Cell phones for soldiers
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The Cell Phones for Soldiers program was started in April 2004 by 13-year-old Brittany Bergquist and her 12-year-old brother Robbie of Norwell, Massachusetts, with $21 of their own money. Since then, the registered 501c3 non-profit organization has raised almost $1 million in donations and distributed more than 400,000 prepaid calling cards to soldiers serving overseas.
“Cell Phones for Soldiers started as a small way to show our family’s appreciation for the men and women who have sacrificed the day-to-day contact with their own families to serve in the U.S. armed forces,” says the teens’ father, Bob Bergquist. “Over the past few years, we have been overwhelmed by the generosity of others. But, we have also seen the need to support our troops continue to grow as more troops are sent overseas for longer assignments.”
Here is the link to their website. http://www.cellphonesforsoldiers.com/index.html
I think this is an awesome idea. I recall seeing a story on this a month or two ago and I was able to gather up 4 old cell phones that I no longer use or need. All of them are in perfect working condition and what better way to make good use of them then to have them sent overseas so our soldiers can use them to call home.
“Americans will replace an estimated 130 million cell phones this year,” says Mike Newman, vice president of ReCellular, “with the majority of phones either discarded or stuffed in a drawer. Most people don’t realize that the small sacrifice of donating their unwanted phones can have a tremendous benefit for a worthy cause like Cell Phones for Soldiers.”
We currently don’t have a “drop off point” here in Idaho Falls but we do have a few in Pocatello. There is a link on their website though for any schools, businesses, groups or organizations who can fill out a simple form and become a drop off point for Idaho Falls residents. This group provides you with all the necessary information AND the shipping labels to mail the phones so the cost for you is nothing but a little bit of your time used to package and mail the phones. What a great cause!
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Yep, Liberty Tax Service has been a partner for several years now. Actually, all three locations in IF are drop off locations.
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1 0 Great post CR67! And thanks for mentioning Liberty Tax Service, Humor. I recently upgraded my phone so it’s good timing for me to read this.
With all the other things in the news and the day to day things we have to deal with, and regardless of political leanings, it’s impossible to not take what our soldiers are going through overseas for granted to some degree (I say this as a U.S. Army veteran myself). I am certain that the “collective we” would be shocked to know what many of our soldiers are going through and the hardship on their families.
Anyway, I want to be doing a lot more, but the very minimum I can do is donate a phone I don’t use anymore. I’ll donate my previous phone (and the charger) at Liberty tomorrow.
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1 0 Thanks for the comments guys and for the info on the drop off locations in Idaho Falls. I must have missed that the first time I did a search on their website. I hope more people will take a moment out of their busy day to do something small like this for our service men and woman. Such a small act of kindness will make such a huge difference in lives of these folks. I’ll be dropping my phones off this weekend.
Have a great day everyone!
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Liberty Tax Service at 1206 E 17th Street in Idaho Falls, is listed as a cell phone drop off point.
Also the Rigby City Library.