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Frequently Asked Questions

You have questions? We have answers. Here are some of the more common questions we receive. If you don't see what you're looking for here, please send us an email at info@cfra.org.

Yes. Our staff host regular videos called "Rural Rapport" that describe our work, and many of our webinars are published online. We even have feature and how-to videos. All clips and full features can be found on our YouTube channel. Click here to watch.

The Center's home office is in Lyons, Nebraska, with satellite offices in Hartington, Grand Island, Scottsbluff, and Lincoln, Nebraska; and Nevada, Iowa. Other staff are located in home offices in Nebraska, South Dakota, and Minnesota.

You can donate to the Center in a number of ways.

  • Give online at cfra.org/give - either a one-time donation or you can set up a recurring donation.
  • Check out options to give to our Granary Foundation here.
  • You can mail in donations to: Center for Rural Affairs, PO Box 136, Lyons, NE 68038. 

Updates on the 2023 farm bill can be found our farm bill page here. Read up on the Center's priorities here.

Our home ownership loans are from $5,000 to $100,000 and can be used for: purchase of home, owner occupied rehabilitation or renovation, or emergency repair to a property in Nebraska. Visit cfra.org/homeloans for more information and to apply online. If you have questions, click here to find your loan specialist.

Our small business loans are only available in Nebraska. Visit cfra.org/loans to view the types of loans we offer and to apply online. If you have questions, click here to find your loan specialist.

We have information on setting up your farm business, farm financials, and farm transition finances. If you are looking for land, we keep an up-to-date list of land matching programs across the U.S. and Canada. In addition, we offer beginning farmer and landowner workshops in Nebraska. Visit our farming page for details.

Unfortunately, there are very few grant opportunities available for beginning farmers and ranchers. We have listed financing options and grants on this resource page. 

No. The Center for Rural Affairs is a private 501c3 nonprofit organization. 

The logo shape itself resembles an arched window. We are, in effect, looking through this window to rural America—over the shoulders of those who live and work in this place—and sharing their view of what is important to them.

The logo image combines people, community, and natural resources. The raw materials that form the very substance of rural America. There is an interdependent relationship between these components that must be recognized and nurtured to maintain the viability and sustainability of rural areas.

The Center for Rural Affairs is concerned not only with what happens in rural areas today, but in the future. The intergenerational image (father and daughter) speaks to this concern and underscores the fact that decisions we make today will be the heritage we pass along to future generations.

The logo is by no means an idealized view of rural America—nor is it a "hearkening back" to the way things were. Instead, the father and daughter in the image are looking ahead and beyond—envisioning a future in the place they call "home." The road to the horizon also communicates a "looking ahead" and a path to be taken.

The Center is funded by grants, donations, and the Granaryan endowment foundation.

A full list of donors and funders can be found here. Listed are donors and institutional funders, as well as capital partners and investors. Institutional funders are government agencies, foundations, and businesses that provide funding for specific initiatives​. Capital partners and investors provide capital to revolving loan funds operated by the Center for Rural Affairs and its subsidiary, Center for Rural Affairs Community Capital.​

If you are interested in making a donation or contributing in any way, please contact Nick Bergin, development director, at nickb@cfra.org or 402.687.2100 ext. 1035.