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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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Find Stories

Use the filters below to find additional stories about how our programs have helped rural communities across the nation.

Search Results: 122 Stories
Aliesha Larson's daughter, Ali, and dog sit outside their new, one-level home in Chisago City.

Rural Development Helps Minnesota Family Find New Home In Time for Holiday Season

In Chisago City, Minnesota, Aliesha Larson faced a daunting challenge as a single mother living with three of her children. Living with her daughter Ali, who uses a wheelchair, and her two sons in a cramped two-bedroom rental was becoming increasingly difficult. The multi-level… [Read More]
Minnesota
Housing
People on staircase cutting a ribbon.

Ohio Celebrates Opening of New Independent Living Facility

Ohio Eastern Star Home gathered with family, friends, community leaders, and partners to cut the ribbon and celebrate opening of the newest addition to its 60-acre Mt. Vernon, Ohio campus. Pine Hill, an apartment complex featuring 40… [Read More]
Ohio
Community FacilitiesHousing
Lisa Gallant, seated, on the front porch of her home in South Paris, Maine, with Rural Development State Office Specialist Wendy Palmer and Community Concepts Inc. Self-Help Manager Michael Sampson.

Grateful Homeowner in South Paris, Maine, Paints a New Vision of Her Future

 “I couldn’t be happier,” said Lisa Gallant, of her spacious single-family home in South Paris, Maine. “I get up in the morning, and I just walk out down the hallway and into the kitchen, and it’s like, ‘I can’t believe I own this,’” she said, her face lighting up with… [Read More]
Maine
Housing
Residents of Woody Hollow Cooperative in Boscawen, NH

Woody Hollow Cooperative Goes Over and Under the Challenges of Aging Infrastructure

Woody Hollow Cooperative in Boscawen, New Hampshire is a 30-lot, resident-owned community that had to face the reality of aging water infrastructure. With a system dating back to the 70s, residents suffered the effects of poor surface drainage, constant leaks and ruptures, and… [Read More]
Vermont and New Hampshire
Housing
Ashley's home and family

Creating a Legacy: Ashley Elk Nation builds forever home in Badger Park

Submitted by Four Bands Community FundAshley Elk Nation had been living in a single-wide mobile home in Eagle Butte with her two sons for several years. Although she owned the home, her desire to do her best for her children was tugging her towards a safer neighborhood."I wanted… [Read More]
South Dakota
HomeownershipHousingRural DevelopmentTribal
Woman fills coffee pot with water in sink

The coffee’s on at Kim's

The coffee’s on in a refurbished house in rural Radisson, where the dream of homeownership is being experienced for the first time ever with the help of a USDA Single Family Housing direct loan.After much dedication, a new homeowner who worked throughout most of her adult life… [Read More]
Wisconsin
HomeownershipHousing
Vicki Beckendorf of Odin recently compelted a long-awaited kitchen renovation with the help of Rural Development's Section 504 Program.

Transforming a Kitchen Dream into Reality

Meet Vicki Beckendorf, a longtime resident of Odin, Minnesota. In 1998, she and her husband fell in love with their charming farmhouse, built in 1912. Over the years, however, the house began to show its age, revealing a growing list of repairs and updates that needed attention… [Read More]
Minnesota
Home RepairHousing
Joe Lewis, Rural Development home repair program recipient.

From Devastation to Renewal: The Journey of Mr. Joe Lewis

Inspiring Journey to Home RepairMeet Mr. Joe Lewis. Like his namesake, the former first black world heavyweight champion, Mr. Lewis, at 84 years old, is a champion in spirit. Living in Monterey, Louisiana, the unincorporated community in Concordia Parish, Mr. Lewis is one of the… [Read More]
Louisiana
African AmericanHome RepairHousing
Bodee, his wife Alexandria and their young son proudly stand in front of their first home!

A Growing Family Plants Roots in Wyoming

Bodee and his wife Alexandria were anxious to plant roots for their growing family. With a young son, and another one the way, they were ready to have a space of their own. The couple had never owned their own home, moving from rental to rental in Natrona County.“Homeownership… [Read More]
Wyoming
HomeownershipHousing
Man standing in front of house on wooded lot.

Keeping Housing Affordable and Safe in Rural Ohio Town

Representatives from Yellow Springs Home, Inc., and USDA Rural Development in Ohio celebrate partnership that helps provide safe, affordable housing for families in and near the Village of Yellow Springs, Ohio. USDA Photo. Since 1995,… [Read More]
Ohio
Home RepairHousing

Additional Success Stories