Verizon Celebrates Employee Wellness at Annual 2K/5K Race
May 16, 2014
The fourth annual “Rule the Road” event promotes employee wellness at Verizon’s Greenville Call Center. Community organizations received $45,000 from Verizon at the event.
GREENVILLE, SC – Nearly 1,000 employees at Verizon’s Greenville Call Center received paid time off today to participate in an annual fitness run. Verizon highlights the “Rule the Road” 2K/5K, now in its fourth year, as one of the ways it empowers employees to take control of their health through work/life balance initiatives that include an on-site fitness center with personal trainers.
“‘Rule the Road’ is a proud tradition for our call center employees who have a chance to leave their work at the office and spend a fun afternoon with colleagues,” said Brett Faulkner, Verizon Director of Customer Service. “I often hear employees share their fitness successes with others throughout the office, but the 2K/5K lets us all share in each other’s successes and see the impact that Verizon’s wellness programs have on us all.”
As part of the event, the USO of South Carolina – which received $15,000 from Verizon today – brought a section of an American flag for race participants to sign as a show of support for the troops. The flag panel is part of a larger effort by USO organizations nationwide to enter the Guinness Book of Records “for most signatures on a flag.” At the end of May, flag panels from across the country will be sewn together and signatures will be counted.
During the race, employees followed a marked route around the Brookfield Corporate Park off Butler Road, and crossed the finish line back at the Call Center, where festivities and prizes awaited participants—including a check presentation to two local community groups.
Through its HopeLine program, Verizon donated $45,000 to two organizations with large footprints in the Upstate to assist with their efforts to curb domestic violence in South Carolina. Safe Harbor of Greenville received a $30,000 donation to support efforts to educate teens about healthy relationships and support other vital resources for domestic violence survivors. The USO of South Carolina received $15,000 to help service members who return from the battlefield suffering from post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD).
Verizon Wireless founded the HopeLine program in 2001 to turn no-longer used cell phones into support for victims of domestic violence. Devices that can be refurbished become lifelines for women and children escaping violent relationships. The company also recycles wireless devices, chargers and batteries that cannot be refurbished in an environmentally friendly way and uses the proceeds to fund domestic violence prevention efforts. The community can donate wireless devices to HopeLine by dropping them off at any Verizon Wireless location or by downloading a postage-paid label at VerizonWireless.com/HopeLine.[1]
Editors Note: Photo attached. Cutline provided below:
Verizon Wireless presents HopeLine grant checks for $30,000 to Safe Harbor and $15,000 to the USO of South Carolina on May 14, 2014 at Verizon headquarters in Greenville, S.C. From left to right: Lindsey Jones, Verizon Wireless wellness coordinator; Joanie Thresher, executive director of the SC USO; Connie Smith, Verizon Wireless Assoc. Director of Customer Service; Becky Callaham, executive director of Safe Harbor; and Samantha Sanders, Verizon Wireless wellness coordinator.
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