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Officials pleased after families OK merger

By Marjie Ducey - World-Herald Staff Writer , 04/15/10, 10:42AM CDT

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* This article was taken from the April 14th, 2010 edition of the Omaha World-Herald newspaper.

Hockey: Officials pleased after families OK merger

O.M.A.H.A. and Gladiator officials were ready to get to work after the merger of the two hockey clubs was approved by families with players in the two organizations.

One hundred and seven O.M.A.H.A. families voted for the merger, with 41 against. In the Gladiators, the vote was 69 for and 11 against. There are about 800 players in the two clubs.

“Almost three of four voted for the merger, which tells me we’re doing the right thing,’’ said Neal Krauss, president of O.M.A.H.A.

Aimee Guzman-Jones, president of the Gladiators, said she was glad everyone got their say. She said she heard from several parents excited about the merger.

Krauss, who will be president of the new 12-person board for the Omaha Hockey Club, which the new organization will be called, said he was relieved that the merger passed.

“It’s been quite a fight for four months,’’ he said. “Such an overwhelming vote says a lot.’’

The board will now meet to discuss costs, names of individual teams and the budget. Guzman-Jones said it will be a busy summer before tryouts in August.

“The Gladiators are really excited to work with O.M.A.H.A. to build this club,’’ she said, “so we can reach as many kids as we can and give them the opportunity to play the sport of hockey.’’