Western Pennsylvanians Donated More Than 47,000 Phones In 2010 Through Hopeline® From Verizon

WARRENDALE, PA — Last year, people in the western portion of Pennsylvania donated more than 47,000 no-longer-used wireless phones to HopeLine^® from Verizon, helping to support and put resources into the hands of those affected by domestic violence in Pennsylvania.

HopeLine from Verizon puts the nation’s most reliable wireless network to work in the community by collecting no-longer-used wireless phones, batteries and accessories in any condition from any wireless service provider.  Verizon Wireless and the HopeLine program provide wireless phones and airtime to victims of domestic violence and cash grants to local shelters and non-profit organizations that focus on domestic violence prevention, awareness and advocacy.   Phones that cannot be refurbished are recycled in an environmentally sound way under a zero-landfill policy. 

“We are grateful to those Pennsylvanians who donated their no-longer used phones to HopeLine in 2010,” said Mark Frazier, president–Ohio/Pennsylvania/West Virginia Region, Verizon Wireless. “Their actions are making a difference in the community and helping to support Pennsylvania families affected by domestic violence.”

Support for Western Pennsylvania
Verizon Wireless and the Verizon Foundation awarded $107,000 in cash grants to local domestic violence agencies in western Pennsylvania. The generosity of consumers and businesses who donated their phones in Pennsylvania helped contribute to the total funding amount.  Among those agencies receiving grants last year were Penn State University’s Center for Women Students, Womansplace in Pittsburgh, Washington Women’s Shelter, Blackburn Center in Greensburg, Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, Crisis Center North in Pittsburgh and SafeNet in Erie.

Verizon Wireless’ National Commitment
Throughout 2010, HopeLine collected more than 1.1 million phones and awarded more than $2.1 million grants to nearly 450 domestic violence prevention and awareness programs.   Moreover, through HopeLine, Verizon Wireless provided 25,392 phones with a total of 75 million free minutes of service to shelters and agencies nationwide for use by clients.

Since 2001, HopeLine has collected more than 8 million phones; awarded more than $10 million in cash grants to prevention and awareness programs nationwide; and donated more than 106,000 HopeLine phones with 319 million minutes of airtime to victims, survivors and domestic violence organizations. 

For more information on HopeLine from Verizon and to learn how to donate a wireless phone, visit www.verizonwireless.com/hopeline.

About Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless operates the nation's fastest and most advanced 4G network and largest and most reliable 3G network, and serves more than 94 million customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with 82,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ) and Vodafone (LSE, Nasdaq: VOD).  For more information, visit 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. 

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