Saturday, August 30, 2025

Omaha Daily Record

Non-Profit News

Nebraskans Throw Tons Of Glass Into Landfills Each Year. Some Are Trying To Change That.

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 05/14/2025 - 12:00am

The glass, ground up in a sand-like texture, can be mixed with asphalt and concrete for road construction, according to Nathan Lund with the city.
(Abiola Kosoko / Flatwater Free Press)

Roaming around his family farm near Nebraska City, Daryl Steinman discovered old bottles and jars in piles of charred debris. Brown, green, clear, some embossed with makers’ marks harkening back to before he was born in 1965.

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A Thucydidean Trap

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 05/14/2025 - 12:00am

Does anyone else think America is going to war in a few years, or is it just the U.S. military that believes that? I don’t mean it in a gung-ho marine “oorah," military-readiness way in which America’s armies say they should always be prepared. Oh no, this is because the budget put forth by President Trump and Pete Hesgeth is the most colossal in U.S. history.

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As Trump Slashes AmeriCorps, States Lose A Federal Partner In Community Service

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 05/14/2025 - 12:00am

AmeriCorps CEO Michael Smith.
(Kevin Wolf / AP Images for Boys & Girls Clubs of America)

WASHINGTON — Hillary Kane learned on a Saturday morning in April that within days, she would lose AmeriCorps funding for two programs that match mentors with West Philadelphia high schoolers and first-generation college students — both vulnerable groups at risk of not completing diplomas and degrees.

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Dysfunction, Turnover At Omaha Planned Parenthood Clinic Further Limiting Abortion Access In Nebraska

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 05/07/2025 - 12:00am

Sabrina Stratman has long believed in Planned Parenthood’s mission. Now she’s one of many who’ve recently left their jobs at the organization’s Omaha clinic, feeling disrespected by leadership.
(Anna Reed / Flatwater Free Press)

Sabrina Stratman left a spring 2024 Planned Parenthood fundraiser feeling inspired — so inspired that the registered nurse and occasional volunteer applied for a job at the nonprofit’s Omaha clinic.

A lifelong advocate for abortion access, she thought this would become her life’s work.

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Paid Sick Leave And Better Health Care Would Help Nebraska Women

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 05/07/2025 - 12:00am

For 35 years, the Women’s Fund of Omaha has worked on issues foundational to achieving gender equity. We advocate for public policies that ensure all women and girls can reach their full potential. Our expertise in policy advocacy includes helping to pass legislation that supports survivors of sexual violence, provides pathways to economic security and creates solutions to problems set up by systems that were never meant for us.

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From Debate To Dialogue: In A Contentious Era, 'Ethics Bowl' Offers Students A Gentler Alternative

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 05/07/2025 - 12:00am

Students from Atlanta's Midtown High School (foreground) confer during a quarterfinal round at the National High School Ethics Bowl in Chapel Hill, N.C., on Sunday, April 13, 2025.
(Allen G. Breed / AP Photo)

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — A contrast:

At the National Speech and Debate Tournament, two high school students take the stage. The first articulates the position he has been assigned to defend — people should have a right to secede from their government — and why it is correct. Another student, assigned the opposite position, begins to systematically tear down her opponent's views.

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Pope Francis Encouraged Christian-Muslim Dialogue And Helped Break Down Stereotypes

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 05/07/2025 - 12:00am

Tributes being paid to Pope Francis at the Sacred Heart Cathedral Church in Lahore, Pakistan, on April 22, 2025.
(K.M. Chaudary / AP Photo)

Pope Francis’ pontificate marked a distinct shift in the Catholic Church’s engagement with the Muslim world. While his predecessors fostered dialogue and tolerance, Francis sought more active engagement with Muslims, particularly in the Middle East.

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Changes To Nebraska State Patrol Survivors’ Retirement Benefits Ignite Legislative Fight

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 05/07/2025 - 12:00am

LINCOLN — One state lawmaker’s continued efforts to boost benefits for Nebraska State Patrol troopers, a largely consensus issue, ignited a rare fight among legislative allies.

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Nebraska Firefighter With Mexican Roots Sparks Act Of ‘International Goodwill’

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 04/30/2025 - 12:00am

Mayor of Zacapu, Mexico, Mónica Valdez Pulido (in pink jacket on right), tours South Omaha and its Plaza Latina store on the 24th Street commercial corridor, during a visit last week to Nebraska, which marked a donation and new alliance between Columbus, Nebraska, and Zacapu.
(Courtesy of Plaza Latina)

BELLEVUE, Neb. — When Columbus firefighter Aaron Perez saw his local department ready to toss out technically outdated yet still useful firefighting gear, his thoughts drifted to bombero counterparts in his Mexican hometown of Zacapu.

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Already Missing Papa Francisco

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 04/30/2025 - 12:00am

Over 360,000 Catholics call Nebraska home. As a cradle, conflicted and often non-practicing version of that theology, I may have been part of that number. Suffice to say being contrary and asking questions is part of my DNA, a trait journalists find helpful. Perhaps not so much for those on a spiritual journey.

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