Food – Nebraska Wander Freunde Trailblazers

Upcoming events in December and January

Mark your calendars now!

Our club meetings feature a speaker and social time, as well as a short business meeting. The December 2nd meeting will begin at 7 p.m. in the basement of the Maple Ridge Retirement Community at 3525 N 167th Cir, Omaha, NE (SE corner of 168th & Maple area). Our Annual Dinner meeting will be on January 18th and begin at 1:30 p.m. at Legends in Aksarben, 6920 Pacific and run until 4 p.m. Reserve your space now by sending in $10 per member or $15 per nonmember by December 31st, to P.O. Box 8147, Omaha, NE 68108. OR – just bring it to the club meeting on December 2nd!

Key dates:

Monday, December 2nd – 7 p.m. club meeting at Maple Ridge Retirement, 168th & Maple area
Saturday, December 14th – 4 – 6 p.m. Lights Walk at KANEKO – 12th & Jones St. entrance
Tuesday, December 31st – paid reservations for the Annual Dinner meeting must be received
Saturday, January 18th – 1:30 – 4 p.m. Annual Dinner meeting at Legends in Aksarben

Our Annual Lights Walk on December 14th coincides with the Holiday Market at The RiverFront’s Heartland of America Park area. The Market closes at 5 p.m., so you’ll want to come right at 4 p.m. to the west doors of KANEKO, at 12th & Jones Street. There’s no charge to walk, thanks to The RiverFront. We are collecting hats, gloves and warm socks for a local agency serving the homeless. You’ll want to linger a little after the walk and check out our assortment of door prizes and cookies.

Annual Dinner Meeting reservations are now open!

Just in case the invitation image doesn’t come through in the email, click below: 2024 Annual Dinner Meeting Notice

National Walking Week April 1 – 7, 2023

We’ve got a lot of opportunities to walk and socialize with others during the first week of April. Check it out!

Please note the March 29th deadline to register to attend the Orpheum Theater Guided Tour on Thursday, April 6th. All other events are walk-up events.

New this year: “Bring a Friend Day”! On April 1st, bring someone to the Bockfest walk that hasn’t walked with us before and we’ll waive the walk fee for your friend.

Saturday, April 1st, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.: Bockfest, starting from Max & Joe’s (Crescent Moon), 3576 Farnam St., Omaha, NE 68131 Parking available behind the Crescent Moon for $5 or use metered parking in the area. $3/person walk fee. 5k and 10k routes available. Register between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Bring a friend or walk on your own, at your own pace. Group walk at 11:30 a.m. Be off the trail by 3 p.m. After you walk, stay for Bockfest – beer and wurst and oompah music! Bockfest $2 cover charge not included in the $3 walk fee. You are responsible for your own food and drink purchases.

Sunday, April 2nd, 2 p.m.: Wabash Trace, Iowa West Foundation Trailhead Park, 13996 Wabash Avenue, Council Bluffs, IA 51503 $3 walk fee + $2 for kiosk/per person, payable separately, no change available. 5k GROUP WALK – Up for a challenge? 10k route available

Monday, April 3rd, 5 p.m.: OPPD Arboretum, 10600 Blondo St
Omaha, NE 68164. FREE EVENT, 5k GROUP WALK

Monday, April 3rd, 6:00 p.m.: Spring Social at DJ’s Dugout, 777 N. 114th Street, Omaha, NE 68154. You are responsible for your own food and drink purchases.

Tuesday, April 4th, 10 a.m.: Walnut Creek Lake Picnic Shelter, S. 96th Street and Hwy 370, Papillion, NE 68046. FREE EVENT, 5k GROUP WALK

Wednesday, April 5th, 5 p.m.: Chalco Hills Recreation Area, Hwy 370 Access, Omaha, NE 68138 $3/person, 5k GROUP WALK – Up for a challenge? 10k route available

Thursday, April 6th, 10 a.m.: Orpheum Theater Guided Tour. Meet at The RiverFront, The Canopies, 13th and Farnam Streets, Omaha, NE 68102. FREE EVENT You must preregister for this event by MARCH 29th at https://forms.gle/3JWjEDkpiyFfxhT86

Friday, April 7th, 2 p.m.: Heron Haven, 11809 Old Maple Rd,
Omaha, NE 68164. FREE EVENT, 1 mile GROUP WALK

The Soup Walk is coming up soon!

Soup cans headed to a food pantry after one of our walks

Saturday, March 4th: 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Divine Shepherd Lutheran Church
15005 Q St, Omaha, NE 68137, Walk Fee $3

What’s a “Soup Walk”? We all bring a can of soup, mix it in a pot and come out with a fantastic mixture with extras going to a local food pantry! Oh, and we walk, too, rain or shine!

You can register anytime between 9 a.m. and noon, finishing the walk by 3 p.m.. Bring $3 per person – exact change or check, or Venmo. And of course, don’t forget the two cans of soup: beef or chicken for the pot plus one can for the local food pantry. After checking in, you can walk at your own pace and enjoy the sights. If you would like to walk with a group, come a few minutes early and plan to start walking at 9:30. Dogs are welcome on the trail but not in the church.

The trail goes through suburban neighborhoods in the Millard area. After the walk, stay to enjoy some of the great soup and get to know your fellow walkers.

Welcome, July!

Volunteers ready to welcome Gene Leahy Mall Walking Tourists on July 4th

We had a great time working with The Riverfront on Independence Day to welcome the public back to the great multi-use space that is the Gene Leahy Mall in downtown Omaha. If the stormy clouds kept you home, here’s the official walking tour map for you to download and use the next time you visit downtown Omaha.

On Saturday, July 30th at 10 a.m., we’ll be leading a 5k walk at beautiful Junto Wine, a winery between Seward and Lincoln. The exact address is 1356 182nd, Seward, NE 68434. The cost is $3 (exact cash or use Venmo) for the walk and we do need you to preregister, since we’ll be serving complimentary boxed lunches after the walk. The winery will open their tasting room definitely at noon, and maybe a little before? Register here: Junto Wine Walk registration Leashed dogs are welcome to accompany us on this somewhat hilly walk through the vineyard’s mowed paths. If you’re staying for lunch, you’ll want to bring a picnic blanket or a lawn chair.

2022 Walk Calendar now published!

We have a lot of great walks planned for you in 2022 – take a look at them at the 2022 Walk Calendar page on our website. More walks are in the planning stages, so you’re going to want to bookmark this page and come back to it often. Our Year Round and Seasonal Walk page will be updated on January 1st to add Chadron, NE and drop Ogallala, NE as walk opportunities.

New this year: an option to print a brochure for certain walks so you can stick it to your refrigerator door or have it in another handy place. All brochures are current as of this date (December 17, 2021). If something changes and we have enough lead time, we’ll post an updated edition of the brochure.

Remember that club dues now run on a calendar year basis, so that means you have until December 31, 2021 to get them in. Want to join? See Become a Club Member for details.

Our Annual Dinner Meeting is Saturday, January 15, 2022 at Legends Patio Grill and Bar in Aksarben – 6920 Pacific St, Omaha, NE, starting at 5:30 p.m. The Italian Buffet is available for $15 for members and $20 for non-members. Save yourself a stamp and mail in your club dues and Annual Dinner reservation at the same time! Our mailing address: NWFT, P.O. Box 8147, Omaha, NE 68108

Our regular club meetings resume on Monday, February 7th at 7 p.m. at Morning Star Lutheran Church, 331 S. 85th Ave in Omaha, in the upstairs Chapel.

Late January 2021 updates

We’re getting out to stretch our legs on Friday, January 29th at Prairie Queen Recreation Area by Werner Park! This is a FREE walk and is not eligible for AVV/IVV Credit, so leave your books and your money at home! Online registration is REQUIRED at https://forms.gle/ekcFfZxMcsaP8fAVA We’ll start walking promptly at 2 p.m. on a 5k group walk around the lake, so arrive a bit earlier to check-in. COVID-19 protocols are in effect: masks must be worn while gathering and whenever within 6′ of someone outside your household. Take Hwy 370 to S. 126th Street, go past Werner Park to the Lincoln Road roundabout and then use the 3rd exit to go west one block to the parking lot from where we’ll be starting. Please dress for the weather. Don’t count on the sidewalk around the lake being shoveled!
We will NOT have our regular monthly club meeting on February 1st. No in-person club meetings have been scheduled at this time.
We’ve had to make a change to our March 6th Soup Walk this year – it’s more like a “No Soup for You!” Walk. We won’t be able to share soup with each other, but that just means more for those people depending on local food banks for a meal, right? We’ve asked for chicken- or beef-based soups in the past, but we’re asking for 2 cans of hearty soups – think of meal substitutes – of any flavor. The local food banks that we’re supporting are the St. Columbkille/Tri-City Food Pantry and the New Visions Men’s Shelter in Council Bluffs. Start Point and times have not changed. See our 2021 Walk Calendar page for details.

Our Volunteers are the Best!

At our Annual Dinner and Meeting this past Saturday, January 18th, our club installed its 2020 Officers and recognized some special volunteers in our club. Volunteers are the heart and soul of our club!

Karen Dix-Johnson – 2019 Walker of the Year

Karen Dix-Johnson was recognized as our 2019 Walker of the Year. Karen is our smiling ambassador when she’s not busy leading walks or helping wherever she’s needed.

Ann Drebot – AVA Meritorious Service Award recipient

Ann has lined up speakers for our club’s monthly meetings for over 20 years! Her AVA Meritorious Service Award is richly deserved.

We say “thank you” to Tricia Abel as our club’s secretary, as she hands over the club minutes to Dave Brown, our secretary for 2020.