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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: 44 Stories
From left to right, Autumn Vogel, a cooperative developer at Keystone Development Center; Aliquippa Food Co-op team members: Carla McCoy; Tamu Gilbert, director of the Darrelle Revis Foundation; Mary Alice Gettings, educator with Penn State Extension Beaver County; Dave Slebodnik, owner of Sprout Project Management and Big Table Urban Farm in Beaver Falls, Pa.; Tyrone Patillo, principal with Premier Developments LLC.

Cooperative Partnership Increases Equitable Access to Healthy Foods in Western Pennsylvania

Former high school athlete Tyrone (Ty) Patillo of Aliquippa, PA, has community service in his blood. His father was the first minority firefighter in the community. Ty continues the family tradition of giving back. His dedication to helping his hometown led him to look for… [Read More]
Pennsylvania
CooperativesLocal Foods
Scott and Melissa Holt with their two cows in front of the Bistro

From Cow to Cone: Local Bistro Offers Fresh Take on Ice Cream

When Scott and Melissa Holt moved to Hot Springs, their plan was to retire. They started as a small farmer’s market selling meat, farm produce and homemade ice cream. Soon they saw the demand for their specialty ice cream grow – even in the dead of winter.People would come to… [Read More]
South Dakota
Local FoodsRural DevelopmentSmall Business
A man stands against a porch railing with a long wood shed behind him. The roof of the shed is covered with solar panels. There is fall foliage in the background.

Marsh River Co-op Finds "the Easiest Way to Reduce Overhead Costs"

The Waldo County town of Brooks is located about half an hour from Belfast on the Penobscot Bay. It is a rural community with a population of about 1000 people. The store is located right downtown in a property that was recently donated… [Read More]
Maine
BusinessClean EnergyCooperativesEnergyFood SupplyInflation Reduction ActLocal FoodsLocal ProduceREAPSmall BusinessSolar Energy
Man standing in front of Victor's Drive-In, Hamburgers sign

Rural Business Development Grant Keeps Rural Business Running

Some places evoke wonderful memories of joyful years gone by. Victor’s Drive-In in Peñasco, New Mexico, is just that kind of place. Victor Martinez, a U.S. Army veteran, and his wife, Barbara, opened the restaurant in 1971.After over 50 years in business, the restaurant’s… [Read More]
New Mexico
GrantsLocal FoodsSmall BusinessUnderserved
Owner Gary and manager Eric of Replenova Farm pose inside the farm store, with shelves of local foods arrayed behind them.

Solar Energy Helps New Farm on the Road to Financial Sustainability

Retired biochemist Gary Goodrich founded Replenova Farm in 2015, after decades spent growing healthy produce as a pastime. He had sold his Portland biotech company and was ready to dive into organic farming. In 2019 he purchased land and relocated the farm to Durham, Maine,… [Read More]
Maine
Clean EnergyLocal FoodsREAPSolar Energy
A woman wearing denim overalls stands in a green field with flowers in the foreground and solar panels and trees in the background.

REAP at the Junction of Farming and Clean Energy

When Eileen Flanagan and John Cochrane moved to Vassalboro, Maine and founded their farm, Junction Garden LLC, they knew they had a lot to learn about diversified agriculture in Maine. As they developed their market farm and growing business, one goal stood out: “We were very… [Read More]
Maine
Clean EnergyEnergyInflation Reduction ActLocal FoodsLocal ProduceREAPRenewable EnergySolar Energy
Brick buildings with many windows line a street in Montana. A clock tower is seen in the background.

Co-Op to Bring Local Food to Butte

After the closure of two grocery stores in Butte, Montana, community leaders grew increasingly concerned about the limited availability of fresh and local food. In 2021, a group of these leaders initiated the Butte Food Co-Op, with the goal of better connecting the community to… [Read More]
Montana
CooperativesLocal FoodsSmall Business
Woman standing under Sugar Nymphs Bistro sign next to parking lot

Bistro Menu and Accessibility Boosted by Rural Business Development Grant

You might not expect to find a fancy bistro when driving through the mountains in northern New Mexico, but that is exactly what you will find in the small mountain town of Peñasco. Sugar Nymphs Bistro shares building space with the town theater and is a place where people come… [Read More]
New Mexico
GrantsLocal FoodsSmall BusinessUnderserved
Two farmers pose with sheep inside a barn with hay on the floor and an open door in the background.

Maine Farm Uses REAP to Help Diversify Farm and Serve a Heritage Industry

Elizabeth Goundie and Josh Emerman are the co-founders of Moorit Hill Farm and Fiber in Troy, Maine. They came to Central Maine by a circuitous route, purchasing the property in 2017. Just seven years later, the young farmers are not only tending more than 70 sheep but also… [Read More]
Maine
Food SupplyInflation Reduction ActKnow Your FarmerLocal FoodsREAPSmall BusinessSolar Energy
Two men stand to the left of an outside restaurant order window

USDA Grant Helps Make Local Fast Food Faster

The small town of Peñasco, New Mexico, doesn’t offer any chain restaurants to stop in for a meal. But what it does offer is a variety of local cuisine. If you are looking for a quick bite to eat on your drive through the mountains, you might try to search for El Ya Merito. It is… [Read More]
New Mexico
Local FoodsSmall Business

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