Spellman Named
Midlander of the Year

Connie Spellman, founding director of Omaha by Design, was named Midlander of the Year for 2007 by the Omaha World-Herald. The award was announced in the newspaper’s Dec. 31 edition.

Spellman was honored for spearheading a number of community initiatives that will have “enduring impact on Omaha and the Midlands,” including Omaha 2000’s efforts to improve K-12 education in the Omaha metropolitan area and her current focus on facilitating public-private partnerships to execute urban design projects that will improve the quality of Omaha’s natural and built environments.

Omaha by Design, an initiative of the Omaha Community Foundation (OCF), was founded as “Lively Omaha” in 2001. The OCF provides Omaha by Design with office space and administrative support.

“I’m honored and humbled by this recognition,” Spellman said. “It represents the efforts of hundreds of individuals and organizations from the public and private sectors, all of whom support our mission of creating a better Omaha. The future of our city is bright, thanks to their continued commitment.” The first Midlander of the Year award was presented to Omaha Mayor A.V. Sorensen in 1965. Recent recipients include Dr. Harold Maurer, chancellor of the University of Nebraska Medical Center (2004); U.S. Sen. Chuck Hagel (2005); and Maj. Gen. Roger Lempke (2006).

To read more about the 2007 Midlander of the Year, click here (pdf).



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