Throughout Domestic Violence Awareness Month, Joe’s Crab Shack in Fort Myers, Florida supported the HopeLine program by offering free appetizers to all patrons who donated no-longer-used mobile phones. In addition to collecting more than 600 phones, chargers and accessories, the restaurant held fundraising events to benefit local domestic violence shelters and organizations. In recognition of these tremendous efforts, Verizon Wireless made a $1,500 to Abuse Counseling and Treatment, Inc. in Fort Myers on behalf of Joe’s Crab Shack.

Home to 325th Fighter Wing Headquarters, 1st Air Force, 53rd Weapons Evaluation Group and the 601st Air Operations Center, Tyndall Air Force Base was also home to a month-long HopeLine phone drive this October. In an effort to support domestic violence awareness across the military base, The Tyndall Family Advocacy Program collected roughly 100 phones, chargers and accessories.

Michelle Lasater, family advocacy program outreach manager at Tyndall, looks on as 1st Sgt. Scott Spraberry contributes to the drive.

For the second consecutive year, the employees of Tampa’s Bank of America Plaza hosted a HopeLine phone drive throughout Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Through ongoing support and promotion of the drive, employees in downtown Tampa’s tallest building donated nearly 200 phones, chargers and accessories.

Mary Anne Quigley of CBRE, Inc. contributes a donation to Bank of America Plaza’s collection

For a decade, WTHR’s Community Affairs Director, Angela Cain has been devoted to raising awareness on domestic violence. Thanks in part to her efforts to inform the public on the issue, Indiana residents donated 18,478 no-longer-used devices to HopeLine in 2011. These donated phones will be put to work in the community, providing cash grants and refurbished phones to local organizations serving victims and survivors of domestic violence. In recognition of her commitment to the cause, Angela was the first-ever non-law enforcement recipient of the HopeLine Champion Award. To honor her dedication, Verizon also made a $1,000 donation to the Domestic Violence Network in Indianapolis in her name.
Pictured from left to right: WTHR-TV News Director Keith Connors, Verizon Wireless Sales Director Patrick J. Lewis, WTHR-TV Community Affairs Director Angela Cain, Domestic Violence Network Executive Director Julie Marsh

When Jackie Crane was shot and killed by her ex-boyfriend, her family chose to honor the memory of the mother of three by giving hope to other victims of domestic violence. On her birthday, July 6, her family set up HopeLine collection boxes in four counties around Fort Mill, S.C. In just one month, the family collected 345 phones, 167 chargers, 29 batteries and 57 accessories to be turned into support for victims of domestic violence. "We want women to be able to go to someone," said Laquinda Green, Jackie’s cousin, "Someone is out there someone is listening -- just call." The family plans to continue to help victims of domestic violence and will make the phone drive an annual event.

Citi employees donated more than 2,500 no-longer-used wireless devices to HopeLine in 2011 through the company’s “Wireless Drop-Off” program. The donated devices were put to work in the community through a $10,000 grant to the National Domestic Violence Hotline (NDVH).  Since Citi began the “Wireless Drop Off” program six years ago, they have recycled more than 15,000 devices in an environmentally responsible way and donated more than $76,000 to nonprofit organizations working to end domestic violence.
Pictured from left to right: Cameka Crawford, Verizon; Hillary Gal, Managing Director - Citi; Eleonora Menaker - Citi; Irene Blake, Citi U.S. Wireless Coordinator; Gregory Carbonella, Citi Green Team; Lina Montoya, Cit; and Sheila Marlow, National Domestic Violence Hotline

Verizon Wireless partnered with the Oklahoma Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (OCADVSA) and the Oklahoma City YWCA to raise awareness of Verizon Wireless' commitment to domestic violence advocacy efforts. As one of Verizon's biggest community efforts, 40 Hopeline boxes were placed across the entire state of Oklahoma during Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October 2011. In addition to these Hopeline drives, Verizon's South Central Region president and Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin participated in a statewide public service announcement to help raise awareness of combatting domestic violence in Oklahoma.

Parishioner Lillian O’Donnell of the Immaculate Conception church of Malden has collected more than 2,000 no-longer-used cell phones to donate to HopeLine from Verizon in the past ten years. HopeLine recycles used cell phones, batteries and accessories in any condition and uses the funds generated to donate phones, airtime and funding to domestic violence agencies throughout the United States. O’Donnell accepts phone donations at the parish year-round with a dedicated push for contributions during the Lent season.

Pictured here (left to right) are Mike Murphy, public relations manager for Verizon Wireless New England and O’Donnell

HopeLine found itself in good hands recently, as the insurance company agreed to host a statewide phone drive. Through the support of its Helping Hands Committee, Allstate is continuing ongoing drives in its regional office, roadside service center and claims offices that support the entire state of Florida. More than 200 phones, chargers and accessories have already been collected in the first few months of these drives, which are set to run at least through 2012.

Pictured (left to right) – Cathy Mayo, senior communication consultant, Jeff Moore, senior recruiting consultant, Denise Bryant, human resources consultant.

In April of 2011, Datz employee Melissa Morrison was killed in a domestic dispute. In October of 2011, Verizon Wireless partnered with the restaurant to host a HopeLine drive in her honor during Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Employees, patrons and even members of Melissa’s family donated more than 300 phones in under a month’s time. In recognition of Datz’s efforts, Verizon Wireless made a $1,500 donation in Melissa’s name to The Spring of Tampa Bay, a local domestic violence shelter in Tampa. “We’re very proud to do this in her honor,” said Suzanne Perry, co-owner of Datz. “We want to make sure this doesn’t happen to someone else.”

Pictured (left to right) –Suzanne Perry, co-owner of Datz, Chuck Hamby, Florida region public relations manager.

In Atlanta, the Metro-Atlanta chapters of AKA joined with Atlanta City Council member Aaron Watson and Verizon Wireless to celebrate the sorority’s legacy of stewardship with a month-long HopeLine phone collection drive. Twenty-one AKA chapters as well as members of Atlanta City Council participated in the HopeLine service project, collecting nearly 300 devices. As part of the celebration, AKA recognize Partnership Against Domestic Violence (PADV) with its first AKA Metropolitan Atlanta Founders’ Day (MAFD) Community Service Award. The award, which was created to recognize an organization whose mission aligns with the program initiatives of AKA, was accompanied with a $1,000 donation that Verizon Wireless matched.

Pictured: Susan Landrum, development director of PADV thanks Metro-Atlanta chapters of AKA as she accepts the sorority’s South Atlantic Region’s first AKA Metropolitan Atlanta Founders’ Day (MAFD) Community Service Award.

Verizon Wireless collected 75 phones for its HopeLine program and spread awareness of domestic violence issues on campuses across Alabama in October during a week-long HopeLine grant competition. Throughout “#HOPEWEEK,” Alpha Chi Omega and Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority chapters at eight college campuses across the state were encouraged to hold events that centered on domestic violence awareness, collect signatures of people who pledged to support domestic violence awareness and collect phones for HopeLine. The chapters collected a collected a combined 75 phones and accessories with one of the winning chapters, Auburn University’s Alpha Chi Omega sorority, collecting 45 devices. The Auburn Alpha Chi chapter won a $2,500 grant for the Domestic Violence Intervention Center in Opelika, and the AKA sorority chapter at Samford University also won a grant for Safehouse of Shelby County at the conclusion of the competition.

The Rotary Club of Little Rock, the world’s 8th largest Rotary organization, boasts more than 450 members. A Verizon Wireless representative made a podium presentation at the club meeting about HopeLine and encouraged club members to bring their unused phones and accessories to the regular meeting in the weeks leading up to Verizon’s appearance in November.  More than 100 phones and dozens of accessories were collected as a result of the initiative and punctuate that phones are accepted year-round at Verizon retail centers.

Pictured from left to right: Karen Fetzer, The Rotary Club of Little Rock, Executive Director, and Sharon Tallach Vogelpohl, HopeLine Drive Project Chair

Boy Scout Troop 616, known as the Scorpion Patrol, hosted a HopeLine phone drive to benefit victims of domestic violence, while helping the environment. They worked to publicize the event, and the project ended up being a great success! The troop, with the help of their parents, collected 137 phones and 60 individual accessories through the drive, visiting local community centers such as Wal-Mart, the Calhoun United Methodist Church, and Mayfields. Verizon congratulates Troop 616 on their efforts!

Pictured from left to right: The Scorpion Patrol: Assistant Patrol Leader Jaxon Dixon, Tristan Sneed, Aaron Healey, Patrol Leader Jacob Suits and D.J. Dorman

Verizon Wireless donated more than 700 non-perishable food items and a $5,000 HopeLine from Verizon grant to the Sojourner House Domestic Violence Program. The grant, along with the food donation, helps to support Sojourner’s mission of providing a comprehensive program of crisis intervention, education, advocacy and shelter for victims of domestic violence in Mahoning County, Ohio. Joseph Caruso, executive director of Burdman Group’s Sojournor House, said: “These funds will go a long way to aid women and children fleeing domestic violence in Mahoning County.”

Pictured left to right: John O’Donnell, Heather Foky and Lee Anne Davison of Verizon Wireless; Constance Collins, Malinda Gavins, Audrey Walker and Eileen Larson of the Sojourner House Domestic Violence Program

To reduce their ecological and carbon footprint, Crown Sterling Properties took the initiative on Earth Day and held an E-Waste Recycle Drive at their Princeton location in Dallas, Texas. More than 200 people participated in the April 22, 2010 celebration – together they were able to recycle 2,600 pounds of e-waste, including no-longer-used wireless devices that will be donated to HopeLine®. “After researching recycling options for my first Earth Day, I found information about HopeLine online,” said Almira Tinkel, property manager of Crown Sterling Properties. “I have a behavioral health background and have worked with domestic violence victims in the past, so I felt compelled to host this opportunity at my building as a way to help both the environment and domestic violence survivors.”
Pictured (left to right): Almira Tinkel and Kelley Cain

When Rutgers University’s Facilities Department upgraded to the Verizon Wireless network they turned 300 no-longer-used devices from another wireless provider into support for survivors of domestic violence. The phones were donated to UHopeLine, an extension of the HopeLine® from Verizon cell phone recycling program, which places permanent collection points on college campuses. To commemorate Rutgers University’s participation, Verizon Wireless presented a $5,000 grant to the Rutgers Department of Sexual Assault Services and Crime Victim Assistance to help fund activities that raise awareness of dating violence and provide aid to domestic violence survivors on campus and in the student community.

Pictured (left to right) – Ruth Anne Koenick, director, Rutgers Department of Sexual Assault Services and Crime Victim Assistance; Bruce Silverberg, Verizon Wireless; Rona Lehtonen, senior administrative assistant, Rutgers Facilities Department; and Rachel Schwartz, UhopeLine program coordinator, Center on Violence Against Women and Children, Rutgers University School of Social Work

Dr. Carolyn G. Williams, Bronx Community College (BCC) president, David Samberg of Verizon Wireless and Ruth Villalonga of the Mayor’s Office to Combat Domestic Violence, teamed up this week to launch UHopeLine, an extension of the company’s exclusive HopeLine® wireless phone recycling program which places permanent collection points on college campuses. UHopeLine is designed to increase awareness of dating violence and encourage college students to help the environment by recycling no-longer-used wireless devices. In recognition of BCC’s participation, Verizon Wireless made a $1,000 donation to student programs aimed at combating relationship abuse. Championed by the Mayor’s Office to Combat Domestic Violence, the City University of New York is the first university in New York State to host UHopeLine. The BCC collection point is one of eight UHopeLine bins placed at key locations on CUNY campuses throughout the City.

Pictured (left to right): Dr. Carolyn G. Williams, David Samberg and Ruth Villalonga

Dr. Antonio Perez, Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC) president, and Deborah Parker, director of BMCC’s Women’s Resource Center, were joined by Daniel Nieves of Verizon Wireless to launch UHopeLine, an extension of the company’s exclusive HopeLine® wireless phone recycling program which places permanent collection points on college campuses. UHopeLine is designed to increase awareness of dating violence and encourage college students to help the environment by recycling no-longer-used wireless devices. In recognition of BMCC’s participation, Verizon Wireless made a $1,000 donation to the campus Women’s Resource Center. Championed by the Mayor’s Office to Combat Domestic Violence, the City University of New York is the first university in New York State and only the second in the country, to host UHopeLine. The BMCC collection point is one of eight UHopeLine bins placed at key locations on CUNY campuses throughout the City.

Pictured (left to right): Dr. Antonio Perez, Deborah Parker, and Daniel Nieves

Boy Scout Joe Granata from Cranston Troop 66 Garden City collected more than 150 cell phones to donate to HopeLine for his Eagle Scout project. He went door-to-door to collect phones and placed collection boxes at local businesses and at Brown University. Joe's Eagle Scout project was the first of its kind in the New England region. In recognition of Joe's efforts, Verizon Wireless gave a $1,000 grant to the Rhode Island Coalition against Domestic Violence (RICADV).

Pictured (left to right): Joe Granata, Eagle Scout candidate; Michael Murphy, New England public relations manager, Verizon Wireless; Deborah DeBare, executive director, RICADV. Photo credit: Warwick Beacon newspaper.

Hoping to “team up to call a timeout on Domestic Violence,” the Miami HEAT introduced the HopeLine phone drive during its 2008-2009 season. Throughout the season, HEAT employees collected 120 cell phones and more than 200 cell phone accessories. After the HEAT publicly announced its initiative, the community donated an additional 135 phones, 72 phone chargers and 45 phone cases, showing how a good partnership can make an incredible difference.

Employees from Go Wireless, a premium retailer for Verizon Wireless, led a special Earth Day HopeLine phone recycling drive in the Southwest region from April 22-26, 2009. At the second annual “Go Green with Go Wireless” event, Go Wireless employees collected more than 200 phones and accessories at six Go Wireless stores in Albuquerque, El Paso, Las Vegas, Phoenix and Tucson to benefit HopeLine from Verizon.

Pictured (left to right): Parker Creson, representative, Indirect Distribution, Verizon Wireless; Tyler Hall, wireless consultant, Go Wireless; Jacob White, sales professional, Go Wireless; Jose Rodriguez, manager, Go Wireless; James Silva, account manager, Verizon Wireless; Seth Huggins, district manager, Verizon Wireless; Jim Silva, district manager, Go Wireless; Zach Ray, manager, Go Wireless.

"So many of us have cell phones, and when we get a new one we don’t know what to do with the one we’re no longer using. HopeLine provided us with a project that was fairly easy to implement and benefited both the environment and those in need. And our students learned that, by working together, we have the power to make a difference is people's lives."
— Lynn Schweighardt, coordinator of The Youth Power Club at the Hoover Elementary School

Volunteers from the Nebraska-Iowa District of Kiwanis International played a key role in the success of a HopeLine phone drive by assisting with the collection of 1,210 wireless phones from designated drop-off locations throughout Lincoln and Lancaster County. Verizon Wireless pledged a $5 donation for each handset collected to benefit the Friendship Home, a 24-hour emergency shelter for battered women and their children in Lincoln. The phone drive raised a total of $6,050 that the Friendship Home will use for children’s services and advocacy.

Jasmine Bellamy, president of the Westchester County, N.Y., chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the nation’s oldest African-American service sorority, met with fellow sorority member Eileen Lambert, Verizon Wireless associate director of human resources, to present some of the nearly 600 no-longer-used wireless phones collected at the sorority’s regional conference in New York City.

After researching various phone recycling programs for his company to participate in, Ceasar S. Cruz knew that the HopeLine Program, which aids survivors of domestic violence, was where their no longer used phones must go. Domestic violence awareness is a cause very dear to Ceasar’s heart. Having experienced his own loved ones suffering from the scars of abuse, he felt empowered to help other survivors that need assistance. “The people in our office who have donated, love the cause,” said Cruz. “I don't know what personal reasons, if any, others may feel toward it, they feel like they're helping out.”

Verizon Wireless both supported and was honored at the Hearts With Hope Gala, the annual fundraising event of Partnership Against Domestic Violence (PADV). The event raised over $580,000 for women and children affected by domestic violence in the Atlanta area. For nearly a decade, Verizon Wireless has supported PADV by organizing clothing and toiletry collections for its shelter, sponsoring and participating in the Heats With Hope Gala and the annual When Domestic Violence Goes to Work business conference and donating 10 percent of the proceeds from its Books Are Fun sales, to name a few.

Pictured (left to right): Julie Smith, External Affairs, Verizon; Cathy Spraetz, Partnership Against Domestic Violence, president and CEO; Jim McGean, president, Verizon Wireless-South Area; Caran Smith, Public Relations, Verizon Wireless – Georgia/Alabama regiona, Jeff Mango, region president, Verizon Wireless – Georgia/Alabama