Nebraska selects youth-focused Simple Foundation for $6 million anti-crime grant

OMAHA, Neb. (Nebraska Examiner) — You might say the Simple Foundation began, well, rather simply some 20 years ago.

Osuman Issaka, founder and CEO, said that’s when he and his brother, Sal, started kicking around soccer balls with refugee and newcomer kids in the eastern part of Omaha.

 “We saw youths needing guidance, not having anything to do,” he said.

Practices and pickup games led to a team, competitive play, then a network of soccer teams. In 2014, Issaka formally established the Simple Foundation nonprofit entity to get philanthropic backing. Six years later, he bought a former YMCA facility as home base for the multipronged skill-building operation. 

Now the Simple Foundation has been awarded a $6 million internships and crime prevention grant from the Nebraska Department of Economic Development that will further grow its programming — as well as that of two dozen other nonprofits.

As envisioned, the Simple Foundation will be the lead administrator of the grant funds made possible by the federal American Rescue Plan Act. Issaka said his organization will allocate a share to about 25 like-minded agencies such as Save and Girls Inc., to reinforce their services.

Building careers

While sports was the seed of the Issaka brothers’ operation, Osuman Issaka said the true goal was building character and careers. Playing soccer or another sport, he said, is a carrot that leads students to after-school tutoring sessions or a group learning how to sew, how to construct, how to create a podcast.

“If they are involved, it lessens the chance for them to get into something negative,” said Issaka, a native of the West African nation of Ghana who grew up on Chicago’s South Side.

Sen. Justin Wayne of Omaha was a lead architect of the $335 million Economic Recovery Act that specified the $6 million for internships and crime prevention. He said the idea was to tap a main organization that would partner with others to work toward the same crime prevention goal.

“We’re looking at collective impact,” he said.

15 different countries

To Issaka, the type of youth programming provided by the Simple Foundation translates to crime prevention.

The nonprofit is based at 3003 Q St., a brick building that years ago served as the Omaha Housing Authority’s LaFern Williams Center, which was home to many social service activities offered for OHA’s low-income families.

The structure later served as a YMCA fitness center.

Today the gym and basketball court remain, as does the small community theater.

Simple provides services free of charge to about 750 youths, Issaka said, mostly from refugee, immigrant and low- to moderate-income families that represent 15 different countries. 

Clothes, spikes, jerseys

A tour showed numerous areas throughout the facility, including a room packed with brand-new store-donated clothes for all ages, various school items and kitchenware. 

Another space contained branding equipment that students use to make mugs or hats with the Simple logo or can use to create and apply their own brand to merchandise.

Next door were sewing machines and materials for dresses and accessories.

A storage nook was stuffed with boxes of new athletic shoes; another with colorful team jerseys.

Yet another classroom contained recording and other technology for a soon-to-open teen tech center that Issaka said is a partnership with Best Buy.

It is such existing career-building programming that is to grow and benefit from the new grant, said Issaka.

Food truck

Other ideas for the grant include equipping a food truck with basic necessities so that budding business people can take it on location and sell their cuisine. That would remove some of the start-up costs and allow the entrepreneurs to take a shot at a dream, said Issaka, whose undergraduate degree is in economics. His master’s degree is in management information systems.

A hope is to grow participation, Issaka said, adding that Simple provides van transportation for youths who don’t live close to the South Omaha headquarters.

“We create space here for them to grow, and provide them a tool kit for success,” said Issaka.

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