LOUISVILLE, KY, October 13, 2010 – Lightyear Network Solutions, Inc. (OTCBB:LYNS, news, filings) (www.lightyear.net), a provider of telecommunication services to businesses and residential customers throughout North America, announced today the appointment of three new members to the Company’s Board of Directors, increasing the size of the Board to seven. They are: Gary R. Donahee, W. Bruce Lunsford and Jeffrey T. Hardesty.
“We are pleased to announce the addition of Gary Donahee, Bruce Lunsford and Jeff Hardesty to our Board of Directors,” said J. Sherman Henderson III, CEO of Lightyear. “Their scope and depth of industry, sales and general business expertise will be important drivers for success in both our organic growth and acquisition strategies to increase revenue and EBITDA.”
The new board members are:
- Gary R. Donahee, who has more than 30 years of telecommunications industry experience and brings a wealth of knowledge to Lightyear. Donahee, age 63, spent 16 years in senior management positions around the world at Nortel Networks, a NYSE-listed company, most recently as Executive Vice President and President of the Americas from 1999 to 2003. He served as Senior Vice President and President, Carrier Networks for Nortel for Europe, the Middle East and Africa and in a similar capacity for the Caribbean and Latin America region. Mr. Donahee also served as Senior Vice President, Corporate Human Resources for Nortel from 1989-93 and was responsible for approximately 60,000 employees in 42 countries. In addition to Nortel Networks, he has held senior executive positions in human resources at Northern Telecom and Bell-Northern Research Corporation. He currently serves on the boards of Vantrix and Tech Radium. Mr. Donahee has a Bachelor’s degree from the University of New Brunswick, where he recently served on the Board of Governors.
- W. Bruce Lunsford, age 62, who is Chairman and CEO of Lunsford Capital, LLC, a Louisville-based private equity investment firm that works with a wide range of companies including health-care, technology, entertainment and real estate. He is the founder, former Chairman and CEO of Ventas, Inc., an NYSE-listed health-care real estate investment company; the founder, former Chairman, President and CEO of Vencor, Inc., now known as Kindred Healthcare; and the founder and former Chairman of assisted-living company Atria Communities, Inc. In addition, Mr. Lunsford formerly served on the board of directors of Churchill Downs, Inc., National City Corporation and ResCare, Inc. He currently serves on the board of directors of AeroCare Holdings, Inc., and Valor Healthcare, Inc. and as Chairman of the board of Arcadia, LLC and Deyta, Inc. He is a graduate of the University of Kentucky, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree, and the Salmon P. Chase College of Law, where he received a juris doctor.
- Jeffrey T. Hardesty, who has more than 20 years of telecommunications industry experience in a variety of roles involving investment banking, private equity and senior management positions including CFO, COO and CEO. Mr. Hardesty, age 46, is currently the Owner, Managing Partner and CEO of Desert iNet LLC, a privately owned high-speed broadband Internet provider to residential and business customers in Arizona. Prior to Desert iNet, he was CEO and COO of Sparkplug, Inc. (formerly Telespectra), a broadband provider in the western United States. In addition, Mr. Hardesty also served as CFO of Extend America, a provider of Nextel cellular and broadband in the northwest. Mr. Hardesty graduated with honors with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Wichita State University and a Masters of Business Administration from Duke University.
About Lightyear Network Solutions, Inc.
Through its wholly owned subsidiaries, Lightyear provides telecommunication services to businesses and residential customers throughout North America. Lightyear’s product offerings include local PRI and digital T1, enhanced Internet services, MPLS, Ethernet, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), local and long distance service, and conferencing. Lightyear also offers wireless services to customers in the U.S. through wholesale contracts with multiple wireless providers. Lightyear built its own VoIP network in 2004 to enhance its product offerings and has partnered with some of the most prominent names in telecom including: Sprint, Verizon, AT&T, Level 3, PAETEC, CenturyLink, XO Communications, Intelliverse, BroadSoft, Cisco and ADTRAN. Lightyear Network Solutions is headquartered in Louisville, Ky. Additional information can be found at: www.lightyear.net.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” for purposes of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s “safe harbor” provisions under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and Rule 3b-6 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause Lightyear’s actual results to differ materially from those currently anticipated. These forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, statements about our marketing and acquisition opportunities, business strategies, competition, expected activities and expenditures as we pursue our business plan. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in any forward-looking statements are reasonable, the risks and uncertainties which could cause our actual results to differ materially from those currently anticipated includes changes in market conditions, our ability to integrate acquired operations, the ability to obtain additional financing on satisfactory terms, customer acceptance of products, regulatory issues, competitive factors, or other business circumstances and risk factors described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Lightyear undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements in order to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this press release.
Contact:
Steve Rush, Marketing Manager
502-410-1397
steve.rush@lightyear.net
Porter, LeVay & Rose, Inc.
Marlon Nurse, V.P. – Investor Relations
212-564-4700
marlon@plrinvest.com
PR Archives: Latest, By Company, By Date