Children's Miracle Network Hospitals At CoxHealth In Springfield, Missouri Receives $5,000 Donation From Verizon Wireless

SPRINGFIELD, MO — Verizon Wireless announced today that it has donated $5,000 to the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals at CoxHealth in Springfield, Missouri as part of the company’s national HopeLine program. Verizon Wireless will serve as the presenting sponsor for the 21st Annual Medical Mile event and 5K Run/Walk hosted by CoxHealth to be held on June 2, 2012.

The HopeLine program is dedicated to assisting communities in the areas of children’s health, education and domestic violence prevention. The Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals at CoxHealth in Springfield is one of only 170 Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals in the nation and provides Ozarks kids with the most advanced treatments and technologies available. In addition, the hospital’s C.A.R.E. Mobile unit works to ensure that southwest Missouri children get the immunizations and health screenings they need.

“Verizon Wireless has a long-standing commitment to keeping children safe and healthy and we are pleased to recognize and support the work of the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals at CoxHealth,” said Brendan Fallis, president – Kansas/Missouri region, Verizon Wireless. “Their efforts to care for kids throughout southwest Missouri have made a tremendous difference in the lives of thousands of children and their families. Through our HopeLine program, we are fortunate to be able to work with respected organizations like CoxHealth across the United States.”

According to Tim Siebert, Executive Director of the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals at CoxHealth, the contribution from Verizon Wireless will have a wide-ranging impact. “We are grateful for the sponsorship provided by Verizon Wireless. All proceeds will help children needing medical care in our 32-county service area,” said Siebert.

The Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals at CoxHealth provide perinatology, neonatology, high-risk infant care, and pediatric intensive care services in addition to specialists in children’s pulmonology, neurology, cardiology and child life. As one of the three top maternity hospitals in Missouri, they are also the regional leader in mother-baby care, delivering approximately 4,000 newborns each year.

HopeLine from Verizon puts the nation’s most reliable wireless network to work in the community by turning no-longer-used wireless phones into support for women and children throughout the United States. Proceeds from the HopeLine program are used to provide wireless phones and airtime to victims of domestic violence and cash grants to local organizations that focus on health, education and domestic violence prevention.

Since the launch of the HopeLine phone recycling program in 2001, Verizon has collected more than 8 million phones; awarded more than $10 million in cash grants to agencies and organizations throughout the country; properly disposed of nearly 1.7 million no-longer-used wireless phones in an environmentally sound way; distributed more than 106,000 phones with approximately 319 million minutes of free wireless service to families; and kept more than 210 tons of electronic waste and batteries out of landfills.

For more information about HopeLine from Verizon visit www.verizonwireless.com/hopeline.

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About Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless operates the nation’s largest 4G LTE network and largest, most reliable 3G network. The company serves nearly 108 million total wireless connections, including 92.2 million retail customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with nearly 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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