Welcome to the DIGITAL DIGEST! This quarterly e-newsletter is full of information for our members including industry news, construction updates, community events, and updates from our leadership.  
CTC Center Opens at Pillager School

An invite-only reception and ribbon cutting ceremony was held last week to officially open the new CTC Center, a state-of-the-art performing arts center located within the Pillager School.

"Pillager Public School is excited to partner with CTC to provide and expand opportunities for students and our community,” said Mike Malmberg, Superintendent of ISD #116. “Joining forces will add excitement to the vision that the District has for the new “CTC Center”. As an auditorium, we can look to host expanded events for our community and residents to enjoy and appreciate.”

Prior to this, the school district didn't have an auditorium, only a small 80-year old stage in the elementary cafeteria. The new auditorium will serve as a multi-functional community facility and includes tiered 400-seat theater seating, quality sound and lighting, ground-level entrance, and large, flexible space for a variety of meetings, events, and activities.

“This is such an exciting opportunity for CTC to give back to one of the communities we serve,” said Kristi Westbrock, CEO/General Manager at CTC. “We love the vision the school district has for the addition and we’re pleased to be a part of it.”
Construction Continues on Whistler Memorial Habitat Build

For the past couple of months CTC staff have had the opportunity to help with the building of a Habitat for Humanity house. The home is being built in honor of Mike Whistler, a CTC employee and friend, that passed away in July of 2020.

We are honored to be a part of this project and look forward to seeing the Fearing family enjoy this home for years to come!



At CTC, our employees tackle a wide variety of jobs - everything from standard business operations like accounting, marketing, customer service, and sales to industry-specific tasks such as engineering, networking, and product installation, training, and troubleshooting.

For this edition of Digital Digest we visited with Dave Weistroffer, our Field Supervisor, to chat about what a "day in the life" looks like for him and his teammates.
How did you land in this industry?
I went to M State Wadena (previously known as Northwest Tech) to sign up for the electrician or lineman programs but both had two-year waitlists so decided to try the telecommunications program.

I graduated in 2002 with a degree in Telecommunications Engineering. I began as a contractor for Charter for four years and then started with CTC in 2006 as a combination technician.
 
What team accomplishment are you most proud of?
Working through the conversion of our rural exchanges from copper to fiber. CTC invested a lot of time, hours, and resources ($59 million dollars!) in this fiber-to-the-home network for our ILEC members. The project was huge but we completed it in 2017, three years ahead of the 10-year projected plan.
 
What does a typical day look like for you?
I normally start the day by checking in with our purchasing and inventory wiz, Bryan, and then address any concerns, scheduling issues, or questions from our team of technicians or dispatchers. From there I might meet with our sales or marketing teams for updates on projects, make site visits, troubleshoot at a business or apartment building, or even fill-in for a tech who's out that day.
 
What’s the biggest challenge for you or your teammates?
COVID-19 has probably affected our team the most. If we can't visit homes or businesses, we can't install or fix their services. However, we've gotten creative over the past year and a half. And I have to give our techs a lot of credit. They've been able to get a TON done - and in new areas - while staying relatively safe and healthy.
 
What’s on the horizon or changing most in the industry?
It's been interesting to see the decline of your traditional TV services. More and more people are choosing to use streaming platforms and this has definitely changed our workflow.
 
What do you enjoy most about your job?
I appreciate that no matter the problem, we always seem to come together, resolve issues, and successfully work with different departments. I don't get to do it as often but I really enjoy working directly with our members. It's not uncommon to show up to an install, start chatting and hear about a grandma's life story over a freshly baked batch of cookies.

Annual Meeting Voting Results
Thank you to everyone that joined in our virtual annual meeting in early June or submitted ballots. We appreciate your involvement in the cooperative!

Nearly 1,500 ballots were returned... the proposed by-law change passed and the board seat for the District 2 was won by Heather Hoskins.

Special thanks to Butch Segler who served in the District 2 position for the past two years!

CTC leadership is hard at work finalizing a new three-year strategic plan that will guide the cooperative's work from 2022 through 2024. Stay tuned as the board and staff share future goals and activities in the coming months.

10-Digit Dialing Requirement


In July 2020, the Federal Communications Commission adopted an order approving the designation of 988 as the 3-digit dialing code for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. To facilitate implementation, everyone across the country must transition to 10-digit local dialing.

This includes 218, 320, and 952 area codes in our service area.
Starting October 24, 2021, you'll need to dial the area code plus the 7-digit phone number to make local calls. In addition to changing your dialing routine, you'll also have to reprogram 7-digit local numbers to 10-digit numbers if you use speed dial or any other system that automatically makes calls for you. 

If you have any questions, please call the CTC support team at 218-454-1234.
October is Cooperative Month!


What makes a cooperative special? If you have 1 1/2 minutes to spare, this video gives a great overview...
Capital Credits


One of the many benefits of being a coop member is something called 'capital credits'.

Last year, our Board of Directors voted to distribute unretired capital credit balances from 1994 and 25% from 1995. As of today, nearly 600 checks have been returned due to inaccurate or outdated mailing addresses.

If you were a member of CTC in 1994 or 1995, visit our website to see if your name is on the list!


Beware of Phishing & Phony Scams!


We've recently seen an uptick in phony emails and texts that easily convince people to click on dangerous links or give out private information. Some even say that they're being sent from CTC but they're NOT!

Not only can junk, SPAM, and phishing emails and phone calls be annoying... they can be very dangerous! Phishing scams alone cost U.S. businesses more than $1.2 billion in 2018.

For cybersecurity reminders, examples, and tips visit our website:

Assistance Programs

We offer and facilitate a variety of assistance programs and resources to help families and households.

Emergency Broadband Benefit
This FCC program can provide discounts of up to $50 for eligible households.

Lifeline Assistance
This program offers monthly discounts for landline telephone and internet services to qualifying households.

Temporary Hardships?
Contact our team today to discuss your situation and options for payments.