Dieterich, IL – Right now we are experiencing a drastic increase in workers and school children not allowed to go to school or work due to the COVID-19 virus. In response to the extra bandwidth needed for schoolwork or for individuals trying to work remotely Illinois Fiber Connect has upgraded all of their customers on their lowest tier package, 250 Mbps download/25 Mbps upload to 500 Mbps download/50Mbps.

            Illinois Fiber Connect is a joint venture between Wabash Communications (Louisville, IL) and EJ Water (Dieterich, IL), which brings Fiber-to-the-Home technology to residents around the Midwest. This fiber technology allows their customers to have access to ultra-fast internet with speeds to homes and businesses up to 1 Gbps. Founded by EJ Water CEO, Bill Teichmiller, and Wabash Communications EVP/GM, Barry Adair, the mission of the joint venture is to provide rural communities access to a stable, secure high-speed internet connection. This has created an incentive for economic development in the area, not only for e-commerce businesses and entrepreneurs trying to work from home, but also to those that enjoy living in rural locations and have the same technological luxuries of those who live in suburban America.

            Living in this area also means that our local schools need for access to high speed internet is at an all-time high. Illinois Fiber Connect has a strong commitment to providing our local schools with a dependable and fast internet connection. They currently service 6 area schools on their network which in turn affects over 1,000 students daily. Through use of the government funded E-Rate program designed to help schools and libraries across the country secure access to affordable telecommunications services, Illinois Fiber Connect has made access to a stable internet connection possible for our rural schools. That is why when they heard that everyday access to this high-speed internet for these students would now be limited to just home-use they felt as if it was their duty to help them.