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becomes broken:
$300,000 Grant From Verizon Will Help Teenage Girls Build Self-Esteem
and Avoid Violent Relationships
PR Newswire
New Initiative by 'Peace Over Violence' Promotes Respect, Education
November 09, 2007: 05:00 PM EST
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Verizon and Verizon Wireless are
donating $300,000 over two years to launch Be Strong, a groundbreaking
initiative designed to promote self-respect among teenage girls in the
Los Angeles County area and to encourage them to develop healthy,
nonviolent relationships.
The Be Strong program, to be created and administered by Peace Over
Violence (formerly the Los Angeles Commission on Assaults Against
Women), will provide high-risk girls with opportunities for education
and leadership development. The program's goal is to help participants
avoid relationship violence - including rape, dating violence and
domestic abuse - and demonstrate respect for their peers.
"Domestic violence is a serious and growing issue facing young
people," said Verizon West Region President Tim McCallion. "They need
to learn to recognize the fundamental importance of respect for one
another and respect for themselves. We are confident that the young
women who participate in the Be Strong initiative will break the cycle
of violence and fulfill their potential."
John Palmer, regional president of Verizon Wireless, said, "The Be
Strong program will not only build resistance to relationship violence
among girls just starting to date, but also help them build an online
community for ongoing support. We're proud to support Peace Over
Violence, its board members, leaders and tireless employees, as the
agency launches a new initiative to help girls stop the cycle of
violence."
Be Strong participants will learn about ways to avoid potentially
violent situations; promote self-health; use the Internet safely;
evaluate media images and role models; and build skills for healthy
communication within relationships. The girls in the program will then
collaborate with local groups to share their knowledge with others in
their communities.
A centerpiece of the program will be an online community through which
girls can support each other. Features of the online forum will
include:
-- A discussion blackboard where registered members can post
comments and
questions for other members.
-- Facilitated chats with experts in the field of relationship
violence
and with celebrities such as Calista Flockhart, national
spokesperson
for Peace Over Violence, and Chris Gardner, whose rags-to-
riches story
inspired the film "The Pursuit of Happyness."
-- Personal blogs in which individuals can document their
experiences of
violence and thoughts about violence prevention.
The Verizon Foundation - the philanthropic arm of Verizon
Communications - and Verizon Wireless are recognized corporate leaders
in the fight against domestic violence. Verizon Wireless provides
grants through its HopeLine(R) phone recycling program, where no-
longer-needed wireless phones and accessories from any wireless
provider are collected and refurbished or recycled in an
environmentally friendly way. Proceeds from the HopeLine program
benefit domestic violence survivors and nonprofit advocacy agencies by
providing them essential communication tools - wireless phones and
services - and financial grants.
Since 2001, HopeLine has awarded nearly $4 million in cash grants to
domestic violence agencies throughout the country and collected more
than 4 million wireless phones.
About the Verizon Foundation
The Verizon Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Verizon
Communications, is committed to improving literacy and K-12 education;
fostering awareness and prevention of domestic violence; and promoting
the use of technology in health-care delivery. In 2006, the foundation
awarded more than $69 million in grants to nonprofit agencies in the
United States and abroad. The foundation also matched charitable
donations from Verizon employees and retirees, resulting in $29
million in combined contributions. Under the foundation's Verizon
Volunteer initiative, one of the nation's largest employee-volunteer
programs, company employees and retirees also have contributed nearly
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 Communications Inc.
Verizon Communications Inc. , 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 63.7 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
has a diverse workforce of nearly 238,000 and last year generated
consolidated operating revenues of more than $88 billion. For more
information, visit www.verizon.com.
About Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless operates the nation's most reliable wireless voice
and data network, serving 63.7 million customers. The largest U.S.
wireless company and largest wireless data provider, based on
revenues, Verizon Wireless is headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J.,
with 68,000 employees nationwide. The company is a joint venture of
Verizon Communications and Vodafone . Find more information on the Web
at 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.
About Peace Over Violence
Peace Over Violence is a non-profit, feminist, multicultural,
volunteer organization dedicated to building healthy relationships,
families and communities free from sexual, domestic and interpersonal
violence. To achieve this mission our agency manages five departments
delivering the services of Emergency, Intervention, Prevention,
Education and Advocacy.
VERIZON'S ONLINE NEWS CENTER: Verizon news releases, executive
speeches and biographies, media contacts, high quality video and
images, and other information are available at Verizon's News Center
on the World Wide Web at www.verizon.com/news. To receive news
releases by e-mail, visit the News Center and register for customized
automatic delivery of Verizon news releases.
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On Nov 9, 8:28 pm, Vaughanster <lord.vaug...@gmail.com> wrote:
> http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/prnewswire/NYF0990911200...