Madalyn Edwards
Author
Surry Communications
Leading-edge communications technology has come to Surry County thanks to Surry Communications, a local telephone membership cooperative that has operated in the area for 70 years. The founding members of Surry Communications were local farmers and businesspeople who needed a reliable means of communication in rural areas. In 1951, they established a company, and by 1954 just under 200 members were able to access dial tone services.
In the early days, the service would not have looked out of place on episodes of The Andy Griffith Show. Customers who wanted to use telephone services first had to speak with the operator who would connect them to the person or business they were trying to call.
Today, the company provides internet, television, security and telephone services to more than 10,000customers and 1,000 businesses in Surry, Stokes, and Davidson counties. The company of 66 employees is a telephone membership cooperative, meaning customers have stake in the company. Members are able to vote on theirchoice of directors who help implement strategic and innovation plans.
One of those plans includes a multi-million-dollar investment to place older technology with fiber-optic cable. Surry Communications is the first company to supply fiber-optic transmission equipment in the area. The project wasstarted in 2005 and is expected to be completed by 2025. Fibers smaller than the width of a human hair will provide the fastest internet that technology can deliver, reaching speeds ranging from 300 megabits per second up to one gigabyte per second.
“The sky’s the limit,” said Richie Parker, CEO of Surry Communications.
Expanded fiber-optic cable services won’t just improve internet speeds, they also make TV, security, and business solution services more reliable. That’s especially important for businesses and people using internet to study or work from home.
Although fiber optic lines are notoriously expensive, Parker said Surry Communications is able to offer competitive rates compared to larger, national service providers through the use of smart business plans. The margin ofprofit may be lower compared to the larger, nationwide providers, but Parker believes that serving members more effectively ultimately benefits the business. “We try to put a personal touch on those connections that we have,” Parker said.
That personal touch extends beyond its services. Surry Communications also engages with the community and the Chamber of Commerce, participating in touch-a-truck events at local schools, sponsoring Little League teams, and co-sponsoring the Greater Mount Airy Chamber of Commerce Chamber Advocacy Conference. The co-op is committed to community-oriented events, with a special focus on local schools and career fairs.
“You’re going to see our name at all the local community schools,” Parker said.
Recently, Surry Communications helped sponsor a new eSports lab at Mount Airy High School.
Parker prides himself on the fact that Surry Communications is a local company that fosters personal connections. At the end of the day, he loves receiving calls or emails from customers telling him about their positive experiences with technicians and other Surry Communications employees. He said customers note how respectful andhelpful the technicians who work for the small company are.
Surry Communications is headquartered in Dobson, North Carolina and can be reached
at (336) 374-5021 Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
