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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: 84 Stories
Tai Lepule and his family stand proudly in their new home’s kitchen with USDA Rural Development Area Director Amy Milburn and RurAL CAP Construction Manager Chris Blanchard. In November 2022, USDA Rural Development invested $734,714 with Rural CAP to help 18 families build energy efficient homes in Soldotna, Alaska

‘Credit’ Goes to Soldotna Family for Helping Build Their Own Home

In November, USDA Rural Development and Rural Community Action Program helped Andrew “Tai” Lepule and his family close on the home of their dreams.  Purchasing a house can be challenging for any family in Alaska, considering high market prices, low availability, and… [Read More]
Alaska
GrantsHomeownershipHousingRural Development

Humboldt Community REAPs the Benefit of Webb Farm Solar

Located in rural Humboldt, Tennessee, Mr. Aaron Webb of Webb Farm Solar Systems Inc., owns and operates a minority owned solar farm. This farm has been in operation since 2012, with Photo-Voltaic (PV) Solar Systems on several farm properties.  It was in 2019, when Webb… [Read More]
Tennessee
EnergyGrantsREAPSolar Energy
A skid steer with snow blower attachment blowing snow off a sidewalk

A Skid Steer, A Snow Blower and Safer Sidewalks in a Small Iowa Town

Located in southwestern Iowa, the town of Corning in Adams County is known for its historic architecture and rural landscapes. A strong sense of civic pride can be seen throughout the community, population 1,564. Small town charm, however, was not enough to serve the pressing… [Read More]
Iowa
Community FacilitiesDisasterGrantsInfrastructure
Harvest Outreach Center staff pose with new vehicles purchased with Emergency Rural Healthcare Grant funding.

'Going the Extra Mile' to Provide Post-Pandemic Health Services

While the number and severity of new cases may be down, the coronavirus continues to have a devastating impact on some of the most vulnerable members of the population. The youth served through the Harvest Outreach Center (HOC) in Rustburg, Va., are the faces of a national… [Read More]
Virginia
GrantsHealth CareMental Health
Native American ladies sitting in chairs, talking and smiling with each other.

Increasing Abundance with Native Communities Cooperative Development Training

Cooperatives are designed to meet the common economic, social, and cultural needs and aspirations of a group. Making sure the group’s values and cultural dynamics are honored is fundamental to successful cooperative development; this makes the co-op model attractive to many… [Read More]
Virginia
CooperativesGrantsRural DevelopmentTribal
Photo of people lifting up a wall frame they have built out of wood while building a house.

USDA RD helps family become homeowners in Napa Valley

Erik Martinez, Sr. and his wife Ana immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico about 30 years ago with the dream of making a better life for themselves. They settled in Napa Valley in the world-famous wine region where Ana found work in hospitality and tourism and Erik began working at… [Read More]
California
GrantsHomeownershipHousing
Several people raise a house wall during a group construction project

Camp Fire survivor gets new home through USDA RD Self-Help Program

Elizabeth Brewster grew up in Paradise, California. After a time away for her career, she knew she had to come back to the place she called home – a home that had been in her family since the 1960s. In 2018, tragedy hit. The Camp Fire, the deadliest fire in the history of… [Read More]
California
DisasterGrantsHomeownershipHousing
USDA RD's ReConnect program helped Lindsay's family access high-speed internet

Home Telephone Company Rings up ReConnect Success in McClellanville, South Carolina

Lindsay is a working mother in McClellanville, South Carolina, and like many people living in rural communities, lacking access to reliable, high-speed internet used to be a challenge that affected her entire family.   “Especially when the kids came home from school,… [Read More]
South Carolina
BroadbandGrantsRural DevelopmentTelecommunications
The Boys and Girls Club of the North Valley was able to purchase new tech equipment through Community Facilities program funding.

USDA Rural Development helps Boys and Girls Club in Oroville open new Teen Center

The Boys and Girls Club of the North Valley (BGCNV) fills a critical need in Oroville and surrounding communities, providing after-school social services and enrichment opportunities for low-income children and youth. About 79 percent of those served live below the poverty line… [Read More]
California
Community FacilitiesEducationGrantsRecreationRural Development
Cooperative developers and members of home care cooperatives gather at the National Home Care Cooperative Conference. Group of smiling people standing in a large open room.

Strength in Members: Cooperative Home Care Resiliency in a Time of Crisis

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, home care cooperatives were a beacon of hope for overburdened health care workers and the industry that faced its breaking point. Many workers who wanted a stake in the day-to-day operations turned to the cooperative business model, which allows… [Read More]
Virginia
CooperativesGrantsHealth CareRural Development

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