Just in Time for the Holidays, More than Three Dozen New Jersey Nonprofit Organization Reap $325,000
NEWARK, N.J. - A dollar a month may not seem like much, but it can go a long way to improving literacy skills in local communities while also giving people the opportunity to succeed.
Thanks to the generosity of Verizon customers who participated in the company's Check Into Literacy program, 39 nonprofit organizations throughout New Jersey are receiving $325,000 in grants to support their literacy programs.
The Check Into Literacy initiative allows Verizon landline phone customers to check a box on their monthly bills to make a $1-a-month, tax-deductible donation to support literacy.
"This is a classic case of a little bit going a long way to address a significant challenge for our society," said Dennis Bone, president of Verizon New Jersey. "Verizon customers who participated in the program have shown how much they care about the people in our communities, and we applaud them for it."
Grants have been awarded to the following organizations:
- American Labor Museum, Haledon
- Bergen County Community Action Partnership
- Benards Township Education Foundation
- Bethel Development Corporation, Millville
- Better Beginnings Day Care Center of East Windsor/Hightstown
- Boys and Girls Club of Atlantic City
- Boys and Girls Club of Paterson and Passaic
- Boys and Girls Club of Vineland
- Business and Education Together Foundation, Morristown
- Celebrate New Jersey, Freehold
- Cranford Public Schools
- First Baptist Community Development Corp., Somerset
- Gorgeous Girls and Gifted Guys Book Club, Teaneck
- HCCC Foundation, Jersey City
- Isles, Trenton
- Jewish Community Partnership, Camden
- Literacy Volunteers of New Jersey, Bridgewater
- Morristown Neighborhood House
- New Brunswick Tomorrow
- Princeton Public Library
- Project Plus/Project Literacy, Hackensack
- Woodbury Public Library
- Woodbury Public Schools
- YWCA Princeton
- Ladison Network, Wanamassa
- NORWESCAP, Phillipsburg
- Community YMCA, Middletown
- Ironbound Community Corporation, Newark
- United Way of Ocean County
- Family and Children's Services, Long Branch
- Lawrence Township Public Schools
- First Book Camden County
- Harmony Daycare Center Inc., Irvington
- United Way of Salem County
- Therapeutic Learning Center, Garfield Park Academy, Willingboro
- Literacy Programs of New Jersey, Middlesex
- Literacy Volunteers of Gloucester County
- Rider University
- Carteret Public Schools
About the Verizon Foundation
The Verizon Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Verizon Communications, supports the advancement of literacy and K-12 education through its signature program, Thinkfinity.org, and fosters awareness and prevention of domestic violence. In 2007, the foundation awarded more than $67.4 million in grants to nonprofit agencies in the United States and abroad. The foundation also matched the charitable donations of Verizon employees and retirees, resulting in $25.1 million in combined contributions. Through Verizon Volunteers, one of the nation's largest employee volunteer programs, Verizon employees and retirees have volunteered more than 3 million hours of community service since Verizon's inception in 2000. For more information on the foundation, visit www.verizon.com/foundation.
About Verizon
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ), headquartered in New York, is a leader in delivering broadband and other wireline and wireless communication innovations to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers. Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, serving nearly 71 million customers nationwide. Verizon's Wireline operations include Verizon Business, which delivers innovative and seamless business solutions to customers around the world, and Verizon Telecom, which brings customers the benefits of converged communications, information and entertainment services over the nation's most advanced fiber-optic network. A Dow 30 company, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of more than 228,000 and last year generated consolidated operating revenues of $93.5 billion. For more information, visit www.verizon.com.
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