More Than $229,000 Invested as Part of Verizon's Overall Commitment to Domestic Violence Prevention in Missouri in 2011

KANSAS CITY, Mo., Jan. 31, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- As 2012 begins, Verizon continues its ongoing mission to spread the message of domestic violence prevention and put resources into the hands of victims and survivors of domestic violence.  In 2011, the company invested more than $229,000 in Missouri as part of its overall commitment to domestic violence prevention and services.  In addition, Missouri residents donated more than 1,800 no-longer-used wireless phones to HopeLine® from Verizon, Verizon Wireless' phone recycling and reuse program, to support domestic violence victims and survivors and awareness programs throughout the area. 

"This year, Missourians stepped up and made a difference in the lives of domestic violence victims in our area," said Brendan Fallis, president - Kansas/Missouri region, Verizon Wireless.  "Domestic violence is a silent epidemic that affects so many, and Verizon is committed to helping domestic violence victims and survivors through our grants to non-profit agencies and our wireless phone recycling and reuse program."

Thirty-eight domestic violence organizations in Missouri are being supported through the Verizon HopeLine and Foundation grants:

• Polk County House of Hope (Bolivar)
• Women's Crisis Center of Taney County (Branson)
• Safe House for Women, Inc. (Cape Girardeau)
• Southeast Missouri Area Agency on Aging (Cape Girardeau)
• Green Hills Community Action Center (Chillicothe)
• True North (Columbia)
• Coalition Against Rape & Domestic Violence (Fulton)
• Central Missouri Area Agency on Aging (Columbia)
• Missouri Association of Area Agencies on Aging (Jefferson City)
• Missouri KidsFirst (Jefferson City)
• Lafayette House (Joplin)
• Rose Brooks Center (Kansas City)
• Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault (Kansas City)
• City of Kansas City
• Synergy Services (Kansas City)
• Legal Aid of Western Missouri (Kansas City)
• Newhouse (Kansas City)
• Kansas City Anti-Violence Project (Kansas City)
• Hope House (Kansas City)
• Domestic Violence Victim Witness Assist Program (Kansas City)
• COPE, Inc. (Lebanon)
• Lighthouse Shelter, Inc. (Marshall)
• Children's Center of SW Missouri (Monett)
• Agape House of Mountain View (Mountain View)
• Regional Family Crisis Center (Perryville)
• Haven House (Poplar Buff)
• Family Violence Center (Springfield)
• Every Step Counts (St. Louis)
• St. Martha's Hall (St. Louis)
• Legal Advocate for Abused Women (St. Louis)
• Redevelopment Opportunities for Women (St. Louis)
• Safe Connections (St. Louis)
• The Women's Safe House (St. Louis)
• Lydia's House (St. Louis)
• The Friends of Weiman (St. Louis)
• ALIVE (St. Louis)
• Christos House (West Plains)
• Place Domestic Violence Shelter (Festus)

Through HopeLine, Verizon's phone recycling program, the company collects no-longer-used wireless phones, batteries and accessories in any condition from any carrier and puts them to work in the community by turning them into support for domestic violence survivors.  Phones collected through HopeLine recycling drives are either refurbished and sold or recycled, and proceeds are donated to organizations that work against domestic violence in the form of cash grants and prepaid Verizon Wireless phones for survivors. In addition to awarding more than $14 million in cash grants to prevention and awareness nationally, HopeLine since 2001 has collected more than nine million phones nationwide and donated more than 123,000 HopeLine phones with more than 406 million minutes of airtime to domestic violence victims, survivors and organizations.  The program has also properly disposed of more than 1 million phones in an environmentally sound way and refurbished the remaining units.

Missouri residents are encouraged to donate no-longer-used phones and accessories to the HopeLine program at local Verizon Wireless Communications Stores or by downloading postage-paid mailing labels from the HopeLine website at www.verizonwireless.com/hopeline. 

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About the Verizon Foundation
The Verizon Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Verizon, uses its technology, financial resources and partnerships to address critical social issues, with a focus on education and domestic violence prevention. In 2010, the foundation awarded nearly $67 million to nonprofit agencies in the U.S. and abroad. Through Verizon Volunteers, one of the nation's largest employee volunteer programs, Verizon employees and retirees have volunteered nearly 6 million hours of community service since 2000. For more information on the foundation, visit www.verizonfoundation.org.

About Verizon
Verizon Wireless operates the nation's largest 4G LTE network and largest, most reliable 3G network. The company serves 108.7 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.

MEDIA CONTACTS:
Brenda Hill
Verizon Wireless
913.344.2922
[email protected]
@VZWbrenda

Mark Farnen
For Verizon Wireless
573.424.1782
[email protected]
@marksbarks

SOURCE Verizon Wireless