The Bay, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting Nebraska youth through community building, mentorship and workforce development, has expanded beyond Lincoln and beyond its popular skateboarding programming. As The Bay establishes itself in Omaha at the Benson Community Center, the organization has taken ownership of another arts and education nonprofit, Omaha Girls Rock (OGR). The Bay team members said one thing that hasn’t changed is the nonprofit’s continued dedication to empowering kids and young adults — even as a longtime leader steps down. 

Mike Smith, co-founder and executive growth and innovation director for The Bay, left the organization this month. According to an announcement by the nonprofit, Smith is preparing to become a father and is ready to explore other opportunities. In recent years, Smith has received awards and recognition for his work at The Bay, earning a Nebraska Distinguished Entrepreneur Award from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2024 and being named Tech Leader of the Year during the 2024 AIM Tech Awards. 

In a farewell message on LinkedIn, Smith described the evolution of The Bay from a skate park in a Lincoln mall in 2010 to a resource hub for youth in both Lincoln and Omaha. He said he will be “cheering loudly from the sidelines” in support of the current leaders moving the organization forward. He also thanked all those who have contributed to The Bay’s journey. 

“Every organization inherits traits from its founder,” Smith said. “I’m proud The Bay will always be disruptive, fun and youth-led at its core: re-imagining after-school programs, public education, workforce development and what a third place for youth can be.”

Andrew Norman, co-founder and executive director of The Bay, said the nonprofit has built core relationships and partners over the past 15 years to lay the foundation for a strong future. He said the last five years have been a time of significant growth for the nonprofit, emphasizing the launch of its workforce education programs Bay High and Gap Year.

“Youth find us because they care about [and] they’re interested in the opportunities we provide, whether it be skateboarding or music or fashion or entrepreneurship,” Norman said. “That gives them the opportunity to find their community and to build confidence.”

According to The Bay’s 2024 Annual Report, the organization served over 1,600 young people through its youth engagement initiatives. The Bay seeks to remove barriers to entry by offering a “free/pay-what-you-can” option for youth signing up for camps, lessons and workshops.

From these initial interactions, Norman said kids and young adults become motivated to pursue other opportunities offered by The Bay to develop their skills, work experiences and resumes. For example, they may earn course credits through Bay High, functioning as a Focus Program for Lincoln Public Schools. Or they may participate in internships and receive career-readiness credentials through Gap Year’s eight-month programming.

While there are no plans to bring a similar program to Bay High to public schools in Omaha anytime soon, Norman said The Bay does plan to bring its Gap Year program to Omaha within the next year. He said organizers are speaking with more potential partners. 

This comes as the nonprofit acquires OGR and explores additional ways the nonprofit can make an impact for local youth in the city. 

The future of Omaha Girls Rock

OGR is an Omaha-based nonprofit with the mission of empowering youth through music education. Starting in 2011 as part of the Girls Rock Camp Alliance, the organization went on to provide after-school programming, instrument lessons and loans and a summer camp for youth ages 4 through 18. During the camp, kids would learn an instrument, form a band, co-write an original song and then perform it live. 

Sara Bertuldo was the operations manager for OGR before the nonprofit joined The Bay. She now works for The Bay as workforce education and OGR program manager. 

Bertuldo said OGR reached a point where it was growing too fast, and it became a challenge to sustain. That forced organizers to turn kids away from programs, which were at capacity. She said The Bay is now able to step in and provide the foundational support OGR needed. 

“I feel like I can really focus on making our program as strong as it can get and really provide a positive experience for campers, as well as staff and volunteers,” Bertuldo said. 

Norman said The Bay plans to relaunch the OGR summer camps in 2026. Still in the planning stages, he said they anticipate bringing OGR programming to Lincoln and integrating Bertuldo’s expertise into other programs provided by The Bay.

“OGR is just another opportunity for us to provide community, build confidence and skills, increase the happiness and decrease the loneliness of this generation,” Norman said. 

Moving into the Benson Community Center

Norman said the organization has always wanted to expand into Omaha and in 2021 started with after-school programming centered on skateboarding and beatmaking at local schools. He said The Bay eventually landed a physical space at the Benson Community Center, largely through collaboration and support from Omaha Parks and Recreation, the Lozier Foundation and the Omaha Parks Foundation. 

Norman said conversations about The Bay’s residence at the Benson Community Center began around 2023, with a vision to help repair and revitalize the space at the heart of the Benson neighborhood. Since the location opened in 2024, the nonprofit has helped facilitate renovations and has tapped into Benson’s art and entrepreneurial scene, including helping kids participate in the 2025 Youth Artist Market during Benson First Fridays. 

Norman said The Bay doesn’t see the community center as its “forever home.”

“Our job is to bring a lot of energy and activity into it, as well as help draw other partners who want to use that space,” Norman said. “Our goal with the Benson Community Center is to leave it better than we found it.”

Looking to the future, Norman said The Bay is considering a permanent residence in Omaha that will allow the organization to provide similar offerings to what they provide in Lincoln. In the meantime, he said The Bay is continuing to foster partnerships with community organizations in the city. 

Fifteen-year-old Truman Hernandez said he began skating with The Bay when it started with its outreach and skateboarding lessons at spots around Omaha. Now he is a familiar face with staff and drop-ins alike at the Benson Community Center, building a network of friends and mentors while taking on additional camps and lessons.

“I’ve met pretty much all of my friends here — not all of my friends — but all my skateboarding friends here,” Hernandez said. “You come and you meet a bunch of people that have the same interests or that’ll push you to further your interests.”