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SureWest Employees Expand Foundation to Aid Local Non-Profits in Kansas City Region

Posted on: Wednesday, 13 May 2009, 12:05 CDT

First Kansas City Area Foundation Grant Presented to Local Domestic Violence Shelter, SAFEHOME

ROSEVILLE, Calif., May 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Established in the company's Sacramento market since 1992, employees of leading independent communications holding company SureWest Communications (Nasdaq: SURW) today launched the expansion of the SureWest Foundation into the company's Kansas City market with a $500 donation to SAFEHOME, a local domestic violence shelter.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050908/SFSUREWESTLOGO)

The mission of both the Kansas City and Sacramento chapters of the Foundation is to help those in need in the communities SureWest serves. The newly-formed Kansas City chapter will focus on funding regional non-profit organizations, assisting the elderly, disabled, families, children and disaster victims as well as art, culture and education programs throughout the greater Kansas City area. "At SureWest, we care about the community we serve," said John Walburn, SureWest's Kansas City Foundation vice president and customer care manager. "We live and work side-by-side with those in need in our local region. We created this Foundation to help meet the needs of those less fortunate than us and to help enhance the community around us."

"It is very exciting to be chosen as the first charity to receive funding from the SureWest Foundation in Kansas City," said Sharon Katz, SAFEHOME executive director. "We are very appreciative because we can't survive without this type of community support. These funds will go directly to the operations of our shelter for things like food, supplies and utilities." The mission of SAFEHOME is to break the cycle of domestic violence and partner abuse for victims and their children by providing shelter, advocacy, counseling and prevention education in the community. At SAFEHOME, clients gain inner strength, build self-esteem and establish a life free of violence.

Without the generosity of SureWest employees, the Foundation could not exist. Funding for the Foundation is raised primarily through employee pledges via one-time contributions or recurring payroll deductions. These voluntary contributions come from current and former employees, retirees and friends of SureWest. The management and the executive board of SureWest wholly support the Foundation by matching dollar-for-dollar all employee contributions and by absorbing all administrative costs, so that 100 percent of all contributions made to the Foundation go directly to the organizations in need.

Kansas City-based SureWest employees are following the model of the company's successful Sacramento Foundation, which was established in 1992 and now contributes approximately $300,000 to regional non-profits each year. The wisdom and experience gained over the 17-year history of the Sacramento chapter will help the Kansas City Foundation hit the ground running. Despite the troubled economy, the Sacramento-based Foundation has experienced a 22% increase in total employee donations over 2008. This highlights the unshakeable charitable spirit of SureWest employees, who continue to dig deeper to help their community and neighbors in need.

"Strong community involvement has long been a commitment of SureWest," said SureWest's President and Chief Executive Officer Steve Oldham. "By means of the Foundation, we are able to give back to the communities where we and our customers live, work and play."

Local non-profit agencies are invited to submit funding requests to the SureWest Foundation. Funding guidelines can be found at www.surewestfoundation.org. The SureWest Foundation is duly recognized by the Internal Revenue Service, and by law, can only assist agencies that meet the Internal Revenue Code 501(c)(3).

About SureWest

SureWest Communications (www.surewest.com) is one of the nation's leading integrated communications providers and is the bandwidth leader in the markets it serves. Headquartered in Northern California for 95 years, the company expanded into the Kansas City region in February 2008 with the acquisition of Everest Broadband, Inc. and offers bundled residential and commercial services that include IP-based digital and high-definition television, high-speed Internet, Voice over IP, and local and long distance telephone. SureWest was the nation's first provider to launch residential HDTV over an IP network and offers one of the nation's fastest symmetrical Internet services with speeds of up to 50 Mbps in each direction on its fiber-to-the-home network.

About SAFEHOME

Since its incorporation as a not-for-profit agency in 1980, SAFEHOME has grown from a network of "safe homes" in the community to a 45-bed shelter and comprehensive service provider for victims of domestic violence. In 2008, SAFEHOME assisted over 6,500 survivors of domestic violence. Recently, SAFEHOME was honored for their work with the Outstanding Victim Service Organization of the Year for the state of Kansas.

Corporate Communications Contacts: Ron Rogers 916-746-3123 r.rogers@surewest.com Anne Chacon 916-786-1235 a.chacon@surewest.com

SOURCE SureWest Communications

Source: PR Newswire

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