North Hills, Pennsylvania, Student Collects 415 Phones To Help Victims Of Domestic Violence

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PITTSBURGH, PA — When Ross Township resident John Powell completed his leadership project as part of his requirement to become an Eagle Scout, he earned more than the prestige of the scouting honor itself. He also earned the appreciation of a local domestic violence agency that will put his efforts to work for its clients.

Powell, a junior at North Hills High School, collected 415 no-longer-used wireless phones this spring to help victims of domestic violence. Through the Verizon Wireless HopeLine® program, he was able to augment the benefits of his project when the company contributed $3 for each of the donated phones to Crisis Center North, a provider of educational and counseling services to area domestic violence victims.

Today, Powell presented the phones to Chad Pcsolyar, manager of Verizon Wireless' McKnight Road store. In turn, Verizon Wireless presented a $1,245 check to Tess Craig, Crisis Center North's volunteer coordinator, and Allison Venturella, medical advocate at the center. The donation will be used to fund the center's programs that serve residents of the North Hills communities.

"With this leadership project, John is truly making a difference in our community," said Craig. "Because of his efforts, the safety of domestic violence victims, including children much younger than he, will be enhanced."

Powell researched various service projects before discovering the HopeLine program on Verizon Wireless' Web site and deciding a phone drive for victims of domestic violence would be a worthy cause. He collected phones by conducting drives at his church, by going door-to-door, and with the support of his family and Boy Scout Troop 377.

"I wanted to do something different from the other service projects that scouts undertake," Powell explained. "I selected Crisis Center North to be the local organization that would benefit from my efforts and contacted Verizon Wireless to ask for the company's support."

"John is a fine young man who has learned the value of giving back to the community and making a difference in our world," said Roger Tang, president — Ohio/Pennsylvania Region, Verizon Wireless. "It was an honor for Verizon Wireless to team up with him for this project."

Through the award-winning Verizon Wireless HopeLine program, most of the donated phones and equipment are refurbished and sold with proceeds being used to support domestic violence awareness and prevention programs. Any remaining phones are recycled in an environmentally friendly way. Since January 2001, Verizon Wireless has collected more than 1.2 million no-longer-used wireless phones for the benefit of domestic violence victims and advocacy groups across the country.

About Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless owns and operates the nation's most reliable wireless network, serving 45.5 million voice and data customers. Headquartered in Bedminster, N.J., Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) and Vodafone (NYSE and LSE: VOD). Find more information on the Web at www.verizonwireless.com. To receive broadcast-quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.

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