A Toledo Tel employee holds up a piece of fiberoptic wire at the company’s headquarters in Toledo in this 2013 file photo.
ToledoTel, an internet provider based in Toledo, is providing high-speed internet to all students within its coverage area free of charge and increasing the speed of the internet to 100 Mbps for existing customers during COVID-19-related school closures.
As a result of the state-mandated school closures, many students’ education has been adapted to an online format, making high-speed internet access important in continuing their education at home and keeping in contact with their teachers through email.
“If they don’t already have our internet service, we’ll install it and anybody that does have our internet service, we’re turning it up to 100 megs for free. … Although none of us could have predicted this situation happening it has allowed us to provide a very vital service to the community,” said Vice President and COO of ToledoTel Dale Merten.
Merten said ToledoTel has improved the internet service for more than 385 households and enabled internet access for more than 50 new households that had not had it before. ToledoTel’s coverage area is about 400 square miles, and anyone within that area who is a student can contact ToledoTel to get internet access or improved internet speed, Merten said.
ToledoTel is Washington’s first 100-percent gigabit fiber-to-the-home provider after an upgrade to fiber-optic technology in 2016, according to ToledoTel’s website.
Merten said that he has been in contact with Toledo School District Superintendent Chris Rust to get a list of the addresses of the district’s students so that Merten could get in contact with those who did not have service and provide it for free.
Merten said that they will connect any student in kindergarten through 12th grade and any college students living within the area. Any household with a student can call and if they do not have existing service a ToledoTel employee will come out to the residence and set up the modem and router for free, Merten said.
“We work very closely with the community and always have, it’s a family-based business and ToledoTel has been here for a hundred years. … When I learned that the schools were going to close I talked to them and said we can do this,” Merten said.
Merten said that after speaking with Rust he discovered that the Toledo School District has a surplus of unused computers that can be borrowed by students so that in combination with ToledoTel’s internet service all students can get access to online learning materials.
ToledoTel is also providing conference bridges for free to companies or businesses to be able to have conference calls with their employees more easily.
“I think this is the right thing to do at this time. I have a lot of families that are really appreciative of this,” said Merten.
Merten said that even though the library is closed, people can still connect to the internet for free in the library parking lot and in Toledo’s park.
