Pat O’Donnell, director of mission advancement at Dear Neighbor Ministries and StepStone, discusses the problem of domestic violence and what his organization is doing to help survivors recover and grow.  

Approximately one in four women, and one in seven men, are affected by domestic violence nationwide. In Wichita, Kansas, alone, police investigate a distressing 19 cases of domestic violence each day. In many of these instances, the victim’s decision to leave their abusive partner depends on whether they have a safe place to go – a decision that can unfortunately be a matter of life or death.

Most major metropolitan areas have domestic violence shelters where victims can stay for a certain amount of time. However, after their time is up, they must find a new place to go. In many cases, victims of domestic violence are faced with only two options: return to their abuser or live on the streets.

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Mary Stickelmaier, Melissa Pershing, John Granby, Alaina Cutler, Molly Barrick at The Julian Center in Indiana

Verizon Wireless has provided Indiana nonprofits with donations amounting to more than $400,000 and more than half of the grant money dedicated to struggling domestic violence agencies.

“We know domestic violence agencies and shelters are hurting now and we’ve stepped up to meet the needs of families that they serve across Indiana,” said John Granby, president–Indiana/Kentucky/Michigan Region, Verizon Wireless. “We don’t ever want a shelter to be forced to turn people away.”

From cash grants to employee matches, Verizon remains committed to helping as many agencies as possible in Indiana.

Just this summer, a number of organizations reported a spike in domestic violence calls for help brought on by the pressure of a souring economy. Agencies began struggling with waiting lists at shelters and extended stays and also experienced increased calls for help to crisis hotlines.

“An organization like ours could not continue with the outreach that we do without support from committed partners like Verizon,” said Melissa Pershing, executive director of The Julian Center, one of the state’s largest domestic violence programs. “Verizon’s grant is helping us bring families that have been impacted by domestic violence out of poverty and into financial self-sustainability through nationally recognized programs such as Circles of Support and Bridges out of Poverty.”

Funding comes from the Verizon Foundation and through the nationally recognized HopeLine® program from Verizon Wireless. At Indiana’s 36 company-owned retail stores and through pre-paid mail options, Hoosiers can easily donate no longer used phones and accessories to the HopeLine program.

Verizon provides those refurbished wireless phones and airtime to nonprofit organizations for use by domestic violence survivors, as well as cash grants to local shelters and nonprofits that focus on prevention, awareness and advocacy through those donations.

Last year, 731 phones and more than 2.1 million free minutes were contributed to Indiana shelter residents to make those connections.

“In the recent years of increased financial constraints on government and non-profit budgets, contributions from private sector sources like the Verizon Foundation have become even more important,” said Michelle Bumgarner, director of victim advocacy programs for the Indiana Attorney General’s office. “While our office assists survivors with services such as the Address Confidentiality Program, the financial support from community partners, like Verizon, helps make the essential and often life-saving work of local advocates and shelters possible.”

(The Address Confidentiality Program is a free service of the attorney general’s office that allows victims of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking to maintain a confidential address.)

Across Indiana, Verizon is supporting 19 domestic violence organizations, including the following in central Indiana:

- Domestic Violence Network of Greater Indianapolis

- Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence

- The Julian Center

- Muslim Alliance of Indiana

- Salvation Army

- Sheltering Wings

“With Verizon’s support, we were able to help 317 Hoosiers who have suffered from domestic violence—including 203 children—escape from a violent situation,” said Susan Solomon, divisional services director for the Salvation Army in Indiana. “Our Emergency Bed Space Program was developed to ensure that when traditional shelter spaces in Indianapolis are full, those fleeing from violence will still have a safe place to go. Without this program, these individuals would have been forced to remain in a violent situation, live in their car or try to access a potentially unsafe situation.”

Verizon is also reminding its more than 500 Indiana employees to give during this time of escalated need. The Verizon Foundation supports personal philanthropic giving made by Verizon employees and retirees. Employees can earn cash grants for the qualified nonprofits where they volunteer at least 50 hours, and can have their charitable donations go further by utilizing the foundation’s Matching Gifts Programs.

“The need is great and the time is now,” Granby said. “We’re asking everyone in our company to step up during Domestic Violence Awareness Month this October, and we hope others follow our lead.”

For more Verizon Wireless news specific to Indiana and other Midwest states, subscribe via RSS to news by state.

The Verizon Wireless Illinois team is VERY excited to announce a new initiative with the Chicago Bears!

In an effort to help end domestic violence in the Chicago area and throughout Illinois, Verizon Wireless is teaming up with the Chicago Bears to help provide protection where it is needed most—off the field. In support of Domestic Violence Awareness month, the October 16 Bears game against the Minnesota Vikings will feature a stop by Verizon’s Journey of Hope tour, a bus traveling across the country to raise visibility for the issue of domestic violence and provide a means for people to get involved and take action, and a wireless phone drive to benefit the Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

Verizon Wireless has partnered with the National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV) to bring the “Journey of Hope” bus to Soldier Field as part of an eight-city tour. It is equipped with a special smartphone and tablet station where people can record and share stories of why they support domestic violence prevention and other messages of hope. The stories will then be shared on Facebook to help end the silence that surrounds this destructive social issue.

At the bus, Verizon Wireless and the Bears will be collecting no-longer-used wireless phones, batteries and accessories. Fans can also donate their old phones at one of the HopeLine collection boxes at the main gates into the stadium. For each phone collected during the HopeLine drive, Verizon Wireless will donate $10 to the Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

Most of the phones will be refurbished and sold, with the proceeds used to purchase newer wireless phones for domestic violence survivors and to support area domestic violence shelters and organizations. Phones that can’t be refurbished will be recycled in an environmentally sound way.

To help spread the message about the importance of domestic violence prevention, Chicago Bear Gabe Carimi has taped a special public service message encouraging people to donate phones to HopeLine yearlong. It will be aired at the game and throughout the year during Chicago Bears programming.

The Journey of Hope bus makes its next stop in Chicago this Sunday, October 16 at the Bears game!

More About the HopeLine Program
Since HopeLine from Verizon’s national cell phone recycling and re-use program was launched in 2001, HopeLine has collected more than 8 million wireless phones, awarded more than $10 million in cash grants to domestic violence organizations throughout the country and by the end of this year and will have donated more than 106,000 HopeLine phones with 319 million minutes of airtime to victims, survivors and domestic violence organizations.

Last year in Illinois alone, more than 36,000 phones were donated to the program, totaling more than 4.5 million minutes of service and more than $100,000 in cash grants to help survivors of domestic violence across the state.

Fans unable to attend the game can still donate their no-longer-used phones at any Verizon Wireless Communications Store at any time. To find the store closest to you, visit http://www.verizonwireless.com/

For more Verizon Wireless news specific to Illinois and other Midwest states, subscribe via RSS to news by state.

On Tuesday, Sept. 27 at iconic Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wis. and with the help of Green Bay Packers wide receiver Jordy Nelson and his wife Emily, Verizon Wireless kicked off the 2011-12 “Protection is the Name of the Game” program.

The long-running campaign is an extension of Verizon Wireless’ award-winning HopeLine program, which is dedicated to helping stop domestic violence. The “Protection is the Name of the Game” program includes a phone drive at Packers home games during the regular season; financial donations to domestic violence organizations in Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula; and a public service announcement featuring Jordy and Emily.

Packers fans are encouraged to donate their no-longer-used wireless phones (in any condition, from any carrier) at one of three HopeLine collection boxes near the Verizon Wireless gate and at guest services in the Atrium at Lambeau Field. Most of the phones will be refurbished or sold with the proceeds used to purchase newer wireless phones for domestic violence survivors and to support area domestic violence shelters and organizations. Phones that can’t be refurbished will be recycled in an environmentally sound way.

For each phone collected during the season-long HopeLine drive, Verizon Wireless will donate $10 to a local domestic violence shelter. Domestic violence organizations that will benefit from the program include; Golden House (Green Bay, Wis.), Barbara Kettle Gundlach Shelter Home for Abused Women, Inc. (Calumet, Mich.), New Horizons Shelter and Women’s Center (La Crosse, Wis.), Sojourner Family Peace Center (Milwaukee), Caring House, Inc. (Iron Mountain, Mich.), Domestic Abuse Intervention Services (Madison, Wis.), United Migrant Opportunity Service, Inc. (UMOS) – Latina Resource Center (Milwaukee). Each week, phones will also be collected at local Verizon Wireless stores to further benefit the participating agencies.

In addition, Verizon Wireless has partnered with the National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV) to embark on an eight-city bus tour coinciding with Domestic Violence Awareness Month (October). Journey of Hope provides a means for those engaging with the bus to get involved and help teach ways people can take action against domestic violence. People who have had their lives touched by domestic violence can share their stories by recording them on smartphones and tablets. The stories will then be uploaded to Facebook to help break the silence of this destructive social issue. The tour will begin at Lambeau Field to help mark the beginning of the “Protection is the Name of the Game” program.

Since HopeLine from Verizon’s national cell phone recycling and re-use program was launched in 2001, HopeLine has collected more than 8 million wireless phones, awarded more than $10 million in cash grants to domestic violence organizations throughout the country, and by the end of this year will have donated more than 106,000 HopeLine phones with 319 million minutes of airtime to victims, survivors and domestic violence organizations.

Last year in Wisconsin alone, more than 13,000 phones were donated to the program, totaling more than 1.4 million minutes of service and more than $75,000 in cash grants to help survivors of domestic violence across the state.

Those who are unable to attend the games at Lambeau Field may still take part in the program by donating their no-longer-used wireless phones at any Verizon Wireless Communications Store at any time.

Through its HopeLine program, Verizon Wireless is a big supporter of organizations that help domestic violence victims. The Marshall Democrat-News shares details about Verizon’s recent donation to The Lighthouse Shelter in Missouri.

In the past year, The Lighthouse Shelter, an organization serving domestic violence victims and their children, has assisted 420 women, 345 children and 11 men, and now Verizon Wireless is supporting the organization’s services.

Verizon announced Wednesday, Sept. 28, that it’s donated $2,500 to The Lighthouse as part of its national HopeLine program, which supports communities and local agencies in ending domestic violence, according to a recent press release.

“Verizon Wirelesss has a long-standing commitment to domestic violence prevention, awareness and advocacy, and we are pleased to recognize and support the work of The Lighthouse Shelter,” said Brendan Fallis, president of Verizon’s Kansas/Missouri region.

Read the rest of the article here.