goal is to help donate and raise funding for the organizations and create awareness, but our vendors are sponsoring them as our corporate sponsors, and they are also providing lots of prizes. So when we do these presentations on stage each day between games, we are allowing them to talk about their mission. They usually invite a family or someone that’s been affected in a good way to share just a couple-minute story about… it’s just goodness. It’s like you watch that happen. There’s tears, and you know, not a dry eye. And then we give away Oakley sunglasses and sliding mitts from Evo Shield and bats and you name it. We’re giving away prizes every single day, and it’s because of the generosity of these vendors, these over 100 vendors, that are here with us. It’s perfect.

How did you end up having this role, and what prepared you for it before?

That’s a great question, actually. I love that. I have been with the Old Mattress Factory since its opening in 2007 as the marketing person. And again, we are one of Omaha’s best event sites because we respond to large things happening at all times, whether it’s regional basketball happening at the CHI Center or big volleyball weekends. I can’t say enough about the staff at the Old Mattress Factory. They’re fantastic. And what they put on with Corporate Tent and the VIP experience and how they run a restaurant and run a beer garden the size of it all day and all night to the people that come to hear the DJs, it’s every single night. It’s insane.

So I have to give a shout out to The Mat. When we found out the stadium was being built, it was just a vision. We tried to learn a lot about Rosenblatt and what the crowds were like, and we did a two-year stint as a beer garden down there where we rented a little spot, set up shop, and learned about the fans and what they were. Not really how to sell beer, but how to sell beer and how to engage with everybody. And we just kind of created our own version of this, created our own mindset of what we thought people would want here in Omaha.

So we bought a lot of the Rosenblatt seats. You’ll see them around the property. We bought the flag poles and put them up. We do a lot of commemorative things along the way that kind of give the love back to the baseball tradition here that started so long ago back on South 13th Street. And then basically we decided we wanted to take care of corporate guests. We wanted to be able to host a team, alumni group, if they come.

We also want people to come here with their grandparents. We want the team members to come over when they’re not playing. We love the Little Leaguers that are in town. Everybody is welcome, and we try to cater. We’ve taken feedback from them, and we’ve learned what the people like best. And we’ve learned that once you’ve paid to park downtown, you might as well just stick around for a while, right? So you’re here, you’re going to a game, or you’re not going to a game. We really just want the experience.

We’re seeing our large check, so we donate. This is an example of what we do on stage each day is we will present. So this is from last year, but yeah. Last year, one of ours was Partnership for Kids. My job is to create an experience, and that isn’t just for the fans, it’s for the vendors who are here, it’s for our corporate sponsors, it’s for our staff. We have an amazing, very busy staff, as you can tell. And you see the energy and the electric—just overall, like, happiness. I think people just bring happiness to the College World Series. You just see it in the fans and in the people, and everyone’s so happy to be here. And it’s really a fun environment to be a part of. That’s why I welcome all of Omaha. I know a lot of Omaha, Nebraska, residents try to avoid this part of town this time of year because it’s congested and a lot going on. But in general, it is something you have to see. It’s a “seeing is believing” event for sure.

I’ve definitely enjoyed being here and catching games and covering the stories. And there’s just something special about the College World Series. There’s something special in everything, but I can’t really describe how special the experience is of just being here, even if you’re not seeing a game.

I agree. I agree, and we tell people all the time that if you can’t get a ticket, there are a number of places where you can catch a game. We obviously have huge video walls in our beer garden, and lots of people just, you’re there with your friends, you’re having a good time, you’re playing cornhole, trying your golf swing out at a simulator. I mean, what’s not to love? The beer is cold, the food’s good. But again, there’s nothing quite like what they do in the stadium. I can’t say enough again either about College World Series Inc and the NCAA, what a fine show they put on. The games are beautiful. The field is immaculate, and the teams are so happy. When you’re anywhere in this neighborhood, when something good happens, you hear it before it hits the TV anyway. So you know something big happened, and you’re like, what, what, what? Get me to a TV. So I think fans come down here just to enjoy the atmosphere that Omaha has created. We are a very welcoming community. And when you take a look, when you look outside this office building, a 360-degree view, it’s just beautiful, from the pedestrian bridge, and riverfront area to what’s happening with Creighton’s new stadium. You look downtown. The signage will go on the Mutual of Omaha building this weekend. It’s a little busy in the beginning, but after opening weekend I do get to visit with fans a little bit and it’s my favorite part. And they really do ask me every year, “Is Omaha really this nice?” And I’ve said, “Yes, yes it is. Omaha is this nice, and the people here are really good-natured.” So we’re a welcoming host site for this event, and I hope we get to keep it.

We moved here some years ago and it just was instantly home.

I agree. My husband and I came here for him to go to Creighton Law School. We had absolutely no intention of staying here because we’re from Illinois and we had a mindset to go back closer to family after three years, and we’ve been here over 30 years. And we say it, “We got Omaha.” I think it’s like a verb, you got Omaha. It’s a good place, and I think people are surprised. They’re not sure what to expect when they get here and when they do… as you know, the LSU fans come whether their team is here or not. When you see them, you know it’s their summer vacation. They come up because they love the series, they love the baseball, they love the city. They come back to say hello, and we’ve got a lot of favorites. And ours aren’t always favorite teams. It’s usually the fan bases. So we pick the ones that really want to be here.

What question would you like me to have asked that I didn’t, or what item would you like to promote or what activity?

I would love to promote for people to follow us on social media at Omaha Baseball Village and really just kind of engage in what’s going on. But don’t stop there. When you see something fun, come down. Probably that same kind of experience will happen to them. There are lots of people, and it is hot. Bring your water, and come on down and enjoy it, because what’s happening here, we don’t just put the best things on social media. Those are things that are just organically happening. And when we do something big, we don’t promote most of it. We like to let it just happen because the people are already here and so the ones who are here get to experience it. Oh my gosh, we’re giving away a full Cutco knife set because he’s one of our vendors and someone that’s in house that day is going to win it. I encourage people to just come and experience it and smile. Have fun.

What’s your website and social media where people should be following you?

You can follow the Old Mattress Factory, and you can also follow  OmahaBaseballVillage.com. The nightly DJ schedule is on there. Our daily schedule for the most part is on there. And I should have probably also recommended that for people who maybe didn’t get a chance to come down and we’re almost to the end of it, we will be having a concert on the second Friday. So Friday the 19th we are having Pet Rock here. It’s a no-game day, kind of a day off. We change our stage out. Instead of being a DJ stage, we do a daytime concert with an opener and it becomes a music venue. And it’s so different because it’s not baseball, and tickets are inexpensive. It’s just a great time. So we really want to encourage people to come down. I think we’re calling it Friday Night Live. And Pet Rock is our entertainment. Should be great fun for everybody just to enjoy. Just come and do an outdoor concert. You don’t have to spend loads of money. Just come have fun.

Thank you. Yes.

Yes. Well, thank you so much for the interview.

Omaha Baseball Village 
https://omahabaseballvillage.com/
https://www.facebook.com/OmahaBaseballVillage/
https://www.instagram.com/omahabaseballvillage/

Omaha Interview: Kathryn Morrissey, Executive Director, College World Series of Omaha, Inc.-Part One

OmahaNebraska.com with Kathyrn Morrissey here at the College World Series of Omaha, Inc. and we are discussing the upcoming College World Series and all the new changes and go back in time with some reflections.

So you’ve been here the whole time since this particular office opened and then involved with the College World Series before.

We opened our office here across from the ballpark. It’s been five years. So yes, been here during that time. Before that, I actually started on the College World Series 35 years ago. It was with Mutual of Omaha and College World Series. Managing the general admission ticket function was one of my community relations project, so that that was my introduction 35 years ago.

And then my husband actually pitched to Jack Diesing Sr. and Jack Diesing Jr. that perhaps he could provide outsourced management assistance. He said he would do the first College World Series event for free, because Jack Sr. said, “Oh, we don’t have any money in the budget for somebody like that”. And Dan said, “If you see value in what I do, then we’ll talk after the series.” And we’ve been involved ever since.

And in fact, when the NCAA and College World Series of Omaha signed the agreement to keep the College World Series in Omaha through 2036. At that point, the NCAA said we love Omaha, we love your organization, but you’re an all-volunteer organization and board. So you might want to give some thought to full time employees because we see the event just getting bigger and bigger. And so in May of 2010 College World Series became our employer and I was the first executive director.

How many people did you have when you started?

Virtually the same staff size we have now which is four full time and one part time, but I always say we’re like an accordion. As we get closer to the event we expand with the help of wonderful interns. It’s a very much in demand internship. We draw students from all over the country. And then after the College World Series ends, we kind of contract and become our 4.5 staff that we have year round.

When does the prep for the series start?

The prep for next year’s series will begin probably before we end this current year’s series. The reason being we take advantage of the NCAA being in town, their staff being here, to do some early planning for next year. And we literally will get together every year before October 31. That’s a requirement of our contract to talk about what happened in the previous College World Series, what we think are areas of improvement and start the planning process in earnest at that point. But budgeting starts even in September.

So you do the debriefing and any future pivoting planned out almost immediately.

While it’s all fresh in our heads knowing that things will change along the way. But that’s the beauty of a multi-year event. We get to fine tune it. Make it better every year because none of us want to take it for granted. We always want it to be better. So, that’s been our standard practice for as long as I’ve been involved.

I’ve enjoyed it each and every year I’ve been coming and it’s wonderful and I see the fans so happy. There is so much more to the experience, as you know, than just baseball.

It is the one time of year, I should say one of the times a year, that Omaha is a destination. And it’s so much fun for everybody. Whether you’re working in a hotel or a restaurant or you’re just a citizen of the metro area. All those folks do such a great job of making our visitors feel welcome, and making sure that baseball players, the student athletes, feel like rockstars when they’re here. They really love that.

There have been, I’m sure, during the 35 years, huge changes not just Rosenblatt to here. So can you tell us about a few of the big changes? And then maybe one of your favorite changes?

Sure. One of the big changes is just the number of people that put on the event. When I first started working on this, the NCAA said two people, Denis Pope and Jim Wright, and Jim Wright used to spread out credentials, primarily for the media on his hotel room bed. And between the two of them and the city of Omaha staff who managed Rosenblatt and a core group that worked with College World Series of Omaha. That was it. We were kind of a small, but mighty group.
And obviously that has changed over the years. The NCAA sends a lot more people now. A lot more people are involved year round. And I think that’s been a really good development.

Now in terms of things that have happened. Gosh.

I know you can’t tell them all.

I know. Actually just building the North Downtown stadium, that obviously a lot of people had some misgivings about whether or not that would be a good thing because Rosenblatt was such an amazing home from 1950 to 2010. That’s a lot of history. And that was a beautiful place to make memories. But it was not unlike a family home that just got too small for the family. So we needed a bigger space. And the wonderful thing about the stadium helped with the North Downtown development. It’s not been the sole catalyst for that there were early pioneers who were here before us, but I think we’ve done something to help area people become more familiar with the area and certainly the people from out of town.

I love watching economic development. You know-how does a particular business or industry help an area? When is its time maybe up on other factors. People move in with certain jobs and children with leave the areas different jobs. It’s really fascinating. So we’ve [OmahaNebraska.com] been concentrating different neighborhoods like that. I think you’re technically North Downtown?

Yes. North Downtown, we are kind of in the midst of what they call the Makerhood. And you know, it’s just a real creative area, whether it’s some of the lost arts like upholstery and furniture making and such or if it’s the super almost the techie side opposite you know startups and such that are very technology driven. We’re surrounded by all of that in addition to music, and food and beverages and and, it’s really an exciting place to be.

Hot Shops [Hot Shops Art Center, https://www.hotshopsartcenter.org] was also very important to the economics of this area too.

They were one of the early pioneers I mentioned. I mean, they have done amazing things there. And what I’m really excited to see is that the fans have gotten more comfortable venturing out from the stadium and I think they go over to Hot Shops and they visit. And now we hope that they extend their reach maybe a little bit further into Millworks Commons and you know they go a little bit north, a little bit west.

And certainly they haven’t forgotten some of their favorite haunts in the Old Market. They’ve watched as the Capital District grew up and found some great places there that are intriguing to them. So we’re hoping to spread that economic impact over a wider area because all parts of the metro get that even if there aren’t they aren’t adjacent or near to the stadium.

There’s several things in Nebraska that bring a huge amount of revenue How much does the CWS bring in to the state?

We had Dr. Ernie Goss do an economic impact survey using 2019 figures because we didn’t foresee COVID But we did think that 10 years into “the great experiment” and that’s in air quotes. That was the downtown stadium that maybe people would want to know. Did that experiment turnout was that a good move? 88.3 million was the very conservative economic impact estimate he came up with at that time. Last year, we had attendance records. So I think we at least reached that milestone.

And I really think that we that the reach extends beyond there because I know our friends at Bozell estimated the media impact, 464 million. Now that includes social media too, of course now. So that’s why the figure is partially bigger than what people may expect. But when you think about what the Chamber of Commerce and the Convention and Visitor’s Bureau would have to pay for the kind of exposure, really positive exposure, we get for almost two weeks ,it’s pretty amazing.

What have you seen for the fan experience these many years?

Well, you know what’s great about this year is that we’ve got a new format. So we have two full weekends to offer. That’s especially important, I think to out-of-town visitors. Always before when we answer questions on the phone or live chat on the internet, people would say “w\Well, you know, I’m still working or my kids have activities, and so the only time we can get away is a weekend” and now we have two full weekends to offer. The opening ceremonies will be on Thursday. First day of games will be on Friday. And then we end the events either on a Sunday or a Monday. So that we think is going to be really good for the event.

We also have a lot of things that after kind of that semi-normal year last. We’ve got the Stadium Circulator [https://www.ncaa.com/championships/baseball/d1/transportation] coming back, which is wonderful. It kind of runs a grid pattern from the North Downtown stadium to the Old Market and it passes several City of Omaha parking garages, where you can make advance reservations for parking and it only costs a quarter to jump on.

Wow.

It’s ADA accessible. It’s air conditioned and should stop at about every 15 minutes at the various locations that are on the map. And the map is on our website https://cwsomaha.com under parking and transportations. [https://cwsomaha.com/parking-and-transportation-information]

I’m trying to think other things that are different new about this year. Well actually not even. It was the case last year. The outfield is our lowest price reserve status, no longer general admission. We had really thought we would be coming to GA this year because, of course, during COVID nobody was excited about standing shoulder to shoulder for several hours with people they didn’t make perfect sense to have that transition last year.

We, meaning the NCAA, surveyed fans after every game last year, throughout the stadium, but with the feedback that we got from the general admission, now the lowest price reserved area was “We love this. Do not go back to GA. We think it’s great that we know for sure we’ll be able if we have a ticket for a specific game that will get into that game. And if we want to come early, it’s wonderful that we can spend the time in the fan fest or frequenting restaurants or other establishments in the area. So don’t go back”. So that’s where we’re at today. That’s our lowest price reserved seat. And there’s still tickets available our single game tickets went on sale in mid-April. And there are still weekday afternoon games that are still available. Those are $10 plus Ticketmaster fees, and so very affordable.

But even if the other game tickets have sold out, which they did really quickly, like the first weekend and the finals, especially those are available on sale, through the NCAA website and https://www.ncaa.com or you can get there through our website, https://cwsomaha.com.

It’s interesting that over time the resale market being verified and legitimized has occurred. Seems natural now that we have it, but it hadn’t been.

Exactly. Well, Ticketmaster is the NCAA’s corporate ticketing partner. So if people buy through that outlet, then if they have any concerns when they get to the ballpark any issues at all, which we don’t anticipate that they do, but if they do, they can go to the ticket office and get customer service there. If they use another outlet to get their tickets, and I’m sure some fans do, unfortunately, we can’t help them in the same way.

The tickets now are electronic.

They are. They’re all mobile, digital, electronic… I’ve heard a lot of different ways to describe them. But yes, and our concessions are also credit card related. There are some reverse ATMs in the ballpark. So if you don’t have a credit card or you don’t want to send the kids with your credit card, you can send them with some cash. They can use the machines inside the stadium and access the concessions that way.

Where the reverse ATMs are located? Are there maps available?

There should be a map available, and I believe that one is certainly on the ballpark website which is this is a long one: http://www.charlesschwabfieldomaha.com.

[End of Part One]

Omaha Event: College World Series Interview with Jack Diesing, President, College World Series of Omaha Inc.

 

 

How did you first get interested in baseball and do you remember your first game either playing or watching?

Well, I got first involved in baseball probably going back in to the seventies going down with my father at the College World Series and down at Rosenblatt before they even had the bleachers down the left and right fields and you know the whole experience has just been a labor of love for me. So the experience is to me is all about the kids that are here and the kids who are playing for the love of the game for these universities because most of them won’t make it to the majors. Because when the kids go down today to the field play a little baseball on the field … this is … want to give something back to the kids and get them excited about baseball.

So, it’s really a lot about the kids and the community.

You probably have quite a few but your favorite baseball memories?

Well, my memories are sort of wholistic. I enjoy getting out to meet the coaches for teams and developing relationships with them.

I have relationships with some of the coaches and teams like Mike Martin who is coming back from Florida State  this year. He is retiring.  I have known him for thirty years.

Certainly there is a lot of remembrances Warren Morris home run  at the bottom of the ninth when LSU won back twenty years ago with a walk off home run.

And  I remember things like changes from Rosenblatt to TD Ameritrade Omaha  and what we went through  to get that done and take this event to the next level.

So I just remember how wonderful this has been for everybody who has played baseball and for the community.

Thank you

You are welcome. Thank you.

 

 

 

Omaha Interview: College World Series of Omaha, Inc

A special thank you goes out to  Kathryn Morrissey of the College World Series of Omaha, Inc. for this Omaha interview. She is executive director of this important Omaha nonprofit.

OmahaNebraska.com met with her in her new office across from the stadium in the old Roja’s location.

 

How did you become executive director of the CWS?

I was with Mutual of Omaha for about a dozen years, and one of the things that I did near the end of my career there was work in community relations and public affairs — and one of the projects was the College World Series. That was my first exposure to working on the College World Series.

My grandfather, who was a western Iowa farmer, loved the College World Series and used to listen to it in the cab of his tractors and couldn’t wait until he retired to come down and watch the games in person.

We’ve got from him a framed one million fan pennant, which is one of my favorite things.

So there is a little bit of family history there, but actually I didn’t start until 1988.

Did he have a favorite team?

He didn’t. He loved baseball and it’s perfect for when you are a farmer when you are about your daily chores.

I am a member of the Optimist Club, and we are helping sell tickets.

One of the best [groups]. The Optimist Club is fantastic.

What is special about the Optimist clubs and other service groups is that they host teams. They become almost like the family away from home to all the teams that are here.

Great community resources and they are on call 24 hours a day.

Teams rely on them. They [groups like this] are our first-line ambassador for the College World Series.

It’s part of the fabric of Omaha. These service clubs take so much pride in it. Some of them are non-traditional, like Offutt [AFB] is one of our service clubs.

A booklet of 10 GA [General Admission] tickets [sells for] for $90. If you buy them individually, they are still very reasonable, but they are $15 at the box office. So you can see that a $9 ticket to a Division I Men’s Championship is amazing.

How did you become executive director here?

What happened is, when I was working at Mutual of Omaha, our company was responsible for many things, and it felt like a lot of responsibility for a company or a group not attached to the College World Series in some way.

At that time, [it] had an all-volunteer board of directors.

Bozell and Jacobs was the name of the advertising group at the time. Now, it is just known as Bozell. Their founder, Morrie Jacobs, was kind of one of our founders, too. They may have had a professional role earlier on, but everyone else was a volunteer.

The event had expanded over the years, and what they were asking volunteer groups to do expanded, and it just felt like the College World Series maybe needed to kind of evolutionarily go to the next step.

So my husband, Dan, who you met, Dan started his own company in event management and convention planning service and at that point what he was doing, basically starting his business up and looking for new clients.

And I said, I think the College World Series can use those services and he went to Jack Diesing Sr., who was chairmen of the board at the time, and said, “I think you need an outsourced management company to help you with some aspects of the College World Series.”

He talked about creating a local contributor program, doing other administrative work and other onsite work for them.

Jack Sr. said, “We don’t have a budget for it, and why would you want a job that’s only a few weeks of the year?”

And my husband said, “You know, I have a feeling that the event is going to grow and might go beyond a few weeks a year. And I am just starting, too, so if you like what I do, I am not going to charge for what I do for the first series, and if you see benefit to it, we’ll talk afterwards.” That was 1989.

The College World series the next year hired Meeting and Event Design, Inc., his company, to be the outsourced event management company.

Then we started building the new stadium.

We signed a long-term agreement with the NCAA to keep the College World Series in Omaha through 2036.

The NCAA said, at that point, you might want to consider adding full-time staff because you know the event is probably going to continue to get bigger, and with the long-term agreement there is certainly a lot of structure here.

At that point, our board of directors spent more than a year examining how that should happen and what should be in place.

And we became the first full-time staff of the College World Series, and I was fortunate enough to be named executive director.

How many years for you as executive director?

That was 2010, and my first year at the new stadium was 2011.

So I am coming up on involvement with the College World Series of almost 30 years next year.

What did you do before becoming executive director?

I am a journalism major who started life wanting to be in public relations field.

At one point I worked for the Attorney General of Iowa, which was a very interesting job.

I’ve worked twice at Mutual of Omaha.

Then I went to work for Dan’s company, and we did event management work for companies locally and elsewhere in the United States and did convention work. And that was all very helpful.

It equipped us well to work with our other partners here: MECA, the City of Omaha and the NCAA.

What type of entity is the College World Series of Omaha?

It’s a nonprofit organization, coming up on its 50th year of incorporation. It was incorporated in 1967.

We may be one of the earliest sports commissions. Now our focus is singular, just on the College World Series.
But in 1967, there were not a whole lot of organizations like that.

When you think about it, incorporation just formalized a group that had been around in one way or another since 1950.

There was this group in ‘49 and ‘50 saw the College World Series as not having a not really solid permanent home. It had gone from Kalamazoo, MI to Wichita.

George Bush, the 41st president, played in the very first College World Series. He was a very handsome player. His nickname was Poppy and he was with Yale.

Then the Series went from Kalamazoo to Wichita. Both places, it lost money.

There was no economic reason why anybody would necessarily want that tournament.

[Our] early leaders must have had tremendous foresight. They went down to Wichita and said, “We just built a new municipal stadium in Omaha and we would really like the College World Series to be played there.”

And we played our first game there in 1950.

As I said, that same volunteer core evolved to College World Series of Omaha Inc. and was incorporated in 1967. And now you are seeing the full-time staff that is way down the road that is the result of that.

Groups like Bozell, their founder (Morrie) was part of that.

Well, Johnny Rosenblatt was another one.

There were early leaders like that who just had great vision.

What do you feel the College World Series means to Omaha?

The College World Series means so much to Omaha depending on who you talk to.

I like to think it’s a memory maker for generations of families. So that’s on the one hand.

On the other hand, it also gives us a national identity.

When I used to travel with Mutual of Omaha, people would ask, “Oh, do you know Marlin Perkins?” and say things like that.

You know for many years now I’ve heard not just that, I’ve heard people say things like, “Have you gone to a College World Series game?”

I’ll often wear apparel and they will say, “You must have gone to the College World Series,” and I’ll say, “I actually work there.”

They will reply, “Oh, my gosh, that’s on my bucket list. I have friends who have gone.”

Everyone seems to know about the College World Series and its connection to Omaha.

And the teams themselves will have above in their locker rooms as they go out the door as they go onto the field the word “Omaha” and then slap it for good luck.

Thank you again, Kathyn, for the interview for our Omaha blog.