Cell Phones Targeted In New Fundraising Effort

Warren, MI August 14, 2004 -- Outdated, idle cellular phones are soon to have some value – in more ways than one.

Starting in August, 2004, thru the combined efforts of American Cellular Donation Organization (ACDO) and the Macomb County Chamber of Commerce, various groups, churches and organizations will be able to raise money and at the same time provide communication to those in need, all while also helping the environment.

The new program aims to collect outdated, idle cellular phones, refurbish them, and redistribute them to those in need of wireless communication. Those phones that are beyond repair will be recycled, according to environmental laws and guidelines. Since cell phones contain toxins that prevent them from being dumped in landfills due to environmental and health hazards, even those donating unusable phones will be doing a great service to the country.

ACDO plans to help groups, churches and organizations raise money by assisting and supporting them in cell phone donation drives. Interested groups will engage in the drives, which generally will last about 90 days, collecting phones and depositing them in receptacles provided by ACDO. The collected phones will then be shipped, free of charge, to ACDO, which will arrange to have them either repaired or refurbished, if possible. After all working phones are counted, the participating group is then reimbursed with a check, reflecting the number of phones multiplied by their cash value. Used, working phones can be worth anywhere from fifty cents to $50 per phone.

"The nice thing about this type of fundraiser is that nobody has to go out of pocket," Vincent Serio, founder of ACDO, said recently. "There are no candy bars or raffle tickets to sell. Almost everyone has an old cell phone laying in their closet somewhere."

The average cell phone user upgrades their phone about every 18 months. With over one billion cell phones in circulation, the number of idle, unused phones is staggering.

Mr. Serio said the donated, working phones will be distributed to various charity organizations, schools and seniors, and even third world countries, where communication, especially the wireless kind, is sorely lacking.

Interested groups who want to participate in this new brand of fundraising are urged to contact ACDO at (888) 863-CELL (2355), or log on to www.cellulardonation.org for more info.





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