Connecting Clients, Community and Charity

Mineola-based Speed Wire Inc., is a busy company with a lot going on these days.

Counting a couple of Fortune 500 companies as its clients, Speed Wire is involved with the installation of digital TV service in the Tri-State area as well as thousands of local WiFi network access points.

But as big and important as Speed Wire is in a business sense, president Kevin Donnelly has not lost sight of what he views as his civic duty.

Donnelly said he comes from a big, loving and giving family and could not imagine ever being homeless. But he knows others don’t have that safety net and may need help. Through his company, he has proactively become involved in a way that could serve as a template for other businesses both large and small.

A native Long Islander, Donnelly founded the company 15 years ago in Manhattan seeking to build America’s next-generation voice, data, image and wireless networks. He moved the company to Mineola in 2009, where it occupies 6,000 sq. ft., including a 1,500 sq. ft. warehouse at 393 Jericho Turnpike on the northwest corner of Latham Road.

Donnelly loves the space, the proximity to Manhattan, the train line – in other words, all the elements that make Mineola an ideal setting for business.

Speed Wire’s goal is to be the premier nationwide technology installation company servicing traditional as well as emerging technology industries, whether it be wireless applications for local and wide area networks, broadband operations or security systems infrastructure.

Speed Wire is also involved in an ambitious pilot project with one of those Fortune 500s, which plans to use tablet PCs to pre-checkout customers for a national restaurant chain. “Right now there are only a handful of restaurants in the pilot program,” Donnelly said.

As Speed Wire lays the groundwork for the next generation in wireless communications for some of the nation’s top businesses, it continues to expand its philanthropic efforts as well.

The company is heavily involved in the Muscular Dystrophy Association (a.k.a., Jerry's Kids), as well as .

Speed Wire joined other businesses in sponsoring the second annual “A Day At The Races” event at the Belmont Race Track last June which raises funds for the MDA Summer Camp program.

Last year, $50,000 was raised, enabling 60 children to attend camp. This year’s event is set for July 15.

The company’s association with Island Harvest is a little different. Donnelly's company periodically sends its full-time staffers to work at Island Harvest for the day. They are used where ever the need is, in the warehouse, to make deliveries, etc.

“It’s a win-win for everybody,” Donnelly said. “It’s good for the guys, it keeps morale up for us, and it’s good for Island Harvest. They have a pretty amazing group over there.”

Speed Wire is also working on an app that Island Harvest could use to automate the documentation and record keeping that it must tabulate during the numerous pick ups and deliveries it makes each day.

“I'm trying to set a good example for my own kids,” Donnelly said. “I’ve been pretty lucky and I felt compelled to give back. Providing food for the hungry is about as good a cause as you can get.”