Festival of Children Foundation and Verizon Wireless Answer Call for Help

COSTA MESA, Calif., Sept. 17 /PRNewswire/ — Verizon Wireless will help support women in need when the company brings its HopeLine(R) phone recycling program to South Coast Plaza during the month-long Festival of Children(R) celebration which began September 4th.

Consumers are asked to drop off their no-longer-used cell phones and accessories in HopeLine collection boxes located at Carousel Court, Jewel Court, and inside the Beachworks store at South Coast Plaza through September 27th.

For every phone recycled in the HopeLine collection boxes, Verizon Wireless will donate $10 to the Festival of Children Foundation to benefit children’s charities — especially those helping victims of domestic violence. All Festival visitors will receive a special coupon worth $20 off the cost of any Verizon Wireless phone.

HopeLine is exclusive to Verizon Wireless. The long-running HopeLine program collects no-longer-used wireless phones and equipment in any condition from any service provider. The used phones are either refurbished or recycled. With the funds raised from the sale of the refurbished phones, Verizon Wireless donates wireless phones and airtime to victims, and provides funding and other contributions to non-profit domestic violence shelters and prevention programs across the country.

Since the HopeLine program’s launch in 2001, Verizon Wireless has collected more than 5.6 million phones and donated more than $6.3 million in cash grants to organizations promoting awareness and prevention of domestic violence. In 2008, HopeLine extended grants of more than $215,000 to fund programs for 20 Southern California domestic violence prevention agencies.

In California alone on one single day in 2008, over 2,000 domestic violence victims found refuge in emergency shelters or transitional housing provided by local programs, and 1,860 adults and children received non-residential assistance and services according to the National Census of Domestic Violence Services.(1)

The Festival of Children Foundation and Verizon Wireless are proud celebrants of September as National Child Awareness Month recognizing charitable efforts on behalf of children and youth as a critical contribution to the future of the nation.

“During National Child Awareness Month we want to encourage greater public involvement and support for the charities that serve children and families,” said Sandy Segerstrom Daniels, Founder & Executive Director of Festival of Children Foundation. “HopeLine is an innovative program that provides a very practical way for people to help. Not everyone has extra time or money to donate, but many people have a spare cell phone that can be put to good use.”

The 8th annual Festival of Children(R) will offer over 100 free family activities and events, including: live music and dance performances, celebrity appearances, and arts and crafts, while showcasing 80 non-profit member organizations proudly serving children in the community.

The Festival of Children(R) will be headquartered near the South Coast Plaza carousel located in Carousel Court on Level One, at 3333 Bristol Street, Costa Mesa. For a calendar of events, please visit http://www.festivalofchildren.org/site/Calendar.

About HopeLine from Verizon

Verizon Wireless’ HopeLine program puts the nation’s most reliable wireless network to work in our communities by turning unused wireless phones into support for victims of domestic violence. Verizon Wireless collects no-longer-used wireless phones, batteries and accessories in any condition from any wireless service provider at Verizon Wireless Communications Stores nationwide. Phones that can be refurbished are sold for reuse and those without value are disposed of in an environmentally sound way. Proceeds from the HopeLine program are used to provide wireless phones and cash grants to local shelters and non-profit organizations that focus on domestic violence prevention and awareness.

For more information please visit www.verizonwireless.com/hopeline.

About Festival of Children Foundation

Festival of Children Foundation is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization that serves to bring together and coordinate the efforts of charities, companies and individuals who actively work to improve the lives of children. Festival of Children Foundation gives a voice, guidance and support. 100% of the administrative costs are covered by designated funding, allowing donations to go further in direct support of programs and services that improve the lives of children. For more information, please visit www.festivalofchildren.org.

(1) According to NNEDV report: Domestic Violence Counts 2008: A 24-hour census of domestic violence shelter and services across the United States. http://www.nnedv.org/resources/census/67-census-domestic-violence-counts/232-census2008.html

SOURCE Verizon Wireless