Labour Day Facelift for Charles Gordon Market

The Charles Gordon Market in Montego Bay will undergo a facelift as the Labour Day 2013 project of the St. James Parish Council, in partnership with Columbus Communications Jamaica Limited.

 

“The Charles Gordon Market is the key Labour Day activity in St. James this year. We want to make the market a true economic centre for persons who sell and for persons who shop there and to further stimulate economic development in St. James,” said Councilor Glendon Harris, Mayor of Montego Bay and Chairman of the St. James Parish Council, commenting on the project.

 

The work to be completed at the Market will create a  new entrance to the facility giving more visibility to vendors, and improving security. Other improvement work to be completed on Labour Day will include rebuilding of planter boxes, repainting of walls and patching of the car park as well as a general cleanup of the premises. 

 

Columbus Communications, operators of the Flow and Columbus Business Solutions brands, has joined forces with the St. James Parish Council to assist with the rehabilitation of the market by providing a cash injection of $150,000 to finance the Labour Day project. Another important component of the partnership will be the involvement of Columbus team members who will work side by side with the Parish Council team and other members of the community to complete the project.

 

Mayor Harris lauded the efforts of Columbus for coming out to assist the council in its major Labour Day project. “We are pretty happy to have the team from Columbus on board as major corporate sponsors of the day’s activity,” he said.

 

“We are very pleased to again partner with the James Parish Council for Labour Day, especially for this project which is central to economic activity in Montego Bay,” said Denise Williams,  director of corporate communications for Columbus Communications “It is important to us to give back in the communities we serve and we welcome another opportunity for our team members to make a meaningful contribution toward an activity such as this which can have a profound impact on transforming the lives of citizens. It is gratifying to be able to join the rest of the nation and to do our own part towards fulfilling the theme for Labour Day 2013  to lend and hand to build our land.”  

 

Columbus has made annual commitments to supporting the Labour Day projects of Parish Councils across the island since launching service in Jamaica and has invested over $4 million dollars towards Labour Day projects in that time. This year, Columbus will also partner with the St. Catherine Parish Council to support their clean-up efforts at the Spanish Town market.

 

Columbus Enters Barbados

With over $60MUS invested in Barbados, a promise to build out its advanced broadband infrastructure to serve 100% of homes in three years, Columbus Communications, operators of Flow and Columbus Business Solutions, also introduced a series of First to Barbados, the latest and fifth market for the broadband company.

“We anticipate that our network will be constructed over a 3 year period, with 30% of Barbados households being completed by the end of 2013,” said John Reid, president and coo of Columbus Communications speaking at the launch of Columbus Barbados at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre on Monday evening.

Reid also revealed that in addition to its full suite of digital HD and 3D programming as well as Video OnDemand and 100mbps internet to the home, Barbadians will also enjoy IP TV to the home and cloud based personal video recording service, a first for the region, as well as Flow ToGo, a product that will enable users to watch their Flow video service and use their Flow landline telephone service on any portable device anywhere that internet connectivity is available.

The response from Barbadian was very positive.  We are “quite happy that Columbus appears to be delivering on the promises that they made to me when they came to see me maybe a year or so ago,” said Senator The Honourable Darcy Boyce speaking at the launch event. The Senator who has portfolio responsibility for Energy, Telecommunications, Immigration and Invest Barbados in the Office of the Prime Minister highlighted the significance of Columbus to Barbados saying, “My goal is very simple. Barbados is to be the best place in the world to live, to work and to do business.  And for that we need to have telecommunications infrastructure that is among the very best in the world.”

  

Senator Boyce was very clear in his expectations as to the impact that the advent of Columbus’ technology will have in Barbados.  “That means for our businesses I expect the opportunity to reduce cost to compete more effectively around the world. But what it also means for our households is to have better quality service at affordable prices. What it means for visitors is that when they come here they can remain in touch with their homes, their businesses and their families wherever they come from.”

Columbus, through its brand Columbus Business Solutions, will facilitate the increasing demand for connectivity and ICT services by providing businesses with a comprehensive product portfolio including Dedicated Internet Access, Metro Ethernet, International Private Line Connectivity, MPLS, Data Centre services, Business Voice and a specifically designed Broadband, Video and Voice offering for Small & Medium Enterprise (SME) customers. Columbus’ suite of cloud-based produces will enable businesses to drive down their operational costs, improve efficiencies, and ensure business continuity and security.

The Columbus Barbados launch culminates with a Flow World, a unique, informative and entertaining 2-day event showcasing the products and services of the Columbus brands.  Patrons attending Flow World have the opportunity to interact with features of both brands to experience broadband Internet, digital cable TV and digital landline telephone services that Columbus will provide in Barbados.

Public invited to name Hope Zoo's new zebras in Flow Facebook Competition

The arrival of three zebras at the Hope Zoo has created quite a buzz since their release from confinement earlier this month. The zebras, two females and a male, all less than a year old, are the first and only to grace the island in history.

The Hope Zoo Preservation Foundation (HZPF) has teamed up with broadband provider Flow, to give two lucky Jamaicans the opportunity to name the newest additions to the Hope Zoo family.

Flow’s hosts the competition on its Flow Jamaica Facebook page until Friday, April 5. The persons who come up with the most creative names for the zebras will win the grand prize of Hope Zoo gift certificates for family of four, a one month Gymkhana gym membership and gift basket from Flow.  Runners Up who give creative names will also win prizes of Flow gift packages.  The winning names will be selected from a panel of judges representing the Hope Zoo preservation Foundation and Flow and  will be announced on Wednesday, April 10.

The HZPF successfully acquired the animals from Six Flags Great Adventure and Safari in New Jersey, as a part of its continued thrust to foster animal diversity in Jamaica under its biodiversity project.

“If we fail to action and support sustainable solutions to keep our animals safe, we'd be tragically failing ourselves and our future generations. I invite Jamaicans to participate in the revival of the Hope Zoo, which also involves our Facebook competition geared at the ‘Naming of the Zebras’. The zebras are the most recent addition to the animals at the zoo and I would like to personally invite everyone to participate in the Facebook competition and to visit the zoo to witness the first Zebras to be housed at a zoo facility on Jamaican soil,” said Kenny Benjamin, Executive Chairman of the HZPF.

Benjamin also added, “I would like to wholeheartedly thank Flow for its display of exemplary corporate and social responsibility, by coming aboard as the first corporate partner. Flow’s involvement has added to the first world standards at Hope Zoo.  Thanks to Flow, the entire zoo facility now has wireless internet connection.”

Columbus Communications Jamaica Limited, operators of Flow, are using the social media competition to bring awareness of the work being done to restore the zoo and encourage the public to visit by getting as many Jamaicans as possible to participate in the competition.

“Social media is a powerful outreach tool and we are using our technology to build awareness of the work being done to transform the beloved landmark into a world class facility and generate enthusiasm about the newest members of the Hope Zoo family,"  said Denise Williams,  director for corporate communications for  Columbus.
We are very proud to be a part of the work being done at the zoo and we encourage other  corporate companies to get involved and for schools to take advantage of the education opportunities the Hope Zoo provides.

This initiative is only one of several that the company will undertake as part of its $25 million partnership with the HZPF. The primary outcome of the partnership and investment will be a technology driven Learning and Resource Centre which will be the centre piece of the Zoo's education programme and will enable integration with the science curriculum in Jamaica's schools. 

Flow, Jamaicansmusic.com Happy with Jamaica’s First Earth Hour Concert

At approximately 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 23, Jamaicans officially marked 'Earth Hour' by releasing 100 lanterns in the sky at the Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre.

More than 1000 patrons came out to a free acoustic 'Earth Hour' concert hosted by Jamaicansmusic.com in association with Jamaica Tourist Board, Jamaica Cultural Development Commission and telecoms company Flow.

Earth Hour is an annual global event organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), which asks people to turn off non-essential lights for one hour starting at 8:30 p.m. in an attempt to support conservation efforts.

Jamaicans who turned out for the country’s first Earth Hour Concert at the Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre on Saturday, March 23, release 100 lanterns in the sky to commemorate the event.  Earth Hour is an annual global event organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), which asks people to turn off non-essential lights for one hour starting at 8:30 p.m. in an attempt to support conservation efforts. The Jamaica Tourist Board, Jamaica Cultural Development Commission and telecoms company Flow threw their support behind the event which saw over 1000 patrons.

"I came to see the outstanding line-up of artistes, enjoy some good vibes and support this worthy cause," said patron Allison Barrett "We are a small island and we need to do our part to protect our environment, so I will always support events such as this that are geared towards conservation."

Denise Williams, executive director of Corporate Communications at Columbus Communications Jamaica Limited, operators of Flow and Columbus Business Solutions, said that she was pleased to be associated with the movement.  "Conservation is everybody's business.  We do our best at Flow to live the green message, our main office at the Courtleigh Auditorium is a smart office in which, all our lights, water and air conditioning units are automated.  Additionally, we encourage our staff to participate in annual national labour day projects geared at cleaning up public spaces and we have implemented a newspaper recycling initiative," said Williams.

The executive director also spoke about the 'I Will If You Will' component of Earth Hour. 'Basically, we've joined the rest of the world in this exciting challenge which prompts people to start an environmentally conscious action. We are challenging Jamaica to go paperless.  Our president and coo, Michele English has committed to participating in a friendly race with a Track and Field Olympic Medallist if 2000 people switch to Flow's paper less billing."  The idea is to encourage people to adopt small measures for big impact.  A paperless bill saves paper, energy and resources.  

Other top Jamaican artistes have also joined in on the 'I Will If You Will' challenge.  Artistes such as Shaggy, Tami Chynn and Wayne Marshall, have also committed themselves to specific Earth Hour Challenges.

Alex Morrisey, CEO of Jamaicansmusic.com could not have asked for better support. "All in all it was a great show, for a worthy cause.  By 8 p.m. there were no seats left and additionally, many of the artistes rearranged their schedules so that they could perform here tonight to signify their commitment.  We are definitely looking to grow this local movement and make it into a bigger calendar event for Jamaicans, as we want to make sure that conservation is at the top of everybody's priority list."

Artistes such as Protégé, Jesse Royal, Keida and bands such as Blue Grass in The Sky, Black as Cole and Rootz Underground were among the highlights of the night.

Earth Hour originally started in Australia but has since become a global movement. Jamaica is the latest Caribbean country to join neighbours such as Belize and Aruba.

Flow, Courts point Microsoft’s “DigiGirlz” to the field of ICT

Students of Excelsior High, Wolmer’s Girls and Campion College listen keenly to Denise Williams, executive director of corporate communications at Columbus Communications, as she shares a variety of career fields in Information and Communication Technology, at the Microsoft  ‘DigiGirlz’ conference at the Stella Maris Church Hall on March 22.

Males currently dominate the Information Communication Technology (ICT) field across the globe and many females worldwide and here in Jamaica, generally shy away from pursuing a career in ICT because of the many other prominent traditional career choices.

As a response to this, companies such as Microsoft, Flow and Courts have joined forces to encourage high-school girls on the exciting opportunities and impact that the ICT industry has on their future careers.

Through Microsoft’s annual initiative ‘DigiGirlz’ girls from various high schools benefit from the advice and guidance of leading female professionals in the ICT sector.   This year, over 150 girls from 19 schools across the island participated in the conference at Stella Maris Hall in Kingston, held under the theme ‘Building a Global IT career’.

Telecoms provider Flow teamed up with Courts to provide girls with an interactive experience through online activities geared at encouraging them to “think outside the box”.

Denise Williams, executive director of Corporate Communications at Columbus Communications Jamaica Limited, operators of Flow and Columbus Business Solutions, says that initiatives such as this are important in breaking the barriers for career choices.  “We simply could not pass on this opportunity to inspire girls who are faced with critical decisions about their future. Flow is one company that provides a clear example of how far women can go in the technology industry. We have a woman at the helm of our operations and other female executives in top positions ranging from engineering, technical support and communications. As a leading broadband provider, having the girls interact with the technology, is a fitting way of demonstrating the impact of ICT,” said Williams.

The conference explored topics such as to untapped areas for women in Information Technology, taught them how to manage and maintain a good social media character and how to market themselves, as well as a range of other career counselling and panel discussions.  Students were given a chance to interact with each other and to have one-on-one rap sessions with the presenters at the conference.

Queenie Ko, Microsoft’s Education Sector Manager, welcomed the partnership with Flow. “Microsoft is very excited to have Flow partner with us this year in the staging of our 3rd annual ‘Digigirlz’ event this year. Flow and Microsoft, both share the same vision, passion and commitment as it relates to the transformation of Education for Jamaica.

We believe that through this partnership, we will be able to deliver a more impactful event and drive the desire outcome and that is to empower and motivate our young women to explore a career in technology,” said the Education Sector Manager.

Other presenters at the conference included Marlin Page, President and CEO of Knowledge Brokers, LLC, a Technology Recruiting and Consulting Firm,  Shereen Jones, Group Information Technology Executive, Jamaica National Building Society and Chairman and Lorna Green, Chairman, Central Information Technology Office at the Ministry of Science Technology Energy and Mining (MSTEM).

At the end of the conference, many students had changed their opinion about pursing an ICT related career.

Shanee Barnes, sixth form student at Wolmer's Girls said that each presenter gave insightful presentations that she thoroughly enjoyed. "I'm interested in fashion and I’m also interested in computer science. Each presenter has given me inspiration, propelling me one step closer to my goal of finding a creative way to match the two."

From as early as 2000, DigiGirlz has provided free technology education and interactive experiences to thousands of young women worldwide. This year, Flow and Courts Jamaica teamed up to support the Jamaican leg of the programme.

“With the growth of information technology in today’s society, Courts is always looking for opportunities to contribute to the development of this vibrant and important sector in Jamaica. This is part of our nation building efforts and establishing Courts as the place for all your Information, Communication and Technology needs while connecting with our future leaders. And of course, we all know that girls run the world," said Nariesha Murray, Product Supervisor - Appliances / Purchasing at Courts.