Verizon Awards $20,000 Disaster Relief Grant to the American Red Cross for Colorado flood victims
Company activates Text-to-Donate campaign to make it easy for customers to support flood relief efforts in Colorado
September 13, 2013 /3BL Media/ - What: The Verizon Foundation today approved a $20,000 disaster relief grant to the American Red Cross to support the agency’s relief efforts for Colorado residents. The grant will help those Coloradoans affected by the devastating flood waters in Boulder County and other parts of the state.
The company also activated its mobile giving program so Verizon customers can use their mobile phones to donate to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief fund to help those affected by the catastrophic flooding.
Customers simply text the word REDCROSS from their mobile phone to the organization’s designated 90999 short code to make a $10 donation.
Verizon Wireless waives text-messaging fees for disaster relief, so text messages are free when used to make donations and 100 percent of each $10 donation goes to the American Red Cross. For Verizon Wireless customers who pay monthly bills, the $10 donations will appear on the next regular monthly bill. For customers using the company’s prepaid services, the donation will be deducted from customers’ prepaid balances.
When: Friday, September 13 -- A $20,000 Disaster Relief Grant awarded to the American Red Cross for disaster relief efforts in Colorado.
Where: Boulder and surrounding counties in Colorado.
Why:
“Our neighbors in Colorado have experienced some of the worst flooding in our state’s history and we are mobilizing assistance for them,” said Chris Lewter, regional president for Verizon Wireless. “We’re making it easy for our customers wanting to donate funds to the American Red Cross by activating a simple text-to-donate campaign.”
Reliability:
Network teams are working around the clock during the flood emergency to maintain service in affected areas. Verizon Wireless’ industry-leading network redundancy and maintenance practices have proven especially valuable to first responders during natural disasters and emergencies across the country. Standard Verizon Wireless network-reliability features include battery back-up power at virtually all facilities as well as generators at switching facilities and many cell site locations.
Network Investment:
Verizon Wireless invested more than $100 million in its Colorado network last year. The company’s ongoing network investment now totals more than $1.26 billion in Colorado and $80 billion nationally since it was formed in 2000.
Media Contact:
Bob Kelley
303-694-8990
robert.kelley@VerizonWireless.com
