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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 their 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: 59 Stories

Solar Energy Powers Year-Round Greens Production

Baby Greens, a farm located in Kingston, Rhode Island, is putting a convenient spin on the term “farm to table.” The chemical-free organic farm produces a mixture of salad greens that owner Jeffery Kamminga hand delivers to local homes and businesses year round. In August of… [Read More]
REAPSolar Energy
Scott and Rebecca Demaree, owners of Gardiner Market and Orion Thornton, owner of Onsite Energy

Solar Savings for Gardiner Grocery Store

Millions of visitors each year tour Yellowstone National Park. The North entrance to the park is the only entrance that is open year-round and is home to the small town of Gardiner, Montana. The local grocery store, Gardiner Market, offers traditional items, plus gluten-free,… [Read More]
REAP
Precision Prefinishing installed energy-efficient lighting at its Harrisburg facility with help from a USDA grant.

A Rural Business is Reaping the Rewards of Increased Energy Efficiency

Precision Prefinishing may be a small business, but it needs a large space to conduct its work of custom finishing panels for cabinets, siding, and other construction products. Its 130,000-square-foot facility in the rural town of Harrisburg in western Oregon was lit with… [Read More]
EnergyREAP
Peony Solar

One of the Largest Solar Farms in the State will benefit approximately 9,400 homes in South Carolina.

USDA Rural Development (RD) Business and Industry (B&I) Loan funds are used to assist farmers, ranchers, and rural small businesses in developing renewable energy systems and in making energy-efficiency improvements to their operations.  In May, Peony Solar, located in… [Read More]
BusinessREAP

Keeping Manufacturing Alive

Bloomsburg Carpet, located in the beautiful Susquehanna River Valley of central Pennsylvania, has, since its founding in 1976, prided itself on manufacturing the highest quality, American-made carpets. Like all small businesses, they seek to control expenses as best they can.… [Read More]
REAP
car crusher

#1 Selling Car Crusher on the Market Benefits From Making Energy Efficiency Improvements

OVB Holdings, LLC dba Overbuilt, based in Huron, SD,  manufactures heavy machinery including car crushers and balers/loggers.  Overbuilt and its products have been around since 1996.  They produce top-quality, high-performance equipment for auto salvage yards and… [Read More]
REAP
Vernetta Le Grand and Cayla Hilbrands

Energy Efficiency Improvements Enhance Shopping Experience

The R&B Food Center located in Wessington, South Dakota is the only grocery store located in the community with a population of  177. Vernetta LeGrand has owned and operated this local grocery store since 1987. Having a grocery store  is critical to community… [Read More]
REAP
Geddes Grocery Store Photo

Maintaining Infrastructure Important to Rural South Dakota Grocery Store

As the only grocery store in the town of Geddes, SD, owners Jill & Bob Dyk, had a goal to provide local community members, as well as visitors to the area, with a place to buy grocery items, food and supplies for campers and hunters, general service items, and a place to… [Read More]
REAP

USDA’s Rural Energy for America Program Assists South Dakota Rancher

Haven Stuck got his start ranching at an early age on his family’s ranch in Mellette, SD where they raised cattle, pigs and sheep. Stuck grew up working cattle and learning the difficult business of operating a sustainable agribusiness from his parents. After high school, Stuck… [Read More]
REAP

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