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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: 45 Stories
Jeanna Dolezal outside her home

Homeowner at Crossroads, Utilizes Home Repair Funding

Homeownership helps families and individuals build savings over time; however, keeping your home in good repair can still be a financial hardship for homeowners.  USDA Rural Development’s Home Repair Loan and Grant Program can assist rural homeowners with these needed… [Read More]
Home Repair
Photo of Corina Ponce and her son

USDA Helps Renovate Homeowner’s Safe Haven

Nearly three years ago, Corina Ponce had purchased a bank-owned home in Redfield, SD. She acquired the property knowing it had been vacant for a few years and needed major repairs. The time had come when she was ready to move forward with repairs to the home. One evening, she… [Read More]
Home RepairHomeownershipHousing
Sewer in the Yard

No Family Should Have Raw Sewage in Their Yard

As a low-income senior citizen who lost her partner and lives solely on Social Security, Ellen is at the center of a multi-generational home where resources are pooled. Ellen called the Kitsap Public Health District in the summer of 2019 to report her failing septic system.… [Read More]
Home Repair
Ms. Dearing on her porch (center) social distance visiting from USDA housing program team members Wes and Qula.

Home Completely Restored by Maximizing USDA’s Housing Programs

Ms. Dearing sought help for extensive home improvements; her local Rural Development housing team delivered. “Program knowledge and experience was key in this case,” recalls Wesley Sparks, loan specialist.  The structure was badly in need of work to bring it to safe, decent… [Read More]
Home Repair

April Showers Bring May Flowers...and the Need for a New Roof

Barbara Cagle is an avid gardener and knows how important the early spring rains are to her flowers. This year however, the April showers threatened the safety of her home. Barbara, who lives in Tracy City, Tenn which is a persistent poverty county, knew when her roof started to… [Read More]
Home Repair

A New Roof Over Their Heads, Fresh Cut Grass Under Their Feet

For Leon and Priscille Boucher of Berlin, New Hampshire, a new roof meant they could use their pots and pans for cooking rather than collecting the water dripping from the ceiling. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development funded roof rehabilitation, but… [Read More]
Home Repair
Robert Simon stands in front of his new well in Spalding, California, giving the thumbs up sign.

Drilling Relief in Drought-Damaged Lakeshore Town

When the water level runs low at Eagle Lake, the fate of an entire community hangs in the balance. The tiny community of Spalding, California depends on Eagle Lake, the second largest freshwater lake in the state, for campground visitors, summer home vacationers and, above all,… [Read More]
Home Repair

Hope Comes with USDA Financing

Ron Patton of Holladay, Tennessee has seen more than his share of hard times.  A series of accidents and poor health has left him disabled since 2005.  Since purchasing his home and land in rural Benton County in 2000, it has become more and more difficult for him to… [Read More]
Home Repair
rural development mississippi, housing preservation grant, multi-family housing, usda

Making a House Feel Like a Home Again

Sometimes a new home is not what is needed, but repairs and renovations are simply sufficient to make a house feel like a home again. Ms. Mary Jane Hayman who is confined to a wheelchair has been living in the breakfast area of the kitchen of her home. She has been confined to… [Read More]
Home Repair
Loves Her Roses

Smell the Roses!

Harriett is an 87 year old single female in Scottsbluff, NE, living on a limited, fixed income.  Her home is an 808 sq. ft. home built in 1935.  This home has been in the family for many years.   Harriet had been having trouble with her sewer line for quite… [Read More]
Home Repair

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