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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: 11 Stories
A woman stands in a farmers' market booth with a Precipice Coffee banner behind her and coffee displayed on the table in front of her. The tent is green and encloses the scene.

Little Roaster Avoids a Big Stink with Clean Technology

Precipice Coffee is roasted in the company's small Ellsworth location using a zero-emissions Bellwether Coffee roaster, pictured here.  Early in the process of establishing their new coffee business, Maggie Iannuzzi and her husband… [Read More]
Maine
BusinessClean EnergyElectricEntrepreneurREAPTechnology
Molly and Everett pose with dog Cricket in front of their barn with the solar panels on the roof.

REAP Helps Nettie Fox Farm Step Away from Fossil Fuels

Nestled in the gently rolling hills of Newburgh, Maine, Nettie Fox Farm produces certified organic vegetables. Molly Crouse founded the farm in 2009. In 2013 her partner, Everett Ottinger, joined her in operating the 33-acre spread. They began steadily increasing the… [Read More]
Maine
Clean EnergyElectricFood SupplyKnow Your FarmerLocal FoodsLocal ProduceRCDIREAPRenewable EnergySolar Energy
Man prepares to open electric box

USDA Funding Helps Mitigate Fire Risk for Electric Co-op Service Area

Many of us don’t often think about where the electricity comes from that powers the lights in our home and charges our cell phones. However, residents living in communities powered by Kit Carson Electric Cooperative Inc. can see where their power comes from. It is provided by… [Read More]
New Mexico
CooperativesElectricEnergySolar Energy
West River Electric Association crews use bucket trucks install power lines in South Dakota

Cooperatives keep the lights on in Rural Communities

West River Electric Association, based in Wall, S.D. has been delivering power to the counties of Haakon, Jackson, Meade, Pennington, Oglala Lakota, and Ziebach in South Dakota since 1939. Their focus has always been on their customers, who are also their members, and recent… [Read More]
South Dakota
CooperativesElectricRural Development
PA Business Installs Solar Panel With REAP Funding

REAP Funding Helps Pennsylvania Business Go Solar

Three Rivers Farm helps bring fresh, locally grown produce to the marketplace in a sustainable way. Nathan Holmes is the owner and founder of the business and knew early on that he wanted to help local farmers while fueling economic development in his community. As a Pittsburgh… [Read More]
Pennsylvania
Economic DevelopmentElectricGrantsLocal ProduceREAPSolar EnergySustainable/Organic Foods
Thermal image of a home

Energy Efficiency Loan – Vermont Energy Investment Corporation

The Vermont legislature created an Energy Efficiency Utility named Efficiency Vermont as a full-service utility providing those services to all ratepayers.  Under this structure, utility ratepayers can reduce their energy use by investing in energy improvements for their… [Read More]
Vermont and New Hampshire
ElectricEnergyRenewable Energy
Electric Transmission Line

Largest Transmission Line in North Dakota Serves 125,000 Consumers

Electricity provides us with many conveniences: flip a switch and the dark is light, hit a button and our television turns on, heat your home in the winter and cool it in the summer, cook your food on the stove or store it in the refrigerator. Electricity is needed to run heavy… [Read More]
North Dakota
Electric

RUS Electric Program Finances Energy Efficiency and Conservation Program Loans

  The RUS Electric Program recently established a loan program to help electric cooperatives reach out to consumers and businesses. In a News Release dated October 23, 2014, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that USDA had funded its first two loans under the… [Read More]
Arkansas
ElectricEnergyRenewable EnergyRural Development
R.C. Thomas Hydroelectric Station

RUS Electric Program Finances Hydroelectric Power

Hydroelectric power RUS Electric Program approved $73 million in loan funds to finance ETEC’s R. C. Thomas Hydroelectric Station (R.C. Thomas Station), formally known as the Lake Livingston Hydro-electric Station, located near the City of Lake Livingston in Polk County, Texas.… [Read More]
Texas
ElectricEnergyRenewable Energy
Woodville Renewable Energy Woodville, Texas

RUS Electric Program Finances Woody Biomass Power

Biomass RUS Electric Program partnered with borrower, East Texas Electric Cooperative, Inc. (ETEC) in order to fund the recently completed Woodville Woody Biomass Project located near Woodville Texas. Woodville is a 49.9 MW carbon neutral renewable energy facility that will burn… [Read More]
Texas
BiomassElectricEnergyRenewable Energy

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