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Tammye Treviño, Administrator for Housing and Community Facilities Programs, and USDA Rural Development State Director, Vernita F. Dore participated in groundbreaking ceremonies for three different schools in Dillon County on Monday, April 18, 2011.

On Friday, April 8th I had the opportunity to see first-hand the many ways USDA Rural Development programs are improving the lives of rural Americans when I visited a variety of USDA-funded projects in Anita, Logan and Woodbine in western Iowa.

In Anita, I met Duane Murphy, the local fire chief and all-around community champion.  He told me how the grant we are giving his community to assist with the purchase of a new fire truck will help keep the local residents safe. He also mentioned how his department will now be better equipped to provide rescue services to travelers along Interstate 80 and visitors to Lake Anita State Park.

In the two years that President Obama and Agriculture Secretary Vilsack have been in office, those involved in production agriculture have participated in driving a sustained economic recovery.  That’s the message I delivered earlier this week to farmers, extension staff, local business leaders and government officials during a speech at Alcorn State University in Mississippi.  I was honored to be asked to address those in attendance at the 20^th annual Small Farmers Conference at Alcorn State.  The theme is “Sowing the Seeds of Opportunity for a Bountiful Harvest.”

A groundbreaking ceremony took place earlier this month in the Town Bank section of Lower Township, Cape May County, New Jersey, to kick off the first phase of a water main project.  USDA Rural Development officials joined Lower Township Municipal Utility Authority, Senator Bob Menendez, state and local officials, and local residents outside the Cape May Beach Property Owners Association Clubhouse.  Howard Henderson, New Jersey Rural Development State Director told the crowd that this project is being funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act), and is the second largest water project awarded in New Jersey.

A ceremonial groundbreaking for the Municipal Authority of the Township of Washington’s Phase II Sewer Project in Pennsylvania marked an important day for almost 1,700 local residents. Congressman Mark Critz, officials from USDA Rural Development, and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers participated in the groundbreaking.

Phase II of the sewer construction project is funded through a Rural Development American Recovery and Reinvestment Act loan administered by the Water and Environmental Program and  U.S. Army Corp of Engineers funding. Phase II will provide sewer to the areas of Washington Heights, Arnold City, and Lynnwood. These areas are currently served by malfunctioning on-lot sewage systems, allowing raw or partially treated sewage to be discharged to yards, roadside ditches, roadways and nearby streams, posing a constant threat of bacterial contamination for the area residents, as well as fish, wildlife and downstream property owners.

Who would believe that within a year of the restoration of a Lawrence County, Illinois floodplain, two endangered birds could find it? This recently happened when a breeding pair of whooping cranes took a break from their northern migration to enjoy the newly restored wetland.

Spencer Garvey, a young resident of Milton, Pennsylvania, is looking forward to visiting the children’s library at the new Milton Public Library at Rose Hill, where stakeholders and local officials broke ground last week.  By early next year, the historic mansion in the heart of Milton will be transformed into an 11,000 square-foot library and community center with dedicated space for educational and cultural programs.

Few places in the U.S. are as secluded as Supai. Nestled in a side canyon of the Grand Canyon, it has the distinction of being the most remote community in the lower 48 states. The only way in or out is to walk, ride a mule, or take a helicopter.

The city of Elmore, Minnesota, soon will have modern water, wastewater, and storm water treatment equipment. To top it off, the city also is looking forward to finishing its new library.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has made funding rural libraries a top priority. Rural Development funded six library projects in Minnesota in 2010. Five were funded using Recovery Act funds, including funding for a new library in Elmore.

I was honored to host a panel last week at the Department of Agriculture’s Ag Outlook Forum to showcase the impact of USDA broadband programs on so many in rural communities. Our February 25^th Rural Development panel, “Building a Stronger Rural Infrastructure: Broadband,” portrayed the ripple effect these investments have.

We heard from Luis Reyes, CEO of Kit Carson Electric Cooperative, which has provided electric power to consumers since WWII. They got into the broadband business because they recognized a need. Like many with a sense of community and knowledge of how broadband affects economic development, they successfully applied for Recovery Act broadband funding from USDA’s Rural Utilities Service (RUS), a Rural Development agency. “This will ultimately change the landscape of New Mexico,” Luis told the audience. “This is an opportunity for us to partner with colleges, health care facilities and the community to expand businesses, hire more employees, build markets and improve healthcare. To think that a small co-op in New Mexico can turn a project into a model program nationwide is exciting.”