RMS Communications Group Inc., a leading recycler and re-marketer of old cell phones, announced today it has entered into a partnership agreement with the Collier County, Fla. Sheriff’s Office to raise funds and provide free emergency cell phones for local crime victims and senior citizens.
Under the agreement, the Sheriff’s Office will collect used cell phones in the community which will be turned over to RMS for re-marketing through the company’s 911 Cell Phone Bank program, which operates via a website, www.911CellPhoneBank.com
In return, RMS will provide the department with 911 phones as well as cash. The funds will be managed by the local Police Activities League (PAL). Those funds will support a variety of projects and programs, from senior education and crime prevention efforts to youth athletic activities.
Residents who have unused cell phones are encouraged to drop them off at collection points throughout the county, or call to have the phones picked up. Locations can be found and pickups can be arranged by calling Sue Gentry in the Crimes Assistance Unit at 239-530-9878.
“We have collected quite a few phones already,” Gentry said. “The phones that we get back from RMS are given to seniors or to people who may have been victims of violent crimes. Even if the phones never get used, it gives people a real sense of safety and security.”
“We gave one recently to a lady who was driving her husband up to New Jersey for medical treatment,” she said. “She had never driven that far, and having the phone with her made her feel a lot more secure.”
Gentry said the funds received from RMS may pay for a variety of youth programs, from sports activities to the painting of senior citizens’ homes by youngsters.
“We have supported these PAL programs in the past through grants, but the grant process can be very complicated and very paperwork-intensive,” Gentry said. “This is a much simpler and easier process, and it provides funds for everything from t-shirts for youth basketball teams to all sorts of community-based projects.”
“If people in the community know they can help support these programs by simply donating a used cell phone that they aren’t using anyway, who isn’t going to do that? It’s a real win-win situation.”
James Mosieur, chief executive officer of RMS Communications Group Inc., said law enforcement agencies around the country are signing up to participate in the 911 Cell Phone Bank program.
“We started the 911 Cell Phone Bank program more than a year ago, and it has already raised more than a quarter-million dollars for various law enforcement needs,” Mosieur said. “No need is greater than supporting law enforcement agencies who work so tirelessly on behalf of their local communities.”
RMS Communications Group Inc. operates a number of web sites, including www.CellForCash.com, which pays cash for used phones; www.WirelessFundraiser.com, which provides cash to non-profit organizations that collect and send in old cell phones; and www.RecycleForUS.com, an environmental initiative that helps companies, government agencies and other groups and individuals collect and recycle old cell phones.
The 911 Cell Phone Bank program donates more than 1,000 cell phones every month to law enforcement and other agencies for use as 911 emergency phones.
About 911CellPhoneBank.com
The 911 Cell Phone Bank was created to provide an ongoing and readily available source of 911 cell phones and funds to meet unexpected and urgent needs of participating law enforcement and affiliated victims services agencies. Since its inception, then the 911 Cell Phone Bank has generated hundreds of thousands of dollars and thousands of cell phones for victims services organizations nationwide. It is a nationwide program designed to maximize community cell phone donations. To learn more, visit www.911CellPhoneBank.com
About RMS Communications Group Inc.
Based in Ocala, Fla., RMS Communications Group Inc. provides consumers and businesses a convenient way to get cash for cell phones that otherwise lay idle. Phones may qualify regardless of manufacturer -- Motorola, Nokia, LG, etc.; or service provider -- Sprint, Verizon, Cingular, T-Mobile, etc. The company often partners with non-profit organizations that find the collection and sale of old cell phones to be an excellent source of revenue. More information can be found at http://www.RMSComm.com.
