Verizon Presents $36,000 to Literacy Organizations at Phillies Baseball Game

PHILADELPHIA - To highlight the importance of literacy, Verizon Foundation awarded $36,000 to three Pennsylvania literacy organizations at a ceremony at Veterans Stadium last night before the start of the Philadelphia Phillies-New York Mets baseball game. As part of the ceremony, Verizon spokesperson James Earl Jones read the national anthem.

Jill Wagner, vice president of consumer marketing for Verizon, presented a check for $36,000 to Dean Phillips, a board member of the Philadelphia Young Playwrights program, on behalf of three Pennsylvania literacy organizations -- Tutors of Literacy in the Commonwealth (TLC), Clarion County Literacy Council and Alle-Kiski Learning Center.

Verizon is committed to being America's literacy champion. The company's signature philanthropic program, Verizon Reads, works to increase community and corporate awareness of the insidious effects of low literacy on individuals and communities. Verizon raises funds, encourages collaboration among literacy providers, and promotes employee volunteerism in support of literacy programs around the country. Visit www.verizonreads.net to learn more about Verizon's commitment to literacy.

Philadelphia Young Playwrights is an intensive, arts-education program that pairs a professional teaching artist with a classroom teacher. TLC is a statewide organization of adult literacy educational providers. Clarion County Literacy Council provides literacy tutoring and resources for non-or poor-reading adults. Alle-Kiski Learning Center offers free literacy classes to adults 17 and older in the Allegheny-Kiski Valley area.

Verizon Foundation last year awarded 22,000 grants totaling more than $70 million to nonprofit agencies that focus on improving basic and computer literacy, enriching communities through technology, and creating a skilled work force. The foundation uses its resources in the United States and abroad to develop partnerships in technology and connect them with organizations serving the needs of diverse communities, people with disabilities, victims of domestic violence and the economically and socially disadvantaged. The foundation also supports Verizon Volunteers, an incentive program that last year encouraged Verizon employees to volunteer more than 500,000 hours in their communities and provided $27.8 million in matching gifts to nonprofit organizations. For more information on the foundation, visit www.verizon.com/foundation.

A Fortune 10 company, Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) is one of the world's leading providers of communications services. Verizon companies are the largest providers of wireline and wireless communications in the United States, with 136.6 million access line equivalents and 33.3 million Verizon Wireless customers. Verizon is the third-largest long-distance carrier for U.S. consumers, with 13.2 million long-distance lines, and the company is also the largest directory publisher in the world, as measured by directory titles and circulation. With approximately $67 billion in annual revenues and 227,000 employees, Verizon's global presence extends to the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Pacific. For more information on Verizon, visit www.verizon.com.

Team mascot Phillie Phanatic helps Jill Wagner and James Earl Jones present
a $36,000 check from Verizon to Dean Phillips in a ceremony last night at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. Phillips accepted the check on behalf of three Pennsylvania literacy organizations.

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