Success Stories

REAP helps support rural economic development and small business growth by providing loans, training, technical assistance, and networking to rural small and micro businesses. (A micro business has five or fewer employees.) Here are just some of those small business successes.

Success Story Kerri Chamberlin dreamed of owning her own restaurant. The people in Kimball are glad she does!	Success Story Sandra Gutiérrez opened Bilingual Consulting Services to improve communications between the Hispanic community and other organizations.	Success Story Rusty and Bob Ziegler started their lumber milling operation in 2004 after obtaining a REAP loan for their start-up equipment.
Success Story Caring for the birds and small pets at Kats Kritters is this family’s hobby and business in Ainsworth, NE.	Success Story Will Wild at Wild Excavating adds equipment for other work in Chadron, Nebraska.	Success Story Darrell and Mary Johnsen went from dairy farming to owners of Aunt Mary's Cafe and Ice Cream Parlor.
Success Story Pat Coldiron has made progress with her Liberty House Bed & Breakfast plus gift store in Seward, Nebraska.	Success Story Linda Goodman turns hobby into Lynn's Upholstery, a growing business in Naper, Neb. . . .	Success Story Jan McNichols knows her business' pressure points as owner of The Emerald Spa in O'Neill, Neb.
Success Story Marilyn Capps operates MC Tax Prep as a part-time business from her Falls City home . . .	Success Story Janet Seivers started her career working with fabric	Success Story Sheryl Taylor comes home to Western Nebraska and creates thriving business ...
Success Story Barb and Steve Hupka turn their farm toy hobby into a business	Success Story Photographer Missy Hillmer finds the uniqueness of her subject	Success Story Denise Swanson offers upscale labels at bargain prices in her Holdrege, NE consignment store . . .
Success Story Abril Garcia's Hispanic newspaper Mundo Latino is serving communities across northeast Nebraska.	Success Story Tracey Baseggio saw a real need for a fitness center in her new town. She got to work on a business plan.	Success Story Ardie Smith's Women's Fitness Center has quickly surpassed her membership goals.
Success Story Linda Tynon turned her knowledge of travel into an Internet travel business.	Success Story Keith and Sue Roberts blend a number of enterprises to supplement farm income.	Success Story Tony Gomez built his company from the ground up by seizing a business opportunity.
Success Story Tina Grant takes her business on the road to rodeo events in Nebraska's Panhandle.	Success Story The Gaster Family Turns a Coopering Hobby into a New Business	Success Story Dustin Thomas turns a mobile sideline into a permanent business in Sydney, Nebraska
Success Story Location is key for PAPA's PEPPERS, allowing expansion into more products.	Success Story Final Touch dream comes true for young couple in Southwest Nebraska.	Success Story Tooties Arts, Frames, and Gifts Grows from Artistic Inspiration . . .
Success Story Dustin Peden purchased a barbershop in Mitchell, Nebraska from a retiring owner. . . .	Success Story Jacki Williams and husband Dustin planned this dream for over 2 years.	Success Story Personalized service and complementary contacts help this cake baker
Success Story It was “Oh Fudge” and became “RT Premium Fudge” in 2002 when Rhonda and Troy Dowling of Burwell purchased the business from a couple of friends with at church.	Success Story Linda Morris gains national attention as an heirloom tomato expert at Cedar Knoll Farm . . .

The Rural Enterprise Assistance Project (REAP), a program of the Center for Rural Affairs, is the largest statewide rural small business development program in the nation. It began in 1990.