Before Chance came to Omaha Home for Boys, life had spiraled into a place no mother ever wants to see her child go. At just sixteen, he had stopped going to school entirely. He was angry, restless, and constantly on the run. Mixed up with the wrong crowd, he was slipping deeper into risky and destructive behaviors.

“Basically, I felt like he and I had no relationship anymore,” Chance’s mom, Brooke, shared. “When he was around, he was very angry, and there was a lot of fighting with everybody.”

As the legal system became involved and one placement after another failed, Brooke felt hopeless and heartbroken. Her son seemed unreachable.

Chance’s first brief stay in OHB’s Crisis Stabilization Program didn’t change that. It was evident that he wasn’t ready. He went through the motions, expecting OHB to be just like every other place, and when he went back home, he slipped right back into the same dangerous patterns.

But a few months later when Chance walked back through OHB’s doors for a longer-term placement in our Residential Living Program, something had changed. Chance made a real, deliberate decision that he wanted a different life, and he was finally ready to fight for it.

At OHB, Chance leaned into school, earning credits faster than expected and building study habits he’s proud of. He found the small class sizes and 1-on-1 support from teachers to be particularly helpful.

“They actually help you here when you need it,” Chance said. “You can work at your own pace.”

Chance soon became known as an includer who engages his peers and brightens every room, lifting the spirits of everyone around him.

“He’s like the sunshine that comes out every day, and he shares that with others,” Carla Andreessen, Senior Director of Education at OHB, said. “He does everything with positivity and enthusiasm.”

Today, Chance calls his mom often and they have great conversations. Their relationship has improved tremendously, and Brooke now speaks with hope about the future. She is excited for him to return home and is working hard to ensure support is in place to keep him engaged in positive activities and on the right path.

Chance’s next goal is simple and powerful: graduate high school. And for the first time, he believes it’s within reach.

To the supporters who make this work possible, Brooke offers a heartfelt message:

“It’s really hard to put into words how thankful I am for them, that they gave him another chance, and that they believed in him.”

From a Mother’s Perspective

For Brooke, what makes Omaha Home for Boys different isn’t a single program or rule; it’s the feeling that, for the first time, her son is truly seen.

“Chance had become skilled at slipping through cracks in other placements, learning how to work the system and avoid responsibility. But at OHB, he can’t do that. Staff hold him accountable,” shared Brooke. She added that firm, fair, and unwavering consistency is something they have.

More than that, Brooke feels that people at OHB genuinely believe in Chance. “I think he has people up there that truly believe in him, and he can feel that,” Brooke shared. Knowing others see his potential is helping Chance start to see it in himself.

But what stands out most to Brooke is the sense of unity. For the first time, she doesn’t feel left out or kept at arm’s length. Instead, she feels included and supported by a team working in partnership with her, not separate from her.

“I really appreciate how everyone is working together to help Chance. It feels like everyone is on the same page,” said Brooke. “That is something we haven’t had anywhere else. I love that Chance knows we’re all here to help him.”