Cross-state exchanges build bonds between North Omaha and southwest Nebraska

Editor’s note: The Nebraska Community Foundation is a Flatwater Free Press sponsor. It has been edited by Flatwater Free Press staff.

The roughly 370 miles between North Omaha and the heart of southwest Nebraska aren’t slowing a group of Nebraskans from forging relationships that they hope will serve as a model for bridging the gulf between rural and urban communities.

In less than a year, residents from either end of that span have crossed the state to experience how the other side lives – from mock cattle auctions in Ogallala to a Juneteenth parade on Omaha’s North 24th Street. Momentum is g...