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Hayneville Telephone Company held its annual customer appreciation day at its office on Friday as a way to give thanks to its existing customers and to invite potential customers to try its services. The company treated customers to hot dog plates and door prizes, during the event, the first in-person customer appreciation day since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. “The pandemic let us all know how important internet service is and we want to make sure that we help anybody that might have a need for it,” said Evelyn Causey, Hayneville Telephone Company President and Chief Operating Officer In addition to the hot dog lunch, each person who visited received an entry into a drawing for a year of free internet service from Hayneville Telephone Company, a prize won by Kanisha Brown. Each customer also took an opportunity to spin a wheel, which included additional prizes such as a $5-$25 bill credit coupons and bill credit coupons which could be collected if a friend or neighbor activates services with Hayneville Telephone. Larry Managan won a smart TV, while Delanie Harrell won free Roku streaming service. The customer appreciation day also gave Hayneville Telephone Company an opportunity to inform its customers on the benefits of providing fiber service internet to Lowndes County residents. The Lowndes Signal reported in the spring that several fiber projects in Lowndes County allowed customers in Hayneville, Lowndesboro, and the Black Belt region near County Road 17 access to fiber service internet, and work crews would be dispatched during the summer to begin laying the groundwork for fiber internet services in the Gordonville and Mosses communities. Causey said due to high demand for contractors, the Gordonville and Mosses projects were slightly delayed, but residents should begin seeing work crews later this year in those communities and should be able to access services as soon as March of 2023. Hayneville Telephone Company also applied for additional grants that will allow them to serve the majority of Lowndes County. “The grant money goes right into the ground,” Causey said. “It pays for fiber, the labor to install it, and the equipment to run it.” Causey added it is important for Hayneville Telephone Company to know what services customers wish to have access to and where they are located so they can be included in this grant opportunity. “We are seeking surveys from customers that are interested in services in the southern part of Lowndes County,” Causey said. “We would love for everyone to take a second and go to our website or Facebook page, find that survey and complete it. This will give us an opportunity to provide customers with the services they are interested in.” According to the survey site, the results from the survey will be included in the grant to help get approval to provide advanced fiber services in areas such as Ackerville, Allenton, Carlowville, Furman, Pleasant Hill, McWilliams, Pine Apple, Richmond, Sardis, and Mt. Nebo. Individuals can complete the survey by going to the website: www.surveymonkey.com/r/LetUsServeYou. Causey said Hayneville Telephone Company has always served Lowndes County and is looking forward to continued service in this community even as technology changes. “As a small independent company, we have been here for 76 years to serve rural America,” Causey said. “In that time, we have seen that the larger corporations that offer internet service are not as interested in serving the rural areas. This further supports our commitment to serve these areas where they would otherwise go unserved. “We are excited to see the transition to internet fiber services and these grants have given us many opportunities to provide internet services to rural Alabama. We look forward to seeing what the future holds.”