Six Northern California Latino Small Business Owners Awarded $30,000 in Verizon Wireless Grants

The coveted Small Business Awards prize package, valued at more than $5,000, includes $2,500 in cash, three Motorola Adventure push-to-talk phones and one Family SharePlan(R) service valued at $2,500 for one year. Businesses were honored and presented with their awards at a ceremony that took place on June 17th in Stockton.

"Latino businesses are growing at a rapid pace, which increases their owners' need to learn about and invest in technological solutions that can help their organizations thrive," said Oscar Madrid Director of Multicultural Marketing for Verizon Wireless' West Area. "Through Organiza, Crece, Triunfa we want to forge partnerships, educate and help business owners and their organizations get to the next level. We hope these grant awards help each of the winning businesses do just that."

The winning businesses represent a variety of industries and cities throughout Northern California:

    Business                    Owner                               Location
    Spanish One Translation     Monica Rodriguez                    Stockton
    Kosmo's Burger & Tacos      Delfino Maciel                      Stockton
    Plaza Garibaldi             Connie Alvarez                      San Jose
    Video Club Mexico           Olivia Gonzalez and Jose Gonzalez   San Jose
    Andrade International Inc   Daniel Gonzalez                     Fresno
    Multi Therapy Clinic        Victor Martinez                     Fresno

Virtually all business owners mentioned the need to update their systems and 'modernize' their operations, but Monica Rodriguez from Spanish One Translation in Stockton spoke for many when she addressed how she could use the Verizon Wireless' technology grant to provide resources to employees.

"This program has given me the tools necessary to be able to hire an employee and compensate them for their time as well as provide them with a mobile phone to complete their tasks."

As part of Organiza, Crece, Triunfa, Verizon Wireless partnered with local Hispanic Chambers of Commerce to host local mixers called "Cafe con Leche" where small business owners learned about marketing strategies and technology solutions to help their firms flourish. Small business owners can continue to access business tools including articles, business directory, events and products and services which can provide new ways to move and grow your small business into the 21st century by visiting www.verizonmicroempresa.com or www.verizonwirelesssmallbusiness.com. To date, more than 1,000 businesses have submitted their information and created their own personal Web page on the Organiza, Crece, Triunfa site where customers can view and find out more about their services.

For more information about Organiza, Crece, Triunfa, the program, please visit www.verizonmicroempresa.com or www.verizonwirelesssmallbusiness.com.

About Verizon Wireless

Verizon Wireless operates the nation's most reliable and largest wireless voice and data network, serving more than 86.6 million customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with more than 86,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) and Vodafone (NYSE and LSE: VOD). For more information, visit www.verizonwireless.com. To preview and request broadcast-quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.