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Success Stories

A mother and three daughters pose around a dining room table. There are lace curtains and blue wall in the background and some dishes on the table in the foreground.

“This is Home” – A Family Finds Their Forever Home in Calais, Maine

One of the first rooms Heather Gagne and her daughters began redecorating in their new home is the dining room, shown in the top photo. They have been busy repainting and making other updates. Raising a family in coastal Machias, Maine may sound lovely, but for Heather Gagne recent years proved stressful. There were few housing options in their Downeast community, and Heather was glad to find a rental home to…
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Use the filters below to find additional stories about how our programs have helped rural communities across the nation.

Search Results: 67 Stories
Bicycles outside Berry Fast Bicyclles in Madison, S.D.

Local bicycle sales and service keep riders moving

As warmer temperatures approach, bicyclists are making plans to hit the roads and trails to enjoy the great outdoors. For residents living around Madison, winter is their time to bring in bikes for tune-ups so they aren’t losing valuable riding time in the summer. Thanks to… [Read More]
BusinessEconomic DevelopmentSmall Business
Katherine Roth, executive director of the Jamestown Regional Entrepreneur Center, holds a plaque with the letters "JREC" on it, the abbreviation for her organization.

Helping Businesses Get Started on the Right Foot

JAMESTOWN, N.D. Feb. 15, 2024 – “Grow as a person. Grow as a professional.” These are the words that immediately greet you when visiting the website of the University of Jamestown where a small but committed entrepreneurial center nestled on its North Dakota campus helps… [Read More]
Small Business
group photo of a ribbon cutting

Garbage Turned into Energy

Have you ever ridden by a landfill and watch flames coming out of pipes emerging from the debris and say to yourself-what a waste of energy/heat??? That’s called off gassing to relieve gas build up from garbage. Although, in 2013, Farmers Rural Electric Cooperative Corp. (RECC)… [Read More]
BusinessCooperativesRural DevelopmentSmall Business
Image of people in a boat

Working Together for Change on Spruce Head Island: Maine Oyster Company Goes Green with REAP Grant

Entrepreneurs must weigh every potential expense carefully. This is certainly true for Krista Tripp, owner of a lobster business and commercial oyster farm on Sprucehead Island, ME. Her company, Aphrodite Oysters, markets its fresh seafood directly to consumers and through area… [Read More]
BusinessClean EnergyEnergyEntrepreneurInflation Reduction ActLocal FoodsRenewable EnergySmall BusinessSolar Energy
Image of sign of Meadville, Pennsylvania

Engage Your Community With Investment Cooperatives

What can you do to bring economic development to your rural communities? Is it possible without large corporations or out of town investors that may not understand the needs of your community? Perhaps your community should consider investment cooperatives. Local organizers in… [Read More]
BusinessCooperativesEconomic DevelopmentRural DevelopmentSmall Business
Rattazzi's Locker staff

Any way you slice it, meat lockers remain vital to rural communities

A dream was realized in 1990 when Nowell “Shorty” Hofer began construction on Shorty’s Locker and retail store on the edge of Mitchell. When Shorty passed away from cancer in 2021, he left a hole in the community and an uncertain future for the local meat locker. Devin and… [Read More]
BusinessLocal FoodsSmall Business
photo from common grounds cooperative website

Finding Common Ground: A Community Economic Development Project

Traverse City, Michigan is a rural community on the shores of lake Michigan. A city with a strong year-round recreation economy and a vibrant downtown filled with independent businesses. Many business owners have struggled to locate commercial space, as well as retain employees… [Read More]
BusinessCooperativesEconomic DevelopmentRural DevelopmentSmall Business
Robert and Andrea Nickels in the Hardware Hills Vineyard tasting room.

Uncorking New Business Growth with Broadband

Hardware Hills Vineyard is located about five miles from downtown Scottsville but might well be in the middle of its namesake river when it comes to network connectivity. Owners Andrea and Rob Nickels spent their first 10 days on the property without internet and had to schedule… [Read More]
BroadbandBusinessSmall Business
State Director Julia Hnilicka smiles at local business owner Henry Krull as he bags up lettuce and explains hydroponic farming.

Green energy: photovoltaic array powers growth of Alaskan produce business

During a good year, Alaska’s outdoor growing season is three months for most lettuces and herbs, so providing greens for a community year-round is a feat in itself. Doing so sustainably is another challenge entirely! In 2018, innovator Henry Krull and his family decided to… [Read More]
BusinessEnergyLocal FoodsLocal ProduceREAPRenewable EnergyRural DevelopmentSmall BusinessSolar Energy
Todd Spady stands next to a vehicle in his family business

Spady Buick Pontiac gets a Good Deal with REAP

Spady Buick Pontiac GMC, Inc. is a family business through and through.  Owner Todd Spady speaks fondly of learning the car business from his uncles and happily describes how his own children are involved in the business on the main throughfare in Holdrege, Nebraska. To… [Read More]
Small Business

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