CenterState CEO to offer free PPE kits for small businesses on Friday

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — CenterState CEO announced that on Friday it is providing free personal protective equipment (PPE) toolkits to small businesses in Central New York through a $40,000 grant provided by Excellus BlueCross BlueShield.

The toolkits will include hand sanitizer, protective masks, along with best practice and guideline posters.

Limited quantities are available at each location, CenterState CEO said. Businesses can get one box of PPE and are asked to present a business card or provide business name, contact name, and email.

“Businesses across our community have begun to reopen and develop the necessary protocols and procedures to ensure their staff can return to work safely, and making sure they have access to personal protective equipment, especially masks and hand sanitizer, is critical to their success,” Robert Simpson, president and CEO of CenterState CEO, said in a statement.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our communities. As a local health-care organization, it’s vital that we support them as they reopen and get back on their feet,” said Jim Reed, president and CEO-elect of Excellus, added. 

Pick-up locations

Small businesses can pick up a kit between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Friday (and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Cayuga County) at one of the following locations:

Onondaga County

• Driver’s Village, 5885 Circle Drive East. in Cicero (parking lot at the corner of South Bay Road and East Circle Drive, across from Byrne Dairy);
• Destiny USA — parking lot on the Solar Street side (canal side, the middle lot near the bus drop-off area);
• Southside Innovation Center (SSIC)/Dunk & Bright at 2648 S. Salina St. in Syracuse (lower parking lot of Dunk & Bright).

Oswego County

• Parking lot across from the Lake Ontario Event & Conference Center at 26 E. First St. in Oswego.

Cayuga County

• Hilton Garden Inn at 74 State St. in Auburn.