The Verizon HopeLine Project

The Women’s Resource Center was proud to partner with Verizon Wireless on the Hopeline Project to during the week of October 23-27.  The project involved collecting used wireless phones to help victim/survivors of domestic violence. October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month.  The used phones are then either refurbished or recycled.  With the funds raised from the sale of the refurbished phones, Verizon  Wireless donate wireless phones and airtime to victim/survivors of domestic violence, and provides funding and other contributions to non-profit domestic violence shelters and prevention programs across the country.   Through the two donation sites on campus, the Women’s Resource Center at the University Center Satellite and the University Career Services at the Student Service Center 1, over forty cell phones were collected.

According to the Family Violence Prevention Fund, nearly one-third (31%) of American women are physically abused by a husband or boyfriend as some point in their lives. Additionally, one million people in the United States report a violent assault by an intimate partner each year. Recent studies have indicated that patterns of domestic violence can begin during the dating phase of a relationship-in the high school and college years. Some signs of an abusive relationship include: a jealous and controlling partner, a partner who calls you names and constantly criticizes you, a partner who isolates you from your friends or family, a partner who threatens you, a partner who accuses you of flirting, a partner who wants to be a part of everything you do, or a partner who sexually, verbally, emotionally, or physically abuses you. In 2005, the Hopeline Progam collected 850,000 phones and accessories donated by customers of all wireless providers. Some 10,000 wireless phones were refurbished and donated with airtime to victims of domestic violence in shelters across the country. Verizon Wireless donated $750,000 in grants to domestic violence agencies and organizations in local communities across the country.