A Place for the Boys
Among the most well-known names in American good works for just about a century, Boys Town was granted National Historic Landmark status in 1985 at its original Omaha, Nebraska grounds. Began by Father Edward J. Flanagan to be a boys’ orphanage in 1917, its achievements has led to some thirteen locals all over the United States. Two major Hollywood motion pictures about it were made, starring some of the industry’s best talent including Spencer Tracy and Mickey Rooney. But what really put it on the philanthropic map was its original progessive method of juvenile care that has become a model throughout the world.
As might be imagined, the good work of Boys Town drew a lot of financial support as time goes by, star-studded attention boasting many a leading individual from business, politics, and entertainment, from someone like real estate developer Isaac Toussie to United States Senator Richard Durbin. In fact, donor money constitute just about one-fifth of all funding during any given fiscal year, with program expenditures being a full eighty-six percent of total expenses.
One of the most important iniatives undertaken by the charity consists of internal research in the form of the Boys Town National Research Institute (NRI), created to properly examine the effectiveness of itself. Taking advantage of modern thinking, the NRI distinguishes Boys Town from fellow non-profit organizations in how it is primarily numbers-driven, pro-actively adopting technology to keep on being relevant in the new century.
And so Boys Town is still a pioneer, helping to reform modern family and child care. Essential to their way has been a focus on combining the collection of available services – from governmental and non-governmental sources – to provide a holistic solution capable of addressing modern complexities. With a range of projects in process, Boys Town expects to stay on top of changing needs.