1.7 Million Minutes Of Hope Given By Verizon Wireless To Domestic Violence Victims In Washington

BELLEVUE, WA — Verizon Wireless’ HopeLine® program puts the nation’s most reliable wireless network to work by turning unused wireless phones into support for victims of domestic violence. This year, the company expects to put nearly 600 wireless phones in the hands of Washington domestic violence agencies for use with their clients, giving them more than one million minutes of service they can use to communicate with family, friends, shelter support staff and employers as they rebuild their lives. Nationwide, Verizon Wireless expects to donate more than 22,000 wireless phones with more than 66 million minutes of airtime.

In 2008, Verizon Wireless donated wireless phones with prepaid service to several Washington based non-profit agencies including:

• Bellevue— Eastside Domestic Violence Program (EDVP)
• Bellingham— Domestic Violence Sexual Assault Services of Whatcom County
• Bellingham— Opportunity Council
• Bellingham— Womenscare Shelter
• Covington— Jennifer Beach Foundation
• Kennewick— Domestic Violence Services of Benton & Franklin Counties
• Pullman— Alternatives to Violence of the Palouse
• Seattle— King County Coalition
• Seattle— Victim Support Team Seattle Police Department
• Seattle— University of Washington Police Department
• Tacoma— Crystal Mason Community Center

Since 2001, HopeLine’s national phone recycling and reuse program has collected more than 5.3 million phones, and awarded more than $5.6 million in cash grants to domestic violence agencies and organizations throughout the country. By the end of this year, HopeLine will have donated more than 80,000 HopeLine phones with 240 million minutes of airtime to victims, survivors, and domestic violence organizations. In Washington State in 2007 31,541 phones were collected with 11 grants awarded worth $86,000 and the same year in Oregon 15,048 phones were collected with 11 grants awarded worth $49,000.

HopeLine wireless phone donations are accepted at all Verizon Wireless Communications Stores in Washington and across the nation. Verizon Wireless encourages everyone who plans to give a phone to HopeLine to make sure service on that device is discontinued and to erase any personal data on the phone. Phones given to the HopeLine program are refurbished and resold for reuse, or disposed of in an environmentally-sound manner.

For more information on Verizon Wireless’ HopeLine program, visit www.verizonwireless.com/hopeline.

About Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless operates the nation’s most reliable wireless voice and data network, serving 68.7 million customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with 70,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) and Vodafone (NYSE and LSE: VOD). For more information, go to: 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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