John C. Furstenberg, 33°

It is with great sorrow we announce the passing of John Furstenberg at the age of 82.

John was born on June 23, 1942 in Omaha, Nebraska, graduating from Omaha North High School in 1960.

He was raised a Master Mason on December 27, 1963 at St John’s Lodge #25, later joining Shiloh Lodge #327. He joined the Scottish Rite in October, 1964. John was invested a Knight Commander of the Court of Honour in October, 1999 and Coroneted a 33° Inspector General Honorary in December 2003. John served as Venerable for the Lodge of Perfection in 2002. He was a member of York Rite bodies, serving as Grand Commander for the Knights Templar of Nebraska in 1991. He joined Tangier Shrine in 1964 and served as Director for the Clown Unit in 1975.

John served in the Nebraska Air National Guard from 1964 to 1967. He was in the Engineer Division at Omaha Public Power District from 1962 to 1965 before moving to Omaha National Bank in 1967, serving in numerous managerial roles for 23 years.

He joined the Board of Directors for the Omaha Home for Boys in around 1983, and was hired as the President for OHB in 1990, where he worked tirelessly to promote public awareness for the needs of youth and families and to improve the infrastructure on the OHB campus. John retired from OHB in December, 2009. He was instrumental in creating a long-range planning task force which advanced big changes at OHB during his 20 year tenure, including a modernized mission statement, multiple partnerships with local social services organizations, and the launch of a Transitional Living program, accepting the first girls into OHB’s programming.

John was also active in the community, chairing numerous civic committees and fundraisers including Easter Seals of Nebraska, Keep Omaha Beautiful, and the Salvation Army Tree of Lights. He served on numerous Boards as well including the National Conference of Christians and Jews, the UNO Maverick Club board, Big Brothers, Keep Omaha Beautiful, American National Bank, the Mayor’s Business Executive Advisory Council and the Non-Profit Association of the Midlands.

He was also recognized by many civic organizations for his involvement, including the Junior Chamber of Commerce Ten Outstanding Men of the Year (1982), Boss of the Year award from the American League of Business Women (1984), Tangier Shrine’s Clown of the Year (1984), UNO Distinguished Service Award (1978), UNO Hall of Fame (1982), North High School’s Vikings of Distinction (1999) and the Omaha Chamber of Commerce Golden Spike Award (2000), among many others.

He is survived by his wife Mary and many family members. Funeral services will be at Roeder Mortuary – details are pending.