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The Best Telecom Entrance Ever – #FiberConnect24
What do a Big Dog Chopper and Fiber to the Home have in common? The answer is Jimmy Todd, the CEO/General Manager of Nex-Tech. In 2024, Todd also served as the Chair of the Fiber Broadband Association (FBA).1 His entrance at the FBA’s Fiber Connect conference on the chopper was impressive and, perhaps, the best…
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Exit Interview with Gary Johnson
It must have been the winter of 2000 when I met Gary Johnson. He was a relatively young engineer with a remarkable grasp of technology and the needs of Paul Bunyan Telephone’s members. He was part of a group of Minnesota telephone companies exploring video-on-demand.1 Fast-forward to today and Gary is retiring from the company…
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What is a Smart Rural Community?
Nancy J. White is the right person to answer the question, “What is a Smart Rural Community?”. As the General Manager of one of the first recipients of this award some ten years ago, White understands what it takes to receive this highly coveted designation. Fundamentally, it is about helping the community take advantage of…
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Microgreens – The Toddlers of the Plant World
Veggies without the yucky factor is one way to describe microgreens. Entrepreneur, teacher, and mom and grandmother, Margo Clayson of The Mighty Microgreen brings her science and nutrition background in the promotion of microgreens as part of a healthy diet. Microgreens are simply regular vegetables harvested 8 to 21 days after planting. Clayson explains that…
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The Community Concierge for the Relocated Worker & More
For attendees of trade shows like NTCA’s RTIME, Shelly Geerdes is known as the CEO of Pinnacle Marketing Group. For people moving to the Bemidji region, they might think of her first and foremost as a Community Connector. In the above interview, Geerdes explains that her volunteer role as a Community Connector is exactly what…
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The Multi-Tasking High-Tech Farmer & Broadband CEO
Behind the serene picture of rural America that is often painted with vast green pastures and slow-paced living, there is a technology infrastructure that powers the productivity of the American farmer. As someone from a farming family and as a leader in the broadband access field, Jill Kuehny lives at the intersection of these two…
