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A History of Innovation: THEN

Sep 10 2026

A History of Innovation: THEN

The past 75 years were punctuated with leaps forward, each year and decade a stepping stone toward the next innovation to benefit SRT members.

Our history as a cooperative officially began September 29, 1951, when Souris River Telephone Mutual Aid Corporation led Articles of Incorporation. The very next year SRT purchased its first phone exchange — the Martin Telephone Company with 82 subscribers. Two short years later SRT secured its first loan and bought four more exchanges, and the momentum rolled on.

By the 60s SRT was serving Minot Air Force Base, our largest phone exchange at the time. We also shared the cooperative’s early success with members, sending out their first capital credit checks. It was a decade of smart growth, sound business decisions, innovating services, and delivering critical communications.

Soon SRT was innovating beyond telephone. By 1980 the cooperative brought cable television service to the residents of Westhope, while the 90s ushered in Direct Broadcast Satellite TV. SRT continued to roll out the latest and greatest services with Security in 2008 and Dish Network in 2014.

In the meantime, the area and people we serve continued to expand. In 1994, SRT acquired Minot Telephone Company, adding roughly 25,000 lines in Minot, Burlington, and Surrey. Ten years later we acquired the cable TV systems in Newburg and Upham, increasing our total communities served to 18. We also welcomed Velva residents in 2007 after purchasing the exchange from North Dakota Telephone Company in Devils Lake.

The most transformative innovation so far, fiber optics brought unprecedented opportunity to even the most remote home in north-central North Dakota. In 2006 SRT deployed our first fiber-to the-premise in rural Lansford — a community of roughly 200 people that suddenly had the most powerful internet technology available. Owing to the determination of SRT’s Board of Directors and the ingenuity of our employees, SRT completed our rural fiber build by 2022 and Minot last year.

Stay tuned for the next chapter of our story in two weeks.

SRT’s First 75 Years: A History of Innovation

Aug 28 2026

SRT’s First 75 Years: A History of Innovation

SRT started in a place, but it began with people. In 1950, this vast stretch of North Dakota prairie had farms, schools, county seats, but no phones. Concerned citizens decided that the people who live here need phones. Farmers need to call into town; relatives and friends need to call each other. Phones were about safety, so people could help each other; about prosperity, so people could do business and earn a living; and about staying in touch with loved ones. You could say the mission has always been what life is all about: People coming together and forming community.

It was a bold idea and an even bolder action. When these determined people saw a need that lives depend on and then made it happen — that was the beginning of SRT’s History of Innovation. In 1950, the Verendrye Electric Cooperative set out to start a telephone cooperative. In 1951, SRT came to be.

The story of SRT can’t be told without the seventh Cooperative Principle: Concern for Community. Concern for fellow North Dakotans compelled SRT’s founders to deliver the revolutionary service of human voices traveling over wires. It’s a story of persistence among individuals and compassion among neighbors.

When we think of innovation, we often think of inventions that modernize daily life. But the real innovation behind SRT’s history is the North Dakota spirit of its people, then and now.

Stay tuned for the next chapter of our story in two weeks.

SRT Account Executive Receives Eagle Award

Aug 07 2026

SRT Account Executive Receives Eagle Award

Roger Neuhalfen, an Account Executive at SRT, received an Eagle Award for the Month of July from the Minot Area Chamber EDC. The Eagle Award recognizes excellence in customer service, and the recipients must be nominated to receive this award.

When a new Minot business needed cameras, phone lines, and music set up in their establishment, Roger stepped up for every request, big or small. “Roger always had the answers,” the Eagle Award nominator shared. “He was a pleasure to work with and made that part of our build-out run as smoothly as possible.”

Congratulations on this well-deserved recognition, and thank you for taking great care of our customers!

North Dakota Funding Opportunity for Rural Health Providers: Connecting Tech, Data, and Providers for a Stronger ND

Jul 02 2026

North Dakota Funding Opportunity for Rural Health Providers: Connecting Tech, Data, and Providers for a Stronger ND

North Dakota Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced a new funding opportunity to help rural health care providers strengthen and modernize electronic medical record systems.

The Electronic Medical Record Enhancement funding opportunity is designed to support enhancements to existing electronic medical record systems that improve service delivery and health outcomes for rural North Dakotans. Examples may include technology enhancements, expanded functionality and artificial intelligence-supported tools that help providers better manage patient care and improve operational efficiency.

The funding opportunity aligns with Initiative 4: Connect Tech, Data, and Providers for a Stronger North Dakota, part of North Dakota’s Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP). This initiative focuses on modernizing health care delivery, improving access to information, and helping providers leverage technology to better serve their communities.

Approximately $500,000 per awardee in first-year funding is available, with the possible opportunity to request additional funding. The funding is designed to support practical, locally driven solutions that help rural and tribal communities.

Eligible applicants include:

Critical access hospitals
Rural hospital systems
Rural Federally Qualified Health Centers
Non-federally operated Indian Health Service facilities and tribally run 638 health facilities

Applications are due by July 29, 2026, at 5 p.m. CT. A technical assistance call will be held July 8, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. CT. More information, application materials, and technical assistance resources are available at hhs.nd.gov/rural-health-transformation/funding.

SRT is your locally owned telecommunications cooperative with deep roots in north-central North Dakota. For 75 years, we have worked alongside community-based organizations as an economic catalyst, providing advanced infrastructure to improve opportunity and quality of life. As rural healthcare continues to evolve through telehealth, mobile clinics, remote monitoring, and data-driven care, dependable technology infrastructure will be critical.

We are available to support technology-based projects that align with RHTP funding opportunities, to ensure your rural healthcare organization is technically prepared for what comes next. Thank you for dedication to the health of your communities’ residents.

Foundation for Rural Service Now Accepting Community Grant Applications

Jun 12 2026

Foundation for Rural Service Now Accepting Community Grant Applications

The Foundation for Rural Service (FRS) is currently accepting applications for their Community Grant Program. FRS is a nonprofit organization that works in cooperation with NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association to sustain and enhance the quality of life in America by advancing an understanding of rural issues. As a member of NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association, rural communities within SRT’s area can apply for the Community Grant Program offered by FRS. This grant program looks for current projects that will improve quality of life and create sustainable rural communities for its residents. The FRS Community Grant Program is a great way for projects in rural communities to receive potential financial assistance. If accepted, the grants awarded range from $250 to $5,000.

FRS provides priority to projects that:

Could be fully funded by the grant maximum of $5,000 or have at least 75% of the project currently funded.
Technology and broadband enabled focused projects.
Have a long-term impact for the community and its residents.
Promote community participation and engagement.
Create a more sustainable rural community.

SRT has had two local recipients in recent years. In 2023, $5,000 was awarded to the Minot Regional Impact Centers to develop and launch an online app to identify uneaten prepared food that can be collected and distributed through a network of programs that feed the hungry.

In 2024, Local Motives in Minot received $5,000 to procure three checker/chessboard picnic tables for Citizens Alley to enhance passive recreation, foster community engagement, and enrich the public plaza experience. Citizens Alley opened to the public during the summer of 2025, and has been well received by the community.

Interested? Click here to fill out an application or pick up an application guide at SRT headquarters in Minot, 3615 N Broadway.

The deadline to submit your application proposal is September 1, 2026.

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