Archive for category: Ribbon Cuttings

“It was a natural fit,” Johnson said. “Mobile Communications just continues to grow. Our focus in Florence will be on video surveillance, in particular.”

Mobile Communications America is the largest service provider in the country for mobile two-way radios and public safety accounts. The company has 40 locations in the Southeast and provides a number of services, including equipment repair, engineering services, maintenance contracts, system management, FCC licensing and more.

The company handles commercial accounts and does video surveillance and warning sirens for school districts, governmental bodies and large commercial businesses, including factories and plants.

“I’m excited about the community,” Johnson said. “As large as they are, Mobile Comm still gets community. They want to be a part of the areas they are in and look for places where they can get involved.”

Jim Buck, general manager of the Florence office, said the company has been serving Florence for more than 17 years.

“We’re an in-state provider,” Buck said. “We cover multiple lines, so it depends on what you’re looking for. We’re large enough that our buying power allows us to be extremely competitive. What I love to tell people is to look at what you’re paying now. If you feel like it’s too much, we’d love for you to contact us and give us a chance to look at what we can do for you.”

The company offers many services, including security and monitoring; on-site and remote support; network installation, support and design; hosted cloud offerings; backup and disaster relief; help desk; planning and auditing; and more.

Buck said joining the chamber was a way for the company to continue its growth and network with other businesses. He said the company originally had its main office in Columbia, but it decided to expand and add a Florence office to focus on the market in the Pee Dee.

Kim Bowman, president and CEO of K. Hope, said she began the firm about a year ago after a successful career in marketing and business development.

“I find a creative way to get where we need to go,” Bowman said. “If a client has a problem with sales, visibility, brand development or whatever it is, we’re going to find a creative way to do just that. I love working with people who need somebody to come in, or an outside objective look, to solve problems through that creative touch and approach.”

Bowman most recently served as the CEO of the South Carolina Governor’s School for Science & Mathematics Foundation, where she was responsible for strategic direction, marketing, fundraising, outreach, and recruiting.

She has also held marketing and leadership roles with EdVenture Children’s Museum, Lake Murray Magazine, University of South Carolina, Policy Management Systems Corporation, and AT&T.

Through May, participants will get firsthand looks at some of the successes and daily challenges that educators face in the classroom.

There also will be an opportunity for interested participants to take part in a “Principal for a Day” exercise where the local leader will spend a portion of a day with a school principal as he or she conducts the duties of running the school.

“We are extremely excited about having members of our business community visiting our schools again this year,” said Richard O’Malley, the superintendent of Florence One Schools. “The commitment on the part of each of these individuals is greatly appreciated. During these visitations, the Fellows in Education will gain knowledge of the many outstanding school initiatives, as well as the needs and the resources in our schools.

“Through their in-depth understanding of these outstanding programs, the needs and resources, we believe that they will be better able to serve as advocates for students in Florence One Schools.”

Organizers say the ultimate goal of the program is to create a cadre of local leaders who will be able to collaborate with policymakers and community members in developing better education policies in the local community.

Seven more sessions will be held on the first or second Tuesday of each month through the month of May at different Florence One schools.

“Rural South Carolina is hurting,” Willis said. “It has been hurting for a long time. Does the chamber have any kind of a position?”

“There is a South Carolina that’s doing pretty well,” Pitts said. “And there’s a South Carolina that’s not doing so well. We do need to look at – the chamber needs to be in the lead in this I think.”

Pitts said the attractiveness of the workforce is the reason that Boeing has a plant in North Charleston next to Charleston International Airport, and Volvo has a plant in Berkeley County. Earlier in that presentation, Pitts said that Dorchester County, which borders Berkeley and Charleston Counties, was the fastest-growing county per capita in the state. He also said that Charleston had surpassed Columbia as the largest city in the state.

“There’s less people obviously in rural South Carolina but there are opportunities that we continue to focus on,” Pitts continued.

Pitts said the state had to do a better job of attracting a different mix of business types. The state, he added, had done a very good job as a plant in the system of an international manufacturer, but wasn’t doing as well at attracting corporate headquarters or research and development facilities.

Pitts said the rural-urban divide ran across the Midwest of the country and included the Northeast and the South.