In five months, working with the City of Omaha and Bruce Laurizen, president of First National Bank and the event’s chairman, VGA created and implemented a series of anchor events to celebrate the 150th birthday of the city. VGA developed an inclusive celebration that paid tribute to Omaha’s many cultural traditions and offered special activities designed to appeal to all age groups.
The year-long celebration culminated with the 15O! Omaha’s Birthday Festival weekend held July16-18, 2004. On Friday, 311 headlined a concert at Memorial Park that drew a young audience of more than 30,000. On Saturday, an all-ages audience enjoyed a concert featuring the Omaha Symphony. As the crowd grew to more than 200,000, the evening was topped off with the largest riverfront fireworks display ever presented in Omaha. An event in and of itself, the fireworks display was choreographed to launch from three different sites along the Missouri River.
A crowd of 5,000 gathered at the 15O! Family Festival to participate in a variety of programs celebrating Omaha’s history and to enjoy a slice of a huge, 30-foot x 45-foot birthday cake. Several months later, Omaha 15O! concluded with a free concert at Qwest Center Omaha featuring the USAF Heartland of America Band.
In addition to managing the key 15O! events, VGA developed a local and regional umbrella marketing campaign to promote the anchor events, as well as the hundreds of Omaha 150! activities held throughout the year at venues across the city.
“Omaha’s 150th Birthday was a celebration of the ages for all ages,” said Mayor Mike Fahey. “Vic Gutman & Associates professionally managed and promoted all of the events down to the smallest detail. Their work helped ensure that our city’s birthday celebration will be remembered for generations to come.”
Detroit 300
Nebraska Lewis & Clark Bicentennial Commemoration
Summer Arts Festival
Omaha Farmers Market
Holiday Lights Festival Share The Beat
Zoofari
Wild About Omaha Weekend
Kiewit 125th Anniversary Celebration
