About Native Omahan Days WELCOME HOME NATIVE OMAHANS Native Omahan Days is a bi-annual event in North Omaha, Nebraska celebrating the community's historical and cultural legacies. Held since 1976, the Native Omahan Days include picnics, family reunions, class reunions and a large parade. On October 24, 1976 a group called the Omaha Homecoming Planning Committee had their first meeting and a vision of having a reunion of native Omahans that left the city for various reasons. The individuals responsible for setting up the committee and subsequent meetings were founders, Vera Johnson and Bettie McDonald. On December 13, 1976, the committee elected to call themselves the Native Omahans Club. With a basic itinerary of a social mixer, gospel night, riverboat ride, homecoming parade, homecoming dance, picnic and a "Blue Monday", the Native Omahan's Club held their first homecoming on August 26, 1977. The week long homecoming celebration reunites former residents to a city that they once called home. Native Omahan Days is celebrated as a "warm, communal homecoming... that expresses the deep ties that bind the city’s African-American community", Native Omahan Days are, "a time when natives long moved away return to roll with family and friends." Marked by a formal week and informal month of traditional community and family reunions and various activities, Native Omahan Days has been celebrated for more than 40 years. People come from across the United States to participate in the events. According to one source, "It started out with about 10 people and it grew. We’ve had as many as 20,000 attend." A number of other local organizations, including the Urban League of Nebraska, sponsor activities during the Native Omahans Club Homecoming week including a golf tournament and Black Music Hall of Fame induction. Although these activities are not a part of the "official" activities, they have been welcomed by the Native Omahans Club and attendees in previous years. Actress Gabrielle Union's family is among those families, and she attends Omaha Days festivities annually, along with professional football player Gale Sayers, and Radio One founder and owner Cathy Hughes. Another mainstay of Native Omahan Days is the Native Omahan Parade, with dozens of floats, marching bands, and politicians, as well as many youth programs and organizations. click to order