Father Flanagan
Father Flanagan opened up his first boy’s home on December 12th, 1917. The first home he had opened started with five homeless boys. Not long after opening, he found himself with 50 boys in a single home. This began to be an issue as you can imagine. Most of us have a rough time with 10 kids and adults in our houses let alone 50 kids.
But Father Flanagan wasn’t ready to settle with it, in 1918 they had moves to a bigger home that held up to 150 boys. One of his goals was mainly to give them the education that they needed. They obviously weren’t getting it off of the streets, so someone needs to help. Father Flanagan always said “There is no such thing as a bad kid.”
By the time October 22, 1921 they were moving again. They had outgrown their second home and were now ready to find something bigger that held more kids. By March 1922 Omaha residents had raised enough money to start a Boy’s Town structure which would not only be a place to stay but would hold a gym, classroom dining hall etc.
By 1930 Boy’s Town now had about 240 boys living in it. It was a very big facility and was growing imensly. They also had a new $400,000 building to hold the trade school, offices and gym.
Father Flanagan was a man that had a very big dream. But not only did he dream it, but he fulfilled it. He made his dream a reality, something many of us need to learn from. We shouldn’t be afraid to take on something that may look bigger than we can handle. We need to have faith, and believe that the Lord is walking with us all the way, and that if what we are trying to do is in His will, He will find a way to make it possible.
It will not happen with my strength alone, or yours. But the Lords.
God-Bless
~Brennen~
