Customers' Donations Support Local Efforts

NEWARK, N.J., Dec. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- A dollar a month may not seem like much, but it can go a long way to improving literacy skills in local communities while also giving people the opportunity to succeed.

Thanks to the generosity of Verizon customers who participated in the company's Check Into Literacy program, 39 nonprofit organizations throughout New Jersey are receiving $325,000 in grants to support their literacy programs.

The Check Into Literacy initiative allows Verizon landline phone customers to check a box on their monthly bills to make a $1-a-month, tax-deductible donation to support literacy.

"This is a classic case of a little bit going a long way to address a significant challenge for our society," said Dennis Bone, president of Verizon New Jersey. "Verizon customers who participated in the program have shown how much they care about the people in our communities, and we applaud them for it."

Grants have been awarded to the following organizations:

    American Labor Museum, Haledon
    Bergen County Community Action Partnership
    Benards Township Education Foundation
    Bethel Development Corporation, Millville
    Better Beginnings Day Care Center of East Windsor/Hightstown
    Boys and Girls Club of Atlantic City
    Boys and Girls Club of Paterson and Passaic
    Boys and Girls Club of Vineland
    Business and Education Together Foundation, Morristown
    Celebrate New Jersey, Freehold
    Cranford Public Schools
    First Baptist Community Development Corp., Somerset
    Gorgeous Girls and Gifted Guys Book Club, Teaneck
    HCCC Foundation, Jersey City
    Isles, Trenton
    Jewish Community Partnership, Camden
    Literacy Volunteers of New Jersey, Bridgewater
    Morristown Neighborhood House
    New Brunswick Tomorrow
    Princeton Public Library
    Project Plus/Project Literacy, Hackensack
    Woodbury Public Library
    Woodbury Public Schools
    YWCA Princeton
    Ladison Network, Wanamassa
    NORWESCAP, Phillipsburg
    Community YMCA, Middletown
    Ironbound Community Corporation, Newark
    United Way of Ocean County
    Family and Children's Services, Long Branch
    Lawrence Township Public Schools
    First Book Camden County
    Harmony Daycare Center Inc., Irvington
    United Way of Salem County
    Therapeutic Learning Center, Garfield Park Academy, Willingboro
    Literacy Programs of New Jersey, Middlesex
    Literacy Volunteers of Gloucester County
    Rider University
    Carteret Public Schools

About the Verizon Foundation:

The Verizon Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Verizon Communications, supports the advancement of literacy and K-12 education through its signature program, Thinkfinity.org, and fosters awareness and prevention of domestic violence. In 2007, the foundation awarded more than $67.4 million in grants to nonprofit agencies in the United States and abroad. The foundation also matched the charitable donations of Verizon employees and retirees, resulting in $25.1 million in combined contributions. Through Verizon Volunteers, one of the nation's largest employee volunteer programs, Verizon employees and retirees have volunteered more than 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

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ), 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 nearly 71 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 employs a diverse workforce of more than 228,000 and last year generated consolidated operating revenues of $93.5 billion. For more information, visit www.verizon.com.

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SOURCE Verizon