For many businesses, reliable internet keeps the workday moving. At SunHive Collective, it helps make the workday possible.
SunHive Collective is a Norman nonprofit that provides young adults with disabilities a place to learn, build relationships and develop skills that support greater independence. Each weekday, members come together to work on daily living skills, social skills and job skills through lessons, activities and real-world experiences.
Behind those experiences is technology that simply needs to work.
“OEC Fiber has definitely been a game changer for us,” said SunHive co-founder and executive director Melissa Collyar. “We would not be able to operate without it.”
The idea for SunHive began with a problem close to home.
When Melissa’s daughter, Hannah, graduated from high school, her family struggled to find a program that fit her needs. Her former special education teacher, Loralei Gann, called one day to ask what Hannah was doing after graduation.
Melissa’s answer was difficult: not much.
Hannah had gone from the structure, relationships and activities of school to spending much of her time at home. Gann was seeing the same thing happen to more of her former students.
She had an idea for something different.
Melissa and Loralei began developing a program that could give young adults with disabilities a safe place to continue learning, socializing and building practical skills after high school. About seven months later, SunHive Collective opened its doors.
Today, those doors open every weekday to a community of members eager to find out what the day has in store.
“The best thing about SunHive is our members. Hands down,” Melissa said. “They love to be here. You cannot be here in a bad mood.”
The results of SunHive’s work aren’t measured in download speeds.
They’re visible in the people who walk through its doors.
Melissa remembers one member in particular who had been nonverbal for a long time. After she began attending SunHive, she started communicating verbally again.
It’s one example of what can happen when people have a place designed to help them connect, learn and grow.
That is SunHive’s story.
OEC Fiber’s role is much simpler: provide the reliable connection that helps the people at SunHive keep doing that work every day.
For businesses and organizations across our community, internet isn’t just another utility. It’s how employees communicate, systems operate, customers are served and important work gets done.
And when it’s working the way it should, you shouldn’t have to think about it.
