Latest news with #TomMartin


Business Upturn
6 days ago
- Business
- Business Upturn
Kinly Merges with Yorktel to Accelerate Global Growth and Expand Managed Services and Systems Integration Portfolios
Business Wire India Yorktel, a New Jersey-based global AV systems integrator and managed services provider, today announced it has signed an agreement to combine with Kinly, a global AV and UCC integration firm headquartered in Amsterdam, to merge the two firms into a premier workplace experience and collaboration provider with unparalleled reach. This strategic merger will significantly accelerate global growth and expand next-generation systems integration capabilities with a larger talent base and portfolio of managed services and technology offerings. Advertisement The addition of Kinly's operations, workforce, and client base will enhance Yorktel's ability to meet the evolving needs of enterprise and public sector clients and provide a world-class customer experience across the globe. With complementary cultures and a shared commitment to service excellence, the planned integration strengthens Yorktel's position as a trusted partner in digital workplace transformation while bringing additional capabilities and capacity to Kinly customers worldwide. 'This acquisition is an intentional step forward to grow with purpose and is an example of what is still to come as we pursue our strategy and deliver advanced solutions to our global clients,' said Ken Scaturro, CEO of Yorktel. 'We are committed to leading the next wave of agentic transformation — simplifying operations, reducing complexity, and empowering organizations to work smarter all while improving the customer experience.' 'Merging with Yorktel marks an exciting next chapter for our team and customers,' said Tom Martin, CEO of Kinly. 'Our organizations are aligned in values, strategy, and a relentless focus on delivering exceptional outcomes for our clients. Together, we will drive innovation, provide great opportunities to our employees and partners, and create even more value in a rapidly changing collaboration market.' Together, the merged company will serve over 2,500 clients across 27 global locations, with more than 1,600 employees, including 900+ industry-specialist accreditations. This expanded scale elevates the ability to deliver truly global managed services, from on-site support and proactive monitoring to remote management, cloud voice, and AV lifecycle services, with greater consistency, capacity, and speed. Clients will benefit from broader geographic coverage, unified service operations, and an enhanced portfolio of AV, UCC, and UCaaS solutions, all backed by a commitment to ISO-certified security practices. 'We are proud to support the combination of Yorktel and Kinly, allowing both companies to be more relevant and valuable to their customers through their combined offerings in the continuously evolving AV space,' said Carlo Padovano, Partner at OEP. 'Yorktel's scaled North American and global footprint is perfectly complemented by Kinly's extensive European base. Combined with their joint Asia Pacific capabilities, this creates unmatched global delivery,' added Otavio Birman, Principal at OEP. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory and other approvals. About Yorktel With over 40 years of experience supporting Fortune Global 1000 companies and top government agencies, Yorktel is a trusted global systems integrator and managed services provider. As a founding pioneer of managed services in the video communications industry, we deliver AI-driven collaboration technology solutions, next-gen global integration, and holistic managed services to transform digital workplaces, optimize technology estates, maximize productivity, and reduce costs. For more information, visit About Kinly Kinly is a leading AV and UCC systems integrator and the largest in Europe. It has over 25 years' experience, and an international reach with 19 offices across EMEA, US and APAC. Kinly specializes in complex AV integration, UCC, corporate communications, workspace management, corporate communications, events and managed services. From small installations to global digital transformations, Kinly collaborates with the world's leading organizations to deliver their workplace ambitions with a unique and unrivalled service built on core pillars of innovation, security and quality, as well as a commitment to responsibly designed solutions. About One Equity Partners One Equity Partners ('OEP') is a middle market private equity firm focused on the industrial, healthcare, and technology sectors in North America and Europe. The firm seeks to build market-leading companies by identifying and executing transformative business combinations. OEP is a trusted partner with a differentiated investment process, a broad and senior team, and an established track record generating long-term value for its partners. Since 2001, the firm has completed more than 400 transactions worldwide. OEP, founded in 2001, spun out of JP Morgan in 2015. The firm has offices in New York, Chicago, Frankfurt and Amsterdam. For more information, please visit View source version on Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with Business Wire India. Business Upturn take no editorial responsibility for the same.


Business Wire
7 days ago
- Business
- Business Wire
Kinly Merges with Yorktel to Accelerate Global Growth and Expand Managed Services and Systems Integration Portfolios
BUSINESS WIRE)-- Yorktel, a New Jersey-based global AV systems integrator and managed services provider, today announced it has signed an agreement to combine with Kinly, a global AV and UCC integration firm headquartered in Amsterdam, to merge the two firms into a premier workplace experience and collaboration provider with unparalleled reach. This strategic merger will significantly accelerate global growth and expand next-generation systems integration capabilities with a larger talent base and portfolio of managed services and technology offerings. 'This acquisition is an intentional step forward to grow with purpose and is an example of what is still to come as we pursue our strategy and deliver advanced solutions to our global clients,' said Ken Scaturro, CEO of Yorktel. The addition of Kinly's operations, workforce, and client base will enhance Yorktel's ability to meet the evolving needs of enterprise and public sector clients and provide a world-class customer experience across the globe. With complementary cultures and a shared commitment to service excellence, the planned integration strengthens Yorktel's position as a trusted partner in digital workplace transformation while bringing additional capabilities and capacity to Kinly customers worldwide. 'This acquisition is an intentional step forward to grow with purpose and is an example of what is still to come as we pursue our strategy and deliver advanced solutions to our global clients,' said Ken Scaturro, CEO of Yorktel. 'We are committed to leading the next wave of agentic transformation — simplifying operations, reducing complexity, and empowering organizations to work smarter all while improving the customer experience.' 'Merging with Yorktel marks an exciting next chapter for our team and customers,' said Tom Martin, CEO of Kinly. 'Our organizations are aligned in values, strategy, and a relentless focus on delivering exceptional outcomes for our clients. Together, we will drive innovation, provide great opportunities to our employees and partners, and create even more value in a rapidly changing collaboration market.' Together, the merged company will serve over 2,500 clients across 27 global locations, with more than 1,600 employees, including 900+ industry-specialist accreditations. This expanded scale elevates the ability to deliver truly global managed services, from on-site support and proactive monitoring to remote management, cloud voice, and AV lifecycle services, with greater consistency, capacity, and speed. Clients will benefit from broader geographic coverage, unified service operations, and an enhanced portfolio of AV, UCC, and UCaaS solutions, all backed by a commitment to ISO-certified security practices. 'We are proud to support the combination of Yorktel and Kinly, allowing both companies to be more relevant and valuable to their customers through their combined offerings in the continuously evolving AV space,' said Carlo Padovano, Partner at OEP. 'Yorktel's scaled North American and global footprint is perfectly complemented by Kinly's extensive European base. Combined with their joint Asia Pacific capabilities, this creates unmatched global delivery,' added Otavio Birman, Principal at OEP. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory and other approvals. About Yorktel With over 40 years of experience supporting Fortune Global 1000 companies and top government agencies, Yorktel is a trusted global systems integrator and managed services provider. As a founding pioneer of managed services in the video communications industry, we deliver AI-driven collaboration technology solutions, next-gen global integration, and holistic managed services to transform digital workplaces, optimize technology estates, maximize productivity, and reduce costs. For more information, visit About Kinly Kinly is a leading AV and UCC systems integrator and the largest in Europe. It has over 25 years' experience, and an international reach with 19 offices across EMEA, US and APAC. Kinly specializes in complex AV integration, UCC, corporate communications, workspace management, corporate communications, events and managed services. From small installations to global digital transformations, Kinly collaborates with the world's leading organizations to deliver their workplace ambitions with a unique and unrivalled service built on core pillars of innovation, security and quality, as well as a commitment to responsibly designed solutions. About One Equity Partners One Equity Partners ('OEP') is a middle market private equity firm focused on the industrial, healthcare, and technology sectors in North America and Europe. The firm seeks to build market-leading companies by identifying and executing transformative business combinations. OEP is a trusted partner with a differentiated investment process, a broad and senior team, and an established track record generating long-term value for its partners. Since 2001, the firm has completed more than 400 transactions worldwide. OEP, founded in 2001, spun out of JP Morgan in 2015. The firm has offices in New York, Chicago, Frankfurt and Amsterdam. For more information, please visit


The Sun
02-06-2025
- Health
- The Sun
My ex refused to let me end things – when I finally moved on his twisted messages threatened to tear my life apart
HANDS shaking Laura Gumery struggled to comprehend what was on her boyfriend Tom Martin's phone. There they were, the photos she hoped never to see again, the photos her ex had promised to delete but now the intimate images were being used against her. 6 After learning about her new relationship with Tom, her former boyfriend Ian Davis had texted the naked images, alongside sexual messages the pair had once shared, to her new partner in a jealous rage. Davis, 37, tried to claim that Laura, 33, had cheated with him in an attempt to sabotage the new relationship. Thankfully Tom, 38, didn't believe his lies and the pair reported Davis to the police. Now the mum-of-two is sharing her story to raise awareness of revenge porn in a bid to encourage other victims to report their abusers to the police. She says: 'Reporting Ian was the best thing I ever did. 'Taking back control of my life felt amazing. 'Now I want others to not feel ashamed to come forward and seek justice.' Laura, from South Wales, met Davis in 2015, when she was 15 and he was 20. Initially he seemed like the perfect boyfriend, showering her with compliments and buying her gifts and almost instantly declaring his love for her. However, he gradually became more obsessed with the then schoolgirl. Shamed Towie star James Argent threatened with jail if he fails to listen to abuse victims on course after attack on ex She remembers: 'He'd want to talk to me all the time and if I didn't reply straight away he'd bombard me with messages. 'He picked me up from school and I barely saw my friends and family. 'It was suffocating.' By the time she turned 18, Laura ended the relationship. Despite this, Davis begged her to reconsider, even pestering her friends to get Laura to talk to him. But she blocked his number and eventually he left her alone. Five years on in 2015, aged 23, Laura fell pregnant but the father didn't want to be involved. Soon after, Davis got in touch, out of the blue. She remembers: 'He apologised for his behaviour during the relationship. 'Saying he wasn't that person anymore and missed me. 'He wanted another chance. 'Feeling vulnerable at that time, I agreed to try again, he genuinely seemed to have changed. 'I agreed to date again once the baby was born.' At first, things were bliss for the couple as Davis became a loving father-figure to Laura's newborn son. But within seven months, the relationship began to unravel. Often, Davis would go away at the weekends for car rallies and Laura was left to do everything and the couple found themselves arguing constantly. Despite this, in December 2017 the pair got engaged and planned to marry. Only, two years on, in May 2019, Laura was told by a friend that Davis had allegedly cheated while on a trip away. Laura explains: 'I confronted him but he denied it. 'By this point I'd had enough, so I cancelled our wedding and moved out with my son. 'I couldn't trust him. 'I still allowed him to see my son as they had such a close relationship.' When lockdown hit in March 2020, Laura continued to stay in touch with Davis as he still had a hold over her. She remembers: 'He'd turn up at my house unannounced and would text me, asking who I was seeing. 'He would be so jealous if he ever saw a car parked outside mine and was convinced I was still his. 'Sometimes it was easier to go along with it. I got less grief that way. 'Occasionally, I slept with him to keep him off my back so I could have a social life without him. 'I did it to keep him 'happy' so he would let me have a life and stop monitoring me all the time.' During this time, Laura sent Davis two nude pictures of herself taken in her bedroom and they shared a flurry of sexual messages together. With Davis texting her naked pictures of himself too, but Laura deleted them straight away. She explains: 'I wanted to make him believe I was still 'his'. 'Looking back, it was so unhealthy and toxic but I couldn't see a way to break free from his control.' Months later, in April 2021, Laura met her boyfriend, Tom, on a blind date. They hit it off and the following month, he stayed over at Laura's. Only, the next morning, Davis sent her a cryptic message. She says: 'He told me he'd always 'loved me' and that I 'couldn't survive' without him. 'I decided to cut ties with him for good." A year on, in July 2022, Laura received a message on Instagram from Davis. It said: 'Blocking me was the wrong thing to do I've got somethings (sic) your boyfriend should see its (sic) your call now.' After telling her he had nothing to lose, he ordered her to unblock him. Laura says: 'I had no idea what he was talking about and threatened to contact the police if he messaged me or Tom. 'Then I blocked him on Instagram too.' In September that year, Laura discovered she was pregnant. A week later, the day after she celebrated her 31st birthday, Tom called in distress. Laura remembers: 'He told me that Ian had been in touch. 'That he'd sent him two naked pictures of me as well as the sexual conversations we'd had together. 'I immediately felt sick. 'Panic hit me. I thought, 'That's it, Tom's going to leave me.'' With that, Laura rushed home. There, Tom showed her Davis' messages. In one, he'd called her a 'w***e'. She says: 'I was so mortified and ashamed he'd seen the pictures of me. 'Ian had tried to make out I'd cheated on Tom with him. 'I explained that the pictures were sent before we were together and that I hadn't done anything wrong. 'Tom was so calm and supportive, but I knew he was upset. 'Thankfully he believed me. 'I hated Ian for what he'd done and I was terrified he'd posted them elsewhere too. 'He'd completely taken away the joy of our pregnancy news.' WHAT IS REVENGE PORN? Victims have been targeted by revenge porn from their exes, and occasionally third parties, who seek to destroy their reputation or post it as a form of harassment. The posting of revenge porn includes photos and videos of the victim that are posted online without the individual's consent, with one in 25 Americans affected, according to a 2016 article by The Washington Post. Americans between the ages of 18 and 30 are primarily victims of revenge porn, and a study conducted in 2016 found that approximately 10million people, or two percent of the population, had reported they were victims. Revenge porn is not protected under the First Amendment of free speech which does not protect the distribution of private facts, defamation, and child pornography. Under section 230 Communications Decency Act of 1996, websites are considered third parties and not legally liable for content posted online. However, in 2020, then-Attorney General William Barr wrote a letter to Congress requesting websites to be required to take action and hold the third parties accountable for not removing nonconsensual content. In his letter, Barr wrote that technological changes since 1996 have advanced, and the law should be amended to reflect this. He stated that section 230 "shields 'any action voluntarily taken in good faith to restrict access to or availability of material that the provider or user considers being obscene, lewd, lascivious, filthy, excessively violent, harassing, or otherwise objectionable.'" Barr provided reforms to section 230, changing "'otherwise objectionable' with more specific language including 'promoting terrorism or violent extremism, promoting self-harm' and 'unlawful.'" The bill to amend section 230 was brought to the Senate in October 2021 and as of May 2022, it is still being reviewed. Afterwards, Tom told Laura how it was a crime to distribute naked images and explained all about the law on revenge porn. So, the couple reported Davis to the police. Laura says: 'At first I thought Ian hadn't done anything wrong as I didn't think it was illegal to share intimate images with someone you knew. 'But Tom told me it was an offence and reminded me of the Georgia Harrison case.' Georgia's disgraced ex Stephen Bear is currently serving a 21 month prison sentence for voyeurism and sharing a sex tape. Stephen filmed consensual sex with Georgia on CCTV in 2020 then made at least £40,000 on OnlyFans from uploading the clip. He was also placed on the Sex Offenders Register for ten years and was slapped with a five-year restraining order banning him from contacting Georgia. TV personality Georgia was among those to call for a change to the legislation. It will now be easier to prosecute people for sharing revenge porn after a change in the law in England and Wales. Revenge porn was criminalised in 2015 but before now prosecutors had to prove there was an intention to cause humiliation or distress, but laws introduced on Tuesday will remove this clause. The day that Laura filed the report an officer came to take Laura's statement. Laura says: 'While the officer asked to see the pictures, he was professional and offered no judgement. 'I was mortified but determined to see Ian punished.' Soon after, Davis was arrested and charged. It took three years to get to court. This month, at Newport Crown Court, Davis was found guilty of sharing an intimate photograph without consent and sharing an intimate photograph without consent while intending to cause harm, distress or humiliation. He was handed a seven month sentence, suspended by one year and a five-year restraining order. Laura says: 'Sharing intimate pictures with others causes lasting damage. 'It harms self-esteem and can ruin family relationships. 'Thankfully Tom has been my rock and supported me throughout. 'Now I teach my boys that when you're going through tough times, don't back away, because, in the end, the person telling the truth always wins.'
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Here's where Memorial Day ceremonies are planned across the Grand Strand, Pee Dee
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) — Communities across the Grand Strand and Pee Dee will honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice defending our nation's freedom with ceremonies starting on Thursday and continuing through the Memorial Day weekend. 10 A.M. MONDAY: Memorial Day Remembrance Ceremony honoring those who have sacrificed all for our freedoms, with music by the Summit Concert Band and a reading of the interred service members at the Dillon Cemetery. Local Boy Scouts will present the colors. The public is encouraged to bring old flags to have them properly retired. 10 A.M. SATURDAY: Florence National Cemetery, 803 E. National Cemetery Road; American flags will be distributed on 15,417 graves throughout the cemetery. Individual volunteers and community groups are encouraged to participate. 10 A.M. MONDAY: Florence National Cemetery, 803 E. National Cemetery Road; a ceremony to honor and remember the men and women of the U.S. armed forces. Park at the South Carolina Department of Disabilities and Special Needs, 714 E. National Cemetery Road, and access the event through a designated gate. Attendees will then proceed to the site adjacent to the walk-through gate entrance to the National Cemetery. 11 A.M. THURSDAY: Robeson Community College, 5160 Fayetteville Road; ceremony begins at the Military Affiliated Resource Center in Building 13 and ends outside near the center's flag poles. The speaker will be Tom Martin, a minister and decorated veteran. 10 A.M. SATURDAY: Spectators can line the streets of Pampas Drive, Howard Avenue and Farrow Parkway to see the Military Appreciation Days parade. The grand marshal will be Col. Thomas 'Buddy' Styers. 11:30 a.m. SATURDAY: Valor Memorial Garden, 1120 Farrow Parkway; following the parade, attendees can attend a free Family Picnic at Grand Park in Market Common. There will be live music, military exhibits, and displays. 11 A.M. MONDAY: Myrtle Beach Convention Center, 2101 N. Oak Street; Memorial Day remembrance ceremony. 10:30 A.M. MONDAY: North Myrtle Beach Memorial Gardens, 65 E. Highway 90, at the corner of Highways 9, 90 and 17 and Nixons Crossroads, Little River; the event will be the group's 74th annual veterans event and celebration. Retired U.S. Marine Col. Mark A. Singleton will be the guest speaker. In the event of inclement weather, the event will be moved to the Carolina Bays Church, 4360 Big Barn Drive, Little River. Lunch will be provided for veterans and their families. 11 A.M. MONDAY: Memorial Day golf cart parade starting at 16th Avenue N. and traveling south on Ocean Boulevard to Melody Lane. 2 P.M. MONDAY: Service at Memorial Park, located at Surfside Drive and Willow Drive. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.


BBC News
18-04-2025
- General
- BBC News
Swansea: Church that survived Nazi bombers celebrates 200 years
A landmark chapel in the centre of Swansea that survived a Nazi bomb is preparing to celebrate its 200th anniversary with special services over Pleasant chapel is one of the city's most historic buildings and stands on the Kingsway in an area that was largely flattened during the Blitz, when the German Luftwaffe bombed the city in February 1941."When you see all the pictures of the Blitz and all the buildings around the chapel gone, it is amazing that the chapel is still standing" said Clare Sullivan, one of the chapel with Corinthian pillars seats about 800 people. It cost £4,510 to build, a huge undertaking for the church's 54 members at the time. Swansea was an important industrial town and port, and the early worshippers were probably involved in the copper smelting and refining industry that had transformed Swansea into a major global centre for copper processing. It's nickname was Tom Martin said the bombing destroyed the area around the chapel and it was rebuilt after the war. "We are in the middle of the busy Kingsway in the city centre with lots of modern buildings around us," he said. "Their predecessors didn't survive the blitz, but the Mount did."Today the exterior of the chapel looks very much as it did when it was first built, but the interior had been changed with the pews removed from the ground floor to create an all-purpose open space. On Wednesdays and Saturdays it morphs into a café, explained church elder Jimmy Christie."There was a time a lot of people went past the railings and gates, and wondered perhaps what this wonderful building was," he said. "But now we have a wide pavement outside and we hold our open air café there as well as in the chapel itself. "We have opened the doors and opened the railings up and people are getting to know us."Some of the neighbourhoods surrounding the chapel were amongst the most deprived in the UK," said chapel pastor Dafydd Taylor. "There's a great need in Swansea, a lot of people with addictions to drugs and alcohol, in and out of prison or who are homeless," he said. "We offer them hope, we have at least 4 members who used to have addiction problems, and we have helped them turn their lives around."