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Success Stories

Browse All Stories

Resident hugging her new home.

Partnership’s key to smoothing bumpy road to successful homeownership

USDA Rural Development and Red Cliff Chippewa Housing Authority (RCCHA) have partnered over the years in Wisconsin to help tribal members make repairs to existing homes and to help renters reach their goals of becoming homeowners on tribal-leased land. Carrie Fulton, a USDA… [Read More]
Brian and Catherine Bartunek family with Rural Development staff outside home

Bartuneks Become Homeowners After Long Journey

Buying a house can be a daunting process for anyone and it’s easy to become discouraged or overwhelmed, but for one South Dakota family, perseverance paid off for their long journey to home ownership. Brian and Catherine Bartunek wanted a place to call home for their three… [Read More]
Man inside his brewery

Army Veteran Brings Brewing Back to Butte

In 2015, Tony Olson, who is a member of the Great Falls Little Shell Tribe and a U.S. Army National Guard Veteran, brought craft brew back to Butte, Mont.  He used USDA Rural Development Rural Energy for America Program funding to install solar panels on his brewery’s roof.  And… [Read More]
A smiling family, father, mother, two young daughters, standing on the porch of their own home.

Couple Turns Wishes of Homeownership into Reality with USDA and Four Directions

“When we walked in, I felt like an imposter - Like I just stole somebody’s house,” said Michael Carlos, a Houlton, Maine native and fiancé of Sakoya Blackwell, a member of the Maliseet Indian Tribe in Houlton. “I couldn’t believe it was really ours.” For years, their family… [Read More]
The Thompson Family, father, mother, four children, posing in front of a maple tree planted during a recent USDA Homeownership Month Event in their new backyard along the Raquette River.

USDA Assists The Thompson Family of The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe

Nestled along the beautiful Raquette River which flows along the St. Regis Mohawk Territory and Canada, you’ll find the home of the Thompson family. Inside and out of those newly constructed walls, you will see and hear the laughter and bustling activity of a young and growing… [Read More]
Native American  statue on IAIA Campus

Advancing Artistic Expression

The Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) is located just a few miles southwest of Santa Fe, New Mexico. Located on 140 acres in Santa Fe it is arguably one of the best locations in the state for an art school. To put it simply the place is inspiring. The campus is in a… [Read More]
Metal sculpture with parking lot in back

Paving the Way for Tribal Education

Salish Kootenai College (SKC), in Pablo, Mont., was founded in 1977, became self-governing in 1981, and was later designated as a land-grant college. SKC serves 68 percent of first generation college students. With enrollment exceeding 700, and many students commuting to pursue… [Read More]
Lake Andes group photo

USDA Builds Sound Infrastructure for a Rural South Dakota Community

The City of Lake Andes recognized that two-thirds of the city sewer system was built in the 1920’s with vitrified clay pipe (VC) and brick manholes (MHs). The sewer system was experiencing a significantly high rate of infiltration and inflow causing the sanitary sewer system to… [Read More]
Pine Ridge Lift Station

Reliable Infrastructure Provided to the Pine Ridge Community

Pine Ridge is the most populous community in Oglala Lakota County, SD with a population of 3,308. It is located inside the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and is the tribal headquarters for the Oglala Sioux Tribe. The lift station in Pine Ridge was in very poor condition with… [Read More]
North wing addition.

Campus Addition for Classroom and Community Cultural Space

The Nebraska Indian Community College (NICC), a federal land grant institution since 1994, serves two tribal nations: the Omaha Tribe of Nebraska at the Macy Campus and the Santee Sioux Nation at the Santee Campus. A third campus site is located in South Sioux City. NICC’s… [Read More]