In North Omaha, Sacred Heart Church sits at 2207 Wirt Street along Omaha's historic North 24th Street corridor. Founded in 1890, this Catholic parish is known as a “destination parish,” with worshipers who travel from long distances and a deliberate welcome across racial, cultural, social, and family lines. Believing in God and guided by the Holy Spirit, Sacred Heart centers its life on Jesus, service, individual gifts, shared life, and prayer. It shares a pastor with St. Benedict the Moor and belongs with that parish and St. John's to the Historic 24th Street Family of Parishes.
From an 1890 Irish Parish to a Destination Parish
Sacred Heart was founded with a strong Irish Catholic influence. Statues of St. Patrick and St. Brigid flank Christ behind the altar. North Omaha's history includes early Irish settlement, the white flight and racial riots of the 1960s, economic struggle after the stockyards closed, and more recent arrivals of immigrants and asylum seekers.
Father Dave Korth acknowledges that Sacred Heart was among the churches that turned away Black Catholics about a century ago. He seeks forgiveness and healing for that exclusion and says the parish must remain vigilant so the history is never repeated. In the 1950s, nearly 11,000 white residents left the parish neighborhood as Black Omahans moved in. With nearly all parishioners gone, Sacred Heart struggled until a revitalization in the early 1980s. Today it is a commuter parish known for welcome and active engagement with Catholic social teaching.
Under the Historic 24th Street Family of Parishes, Sacred Heart belongs with St. John's and St. Benedict the Moor. St. John's, the southernmost and oldest, was dedicated in 1888, sits on Creighton University's campus, and retains Jesuit leadership and an Ignatian emphasis on being people for and with others. St. Benedict the Moor was founded in 1919 after Black Catholics were repeatedly excluded from Omaha churches, became a standard parish in 1953, and now includes multigenerational families and African immigrant Catholics. Fr. Dave Korth serves as pastor of Sacred Heart and St. Benedict the Moor, while Fr. Matt Walsh, SJ, leads St. John's.
Mass on Wirt Street and at St. Benedict the Moor
Sacred Heart's regular Mass schedule includes:
- Tuesday: 8:00 AM Mass.
- Wednesday: 8:00 AM Mass.
- Thursday: 8:30 AM School Mass.
- Friday: 8:00 AM Mass.
- Saturday: Mass.
- Sunday: 8:30 AM Mass at St. Benedict the Moor.
- Sunday: 10:45 AM Mass at Sacred Heart.
There is no Mass on Monday. Tuesday and Thursday Mass is normally celebrated in the side chapel, with entrance through the north door of the church. During the school year, Thursday Mass moves inside the main church to accommodate students.
Music gives the weekend liturgies distinct personalities. Gene Klosner provides music for Saturday Mass. At the 10:45 AM Sunday Mass, Boston Reid leads the Freedom Choir with guitar, bass, clarinet or saxophone, and drums in an upbeat style.
Reconciliation is celebrated on Saturdays from 4:30 to 4:50 PM and is also available by appointment, with additional services during Advent and Lent. A Virtual Mass and church videos are available through Sacred Heart's YouTube channel.
All Are Welcome, Especially Now
Sacred Heart's welcome is concrete and far reaching. The parish expressly welcomes people who are single, married, widowed, divorced, straight, LGBTQ, wealthy, or materially poor, along with people of every race and culture. Children who are restless, teenagers with questions, people with differing abilities, those living with addiction or recovery, and people who have recently been released from jail are included. The welcome extends across liberal, conservative, and middle-of-the-road perspectives and to people who feel full of hope, joy, or emptiness.
This welcome is joined to honest acknowledgment of the parish's racial history. Korth describes Sacred Heart as a community that welcomes people who have wondered whether they belong in the Catholic Church. The parish's shared life is grounded in belief in God, guidance by the Holy Spirit, celebration of Jesus, service, affirmation of each person's gifts, and prayer.
Faith Formation for Every Generation
Children and families
Religious Education is offered during the school year on Sundays from 9:20 to 10:15 AM in the school gym. Open to children from age five through Confirmation, it teaches the fundamentals of Catholic faith in a family centered setting. Families of Faith provides an alternative to classroom Religious Education for children ages six through Confirmation. Families gather monthly for a lesson, meet during the month around the same theme, and participate in a parent learning experience called Happy Holy Hour. Age appropriate activities support the teaching that parents are the primary teachers of faith for their children.
Youth and adults
The Wednesday Youth Group continues a young person's involvement after Religious Education. High school students can build friendships, serve the community, and take part in the life of the parish. The young adult group is open to people in their 20s and 30s who want to explore faith, serve and volunteer in the community, and build relationships. Faith Sharing Groups meet in parishioners' homes on various days, usually once a week during Lent, while some groups continue throughout the year.
Adult pathways and summer formation
The Order of Christian Initiation of Adults meets Sundays from noon to 1:30 PM in the Parish Center during a cycle that begins in September and continues through Easter with several breaks. It explores Catholic beliefs and practices, Scripture, prayer, service, and community, and participation does not require joining the Catholic Church. Bible Study Groups meet on Tuesdays and Sundays to examine Sunday readings in context and connect them with daily life. Alpha offers eleven interactive Christian faith sessions over a meal, followed by small-group discussion and requiring no previous knowledge or belief. Summer Vacation Bible School serves children from three years old through fifth grade with biblical stories, songs, activities, and opportunities to make friends.
Sacraments and the Work of the Liturgy
Parents are asked to take a baptism class before the baptism of their first child. The class covers baptismal theology, sacramental symbols, and the vocation of parenthood, and both parents are encouraged to attend whether they are Catholic or not. Children prepare for Reconciliation and First Communion through Religious Education. Confirmation preparation normally spans seventh and eighth grade, while the Archdiocese of Omaha requires recipients to be in eighth grade or older. The parish also provides marriage preparation with the required minimum of six months and celebrates Anointing of the Sick privately or within a weekend Mass.
People serve as lectors, Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, altar servers, sacristy assistants, greeters, and ushers. Lector and Communion minister training is offered online, and youth altar servers must be in at least fourth grade. Fr. Dave Korth is joined by deacons Jim Chambers, Rick Crotty, John Vrbka, and Marty Smith. Formation and discipleship are coordinated by Michella Blankman, Cathy Jenkins Walsh, Katie DiLeo, and Youth Ministry Coordinator Toni Banks.
Newcomers, Neighbors, and the Common Good
Afghan families, immigrants, and refugees
The Immigration and Refugee Team welcomes “foreigner” neighbors with care and respect. Its work includes supporting sponsored Afghan families and related families, creating educational programs for St. Benedict the Moor members learning English, and assisting new immigrants and refugees through Omaha Welcomes the Stranger. The parish also publishes Justice from the Heart with immigration education intended to encourage awareness and action.
Food, health care, and Catholic education
The Heart Ministry Center on Sacred Heart's campus was founded by the parish and is now a separate organization that remains actively supported by Sacred Heart. It provides food, health care, and a path forward for people severely affected by poverty. Parish volunteers assist particularly with pantry hours from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM Wednesday through Friday. Sacred Heart also belongs to CUES, which provides centralized leadership to Sacred Heart, All Saints, and Holy Name grade schools and comprehensive support to students and families in a Catholic environment.
Neighborhood relationships
The Neighborhood Alliance Team participates in local events and works to make Sacred Heart a visible, caring neighbor. A parish group serves dinner at the Siena and Francis House every fourth Saturday. Sacred Heart joins other Faithful Builders Coalition congregations in an annual Habitat for Humanity build through volunteer labor, food, financial support, and prayer. It is also a founding member of Omaha Together One Community, a citywide coalition of congregations and civic groups focused on renewing community ties and addressing issues such as rental conditions, environmental sustainability, and immigration reform.
Care for the shared environment
Sacred Heart Green Team combines education, advocacy, and stewardship. Its work has included solar panels for the parish office, composting and recycling at the school and parish, a garden beside the school, and book discussions about environmental care. Through parish giving, Sacred Heart also supports children's and adult formation, social justice work, neighborhood relationships, and music for weekend liturgies.
These ministries are part of one parish life at Sacred Heart. The community that shares faith and prayer at Mass also works with immigrant families, school families, pantry guests, neighbors, volunteers, and young people around North Omaha. At 2207 Wirt Street, Sacred Heart continues the story begun in 1890 by combining Catholic worship, family formation, social justice, and a broad welcome.