DEXTER, Mich., May 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, ReCellular announced a new
cell-phone recycling campaign to benefit the American Red Cross. The goal
of the initiative is to raise a minimum of $50,000 for the Red Cross,
through the collection and recycling of cell phones.
"In 1991, we started with a simple mission -- to create a successful
business that is both socially and environmentally responsible," says Chuck
Newman, founder and CEO of ReCellular, Inc." This partnership is a perfect
realization of that mission, and we are proud to help the Red Cross
continue their remarkable work across the country."
Two in three Americans will replace their cell phones with a newer
model this year. Unfortunately, the vast majority will either keep their
old phones in a junk drawer, or will add them to local landfills -- where
these phones could pose an environmental hazard. ReCellular offers the
ability to safely recycle these phones, and provide financial support for
the Red Cross.
The program will include cell phone donations from Red Cross
supporters. Those who would like to participate can download a prepaid
shipping label from the Red Cross Web site
(http://www.redcross.org/sponsors/howtohelp/recellular.asp). For every cell
phone collected and sold until October 31, 2008, ReCellular will donate $1
to the American Red Cross, with a minimum commitment of $50,000.
"We think this is a great way for people to support the mission of the
Red Cross and protect the environment," says Lauri Rhinehart, Vice
President of Development Operations at the American Red Cross. "We are
thrilled to be the beneficiary of ReCellular's campaign which reaches out
to the consumer market to turn old phones into donations."
For over 125 years, the American Red Cross has mobilized people to help
their neighbors down the street, across the country and around the world,
prevent, prepare for, and respond to disasters and other life threatening
emergencies. The Red Cross touches lives in many ways: helping communities
in the face of disaster; teaching vital life-saving skills through health
and safety courses; ensuring the nation has an adequate supply of the
safest blood possible; helping military families stay connected through
emergency messages and working with other Red Cross and Red Crescent
societies to help vulnerable people and communities around the world.
ReCellular is the leading electronics sustainability firm in the United
States, having processed more than four million wireless phones in 2007.
The majority of these phones were collected through donate-a-phone
programs, which provided more than $8 million dollars for various
non-profit groups in 2007.
Approximately half of the phones ReCellular collects are still
functional, and are reconditioned and sold for reuse -- considered to be
the ultimate form of recycling. The remaining phones are either obsolete or
non-functional, and are dismantled and sent to recycling partners for
reclamation.
ReCellular's recycling programs divert more than one million pounds of
materials from landfills every year, reclaiming materials such as:
-- Plastics from phone cases and accessories
-- Circuit boards containing precious metals such as gold, silver,
platinum and palladium
-- Batteries, containing heavy metals such as nickel, iron, cadmium and
lead
-- Phone chargers, containing copper wiring
-- Shipping materials containing paper and cardboard
About ReCellular, Inc.:
With offices in the United States, Hong Kong, and Brazil, ReCellular,
Inc. is the world's foremost collector, reseller and recycler of used
wireless phones and accessories. We provide solutions for the collection,
reuse and recycling of used personal electronics that generate financial
return for our partners, quality products for our customers, funding for
charity organizations, and protection of the environment. Corporate,
charitable, consumer and wholesale information is available at
http://www.ReCellular.com.
About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and counsels victims of
disasters; provides nearly half of the nation's blood supply; teaches
lifesaving skills; and supports military members and their families. The
American Red Cross is a charity, not a government agency, and depends on
volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its
humanitarian mission.
|
