Robert Batt - Inducted in 2012
 |
Robert Batt is executive vice president of Nebraska Furniture Mart (NFM). He earned a bachelor’s of science in business from UNO in 1976. An Omaha native, Batt is the grandson of Rose Blumkin, who founded NFM in 1937. He began working for the company at age 14.
Batt has been active in civic and community organizations at the local, state and national levels. He currently serves on the Nebraska Liquor Commission, which regulates licenses and collects alcohol taxes, and is a member of the Sarpy County Sports Commission and the Salvation Army Advisory Board.
Previously, Batt served on the State Comprehensive Capital Facilities Planning Committee, which reviews building projects requested in the state budget. He also served as chairman of the Omaha Personnel Board from 1998 to 2003. Beyond Nebraska, Batt served as a charter member for the U.S. Concert Committee for Yellowstone, which raised funds to restore the park after it was ravaged by fire in 1988.
In 2010, Batt was honored as the Omaha Press Club’s 124th member of “Faces on the Barroom Floor.” This distinction has been bestowed on Omaha newsmakers since 1971. In December 2010, he was presented the UNO Alumni Association’s Citation for Alumni Achievement. Batt and his wife Janice are active in funding research to eliminate juvenile diabetes and sponsored the 14th Annual Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation gala in 2011. In his spare time, he travels with his wife and daughter Sara.