Prospectus - COUNTRY Financial

Growth FUNDInvestment GoalsGrowth of capital. Dividend income, if any, will be incidentalto this goal.Principal StrategyUnder normal conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of itsassets in common stocks of well-established, large-capitalizationcompanies (which generally have $5 billion of market value ormore) that are determined to have above average long-termgrowth potential. In selecting stocks, the portfolio managersidentify factors, both on company-specific and macroeconomiclevels, which can provide opportunities for certain firms orindustries to achieve above average growth in earnings. Otherconsiderations in stock selection include opportunities forgrowth in sales, revenues, and cash flow, manageability of debtlevels and capital structure, corporate profitability, andcompetitive position relative to other companies. Additionally,the stock must fit into the existing portfolio scheme andcontribute to the overall diversification of the portfolio. This isa growth-oriented strategy. Current income is not a significantfactor in stock selection.The Fund may invest up to 20% of its assets in fixed-incomesecurities of any maturity when the portfolio managers believethe risk/reward characteristics of such issues warrant suchaction. The fixed-income securities will be rated at the time ofpurchase within the four highest grades assigned by independentratings agencies or in non-rated equivalents.Important RisksThere are risks involved with any investment, but the risksassociated with an investment in the Fund include:• stock market risk, or the risk that the price of securities heldby the Fund will fall due to various conditions orcircumstances which may be unpredictable• the risk of losing your money (investment)• the success of the Fund’s investments depends on theportfolio managers’ skill in assessing the potential of thestocks they buy• the value of any fixed-income security held by the Fund islikely to decline when interest rates rise• credit risk, or the risk that issuers’ credit ratings may belowered or may not make interest and principal payments ontime or in fullSuitabilityThe Fund may be a suitable investment for you if you:• have a long-term investment horizon such as investing forretirement or other future goals• can accept the risks of investing in a portfolio of commonstocks• desire a fund that uses a growth-oriented strategy• can tolerate performance which varies from year to yearThe Fund may not be suitable for you if you have a shortinvestment horizon, are investing emergency reserve money, areseeking regular income, or find it difficult to deal with aninvestment that may go up and down in value.Bar Chart and Performance TableThe following bar chart provides some indication of the risks ofinvesting in the Fund’s Class Y shares (the class of shares withthe longest period of annual returns) by showing changes in theFund’s performance from year to year. Class A shares wouldhave substantially similar annual returns because both classes ofshares will be invested in the same portfolio of securities.Annual returns will differ only to the extent that the classes donot have the same expenses. The bar chart includes the effectsof the Fund’s expenses, but not sales charges. If sales chargeswere included the returns would be lower. The performancetable shows how the Fund’s average annual returns comparewith those of a broad measure of market performance. Boththe bar chart and table assume reinvestment of dividends anddistributions. As with all mutual funds, past performance(before and after taxes) is not a prediction of futureperformance and the bar chart does not reflect the deduction oftaxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or theredemption of Fund shares.2