Honoring Community Alliance Champions

Community Alliance’s success is owed to the people who have supported us along the way — families, volunteers, donors, employees, partners and advocates. Many of our major donors who contributed to the capital campaign for our new Center for Mental Health are recognized in the interior of the building. There are many others who we want to recognize and celebrate for their impact on the history and growth of our organization, and we have chosen to do so through a vibrant, outdoor sculpture in the landscaped patio area near our building’s south entrance.

The sculpture serves as a tribute to these contributors and creates space for the names of those who will continue to guide us. From our grassroots beginnings to today, we’ve remained a community-driven organization thanks to these pivotal people.

Community Alliance was founded in 1981 by a small group of parents. Frustrated by limited mental health supports, they decided to take action to strengthen community-based mental health services in Omaha. At the time, care was still overly reliant on hospital settings for treatment of serious mental illnesses such as bipolar, schizophrenia and other thought disorders.

“Back then, community-based care was primarily focused on medication management and therapy, but few were addressing everything else that it takes to live, work and thrive as a contributing member of the community,” said Carole Boye, who retired as Community Alliance’s CEO this month. “Once you were discharged, there was little thought about the need for housing, employment and other daily supports and connections that we all need.”

These parents were our first champions among many throughout our history. Their early vision of comprehensive, community-centered support laid the foundation for Community Alliance’s approach to mental health.

Since then, many people have made meaningful and lasting contributions to Community Alliance, from donors to long-time employees and partners who helped shape our programs and services. For example, psychiatrist Susan Boust, an advocate for better public access to quality mental health care, significantly impacted our organization by shaping how we viewed community psychiatry and how to most effectively communicate with physicians and others as a member of an inter-professional team, said Carole.

“She shared so much knowledge with us in addition to her passion and belief in the strength of those we served and our ability to make a real, lasting difference in their recovery,” said Aileen Brady, Community Alliance’s new CEO. “Dr. Boust also helped start Community Alliance’s ACT team and was a catalyst in initiating our ongoing student training program,” she added.

While large donations are critical, smaller, individual contributions remain essential to Community Alliance. Every year, every day, individual donations help Community Alliance meet needs that government funding and insurance don’t provide for.

“These individual donations are really meaningful, allowing us to provide support beyond our core services. It’s making life a little bit easier for those we serve,” said Aileen. “They are also a way for us to measure our connection with the community and those we serve. It affirms our services when others give back to us.”

By honoring champions of all kinds, at all levels, we hope to inspire future advocates who will carry our mission forward. Each name tells the story of a community invested in seeing individuals not just live — but truly thrive.