Bell Ringer Volume 49, No 7 Clear Lake, South Dakota 57226 November 2015 Need Some Extra Christmas Cash? Most everyone I know would love to have a little extra cash at Christmas time! ITC would like to give you some cash for signing up for our services. Beginning November 2, you will be able to get cash for signing up for ITC’s Vroom High-Speed Internet and/or Best Seat TV. If you are not currently a subscriber to either of these services, sign up for one or both, and we will give you $50. With Vroom High-Speed Internet, we can get you set up for the speeds you need to run the devices you use every day. Nothing is more frustrating than being stalled out with Internet speeds that are too slow. Best Seat Premium TV offers more than 200 channels, including music. With our newly launched Video on Demand, you will have a good selection of programs and events to watch. The rules are easy. Call or stop by one of our ITC offices and sign up for Internet and/or TV. You need to be sure to mention this promotion when you sign up. The promotion will run from November 2 to December 18 so don’t wait! The sooner you sign up the sooner you will get your $50. If you are an ITC customer who has all of our services, we’d like to thank you by automatically entering your name in a drawing for four - $100 bills. We will draw for those lucky winners early in the week after the promotion ends. If you have been thinking about adding a service, call ITC today! Directory Cover Contest Winners ITC would like to congratulate Beth Schutt of Estelline, South Dakota! She submitted “Storm over Lake Poinsett”, the winning photo for the 2016 ITC Phone Book! Beth said the photo was taken right after the 4th of July when a large storm system rolled through the area. She was in a hurry to get home, trying to beat the hail. After Beth checked the storm warnings on TV, she hustled outside to get a few photos. It wasn’t until the next day she realized a tornado had been spotted just north of the Lake. Like many others, she was watching the storm instead of getting to the basement. We are just glad you are safe! Congratulations Beth, it is a beautiful photo!

Taking second place in the Directory Cover Contest is Katie Stone with her “Monarch Caterpillar” photo. Katie and her husband Heath have some land near Gary where they like to take walks. This summer they saw a lot of Monarch butterflies which was pretty amazing since that population is in decline. Katie kept thinking how cool it would be to see some caterpillars or cocoons because both are beautiful. When they saw this one, they got very excited and took several shots. ITC would like to congratulate you, Katie, on capturing this beautiful photo!

ITC launches VOD, see article on page 3. Annual Meeting 2015 Simple, Honest, Clear

By Jerry Heiberger, General Manager In show business when they say “That’s a Wrap” you know all the hard work is done, and a finished production is ready for the viewers and fans. While our work here at ITC is not quite like show business, we are coming to I T C ’s A l a n S e v e r s o n the end of another construction season, and we are about ready to wrap it up. Based on the comments from congratulates Frances Grimlie our customers and our staff, the construction crews have done an outstanding job. for winning the TV at the One of our contractors, Minnesota-based Anderson Underground, have installed the main line fiber in the towns Annual Meeting in September. of Bryant, Florence, and Willow Lake. They are just wrapping up construction for Hendricks town and the Lake Hendricks area. This project is ahead of schedule, and they have done an excellent job with no issues. ITC staff works with their crew as well as Vantage Point staff out of Mitchell, South Dakota to prepare for these projects. R&L Splicing out of Toronto, South Dakota is another company we work with for construction projects. Their crews have been working to upgrade services and install fiber drops to the homes and businesses in the cities of Bryant, Florence, Willow Lake as well as Hendricks and Lake Hendricks. Based on several customer comments, we are very pleased with the professional way they handled these projects. Conversion crews consisting of R&L Splicing and ITC staff have been busy this spring and summer upgrading Holly from ITC presents set-top boxes. They have been upgrading boxes in Bradley, Clear Lake, Goodwin, and most recently Lake Benton. Leona Stamp, who is from ITC has also had two, two-man construction crews keeping up with local customer projects. They have completed Gary, with the iPad she won. several hundred jobs with just a few pending. Crews hope to get these done before the weather deteriorates. Most of these projects would not have gotten completed without help from the inside staff. Many hours were spent on the phone coordinating schedules between the crews and the customers to get the work done in a timely manner. Projects take a lot of people working together and staying committed to getting the job done. Next on our plate will be planning and budgeting for 2016 projects. ITC staff will continue working with Vantage Point to get the engineering completed for staking, some of which has already begun. Next year’s projects include Willow Lake rural, Goodwin town and rural as well as the towns of Brandt, Toronto, Astoria, Sinai, Nunda, Wentworth, and Chester. Our ITC construction staff will continue to work through the winter with Several lucky members won conversions and getting customers cutover to fiber. As mentioned at the Annual Meeting in September, we are cash at the Annual Meeting. at about 70% of our goal to get fiber to all of our members. The planning and budget process will help us get that much closer to our goal of 100%. We have had a very successful construction season and have been very fortunate to stay ahead of our construction schedules. It also helped that the weather cooperated with a pretty mild fall. In the next couple of months, we will attempt to get any last-minute fall projects completed and begin planning for 2016. No doubt we will continue to stay busy, even as the weather changes. Just like show business, I guess we are just about ready to say “That’s a Wrap” for 2015! Stay tuned for next Bell year; we will keep you updated on 2016 projects in future Bell Ringers. Ringer Have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Enjoy time with your family and friends! (USPS # 155-720) 312 Fourth St W PO Box 920 ITC Employees - Out and About Clear Lake, SD 57226-0920 http://itc-web.com On September 11, ITC staff partnered with 1-800-417-8667 the Estelline Alumni Group for a tailgate * Published monthly for $.25 * Periodicals postage paid at at their homecoming game. From Left: Clear Lake, SD Holly, Nikki, Kathy, Riahnnon, and Josh. Kathy Weitala, Editor On October 10, ITC staff served free hot Postmaster: Send address chocolate and marshmallows before and changes to: during the Pumpkin Fest parade in Webster. Interstate Telecommunications ITC staff is ready to serve pork sandwiches The street is quiet yet as Holly and Nikki Cooperative, Inc. and hand out ITC football bags. prepare hot chocolate for the parade. P.O. Box 920 Clear Lake, SD 57226-0920 Cooperatively Speaking By Holly Stormo, Marketing Communications Specialist We’d like to introduce you to this month’s featured employee, Katie By Holly Stormo Heller. Katie is the Products and Services Supervisor at ITC. She Marketing grew up in Milbank, South Dakota. Katie moved back to Milbank a Communications few years ago and currently works at our ITC office on Main Street. Specialist Katie has a degree in Mass Communications (Public Relations Video on Demand and Advertising) from Minnesota State University Moorhead. She has been an employee of ITC for more than ten years. Have you recently noticed a new As a supervisor, Katie oversees a Sales Representative and leads movies/rentals section on your the products and services committee. She says, “The combination of TV? ITC is pleased to announce researching and launching a new service is exciting.” Recently ITC Video on Demand (VOD) is now launched a service called iWitness Managed Firewall for businesses. In these times when cyber security is so vital, available! All members who this is an excellent tool to help provide added protection for your business. subscribe to our digital TV service When we asked Katie what she liked best about the Coop, she said, “I like the idea that as a member of the Coop, will now have access to VOD. you earn capital credits on the services you utilize. At the start of 2013, my fellow Milbank neighbors who are now VOD is an interactive Coop members started earning capital credits.” Katie also says, “It’s exciting to explain to members how the Coop technology that allows users to works; that they have a vote, and an opportunity to have a voice through the ITC Board of Directors.” select and watch movies and Katie remains very active in the Milbank community. She is a board member of the programs when they choose. Northeastern SD Healthcare Foundation and the Grant County Development Corporation. You can pause, fast-forward, or In her spare time, Katie, her husband Jesse, and their two boys like to spend time on the rewind programs just like you lake. With two young sons, there is never a dull moment. would watching a DVD. One thing you might not know about Katie is she recently took a trip to Italy. Next time Just a reminder to those with you see her, say something in Italian like Ciao or Arrivederci! children, make sure to set your parental controls. Play around with the controls so you know how they work. Another important thing Title of Publication: is to change the PIN number from Interstate Telecommunications Cooperative Bell Ringer Publication Number...... 155-720 Frequency of Issue...... Monthly the default. Annual Subscription Price...... $3.00 If you want more information Location of Known Office of Publication: 312 4th Street West, Clear Lake, SD 57226 Known Bondholders, Mortgages and Other Security Holders Owning or Holding One on how to rent a movie or program, Percent or More of Total Amount of Bonds, Mortgages, or Other Securities...... None go to our website at www.itc-web. Average Number of Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months...... 12,830 Actual Number of Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing Date...... 12,250 com and click the “Video On Sales Through Dealers/Counter Sales...... None Mail Subscriptions: Demand” button at the bottom of Average During Preceding 12 Months...... 12,675 the homepage and choose your Nearest Filing Date...... 11,984 Free Distribution: remote. Enjoy watching a whole Average During Preceding 12 Months...... 54 Circulation new selection of movies and Nearest Filing Date...... 00

October 1, 2015 Copies Not Distributed/Office Use/Leftovers, etc.: events right from your living room! Average During Preceding 12 Months...... 101 Management, and Nearest Filing Date...... 266 Return From News Agents...... None I certify that the statements made by me above are correct and complete. Statement of Ownership, -Kathy Weitala

Back by popular demand... ITC University will be offering Happy Thanksgiving! two different classes for the month of November! Roku will If you are grateful for everything, be offered at 10:30 AM and Microsoft Word/Christmas Letter then whatever you have is enough. will be at 2:00 PM. Classes will -J. Baadsgaard be on November 11 in Milbank, November 18 in Clear Lake, and The ITC offices will be closed Thursday, November 26. November 25 in Brookings. Don’t miss out! Call 1.800.417.8667 to sign up. Class size is limited. Periodical Postage Paid At Clear Lake, South Dakota 57226

Internet 911

By Lonny Dockendorf, Internet Systems Technician

As busy as we all are, sometimes it can be difficult to stay in touch with the people we know and care about. At times, this is even true when those people Remit Top Portion Of Bill With Payment live across the street, let alone those that are many miles away.  When sending payment to ITC , customers should return the TOP portion of the bill For some of us; many of our friends, family members, or colleagues are that says, “PLEASE TEAR ALONG PERFORATION AND REMIT WITH PAYMENT.” spread out across the country, perhaps even across the world. Most of us Important Dates simply don’t have the time or finances to jump on a plane and take off whenever Bills are mailed on the first of each month, and payment is due on the 19th of that month, unless otherwise indicated on the “Due Date” portion of your statement. Prompt payment is required. we want. However, being far away doesn’t mean that you can’t stay close. NO PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS WILL BE GRANTED. These days we have lots of options; luckily most of which cost little or nothing! 586, 629, 693, 794,795, 826, 832, Here are some ways we can stay connected with our long-distance friends. Oct 30------Bills mailed from ITC 873,874, 876. Email is the elder statesman of our list but is still a great way to Nov 19 ------Payment due Dec 10 ------Disconnect day Nov 19 ------Final notices mailed for the following prefixes: 345, 432, 438, communicate. This option provides you the luxury of not having to coordinate Dec 8------Disconnect day 532, 623, 625, 628, 676, 756, 758, 783, for the following prefixes: 272, 275, 784, 785, 793, 947. a mutual time with whomever you’re conversing. You can essentially continue 277, 368, 479, 483, 489, 542, 548, with the same conversation over a long period of time. Social Networking is obviously the most popular choice. Statistics show that roughly two-thirds of social media users say that staying in touch with distant relatives or friends is the major reason they use social media sites. I would tend to agree. Social Media, in my opinion, is an excellent outlet for keeping up with those that I don’t have the luxury or time to see in person as much as I’d like. You may already be familiar with, and may even be using some of these. Included in the variety of options are applications such as Inside Out © 2015 Disney/Pixar. Shawn The Sheep Movie © 2014 Aardman Animations Limited and Studiocanal S.A. All Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Rights Reserved. Terminator Genisys © 2015 Skydance Productions and Paramount Pictures Corporation. All rights Reserved. Trainwreck © 2015 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved. Vacation © 2015 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. and RatPac-Dune Skype or Google Hangouts are both great ways to replace your regular Entertainment LLC. All Rights Reserved. phone calls with video communications. Live interactions like this can be a wonderful way to communicate while helping to make you feel that the one Join us on Facebook! Follow us on Twitter! you’re talking with is right there across the room from you. facebook.com/itccoop @itc_coop FaceTime, similar to Skype, is another beneficial video communication service. If you are an Apple device admirer, then chances are you’re somewhat familiar with FaceTime. The potential downside, at least as of now, is that both you and those you wish to communicate with must be using an Apple device. YouTube can be an excellent platform for sharing personal videos with friends and family members. You even have the ability to setup a private channel if you’d like. This privacy allows you to limit your video sharing to only those you choose. SnapChat is an application that lets users send and receive pictures and short videos to each other. The sent photos and videos are known as “Snaps”. Upon sending, the sender is allowed to set a time limit for how long a recipient can view their Snap, after which time the item is no longer viewable and is deleted. As you can see, there are many entertaining and valuable ways in which we can communicate over long distance. Some are very familiar and others not so much. If you would like to learn more, you can google these applications for additional information and some basic tutorials. You might find some you really like. We are very fortunate to have numerous options for communication these days. You can connect with friends, people from school or find long-lost family members. Grandparents can meet the new baby and connect with little ones on a regular basis. You can see your loved ones face-to-face! Distance no longer matters, and that’s the best part!