Verizon Employees Donate $590,000 to Haiti; Corporate Donations Surpass $1 Million
Verizon employees have pledged more than $590K through the Verizon employee Disaster Relief Matching Gift Program - Haiti. Under the program, which ran through January 31, the Verizon Foundation provided matching of employee donations dollar for dollar, up to $1,000 per employee, to two nonprofit organizations, World Vision and Food for the Poor that are providing aid in Haiti. In addition, the Verizon Foundation awarded two grants of $50,000 each to World Vision and Food for the Poor.
The Disaster Relief - Haiti employee matching program is now closed; Verizon employees may continue to request a match for their donations to eligible nonprofits through the foundation's Matching Incentive Program.
Verizon employees and the Verizon Foundation are reaching out to help the more than one million Haitians who were left homeless by the January earthquake. Many displaced families had no place to go, no food, water or clothing - and were in desperate need of medical care.
Displaying their concern and generosity, Verizon employees have donated $590,000 to help these people, as part of the Verizon Foundation's special disaster relief employee donation matching program, set up specifically to aid victims of the earthquake. The Foundation matched donations of $25 to $1,000 per employee, dollar-to-dollar.
In addition, grants from the Verizon Foundation of $50,000 each were made to World Vision and Food For The Poor. World Vision is providing Haitians with access to emergency shelter, hygiene kits, blankets and household items, providing water purification items and has distributed more than 13 million pounds of food. The organization is helping to identify and register children separated from their parents and provide child-friendly safe spaces; and it distributed medicine, medical equipment and maternity kits, and set up mobile clinics.
Food for the Poor has delivered hundreds of containers filled with water, rice, canned foods, agricultural tools, hygiene kits, medical supplies, tents, baby supplies, wheelchairs, crutches, tarps, lumber and roofing materials. "Now we must really start to think beyond this immediate relief and plan for the rebuilding, the rebirth of Port-au-Prince," said Angel Aloma, Food For The Poor's executive director. "It will be a huge undertaking, and it will take a long time."
"I am personally touched by the many contributions made by Verizon employees and their families, and their efforts to do what they can to help those who are suffering in Haiti," said Patrick Gaston, Verizon Foundation president.
Although the Verizon Foundation disaster relief matching program has ended, employees can still contribute to qualified nonprofit organizations of their choice that are providing aid to Haiti and receive matching funds through the ongoing Matching Incentive Program, http://foundation.verizon.com/employee/mip.shtml.
Verizon Wireless has encouraged its customers to support American Red Cross relief efforts by enabling them to send a free text message to donate $10. Close to one million customers participated, contributing more than $9 million.
Verizon and Verizon Wireless also helped customers get in touch with their family and friends in Haiti. They provided a waiver of long-distance charges for calls to Haiti from residential wireline and wireless phones, beginning the day the earthquake struck on Jan. 12 and extending that waiver through Feb. 14.
