In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, we are highlighting nonprofits that are strengthening communities for Hispanic and Latino people in the Omaha metro.
Each of the four nonprofits we are profiling received Futuro Latino Fund grants in 2023. You can read about the other nonprofits highlighted to commemorate this month here and here.
Plaza de la Raza
The Latino Economic Development Council has big dreams for South Omaha, and their members are taking steps to serve people economically and socially. To enhance the current hub of South Omaha, which is home to a large portion of the Hispanic community, LEDC is developing Plaza de la Raza at 24th and N Streets. This area celebrates and reinvigorates the heart of South Omaha for families and individuals by offering dedicated spaces for play, programming, shows, and community.
Plaza de la Raza features a stage, events lawn, play areas, and a pedestrian plaza – all focused on accessibility. As part of this multi-step process to make this project a reality, OCF awarded LEDC $25,000 for Adelante II, the second phase of the project, which focuses on building the stage, creating parking, and installing playground equipment.
The Plaza de la Raza will offer families additional opportunities to enjoy their neighborhood through events, programming, and green spaces.
The plan for the area also includes an Economic Development Center for idea incubation and workforce training as well as mixed-income housing to serve the growing population.
Scholarships and Professional Development
Metro Young Latino Professionals Association amplifies the power of Latinos locally through professional and civic engagement. With 78,000 Latinos living in the Omaha metro area, according to the most recent census, and more people earning college degrees and entering the professional world every year, this group brings the collective power of local Latinos together.
To support future leadership, MYLPA recieved a $15,000 grant from the Futuro Latino Fund for scholarships and professional development.
Are you ready for some Futsol?
The Park Avenue neighborhood is a diverse community just east of Hanscom Park, one of Omaha’s oldest parks. Soccer is a very popular sport in the neighborhood, but the area does not have any year-round fields for people to practice or play.
A group of young people in the neighborhood began an initiative to build a futsol court. Futsol is a soccer-based game played on a hard surface smaller than a soccer pitch. Working with inCOMMON, a local nonprofit, the group conducted hundreds of surveys, and residents agreed that the year-round place to play would benefit children and families.
The Park Avenue Neighborhood Association received a $15,000 Futuro Latino Fund grant to convert under-utilized tennis courts into a futsol pitch that will be called the Hanscom Park Mini-Pitch.
Baseball
Omaha Classic OLG Youth Athletics serves young people in South Omaha by offering basketball and baseball opportunities at little or no cost. They use Spring Lake baseball field, but it is in need of improvements.
They received a $17,500 grant from the Futuro Latino Fund to help with renovations, including leveling the field and adding fencing. Eventually, OLG Youth Athletics plans to add covered dugouts and a scoreboard so more young people from all over the county can benefit from playing baseball at the field.
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The Futuro Latino Fund is a part of the Omaha Community Foundation’s Community Interest Funds. Grants made through our Community Interest Funds are strategic investments meant to increase access and equity. We ask community members to lead the grant process using their own power and understanding. Each committee is made up of residents who come from or identify with the population being served. They review proposals and decide which projects to fund based on the needs they are seeing in their community.