I have Verizon also and have stuck with them for years because I have had a multitude of company phones and/or pagers through other services that have all failed at one time or another.
Also I still try to make sure I have a tri mode phone so I can still get an analog signal when I'm way out where there are no digital towers.
"AOL Instant Messenger Blackberry pagers"
Are you meaning AOL IM AND Blackberry pagers? because Blackberry is not affiliated with AOL in any way, Blackberry actually gives good reliable service...