News & Events

This page highlights the most recent news about GROW South Dakota and our surrounding communities!

Monday, May 18, 2020

“Because of this program, I no longer have to worry about C02 poisoning. I have adequate heat and no wind blowing through the windows and doors. For the first time, I don’t have to walk to the outhouse and worry about falling. I’m able to take a shower without going to someone else’s house. To say what I have received from the program has been life-changing would be a complete understatement.” In 2018 GROW South Dakota’s weatherization team received a call from Ruth, a senior resident, in need of assistance with heating her house. When the weatherization team went t...

Dakota Butcher - 2020 SBA Entrepreneur of the Year

Monday, May 04, 2020

Seeing a business close their doors in a small town is always difficult. When the Clark meat shop closed in 2008, Randy Gruenwald decided he wasn’t going to stand by and watch it happen. His professional experience was an excellent fit to revive the business. He worked 15 years as a meat department manager for Nash Finch. Then Randy worked as a banker before he purchased the butcher shop. Karen, Randy’s wife and business partner, worked for the previous meat shop owners and brings exceptional customer service skills and experience to their ownership team. Able to capitalize on their professiona...

Keeping a Veteran Warm

Thursday, February 20, 2020

Veteran Delbert Maxfield doesn’t like to be cold, especially with his health issues. But when their furnace went on the blink, cold is exactly what he felt. He and his wife Carol wanted to continue living in their home, but since they only had Social Security income, they were not sure they could afford to replace or repair their old furnace. Hearing of their plight, Dustin from GROW South Dakota informed them of a Veteran’s program that could assist them. “Without this program and the help of Dustin, we would never have known of this grant,” explained Carol. Through the Veteran’...

A Dream of Owning my Own Home

Monday, January 27, 2020

Kaitlain Meyerhofer moved to Sioux Falls in 2017. Single, with a full-time job, she was living in a one-bedroom apartment, but always dreamed of homeownership. She wanted a place she could paint the walls; a place she could make unique to her. She had assumed with one source of income that purchasing her first home would be difficult. She contacted GROW SD to see if she could receive financial help to purchase a home. With the help of her First Mortgage Lender and GROW SD’s down payment assistance program, she was able to purchase her first home without hassle or stress. Her hopes and dream...

GROW SD Supports Statewide Homeless Count

Monday, January 27, 2020

For the fourth year, GROW South Dakota will help the South Dakota Housing Development Authority with the statewide homeless count, along with the other Community Action Agencies in the state. The Department of Housing and Urban Development requires states to complete the count in order to determine the level of the challenge of homelessness and to direct resources for addressing it. The count will be conducted on Jan. 28, 2020. GROW SD enlists volunteers from each of the 17 NESDCAP counties to help conduct the count. There are basically two aspects of the count: Sheltered and unsheltered. Sheltered: Homeless shelters repor...

Winners Announced for BIG Idea Competition

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

For more information, contact: Kelly Weaver at (605) 626-2565 (December 11, 2019, Aberdeen, SD) The 2019 BIG Idea Competition was a BIG success with 276 entries involving over 389 students from 29 schools. The event wrapped up Wednesday, December 11th, on the campus of Northern State University (NSU) and the winners were determined from among the eight final entries with over $30,000 in cash and scholarships awarded. Korbin Leddy of Milbank High School took first place with Korbin’s Steak Express which aims to sell convenient meat grill packs to customers, such as active camping families for example. His prizes include a $1,000 cas...

Cross County Vet Does It All

Tuesday, November 05, 2019

Nicole Nelson has owned and operated the Cross Country Vet Clinic in Clark, SD since 2004. She is well established and has a great reputation in Clark and the surrounding area. Cross Country Vet Clinic does everything from grooming small animals to medical services and surgeries, all the way up to large animal services. Over the past 15 years Nicole and GROW SD have had a great lender and borrower relationship. Nicole has used GROW SD and many of its funding program to help start, maintain, and expand her veterinary clinic. In 2004 she used GROW SD’s Intermediary Relending Program (IRP...

Triumph Over Tragedy

Tuesday, November 05, 2019

When Antonio Perdue’s fiancé passed away, he knew his family’s living situation was about to change. Having moved here from Florida, he had no family in the area and no one to turn to for help. That’s when GROW South Dakota stepped in. Antonio worked with a counselor to complete paperwork for emergency services and temporary lodging. He received rental counseling from GROW South Dakota, which allowed him to find an affordable place to live. “That was when I knew my family and I will be okay, which was comforting support in that time of crisis.” Now Antonio and his famil...

Help and Healing

Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Virginia Maas is no stranger to hard work. As a single parent, she worked an average of seventy hours a week while raising her son. She built her own home and worked hard to keep it in good condition over the years. Virginia took great pride in her work and raising her family. Then tragedy struck. Virginia was diagnosed with cancer. No longer being able to work, Virginia’s attitude toward life changed. Things she used to take for granted, like being able to fix just about anything when it broke, now became nearly impossible for her. She was forced to retir...

A Sense of Belonging

Monday, October 07, 2019

Waiting over forty years to buy a house for the first time is not something most people plan to do. However, Debi Lunbery realized that now was the time to make one of the biggest purchases in her life. Debi had a good job and felt a strong sense of belonging to her community. “I had some savings but didn’t feel comfortable with the amount I had. I wasn’t sure if it would be enough,” she explained. Through GROW South Dakota, Debi qualified for the down payment/closing cost assistance. She gained understanding of homeownership through the first time home buyers educatio...

Staying Home

Monday, October 07, 2019

Buying a house for the first time can be intimidating. No one knows that better than Allison Daly of Sioux Falls. Allison always planned to stay in her hometown but wasn’t sure if she was ready to make the leap to buying a home. Once she felt she was financially stable, Allison turned to GROW South Dakota to make her dream of owning a home a reality. The first time homebuyer education classes that she took from GROW South Dakota helped her understand the homebuying process from start to finish. Allison also qualified for down payment assistance to aid with the initia...

Weatherization Day to be celebrated on October 30

Monday, October 07, 2019

Each year, October 30 is recognized as Weatherization Day. This day highlights the fact that low-income households spend a disproportionate percentage of their annual incomes on home energy bills. Weatherization provides cost-effective, permanent solutions for reducing the heavy energy burden these families endure. The US Department of Energy has supported weatherization of more than 7 million homes across the nation since 1976. Weatherization programs focus on upgrades to mechanical and electrical systems, health and safety measures, and building shell issues. These services not only save energy through advanced technologies to improve energy affordability for low-income families, but they also save live...

Grant Received to Support Veteran Home Improvement

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

GROW South Dakota has received a grant from the Housing Assistance Council (HAC) to support home improvements for low-income veterans in northeastern South Dakota. The $30,000 grant was made possible through generous support from The Home Depot Foundation and will allow GROW SD to make improvements to six homes. GROW SD has renovated and weatherized more than 9,300 homes in eastern South Dakota over the past four decades. In recent years, it has added a special focus on veteran households, with a goal of helping veterans make their homes safer, healthier, and more energy efficient. Through this program, dozens of Sout...

BIG IDEA COMPETITION OFFERS NEW AWARDS FOR 2019

Monday, August 12, 2019

by Kelly Weaver, Small Business Development Center Regional Director Youth! Entrepreneurship! Cash! Scholarships! These are the key ingredients in the 2019 BIG Idea Competition launching on September 1. High school students across South Dakota are invited to compete in this business idea competition where over $25,000 in cash and scholarships are awarded. Students will be able to submit their business idea applications online from September 1 until October 31, 2019. The online application as well as various resources and examples can be accessed at the BIG Idea website: www.BIGIdeaSD.com. For the optional marketing design competition, students can create an ad to suppor...

GROW SD Creates Homeowners

Thursday, July 18, 2019

GROW SD has been creating homeowners for over 50 years through a variety of services, such as pre-purchase counseling, homebuyer education, down payment assistance and direct mortgage lending. Many of our services are across the state of South Dakota. Our housing team has over 80 years of experience. GROW SD’s pre-purchase counseling and homebuyer education go hand-in-hand. Pre-purchase counseling offers a personalized approach to discussing the entire homeownership process with the customer; including setting up a personalized budget, debt and credit review, as well as reviewing financial products from various lenders. Homebuyer education covers the process for becoming a homeowner; fro...

GROW SD Receives Wells Fargo Grant for Homebuyer Education

Thursday, July 18, 2019

The Northeast South Dakota Community Action Program dba GROW South Dakota recently received a $7,500 grant from the Wells Fargo Foundation’s Homeownership Counseling Grant Program to support homebuyer education and counseling. The Wells Fargo Foundation has been a longtime supporter of the GROW SD homebuyer education program. The grant will serve more than 125 participants who will receive homeownership counseling and financial education, which will help them to improve their credit scores, reduce personal debt and build their savings to reach the dream of buying a home. Participants will also learn how to build assets, access mainstream financial services, and gai...

Loans Available to New & Existing Businesses

Thursday, July 18, 2019

GROW South Dakota, (GROW SD) finances business development across the state of South Dakota. Business loans can be financed directly or in partnership with other local lenders. Partnerships with other lenders have proven to be a useful tool for economic development in the region. Lori Finnesand, GROW SD CEO, states, “GROW SD has funds available to lend to start-up or existing businesses. We can make smaller loans to individual businesses or partner with local banks on larger projects.” Loan funds may be used to purchase real estate, equipment, inventory, and/or working capital. Loan amounts typically range from $500 - $250,000. The amoun...

Journey toward Home Ownership

Tuesday, June 04, 2019

While beginning her journey towards home ownership, Amber Peters was first introduced to GROW South Dakota’s housing loan programs, through her first mortgage lender. “We did not know about the down payment assistance programs that GROW South Dakota had to offer, until our mortgage loan officer told us. She was able to initiate the process, in order for us to receive down payment assistance”, said Amber. Prior to purchasing her home, Amber had worked for several years to get her credit score where it needed to be, in order to secure financing for a home loan. “Money was very, very tight,&rdquo...

A New Home, a New Baby

Tuesday, April 02, 2019

Tired of the rental scene, Kasey Tripp and her husband were ready to commit to home ownership. They were looking for options to decrease their down payment and closing costs. They did not think they would qualify for assistance but were pleasantly surprised to learn that GROW South Dakota would assist them with their closing costs. With the assistance they received, Kasey and her husband were able to use money they had in savings to make improvements on their new home. They purchased new furniture for their home and installed a fence in the back yard just in time to welcom...

The Farmer’s Wife Boutique Thrives Amidst Challenges

Monday, April 01, 2019

Samantha Miller, owner of the Farmer’s Wife Boutique in Aberdeen, recently received the Small Business Administration’s 2019 Woman-Owned Small Business of the Year Award for South Dakota. The SBA presented the Award during the recent Women’s Business Conference in Aberdeen. Samantha started her career in healthcare, but when she was expecting her daughter, she became passionate about being a stay-at-home mother, so she looked at other options. With encouragement from family and friends, she started a women's lifestyle boutique offering clothing, shoes, purses, jewelry, accessories, and unique gifts. She launched The Farmer's Wife Boutique on Facebook in 2014 from her hom...

A Warmer Winter

Tuesday, December 11, 2018

With the temperatures dropping and winter inevitably on its way, Elaine knew that her home needed repairs. “The house was so cold. I tried to make it warmer by stuffing insulation inside of the windows, but this was only warming the home to a temperature of 61 degrees,” she said. Elaine would soon be on a journey to warmer days, changing her living situation for the better. As she explains, “I had been severely injured, and a social worker was making a visit to my home. Soon after, she referred my need of a warmer house to GROW South Dakota.” Prior t...

BIG IDEA COMPETITION LAUNCHES STATEWIDE

Thursday, October 04, 2018

Youth! Entrepreneurship! Cash! Scholarships! These are the key ingredients in the 2018 BIG Idea Competition, which launched on September 1. High school students across South Dakota are invited to compete in this business idea competition where winners will receive over $5,500 in cash awards and scholarships. Students may work individually or as a team and will be able to submit their business idea applications online until October 31, 2018. The online application as well as various resources and examples can be accessed at the BIG Idea website: www.BIGIdeaSD.com. For the optional marketing design competition, which carries a $500 cash prize, students will creat...

GROW SD Receives Over $1.4 Million in CDFI Funding

Thursday, October 04, 2018

GROW South Dakota was recently awarded $1.45 million from the U.S. Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund). GROW South Dakota and the Northeast South Dakota Economic Corporation (NESDEC), both of which are certified CDFIs, received the awards, which will expand their small business and first mortgage housing lending programs. The announcement came in September. GROW South Dakota received a grant of $950,000 in CDFI Financial Assistance funds, which will support its direct lending program for housing mortgages. Of the total, $250,000 will be directed to focus on South Dakota counties identified by the CDFI Fund as areas of persistent poverty. NESDE...

GROW SD Recognizes Women’s Small Business Month

Thursday, October 04, 2018

October is National Women’s Small Business Month, raising awareness of the increasing role women are playing in business ownership in the United States. Nationally, 38% of businesses are owned by women. GROW South Dakota has also increased its attention on supporting women-owned businesses. Women-owned businesses in South Dakota are mixed. The 2012 Census Survey of Business Owners found the following ownership breakdown in South Dakota: 53.8% male-owned, 30.09% female-owned, and 16.11% male-/female-owned. In that survey, the state was last in the U.S. in the proportion of women-owned businesses. On the other hand, women-owned businesses have been a bright spot in the U.S...

GROW SD to Celebrate Weatherization Day

Thursday, October 04, 2018

40 Years of Helping Businesses Grow

Thursday, September 06, 2018

For 40 years, entrepreneurs and existing businesses have benefitted from GROW South Dakota’s business lending program. It has now given 2,022 loans to 1,220 companies in northeast South Dakota, directly financing more than $70.3 million in business loans. It began in 1978 when the Northeast South Dakota Energy Conservation Corporation (now DBA as GROW South Dakota) made its first loan. The nonprofit was one of the first in the state to offer revolving loan funds for businesses. At the time, it served 10 counties in northeast South Dakota. Now, its service area has more than doubled to 22 counties. One of th...

Back to a Place Called Home

Thursday, September 06, 2018

Returning to his roots was something Michael Raver always wished for throughout his adult life. The perfect opportunity presented itself when he landed his dream job at Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation in 2016. Having grown up in the Hills, he knew he wanted his children to have the same experiences he did during childhood. Michael and his wife wanted to raise their children in a happy, stable environment so they would always feel the warmth of home. With a new baby on the way in just a few short weeks, they needed to find a bigger place to live, an...

BIG Idea Competition Opens September 1

Wednesday, August 08, 2018

by Kelly Weaver, Small Business Development Center Regional Director Entrepreneurship - taking initiative and risk in a business venture - is one key to supporting our rural economies The BIG Idea Competition, entering its eleventh year, seeks to promote entrepreneurship, spur creative thinking, and encourage students to start a business. The BIG Idea Competition is a free business idea competition for high school students. Students submit a written description of their business idea and compete for over $5,500 in cash awards and scholarships. There is also an optional Marketing Design award where students create an ad to support their business idea. Additiona...

GROW SD Grant Supports Faulkton Elevator Mural

Monday, July 09, 2018

GROW South Dakota has received a grant that will support a unique mural going up in Faulkton this summer. Australian artist Guido van Helten, who has created large murals on public buildings around the world, will be painting images representative of the people of the Faulkton area on the grain elevator there. GROW SD received a grant from a Rural Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) program meant to support arts and culture projects that help drive economic development. Van Helten was recruited to Faulkton to paint the Agtegra elevator in order to create a one-of-a-kind South Dakota artwork in the tow...

Unique Board Structure Guides GROW South Dakota

Monday, July 09, 2018

GROW South Dakota is not a typical nonprofit organization. Governing an affiliation of three separate, independent nonprofits with complementary missions and shared staff can be a challenge, but the boards of directors of the three agencies are up to the task. Each organization has its own board of directors. NESDCAP, founded as part of President Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty, has a 15-member board, divided into groups serving from three sets of counties in the 17-county service area. By law, board members must represent low-income, private, or public official constituencies. NESDEC also has a 15-member board representing its 22-county service area...

Kelly Weaver Recognized for Providing Exceptional Service

Thursday, October 12, 2017

News announcement from Small Business Development Center & America's SBDC ABERDEEN, S.D - Kelly Weaver, regional director of the South Dakota Small Business Development Center in Aberdeen, is being recognized as a strong advocate for small businesses. Weaver, who has been with the SBDC since 1998, has been named South Dakota’s “State Star” for 2017 by America’s SBDC, the national trade association for the SBDC network. Weaver and State Star winners from other states were honored recently at the America’s SBDC Conference in Nashville. Weaver was selected for the award by her peers, in part, for her work with the South Dakot...

BIG Idea Competition Celebrates 10th Anniversary with Special Speaker and Entrepreneurship Survey

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

The BIG Idea Competition—the business idea contest for South Dakota high school students—is celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2017 with a few new wrinkles. The basics of the competition remain the same as they have since its founding in 2007. High school students are invited to work individually or in small teams to produce a description of a business idea and enter it at www.bigideasd.com by October 31. After judging by hundreds of volunteers statewide, the top eight finalists will present their ideas at a final event on December 7 in Aberdeen. Winners receive cash prizes and scholarships from Norther...

Looking Towards the Future

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

When Lindsey Jennings graduated from cosmetology school at Lake Area Tech, she started her career at a JC Penny’s salon. She worked there for five years before she learned the store was going to close by year-end. Although she was an experienced cosmetologist, it left her with an employment uncertainty. The owner of a small town hair salon in a neighboring community recently retired and was looking to rent out her existing space. That opportunity couldn’t have came at a better time for Lindsey. She decided to take a leap and start her own business in a rural South Dakota community...

Down Payment Loan Makes New Home a Possibility

Monday, September 18, 2017

Jeff and Judy lived in a Sioux Falls apartment and had been planning to buy a home for years. They found a place they liked, and they could afford the monthly mortgage payment, but after years of increasing rent, it had been hard for them to save money for a down payment. Jeff’s disability and their fixed income further complicated the situation. So they approached GROW South Dakota. The GROW SD loan officer connected Jeff and Judy with a down payment and closing cost loan, which provided funds to cover those costs. The result is that they now have a hom...

News & Events

The GROW South Dakota Organizations Have had a Remarkable Few Years!