Verizon Wireless Technology Helps Domestic Violence Survivors Rebuild Lives In Bronx

ORANGEBURG, NY — Continuing its commitment to domestic violence prevention and awareness, Verizon Wireless recently donated 25 wireless phones and free airtime to Bronx-based Violence Intervention Program (VIP), a non-profit agency providing life-saving services to survivors of domestic violence and their families.

The donation was made possible through the company's HopeLine^® phone recycling program, which collects old, no-longer-used cell phones at Verizon Wireless Communications Stores throughout the New York Metro area. The phones are refurbished, recycled or sold, and the proceeds are donated to domestic violence advocacy groups in the form of cash grants and prepaid wireless phones for victims. Phones that cannot be refurbished are disposed of in an environmentally sound manner.

Other New York metro area agencies receiving recent HopeLine phone donations include Sanctuary for Families and Safe Horizon in New York City and Seamen's Society on Staten Island.

VIP, a nationally recognized Latina organization dedicated to ending violence in the lives of women, will lend the HopeLine phones to survivors of domestic violence who need to call for help in emergencies and make phone calls necessary to rebuild their lives. VIP provides a full range of bilingual services to meet the needs of battered women and their children including a crisis hotline, counseling, residential services, children's programming, and community education and outreach.

"The HopeLine recycling program provides a quick and easy way for each of us to make a difference in the lives of families scarred by domestic violence," said Charles Hand, president of Verizon Wireless' New York Metro region. "Something as simple as a wireless phone can help enable and empower these women to take positive steps to transform their lives."

Verizon Wireless was the first wireless carrier in the nation to collect and recycle old cell phones and has done so since January 1999, first in New York and then across the U.S. Nationally, the HopeLine program has collected more than 4 million wireless phones, and given more than $4 million in cash grants and nearly 45,000 phones with airtime to domestic violence prevention organizations. Locally, HopeLine's direct and in-kind donations total more than $650,000 including more than $150,000 to the New York City Family Justice Center Initiative.

In addition to a successful phone recycling program and funding for non-profit domestic violence prevention organizations, HopeLine includes free wireless service and voice mailboxes for survivors, community and corporate awareness initiatives, and a bilingual "Invest in Yourself" program designed to help survivors re-enter the workforce.

HopeLine phone donations also are accepted at all Verizon Wireless Communications Stores in New York City and across the nation. For store locations and additional information, visit www.verizonwireless.com/hopeline.  

About Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless operates the nation's most reliable wireless voice and data network, serving 63.7 million customers. The largest U.S. wireless company and largest wireless data provider, based on revenues, Verizon Wireless is headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with 68,000 employees nationwide. The company 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 preview and request 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.

####