As an executive director of MICAH House, an Omaha metro homeless shelter, Jaymes Sime has transformed the organization’s programs and services and increased its budget to meet the needs of individuals and families experiencing homelessness in the metro area. Since he was hired in November 2015, Sime has grown the shelter’s budget by 80% in two years. In addition, he has created innovative programs, including a positive psychology class for adults called Transformation Thursday. Sime has recently launched a website and blog called Electric Executive. Through this blog, Sime hopes to inspire people to live a life of purpose and passion.

Sime’s strengths allow him to see the larger picture — to assess long-term problems and come up with creative solutions. As a child, Sime spent time homeless, and now he advocates for people from the perspective of lived experience. Sime is committed to the community and regularly lends his expertise to a variety of programs and organizations in the Omaha metro area. He is a commissioner for the Council Bluffs Housing Authority and is secretary of the Charles E. Lakin Campus Executive Board. He recently graduated from the Nonprofit Executive Institute through the Nonprofit Association of the Midlands and is a fellow with the 2018 New Leaders Council Institute.

His positive impact in the community has garnered national and local recognition, including the John C. Maxwell Transformational Leadership Award Top 100, where he was the only representative from Nebraska and Iowa. He is also a recipient of a 2017 TOYO (Ten Outstanding Young Omahans) award and 2017 Midlands Business Journal 40 under 40 award recipient.