The Josh Jones Story

Josh Jones is a North Omaha native and lifelong community advocate whose work is rooted in lived experience, leadership, and a deep commitment to youth development. Growing up within the Omaha Public Schools system, Josh saw firsthand both the depth of talent and the persistent lack of coordinated resources, infrastructure, and opportunity available to young people in his community.

Long before the Fair Game Project, it existed as a vision shaped by
years of observing how disconnected systems, inequitable access, and underinvestment limited what was possible for youth and the adults supporting them. His connection to Omaha Public Schools is both personal and professional, and his work reflects a deliberate effort to build what he once needed and what he knows his community deserves.

A proud graduate of Omaha Central High School, Josh is one of the most
accomplished basketball players in school and state history, leading the Eagles to three consecutive state championships. September of his senior year, Josh was diagnosed with bacterial endocarditis, a severe and life threatening infection that had begun to destroy his heart valve.

He underwent emergency open heart surgery under a prognosis that placed both his life and athletic future at risk. Doctors warned that his season and career could be over. Through extraordinary discipline, faith, and commitment to recovery, Josh returned in time to lead Omaha Central to a third consecutive state championship, finishing his career as the school’s all time leading scorer with 1,518 points and earning him Mr. Basketball honors in 2008, all-state recognition from the Lincoln Journal Star and the Omaha World Herald, and the National High School Spirit of Sport Award, recognizing excellence, integrity, and sportsmanship.

Josh continued his basketball career at Creighton University, where he provided leadership, toughness, composure, and consistency, helping the Bluejays capture back-to-back Missouri Valley Conference Tournament championships and reach two NCAA Tournament appearances, competing on the national stage against North Carolina in 2012 and Duke in 2013.

Facing the reality of his health and long-term well-being, Josh made the difficult decision to retire from basketball. Forced to step away from the game he loved, he carried forward lessons shaped by repeated encounters with mortality, discipline, resilience, humility, and perspective.

Those experiences solidified the purpose behind the Fair Game Project.
As the Founding Executive Director, Josh brings together lived experience, elite athletics, and community-based leadership to unify youth sports across Omaha Public Schools and the North and South Omaha communities.

His work centers on investing in coaches, strengthening pathways, and building systems that reflect the level of talent and potential that has always existed in his community. The Fair Game Project represents both his legacy and his responsibility, a long-held vision to ensure that opportunity is not left to chance and that the next generation of young people has access to the structure, support, and belief required to thrive. Josh’s mission is grounded in a simple truth shaped by his own journey: when systems are built with intention and people are invested in, young people are capable of more than anyone expects.