Film Premiere Shines Light on Father Flanagan’s Legacy

The Boys Town Music Hall hosted the world premiere of Heart of a Servant: The Father Flanagan Story on Friday night, September 13. The event attracted numerous dignitaries to the Boys Town campus and offered a first glimpse of the film, which will be shown in theaters for one night only on Tuesday, October 8.

To bring Father Flanagan’s story to life, Spirit Juice Studios partnered with the Father Flanagan League and traveled the world to interview Flanagan family members, friends, clergy, historians and others who could speak to his remarkable contributions and legacy.

Father Edward J. Flanagan is perhaps best known as the founder of Boys Town and for being portrayed by Spencer Tracy in the 1938 Oscar-winning Boys Town movie.

But this is actually just the middle of his story.

Heart of a Servant reveals the full picture of Father Flanagan’s life and the challenges he overcame to provide abandoned and orphaned children with the opportunity to thrive. He responded to the most pressing questions of his era regarding at-risk youth with answers that were blind to color or creed.

This was no easy task in early 20th-century America for an immigrant priest from Ireland, who was facing Jim Crow laws and raising societal issues that most politicians preferred to ignore.

Father Flanagan was a champion for the care and treatment of children, saving the lives of countless orphans by founding Boys Town and working internationally to provide guidance on public policy toward children in war-torn countries. The principles he espoused continue to influence lawmakers globally today, and Boys Town still stands more than 100 years later, having aided hundreds of thousands of children on their way to a brighter future.

Jonathan Roumie, perhaps best known for portraying Jesus in the television series The Chosen, is the film's narrator and executive producer. Carmel Communications was also instrumental in bringing this film about Father Flanagan to life.

Heart of a Servant: The Father Flanagan Story will be shown in numerous theaters in Omaha and surrounding areas in Nebraska, as well as Iowa and across the country, for one night only, Tuesday, October 8.