The Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben Foundation is a
501(c)(3)
A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...
civic and
philanthropic
Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...
organization in
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...
.
History
The organization was formed in 1895 in an attempt to keep the
Nebraska State Fair
The Nebraska State Fair is the state fair of the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is held annually in Grand Island, approximately 100 miles west of the state capital of Lincoln, which hosted the fair until 2010. The fair usually runs for 11 days, an ...
in Omaha after receiving an ultimatum to provide entertainment "other than saloons, gambling houses and honky tonks." The board's solution was to strike out to secure all the floats used that year in the
Mardi Gras
Mardi Gras (, ) refers to events of the Carnival celebration, beginning on or after the Christian feasts of the Epiphany (Three Kings Day) and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday, which is known as Shrove Tuesday. is French for "Fat ...
parade in
. While in New Orleans, they decided to model their organization on the parade's
Krewe
A krewe (pronounced "crew") is a social organization that puts on a parade or ball for the Carnival season. The term is best known for its association with Mardi Gras celebrations in New Orleans, but is also used in other Carnival celebrations ar ...
concept complete with "royalty" and "coronations." According to the organization's web site, Dudley Smith suggested a name for the new organization, and was quoted as saying, "Why not reverse the name of our beloved state, since everything seems to be going backwards these days?"
The name is "Nebraska" spelled in reverse, and with Smith's suggestion, Ak-Sar-Ben was born. While the purpose of the organization was to save the
Nebraska State Fair
The Nebraska State Fair is the state fair of the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is held annually in Grand Island, approximately 100 miles west of the state capital of Lincoln, which hosted the fair until 2010. The fair usually runs for 11 days, an ...
for Omaha, it was eventually moved to
Lincoln
Lincoln most commonly refers to:
* Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States
* Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England
* Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S.
* Lincol ...
and subsequently to
Grand Island.
Initiatives
Other initiatives the group has pursued include the purchase of the Douglas Street Bridge (the first road bridge across the
Missouri River), in hopes of removing its tolls (the bridge was renamed the
Ak-Sar-Ben Bridge
The Ak-Sar-Ben Bridge was a Whipple through truss bridge that was the first road bridge to cross the Missouri River connecting Omaha, Nebraska and Council Bluffs, Iowa. It was replaced in 1966 by the Interstate 480 (Nebraska-Iowa), Interstate 480 ...
). From the 1920s through the 1990s, the Knights built and operated a horse racing track and arena complex, also named
Ak-Sar-Ben. In 1992 the Knights donated the horse racing track and arena complex to a new legal entity – the Ak-Sar-Ben Future Trust. This organization is developing the property for multi-purpose under the name
Aksarben Village,.
The Knights of AKSARBEN Foundation continues its efforts to serve the 112-year-old mission of "building a more prosperous heartland where communities can flourish and every child can succeed." The organization supports financial need based scholarship programs, administers Nebraska's
Pioneer Farm program, Good Neighbor Awards, and Ike Friedman Leadership Awards. It produces the AKSARBEN Stockshow & Rodeo and the Ak-Sar-Ben Coronation Ball.
The
AKSARBEN Stockshow & Rodeo, was established in 1927 and has a mission of empowering youth to reach their full potential as productive adults through learning opportunities which develop live skills and character.
AKSARBEN Rodeo is an annual festival of the region's heritage. Its three core events include the Douglas County Fair, The Ak-Sar-Ben 4-H Livestock Exposition, and the Ak-Sar-Ben Rodeo, host of the Wrangler ProRodeo Tour – Omaha Round.
[http://www.aksarbenrodeo.org ]
AKSARBEN's Coronation Ball is a celebration of volunteerism and civic pride. It is a fund-raising event that supports need-based scholarship programs and recognizes the volunteer efforts of individuals throughout the region through the honoring of families.
In 2005, the
Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights
The Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights were a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They played in Omaha, Nebraska, United States at the Omaha Civic Auditorium from 2005–07. Following the 2006–07 season, the Calgary Flames annou ...
of the
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...
were named after the Knights, which had a minority ownership stake in the team, but after two seasons of mediocre attendance the franchise was relocated in 2007 to the
Quad Cities
The Quad Cities is a region of cities (originally four, see History) in the U.S. states of Iowa and Illinois: Davenport and Bettendorf in southeastern Iowa, and Rock Island, Moline and East Moline in northwestern Illinois. These cities are t ...
; it is currently located in
Calgary, Alberta
Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Canadian Prairies, Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,30 ...
.
See also
*
Gambling in Omaha, Nebraska
Gambling in Omaha, Nebraska has been significant throughout the city's history. From its founding in the 1850s through the 1930s, the city was known as a "wide-open" town, meaning that gambling of all sorts was accepted either openly or in closed q ...
*
History of Omaha
The history of Omaha, Nebraska, began before the settlement of the city, with speculators from neighboring Council Bluffs, Iowa staking land across the Missouri River illegally as early as the 1840s. When it was legal to claim land in Indian Co ...
*
The Ancient Order of A-kep-ot Ster-boo
The Ancient Order of A-kep-ot Ster-boo was an organization formed June 3, 1916 in Topeka, Kansas. The organization's headquarters were located in the Hamilton Building at Sixth and Quincy Streets.
Modeled after the Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben from Omah ...
References
External links
Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben
{{Authority control
Agricultural organizations based in the United States
Culture of Omaha, Nebraska
Agricultural shows in the United States
Service organizations based in the United States
Non-profit organizations based in Nebraska
Organizations established in 1895
501(c)(3) organizations
1895 establishments in Nebraska