BASKING RIDGE, NJ, Oct. 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Verizon today announced a $250,000 donation to small businesses affected by hurricanes. Verizon is partnering with CooperationA local non-profit community-problem-solving organization in Southwest Florida and Florida TaxWatchA trusted nonprofit organization that serves as the ‘eyes and ears’ of Florida taxpayers and promotes economic development throughout the state, to create a $10,000 grant to provide hardship relief to small businesses in Florida’s hardest hit areas.
“We are committed to helping small businesses affected by this devastating disaster,” said Aparna Kurjekar, chief revenue officer at Verizon Business. “Many of these businesses are dealing with insurmountable challenges ranging from business and disruption to property damage. We hope this donation will help speed up business recovery and provide relief to small business communities affected by the hurricane during this time of crisis.
“The hurricane impacted the livelihoods of many small business owners in Southwest Florida and nearly 20 counties in Southwest Florida,” said Dominic M. Calabro, president and CEO of Florida TaxWatch. “Florida Tax Watch is proud to partner with Verizon Business and the Collaboratory to be a part of our continued work to support so many hardworking people, them and their families.”
“The Cooperative understands that local small businesses are the lifeblood of our communities,” said Cooperative President and CEO Sarah Owen. “They employ our workforce, create innovative solutions and ideas, and drive our future economy.” Helping these businesses after a hurricane is a critical part of rebuilding Southwest Florida. Donations like these from Verizon Business help us do just that.
Ongoing disaster recovery efforts
Verizon engineers continued their efforts this week to add capacity to the network to handle the increased data usage we’re seeing compared to pre-storm levels. An influx of recovery teams into the area to deal with customers with wireless service when their home internet was out, data flow on the network increased by more than 70 percent in some areas.
Engineers continue to deploy 5G services using C-band spectrum, repairing radio heads and adjusting antennas to optimize network performance. Teams continue to increase the capacity and stability of the satellite, fiber and microwave links that connect cell sites to the rest of the network so that the sites can handle more data traffic. Finally, engineers continue to deploy additional cell sites in the most congested areas of Southwest Florida to increase coverage and capacity.
In addition, the Verizon Frontline Crisis Response Team has deployed more than 400 Verizon Frontline solutions, including drones, smartphones, routers, mobile hotspots, mobile satellite assets and THOR (Tactical Humanitarian Operations Response). A mobile emergency operations vehicle with network capabilities to support first responders in their search and rescue missions.
Additional recovery efforts can be seen at Verizon’s response to Hurricane Ian A page that will be updated regularly.
Free educational resources for small businesses
Small businesses can also reach out. Verizon small business digital ready, a free, comprehensive online curriculum focused on helping small businesses with digital transformation. The portal was created with and for small businesses and offers 30+ courses, mentorship, peer-to-peer networking, 1:1 professional coaching and incentives with a special focus on helping diverse and under-resourced business owners. The initiative is part of a 10-year commitment by 2020 to support Citizen Verizon, part of its business plan to empower 1M small businesses in the digital economy.
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ), founded on June 30, 2000, is one of the world’s leading providers of technology and communications services. Headquartered in New York City and with a global presence, Verizon is projected to generate $133.6 billion in revenue by 2021. The company provides data, video and voice services and services across award-winning networks and platforms to meet customers’ mobility needs. Reliable network connection, security and control.
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Media Relations:
Claudia Russo
claudia.russo@verizon.com
