Tech Citizenship

Verizon Communications Inc. has merged all of its philanthropic work into the Verizon Foundation. Since 2000, the foundation has invested more than $400 million in programs, partnerships and organizations.

Some of the local recipients of these charitable activities include Freedom House Inc. in Dorchester, Mass Insight Corp., La Alianza Hispana Inc. in Roxbury, and the Boston Private Industry Council.

“Our efforts are rooted in a century-old tradition of giving back to the communities we serve, guided by a firm belief that technology can have a profound and positive effect on social issues,” said Donna Cupelo, regional president, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, via e-mail from the road.

Verizon places special emphasis on education — from innovative programs such as MarcoPolo, which provides web-based educational resources to help K-12 teachers prepare students for success in the 21st century, to basic literacy-development programs. The reason Verizon focuses its efforts on education is also related to technology, Cupelo said. “The promise of technology and all the opportunities it can provide is meaningless and empty for those who can”t read or have poor literacy skills,” said Cupelo.

In addition, the company addresses health and safety issues by fostering awareness and prevention of domestic violence in America, as well as using technology to make the Internet a safer place for children and families.

Verizon Wireless offers customers a way to donate old or unused cell phones at any time at its store locations across the country. Since the introduction of the national program in October 2001, HopeLine has received more than 3 million phones and distributed more than 30,000 phones with service and airtime to shelters for use by victims of domestic violence.

Another side effect of this program is that it has led to the recycling of nearly 600,000 phones.

“The goal is to continue to raise awareness, educate people about the causes and effects of domestic violence, and help our communities address and prevent domestic violence,” said Cupelo.

Volunteerism is something that’s rooted in Verizon’s culture. The company encourages employees — both active and retired — to participate and give back to their communities through various programs, such as matching funds from events such as walk-a-thons or team incentive programs. The company even has a list of 10 tips about volunteering wisely.

Last year, Verizon employees donated more than 460,000 hours nationwide to programs in their communities. Organizations are welcomed to visit the company’s website to search for volunteers willing to donate time.

Citizenship Facts

Sun Microsystems Inc.

Total cash contributions in New England in 2005: $4.3M

Number of volunteer hours in New England in 2005: 460,192

In-kind contributions of equipment and services in New England: N/A

Principal recipients of charitable activities in 2005: Freedom House Inc., Dorchester; The Immigrant Learning Center, Malden; YMCA of Greater Boston; West End Neighborhood Service Center; Boston Adult Literacy; Framingham Adult ESL; La Alianza Hispana, Roxbury; Museum of Science; Regional Technology Corp., Springfield

Interesting philanthropic activities: The Verizon Foundation gave a total of $74.8 million in support of local communities throughout the nation in 2005. The Verizon Volunteers program contributed or raised $18 million in funds for local charities in 2005. The number of nonprofit organizations that received time or money from Verizon employees nationwide in 2005 totaled 17,038.

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