Brenda Kast

Retirements Spring 2019

Jul 31 2019

Retirements Spring 2019

Robyn Wenzel

Robyn will have been with SRT for exactly 38 years on her retirement day, which began on June 1, 1981 and ends June 1, 2019. She started in residential customer service with NSP Telephone/Electric Company. NSP was sold to Minot Telephone, then to SRT Communications and she continued her career in the Business Customer Service department.

Robyn’s plans for retirement are moving to the Black Hills area with her husband, Kevin, and traveling throughout the United States.

Ken Smith

Ken will have been with SRT for 12 years by the time he retires on June 1, 2019. His career was spent as a Communications System Technician, servicing our business customers’ phone systems, internet and more.

After retirement, Ken plans to relocate from Minot to sunny Lake Havasu, Arizona. He also looks forward to being able to spend more time traveling.

Mollie Jorgensen

Over the course of Mollie’s 25 years at SRT, she has held positions in our Satellite TV, Customer Service, Network Operations Center, Service Center, and most recently in our Network Provisioning Department. She has loved to see how technology has advanced over time, especially in her current position.

Following her retirement, she will be spending her summers at Mouse River Park, near the North Dakota/Canadian border, and her winters in The Villages, Florida.

SRT Board of Directors Changes Occur at Annual Meeting

Jul 09 2019

SRT Board of Directors Changes Occur at Annual Meeting

Minot, N.D. – Four directors were elected to the SRT Board of Directors at its Annual Meeting on Thursday, June 20, 2019 at the North Dakota State Fair Center in Minot, with three new faces joining the SRT Board. Directors elected to serve a three-year term included the following: District 1, Allan Engh (Incumbent) from Sherwood; District 2, Tom Jespersen from Velva; District 3, Stuart Rothe from Newburg; and District 4, Benjamin Robertson from Minot.

The Board also held a reorganizational meeting in which the following board officers were decided: President, Allan Engh; Vice-President, Kristi Miller; Secretary/Treasurer, Deanna Klein; and Assistant Secretary/Treasurer, Stacey Diehl.

“SRT welcomes the three new members to the board, and congratulates Allan Engh on his re-election as Board President,” said Steve Lysne, CEO/General Manager. “Each of our board members bring unique qualities and experience to the table, and SRT looks forward to working with the new directors and getting them up to speed on the telecommunications industry.”

Over 2,500 people attended the Annual Meeting which, in addition to the business meeting, also included a complimentary meal, entertainment by Too Old To Stand and a kids activity zone.

SRT Communications located in Minot, North Dakota is the state’s largest telecommunications cooperative. SRT services include Internet, Security, TV, Phone and Business Services and has served north central North Dakota since 1951, employs nearly 200 people, and serves over 48,000 customers.

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BAND Featured Story – Feil Farms

Jun 13 2019

BAND Featured Story – Feil Farms

In the winter, it’s quiet out at Feil Farms. The 3,500-acre farm is 20 miles northwest of Langdon, far from the hustle and bustle of town. Sean Feil grew up here watching his grandfather and father work the land, growing barley and wheat. Later, they would start planting canola, and years later, soybeans. Each day was spent outdoors, and each day was different. Sean couldn’t imagine any other life.

“I enjoy being outside,” he says. His voice is low, thoughtful. “Being your own boss. Watching the crops grow each year.”

It’s a familiar lifestyle to many families in rural North Dakota, where agriculture is the leading revenue-producing industry and accounts for about one-fourth of the state’s economic base. From Williston to Wahpeton, this is the heart of “America’s Breadbasket,” where we value the art of working the land. In fact, 39.1 million acres — nearly 90% of North Dakota’s land area — is in farms and ranches.

And yet, what does living in rural America look like in a world that is growing increasingly connected? What does it look like in a post-dot-com society where the internet is no longer a nice-to-have, but a need-to-have?

Questions like these are why in 1953, a group of North Dakota telephone cooperatives had the forethought to band together to keep North Dakota connected. They met at the Patterson Hotel in Bismarck, with a mission to guard against unfavorable legislation and ensure the highest quality communication systems would remain available across North Dakota.

They had no idea how much would change.

This committed organization has ebbed and flowed through a revolutionary era of communication. At the time of the association’s creation, a majority of rural North Dakota residents had party-line service, wires were strung from pole to pole and “long distance” calls were prohibitively expensive. Today, rural areas of the state have access to some of the fastest and most affordable broadband technology found anywhere in the United States.

Today, 65 years later, this organization now serves North Dakota as BAND — the Broadband Association of North Dakota. And while so much has changed, their mission has not; to ensure the highest quality communication systems are accessible to all North Dakotans. Their hard work over the decades laying over 45,000 miles of fiber across the state has changed the lives of folks across North Dakota. Folks like Sean, and his family, on their farm in Langdon.

As Sean reflects on the broadband services he uses to sustain his farm, he shakes his head with a smile.

“My dad could have never imagined this,” he says.

Living in a rural area, Sean was used to not having a good connection from the farm to the ‘outside world’. The phone reception was choppy, and if he needed to look up equipment on the internet, he had to wait until he went back into Langdon. Every day, he said goodbye to his wife and kids and made the 20-mile drive to check on the farm. At night, he often lay awake worrying if the crop and equipment were safe — but he had no way of knowing.

That is until he brought up his challenge to his uncle, who works at United Communications, a member organization of BAND. He suggested Sean try out installing a wireless access point and a security camera system, to allow him to check on the farm remotely.

Sean was sold. With the help of United Communications, he installed four cameras throughout his farm. Now, Sean gets a text any time motion is detected by the sensors or the cameras, and can even see who it is. Everything is also recorded on his DVR, so he can rewind and review video footage if needed.

“I have a lot more peace of mind,” Sean said. “I don’t worry so much when I’m gone.”

In addition, his broadband provider dug fiber out to Sean’s farm and set him up with a wireless access point so that he now has a point-to-point internet connection throughout the yard. Now, he can keep up to date on markets, weather, and look up equipment parts right from the field.

Far more important for Sean, however, is that he can spend more time with his wife Brittany, his 4-year-old daughter, his 3-year-old son, and their new 15-month-old little girl. Before, his frequent trips took time away from home. During busy season, when work requires him to stay overnight at the farm, he was forced to say goodbye and had little to no connection with his family. Now, with the broadband services from his local broadband provider, Sean is able to stay connected.

“During the busy times, I can still stay in touch with my wife and ask how things are going back home,” he said. “And every night before bed, I FaceTime my kids to say goodnight and tell them I love them.”

For the 18 local broadband providers across North Dakota that make up BAND — this is why we do what we do. It’s stories like Sean’s that illustrate what it looks like to live in rural America today; how North Dakotans can enjoy the beauty of rural living while maintaining quality broadband and connection across the state. Serving the people of North Dakota is how it all started 65 years ago — and no matter where the adventure of communication services takes us, BAND’s mission will remain true for the next 65 years and beyond.

Learn more about BAND and how you can connect with your local BAND organization, at broadbandnd.com.

SRT Kicks Off 2019 Hometown Grill Tour

Jun 05 2019

SRT Kicks Off 2019 Hometown Grill Tour

MINOT, N.D. – SRT is pleased to announce the start of the 2019 SRT Hometown Grill Tour! SRT employees, management and board will be visiting 10 area events this summer to show appreciation to our members. Each event is different, but SRT will be there to provide a free meal to the community at each of them.

The tour kicked off in Westhope on Friday, May 24 and continued on Monday, May 27 in Sherwood, serving hamburgers and brats to over 400 hungry visitors. We were happy to have the opportunity to participate in these community celebrations and thank our members for being such loyal and integral parts of our company and grilling hamburgers, brats, and hot dogs at these events is our way of showing that we value the people, communities, and businesses in our area.

Moving forward, SRT has plans to visit Burlington, Lake Metigoshe, Minot Air Force Base, Velva, Berthold, Lorraine, and more. Check out the SRT Facebook page and srt.com/hometowngrilltour for updates on when and where the grill tour will be traveling to next. We hope to see you soon!

SRT Communications located in Minot, North Dakota is the state’s largest telecommunications cooperative. SRT services include Internet, Security, TV, Phone and Business Services and has served north central North Dakota since 1951, employs more than 200 people, and serves over 48,000 customers.

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Brenda Kast

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