Verizon Foundation President Patrick Gaston is Named Corporate Foundation Leader of the Year by CR Magazine

BASKING RIDGE, N.J., Nov. 4, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Verizon Foundation President Patrick Gaston has received CR Magazine's 2010 Responsible CEO of the Year Award in the Corporate Foundation category.

Gaston received the award Wednesday night (Nov. 3) at the CRO Summit at the Union League Club of Chicago.

The winners were selected by the editorial committee of CR magazine, publishers of the 100 Best Corporate Citizens List, based on four main criteria: organizational leadership in the corporate foundation category, personal level of reputational risk in leading the corporate responsibility charge, an organization's confirmed progress toward stated goals, and the leader's impact on the attainment of organizational goals.

In an article listing the nominees, CR magazine highlighted Verizon's Thinkfinity program. Verizon Thinkfinity (www.thinkfinity.org) contains thousands of free, engaging educational resources including K-12 lesson plans, educational videos and games. In addition, Verizon Thinkfinity also offers a comprehensive professional-development program that enables teachers to sign up for free online training to learn how to make the most of Verizon Thinkfinity tools.

"It's fitting that the foundation leader from one of the world's largest mobile phone companies is a pioneer in digital-age education," CR magazine wrote.

In addition to its work in education, Verizon embraces a comprehensive approach to corporate responsibility and employee volunteerism, and is committed to using its technology to find creative solutions for key social issues such as education, domestic violence and Internet safety.

Through Verizon's HopeLine® program, more than 7 million phones have been collected and recycled or refurbished to support domestic violence survivors, generating $8 million that has been given to local agencies since 2001. For more information about HopeLine from Verizon, go to www.verizonwireless.com/hopeline.

Last year, Verizon employees volunteered more than 700,000 hours to nonprofit organizations. The Verizon Foundation supports employee volunteerism by awarding a $750 grant to a nonprofit organization when a Verizon employee volunteers 50 hours or more to the organization during the year.

Verizon has been named to CR Magazine's 100 Best Corporate Citizens lists for three years in row.  In 2010, Verizon was ranked No. 27, up from No. 32 in 2009.  

Verizon embraces a comprehensive approach to corporate responsibility and is committed to using its technology to find creative solutions for key social issues such as education, domestic violence and Internet safety.

"Since 2008, the CR Magazine Responsible CEO of the Year Awards have set the standard for leaders who are both setting the tone at the top and taking personal reputational risks to better serve stakeholders," said Jay Whitehead, CR Magazine publisher and founder. "Patrick Gaston represents the best of responsible corporate leadership in the corporate foundation category as determined by the editorial team at CR Magazine."

The Verizon Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Verizon Communications, supports the advancement of literacy and K-12 education through its free educational website, Verizon Thinkfinity (www.thinkfinity.org), and fosters awareness and prevention of domestic violence.  In 2009, the Verizon Foundation awarded $67.9 million in grants to nonprofit agencies in the U.S. and abroad.  It also matched the charitable donations of Verizon employees and retirees, resulting in $26.1 million in combined contributions to nonprofits.  Through Verizon Volunteers, one of the nation's largest employee volunteer programs, Verizon employees and retirees have volunteered more than 5 million hours of community service since 2000. For more information on the foundation, visit www.verizonfoundation.org.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ), headquartered in New York, is a global leader in delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications services to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers.  Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, serving more than 93 million customers nationwide.  Verizon also provides converged communications, information and entertainment services over America's most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers innovative, seamless business solutions to customers around the world.  A Dow 30 company, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of more than 195,000 and last year generated consolidated revenues of more than $107 billion.  For more information, visit www.verizon.com.

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SOURCE Verizon