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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 the 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: 888 Stories
photo of ribbon cutting

Rural Community’s First Hospice Center

For the people of Glasgow, Kentucky, a collaboration between T.J. Community Mission Foundation, the city, Farmers Rural Electric Cooperative, and USDA Rural Development helped to meet a critical need in the community. In 2020, the city was able to open its first hospice center… [Read More]
Kentucky
BusinessCooperativesEconomic DevelopmentHealth CareRural Development
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]
Kentucky
BusinessCooperativesRural DevelopmentSmall Business
Administistrator Andrew Berke Speaking At Bamberg, S.C. ReConnect Event

USDA ReConnect Is Paving the Way for a More Connected and Prosperous Future for All Residents

Columbia, S.C., February 9, 2024 - Last fall, the Rural Utilities Service Administrator Andrew Berke visited Bamberg, South Carolina, to announce a significant $24 million investment through the ReConnect Program for broadband infrastructure enhancements in Orangeburg and… [Read More]
South Carolina
High Speed Internet
The Moulton volunteer fire department station with the US flag flying in front of in lies along the main street in town.

Moulton, Iowa, Modernizes Fire Department

In the southernmost tier of Iowa counties lies the quiet town of Moulton in Appanoose County. Far from an urban area, the town, population 607, is small, but offers several convenient services along Main Street. The local telecommunications company, Moulton city hall, and a… [Read More]
Iowa
Community FacilitiesFirst RespondersHigh Speed Internet
An aircraft landing at Luray Caverns Airport

Airport Upgrades Take Wing in Page County

While chicken coops are pretty common in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, it IS unusual to find one being used as an airport terminal. The original function may not be readily apparent to first-time visitors, but it’s easy to see that the converted poultry house has seen better… [Read More]
Virginia
Community Facilities
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]
Maine
BusinessEnergyEntrepreneurLocal FoodsRenewable EnergySmall BusinessSolar Energy
A woman stands in front of a white house with a metal railing

New Teacher Buys a Home: Kailee Invests in Jasper County, Iowa

Not many college students graduate with a bachelors degree and purchase a house within two years. Kailee Meyer in Jasper County, Iowa, achieved her dream of home ownership with help from a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development home loan program.… [Read More]
Iowa
HomeownershipHousing
The new water treatment facility at Wagon Wheel community in Brookfield, MA will replace 68 aging septic tanks and ensure the community meets environmental regulations.

Wagon Wheel community receives continuing support to upgrade wastewater system

Wagon Wheel Community is a small neighborhood comprised of 144 mobile homes on a 48-acre property in Brookfield MA. The community was faced with an antiquated system that was comprised of 68 septic tanks serving 212 residents. USDA RD Southern New England (SNE) started to… [Read More]
Massachusetts
Infrastructure
Librarians present and past, Tina Peterson (L) and Kathleen Schreiber (R) in Harlowton's Library.

Local Library “More than Just Books” for Rural Montana Town

“The Light Lies on the Farther Hills,” was the motto of the Harlowton Women’s Club at is founding in 1921. The club’s first project was to establish a public library for the town to “stimulate intellectual development and promote fellowship.” That same year, the Harlowton… [Read More]
Montana
Community Facilities
Community gathers to celebrate NACDC Financial Services, Inc., $1 million grant award.

Advancing Homeownership on Montana's Tribal Lands

On a sun-drenched, snowy day in Browning, Montana, community leaders gathered at NACDC Financial Services, Inc., to celebrate NACDC’s receipt of a $1 million USDA grant to expand single family homeownership on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. The award is part of USDA Rural… [Read More]
Montana
Homeownership

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