As seen in APPEN News – February 17, 2016 – Roswell non-profit The Drake House was the recipient of new high-tech equipment thanks to a local company. Carmichael Consulting Solutions, in Alpharetta, successfully recommended The Drake House for a free technology program from Cisco-Meraki.
The Drake House provides short-term crisis housing, education and empowerment programs for homeless single mothers and their children in North Fulton. Immediate housing combined with an empowerment program are designed to provide stability for the children and assist the family in working toward housing self-sufficiency.
The Drake House was operating with old and donated equipment; nothing worked right with anything else, said Executive Director Kathy Swahn.
“Our system was archaic before Tyler and Carmichael,” she said.
Carmichael Consulting owner Tyler Jones and his team are certified Cisco partners. Jones said that each year Cisco-Meraki, which makes network equipment, has a “giving back” campaign where partners recommend non-profits throughout the country to receive a free tech upgrade.
Jones recommended The Drake House, which won. Swahn and her team received two wireless controllers and five wireless access points, which Jones said will give them and their clients more reliable Internet services.
“This is a break through,” Swahn said. “A lot of moms and kids work online for their job search or schoolwork. And we have struggled with our connection. If a student is homeschooled or takes online classes, they can always have that resource.”
Jones and his team did the install of the new devices free of charge for The Drake House.
The new devices also mean Carmichael Consulting can detect and solve any issues that may arise in the network.
“We have long been involved with The Drake House and we love what they do,” Jones said. “We want to help them communicate with the world.”
For more about Carmichael Consulting Solutions, visit them at www.carmichaelconsulting.net. For more about The Drake House, visit them at thedrakehouse.org.
By JONATHAN COPSEY
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