Cell Phones for Soldiers to Turn Donated Phones Into 18 Million Calling Card Minutes for U.S. Troops
OAKS, Pa., June 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Comcast Cable's Eastern Division announced a partnership with Cell Phones for Soldiers to make it easier for service members overseas to call home without calling collect. Comcast has collected nearly 300 older cell phones from employees throughout its Eastern Division, and has committed to donating up to 1,200 within the first year of the partnership. The phones will be sent to ReCellular, which pays Cell Phones for Soldiers for each donated phone -- enough to provide an hour of talk time in pre-paid calling cards to soldiers abroad.
The Cell Phones for Soldiers program works to turn old cell phones into more than 18 million minutes of prepaid calling cards for U.S. troops stationed overseas. To do so, Cell Phones for Soldiers expects to collect 25,000 cell phones each month through a network of more than 10,000 collection sites across the country.
"Comcast is pleased to help provide opportunities for service members overseas to stay connected with their friends and families during special occasions like Father's Day and throughout the year," said Michael Doyle, president of Comcast Cable's Eastern Division and founder of CN8, The Comcast Network. "Comcast employs hundreds of veterans and service members throughout its footprint, and we are pleased to add this to our growing roster of public service programs and initiatives to support troop members and their families." Cell Phones for Soldiers was founded by teenagers Robbie and Brittany Bergquist from Norwell, Mass., with $21 of their own money. Since then, the registered 501c3 non-profit organization has raised almost $2 million in donations and distributed more than 500,000 prepaid calling cards to soldiers serving overseas.
"Cell Phones for Soldiers started as a small way to show our family's appreciation for the men and women who have sacrificed the day-to-day contact with their own families to serve in the U.S. armed forces," said the teens' father, Bob Bergquist. "Over the past few years, we have been overwhelmed by the generosity of others -- but as more troops continue to serve overseas and for longer assignments, there is a continuing and growing need to expand our efforts." Through increased fundraising efforts, the Bergquist family hopes to raise more than $9 million in the next five years to fund new programs, such as providing video phones and prepaid service to allow soldiers abroad to see and speak with their families on a regular basis.
"Americans will replace an estimated 130 million cell phones this year," said Mike Newman, vice president of ReCellular. "The majority of these phones either discarded or stuffed in a drawer -- most people don't realize that the small sacrifice of donating their unwanted phones can have a tremendous benefit for a worthy cause like Cell Phones for Soldiers." Approximately half of the phones ReCellular processes are reconditioned and resold to wholesale companies in more than 40 countries around the world. Phones and components that cannot be refurbished are dismantled and recycled to reclaim materials. This year alone, ReCellular expects to recycle one million pounds of scrap phones and accessories, and it works with recycling partners to reclaim materials from virtually every component donated, including: -- Gold, silver and platinum from circuit boards
-- Copper wiring from phone chargers
-- Nickel, iron, cadmium and lead from battery packs
-- Plastic from phone cases and accessories
-- Paper and cardboard from shipping materials used for donations
ReCellular has supported more than 2,000 national and local charities since pioneering its Charity Cell Phone Donation Program. In 2007 ReCellular raised $8 million for charities such as Cell Phones for Soldiers.
"One of the founding principles of ReCellular is to build a successful business that is both socially and environmentally responsible," added Newman. "It is a great honor and privilege to support such a worthy and inspiring effort as the Bergquists' Cell Phones for Soldiers, and we are delighted to see companies like Comcast joining in the campaign." Partnering with Cell Phones for Soldiers is just one of the many ways Comcast shows its support for America's troops. From signature "Get Local" programs like Troop Greetings ON DEMAND, a service that allows military personnel stationed overseas to send special holiday greetings to their loved ones back home, to military-focused investments, volunteerism and programming, Comcast helps connect service members and their families to what matters most in their lives. Most recently, Comcast's Eastern Division made military service graduations from the Air Force, Naval Academy and West Point available to its Digital Cable subscribers through its Local Video ON DEMAND service, allowing customers to watch at their own convenience from home, with the ability to pause, fast-forward and rewind.
Visit http://www.cellphonesforsoldiers.com/ for more information, including a list of donation and collection sites across the country.
About Comcast Headquartered in Philadelphia, Comcast Cable is a division of Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSANASDAQ:CMCSK) (http://www.comcast.com/), the nation's leading provider of entertainment, information and communications products and services. With 24.7 million cable customers, 14.1 million high-speed Internet customers and 5.2 million voice customers, Comcast is principally involved in the development, management and operation of broadband cable systems and in the delivery of programming content.
Comcast's Eastern Division serves almost 5.4 million customers along the New York to DC corridor, including New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Washington, DC, Virginia and North Carolina. The Eastern Division also founded and manages CN8, The Comcast Network, one of the nation's largest and most honored regional 24-hour diversified television networks, seen by more than nine million homes on the East Coast. The Eastern Division employs approximately 18,000 people and is based in Oaks, Pennsylvania.
About Cell Phones for Soldiers Cell Phones for Soldiers was created by Brittany & Robbie Bergquist of Norwell MA. After reading a story about a soldier who ran up a huge phone bill calling home from Iraq, these two teenagers decided to help out. They started by opening an account with $21.00 of their own money. They are collecting cash donations and old cell phones. The cell phones are recycled for cash and the proceeds are used to buy prepaid calling cards for our soldiers serving in the Middle East. Cell Phones For Soldiers is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Their efforts have motivated people and businesses around the country to donate to this worthy cause. Their goal is to provide every US soldier with a way to call home for free. For more information, please visit http://www.cellphonesforsoldiers.com/ About ReCellular Inc.
With offices in the United States, Hong Kong, and Brazil, ReCellular Inc. is the world's foremost collector, reseller and recycler of used wireless phones and accessories. We provide solutions for the collection, reuse and recycling of used personal electronics that generate financial return for our partners, quality products for our customers, funding for charity organizations, and protection of the environment. Corporate and wholesale information is available at http://www.recellular.com/. Consumer information, including the Cell Phone Data Eraser(TM) tool and charity fundraising information, is available at http://www.wirelessrecycling.com/. DATASOURCE: Comcast CONTACT: Jaye Linnen of Comcast, +1-301-625-3512, ; or Bob Bergquist of Cell Phones for Soldiers, +1-781-588-2608, ; or Monte Doran of ReCellular, +1-248-644-0800, ext. 255, Web site: http://www.comcast.com/ http://www.cellphonesforsoldiers.com/ http://www.recellular.com/ http://www.wirelessrecycling.com/
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