Tim Krebsbach, Director Alicia Brenna, Attorney RTC is an equal opportunity employer and provider.
2020 by RTC (Reservation Telephone Cooperative) and Tellwell.
General Manager
Here at RTC, we understand the importance of being connected to the world. That’s why we are committed to serving our communities and ensuring our memberowners stay informed, connected, secure, and entertained.
office buildings, and transitioned some of our employees to virtual environments. We assure you that the measures we have instituted to keep our employees and customers safe will have no adverse impact on the services we provide.
Please refer to page 10 of the newsletter for details regarding plans for postponment of RTC’s annual meeting. And remember
We understand the importance of being connected “ “ Shane Hart
During these uncertain times, we are taking measures to ensure that you continue to receive worldclass service and a little peace of mind. RTC is taking the COVID-19 outbreak very seriously and instituting measures to ensure that our employees remain healthy and do not contribute to the spread of the disease. We have closed our offices to the public, minimized the number of employees in our
OFFICE Hours
that while we must be apart for now, we can all remain connected.
Thank you,
-Shane Hart CEO
Office lobbies are closed due to COVID-19
Closed Memorial Day – Monday, May 25
Annual Meeting – Postponed
Closed Friday, July 3rd in observance of July 4th
Summer Hours (Memorial Day – Labor Day) 7:30 am – 4:00 pm
Whether you’re working on that big presentation, streaming your favorite show on Netflix, or Skyping your relatives across the country, you need your internet connection to work— and you need it to work fast.
If your documents are taking longer than usual to upload, or if your episode of The Office keeps buffering, it may be time to test your internet speeds. We’re going to show you how!
But First, What is a Speed Test?
When you purchased your internet package from RTC, you likely noticed the phrase “up to” before the number of megabits per second. For example, if you purchased a 500 Mbps internet package, you may not get 500 Mbps 100% of the time—ideally, your speeds should reflect 80% or more of your selected package at any given time.
However, your download and upload speeds can be affected by a number of factors, including the plan you choose, physical interferences (like a wall or door between your router and your device), and local congestion. An internet speed test is a simple way to determine how fast your connection is working right this moment!
An internet speed test measures your download and upload speeds in real time by determining your location and the closest test server. Once the test server has been located, the speed test sends a signal (known as a ping) to the server, which then sends it back to your device.
From there, the speed test will upload a set of files from your network to the test server, then re-download the same set of files from the server. The test uses these trips, measured in milliseconds, to report your current internet speed.
Tips Before You Test
Before you start a speed test, there are a few things you can do to ensure the most accurate results possible:
• Get the device you are using as close to your router as you can. Again: walls, doors, and other physical interferences can slow down your speeds and impact your results.
• To test speeds above 100Meg, plug a hardwire into your RTC router with a 1Gig network card capable machine (if you try to test a 500Mbps speed with a wireless device that’s only capable of 200Mbps, you will not get accurate results!)
• Turn off any devices like smart
So now that you’ve followed those tips, you are ready to start your internet speed test! There are plenty of tools available out there to test your internet speeds, but if you are an RTC customer, the fastest and most effective option can be found on our website.
Why test locally? Well, your home internet is connected to RTC’s central office just down the road in Parshall, North Dakota. When you test locally, your test will reflect the speed you are actually paying for. For instance, you may have a 1 Gig connection in your home, allowing your data to fly through the fiber connection from your house to RTC and then to the end user at top speeds.
But when you test from a source other than RTC’s server, that source could be located across the country—say, in California. Now, you are testing your circuit all the way from your home in North Dakota to that source in California, which will result in much slower speeds. By using RTC’s free internet speed test tool, you can ensure that your test accurately reflects your actual connection to RTC’s servers.
If you perform a speed test and still aren’t satisfied with the internet speeds you’re getting, our experienced technicians will work with you to determine what speed you need and help you find the right package at an affordable price.
Veterinarians
How veterinary professionals across the region utilize RTC internet to provide high-quality care.
There are several qualities a person must possess in order to become a successful veterinarian: a lifelong love for animals, resilience to endure the long and emotionally taxing days, problem-solving skills to determine what is ailing a patient and find a solution.
And in this day and age, there’s something else a veterinarian needs to succeed: a high-speed, reliable internet connection.
“The internet is foundationally essential for a vet to work at the top of his game,” said Dr. Bruce Pedersen. “It’s as important as your stethoscope, in my opinion.”
Bruce is the owner of Watford City Veterinary Center, a full-service facility providing the McKenzie County area with medical, surgical, and behavioral care for both large and small animals. He’s just one of many veterinary professionals across the region who rely on internet service from RTC to provide their patients—and their owners—with the highest quality of care.
The internet is foundationally essential... “ “
WATFORD CITY VETERINARY CENTER
Dr. Bruce Pedersen
A passion for animal medicine runs in Bruce Pedersen’s blood. His father was a veterinarian before him, and at just six years old, Bruce helped his dad deliver his first piglet. From that moment, he was hooked.
“It truly is the best profession in the world,” Bruce said. “It’s a job of passion. It is taxing, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”
Bruce brought his passion for animals to Watford City in 2012. The Bakken region was experiencing rapid and unprecedented growth, and with that came a growing need for veterinary services. A colleague in the region mentioned that Watford
City Veterinary Clinic was seeking a replacement for Dr. Robert Nelson, who had run the clinic since it was founded in 1967.
“I came out on an exploratory trip, and after seeing the economic development and the local ranching community, it just seemed like a really good fit,” Bruce said. “It just took off from there!”
Bruce took over the clinic in 2012, and in the summer of 2013, he broke ground on a new 32,000-square foot state-of-the-art veterinary facility. Watford City Veterinary Clinic became the Watford City Veterinary Center in 2015, when doors to the new facility— then the largest in the state—were opened.
The facility combines modern medical technology with the compassionate care that the clinic has been known for for over five decades. The extensive list of services offered at the center include livestock services, small animal medicine and surgery, diagnostic imaging, and 24/7 emergency care, as
well as pharmacy and retail.
Due to his rural location, Bruce relies on the 1 Gig internet he receives from RTC to stay connected to changes and advancements within the veterinary field.
It truly is the best profession in the entire world “ “
“A textbook is dated when it hits the printer,” Bruce said. “If you’re not subscribed to the knowledge bases and utilizing them, it’s difficult to stay on that leading edge.”
His practice also uses the internet to consult with other veterinarians and specialists to receive second opinions on complicated cases.
“With the internet, I have this network of people each with their own piece of input,” Bruce said. “You’re not just relying on one individual’s knowledge anymore. It’s more of a team effort to collaborate and bring together the best options for any given case.”
For example, Watford City Veterinary Center can send CT scans to the local hospital for consultation, or deliver files to a radiologist they partner with in Arkansas. By consulting with specialists whose sole responsibility is to view and interpret these scans, Bruce and his team can ensure that they correctly diagnose and treat an animal’s ailment.
And these are not small files: many can be as large as 30 gigabytes. But with Bruce’s high-speed internet from RTC, they are delivered within seconds.
“They have those files almost instantaneously,” Bruce said. “That is really a direct benefit of the speed.”
GARRISON VETERINARY SERVICE
Joe & Kathy Baber
123 miles away in Garrison, North Dakota, Garrison Veterinary Service is owned and operated by Joe and Kathy Baber.
The two are no novices in their field: Joe has been an acting veterinarian for 52 years, while his wife Kathy has been a veterinary technician for 45. Together, the two have practiced veterinary medicine across the country for nearly half a century, working in Kansas and Montana before landing in Garrison 22 years ago.
“Garrison is one of those towns that takes care of hometown businesses so well and they have always been very supportive of us,” Kathy said.
Information is so much more rapid now.
“
Their mixedanimal practice may be small, but they provide Garrison and the surrounding areas with a wide range of services, from surgery and x-rays to dental work and vaccinations. They have an in-house laboratory for bloodwork, as well as limited boarding services, and they offer referrals for any services they are not able to provide.
In her four decades as a vet tech, Kathy has witnessed an evolution in the field—and at the center of it all has been the internet. Previously, she had to wait for a quarterly journal to
arrive in her mailbox to learn about any new tools or ideas; now, with high-speed internet from RTC, she can access new information every single day.
“Information is so much more rapid now,” Kathy said. “New ideas, new things, new products, are just instantly there for you.”
The internet also allows Joe and Kathy to communicate more efficiently with their patients’ owners, as all clinic paperwork is filed online. And while new technology comes with a learning curve, Kathy knows that RTC’s technicians are always there to help.
“I haven’t been raised with computers and technology, so sometimes it’s an operator error, but if we have any technical issues they are always happy to help,” Kathy said. “I can’t imagine practicing without the internet anymore.”
DAKOTA PRAIRIE VETERINARY SERVICE
Dr. Kristi Pennington
When Dr. Kristi Pennington moved to New Town, North Dakota in 1998, the nearest veterinary service was 40 minutes away. Kristi, a Bismarck native who had moved to New Town with her new husband, a farmer from the region, took matters into her own hands.
“I started as a mobile large animal practice working out of my truck,” Kristi said.
Kristi continued her veterinarian-onwheels practice for several years, making house calls to neighbors whose livestock were in labor or in need of medical attention. But as her number of patients grew, so did her need for a physical location to operate her business. In 2012, she opened the doors to Dakota Prairie Veterinary Service right on her farm, 15 feet from her front door. The establishment of a physical office has allowed Kristi to bring on employees (Dakota Prairie now has a staff of three) and expand her small animal practice.
While Dakota Prairie Veterinary Service has expanded to include small animal
If you’re not subcribed to the knowledge bases & utilizing them, it’s difficult to stay on that leading edge “ “
services, Kristi’s primary focus remains caring for livestock and food animals—a job she does not take lightly.
“Just like doctors are the front lines for human health, food animal veterinarians are the front lines for food safety,” Kristi said. “We have an important job. It’s not just pregnancy testing and routine vaccinations; the bottom line is, we’re protecting the food supply for the United States.”
Because her office does not have a haulin facility, Kristi is still making house calls for large animal services. And because she spends so little time in her office, Kristi relies on an entirely cloud-based system to keep Dakota Prairie Veterinary Service up and running. Even when she is out on a farm performing a call, Kristi can access any files or information she may need through the cloud, right there on her phone.
This mobile practice does not come without drawbacks: due to travel time, Kristi is only able to take two to four calving calls a day, as opposed to a typical 10 to 12. Kristi cannot take on
as many clients as a traditional clinic with a haul-in facility. What makes the drawbacks worth it, she says, are the relationships she is able to form with clients.
“After 20 years, I know their kids, I know their spouses,” Kristi said. “Yeah, we’re spread further apart physically, but we have a lot tighter connections in a small town. Small town life is all about connections.”
Our communities rely on veterinary professionals like Bruce, Kathy, and Kristi to care for our pets and protect our food supply, and they rely on the internet to make it all possible. At RTC, we are proud to support our local vets with the high speed internet they need, and the technical support to keep it running smoothly.
“Having that reliable, dependable internet and that support from RTC allows me to do my job of practicing medicine and not having to figure out which wire gets plugged in where,” Kristi said. “It allows me to spend more time with my patients. That’s what this job is all about.”
What do you see when you picture rural North Dakota?
Perhaps a farmer stepping down from his tractor cab, gazing upon acres of outstretched wheat fields, or the silhouette of an oil rig emerging from the horizon.
But what about a long-haired rockerturned-guitar instructor teaching millions of musicians from his home in Kindred? Or a woman working to save the small-town newspapers across the state?
While they may not come as quickly to mind when envisioning rural North Dakota, industries like music and media are rapidly becoming as integral to our
state’s landscape as agriculture and energy. They are the New Rural, and they are powered by broadband.
Reaching a Global Audience
Steve Stine’s childhood home in Fargo was filled with music: his mother was an avid country fan, while his father gravitated toward rock. From a young age, Steve had an affinity for the great hair bands like KISS.
“That’s what I wanted to do when I got older,” Steve said. “So my parents on my 13th birthday wound up buying me my first guitar.”
By the time he graduated high school, Steve was teaching lessons to other aspiring musicians, mentoring as many as 100 students a week. He went on to study at Minnesota State University
Moorhead and later taught at Red River Valley Academy, Elevate Rock School, and North Dakota State University, all while playing in a number of local and international rock bands.
Today, Steve is teaching a much larger audience. As the face of GuitarZoom, an instructional website for which he leads beginner-level to advanced guitar classes, Stine has amassed what can only be described as a cult following: almost a million subscribers across two YouTube channels. Steve has become one of the world’s most influential online music instructors and a mentor to some of music’s biggest stars, like pop sensation Shawn Mendes
“My videos are getting viewed all over the world, all the time,” Steve said.
White Shield East Segment..........................(701) 743-4120 White Shield East Segment - Fax.................(701) 743-4150
Happenings
Due to the COVID-19 virus pandemic: The RTC annual meeting, scheduled for June 11, 2020, has been postponed.
During this time of postponement, the current directors will continue fulfilling their obligations to the members of RTC.
We will keep up-to-date on information regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, following federal and state guidelines. When it is advisable to have a gathering, we will publicize the rescheduling of our annual meeting. By taking care of yourself, your family and your communities, we can look forward to pleasant days ahead. Thank you for your patience during these stressful times.
RTC NOMINATING COMMITTEE OFFICE
Meeting Minutes
The Nominating Committee met Wednesday, April 22, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. by conference call. Members present per roll call were: Bonnie Billadeau, Terri Morenski, Joel Lindquist, James Hansen, Curtis Peterson, Mylo Wolding, Cliff Tollefson, Susan Best, & Karla Quale
CEO/GM Shane Hart and HR Manager Gretchen Edwards were also in attendance.
CEO/GM Shane Hart introduced himself and HR Manager Gretchen Edwards to committee members.
Motion and second to nominate Mylo Wolding as Chairman. M/C
Motion and second to nominate Gretchen Edwards, RTC HR Manager as Recording Secretary. M/C
The Nominating Committee reviewed the packet they were given including the Notice of Meeting and RTC bylaws regarding director nomination.
The Nominating Committee reviewed the signed Certification of Nominee forms completed by Jennifer Sorenson, Terry Wilber, Lance Kalmbach and Amy Ones. No other Certification of Nominee forms were received by committee members or at the RTC office.
Motion and second to nominate Jennifer Sorenson for District 1B. M/C
Motion and second to nominate Terry Wilber for District 2B. M/C
Motion and second to nominate Lance Kalmbach for District 3. M/C
Motion and second to nominate Amy Ones for District 3. M/C
Motion and second that it is the recommendation of the Nominating Committee to have the paper ballots, alternated 50/50 with each candidate’s name at the top of the ballot, if there is a contested election. M/C.
Discussed if committee members would be available to count ballots if they are in attendance at the annual meeting. CEO/GM Hart explained that the Annual Meeting would most likely be postponed due to COVID-19 restrictions. The Board will decide at their meeting on April 23, 2020. Chairman Wolding agreed to read the Minutes of the Nominating Committee Meeting at the Annual Meeting if needed.
CEO/GM Hart explained how RTC and their employees are functioning during the coronavirus and answered any questions the committee members had.
Chairman Wolding called for any other business.
Motion and second to adjourn. M/C
Jeanette Hoff
Jeanette Hoff Board of Directors President
RTC AWARDS COLLEGE
Scholarships
Garrett Stroklund Hailey Carns
Garrett Stroklund is the son of Clinton and Rebecca Stroklund. He is a senior at Kenmare High School. He has been active in Future Farmers of America (FFA), band, choir, basketball, football, track, baseball, St. Agnes CCD and drama. This fall, Garrett plans to attend the University of North Dakota majoring in Aviation. He hopes to become a commercial pilot and would love to live in North Dakota as he would like to be a part of his local community by coaching football or basketball.
Hailey Carns is the daughter of John and Angie Carns She is a senior at Watford City High School. She has been active in DECA, Student Council, The Ambassadors Program and cheerleading. This fall, Hailey plans to attend Williston State College majoring in Nursing. She would like to become a neonatal nurse and return to Watford City to work at McKenzie County Healthcare. She looks forward to giving back to the community where she grew up.
Parshall, ND, April 20, 2020 – Reservation Telephone Cooperative (RTC) awarded four college scholarships, each in the amount of $2,500, to the following local students
Nathan Talbott
Nathan Talbott is the son of Richard and Lesli Talbott. He is a senior at Max Public School. He has been active in basketball, cross country, Student Council and Honor Society. This fall, Nathan plans to attend Minot State University majoring in Marketing. Nathan loves all aspects of business and knows he would enjoy a career marketing and selling products. He has even started taking college level business courses.
Applications and eligibility information for all scholarships are available at https://rtc.coop/myrtc, at local high schools, or at the RTC business offices in Parshall, New Town and Watford City.
Kaitlyn Klein
Kaitlyn Klein is the daughter of Travis and Sharon Klein. She is a senior at Garrison High School. She has been active in student government, volleyball, basketball, track and volunteering at St. Nicholas Parish. This fall, Kaitlyn plans to attend Bismarck State College majoring in Secondary Education with a minor in Business. Kaitlyn foresees the growing need for teachers in North Dakota and believes this is a great opportunity to prepare students to be great citizens that will benefit the communities and cites of ND.
Photo Contest
• Deadline to submit photos is August 1, 2020
• Photos of our RTC service area
• Submit your name, RTC account number, and up to 10 high-def pictures to rtcteam@rtc.email.
• Winners receive a feature in our 2021 Calendar and a $20 bill credit.
• Must be a current RTC customer.
2020 Winning Photo Submitted by Pat Thunshelle
READERS Contest
Congratulations to these Winter 2019 Communicator “Readers’ Contest” winners. They will receive a $10 credit on their RTC bill:
For your chance to be entered in the drawing to win a $10 credit on your bill, correctly answer the questions at the right and include with your RTC bill. Mail to RTC, PO Box 68, Parshall, ND, 58770. Or email the answers to RTCteam@restel.com
What RTC service do all three veterinarians rely on to operate their businesses?
