Phones Donated To Abuse Victims

A local shelter using a program to give old cell phones to domestic abuse victims.

“It`s so easy. All you have to is just clear off your information off your phone, drop it in our bin, and we will take care of all the rest for you,” said Kelly Thomas with Verizon Wireless.

The Peace At Home Family Shelter in Fayetteville gets about 150 cell phones each year. There are many reasons a victim might need a new cell phone.

“The cell phone might be in the name of their abusive partner, and so that might be a way to track them, in some way to track their movements, perhaps even their location,” said Teresa Mills, chief executive officer of Peace At Home.

Mills said the most common reason an abuse victim needs a cell phone is for job hunting.

“I mean, think about that very basic ability to tell a potential employer, yes, you can reach me at this number that survivors without the support wouldn`t have,” Mills said.

But the phone also allows abuse victims to stay connected to the outside world.

“We did have a woman whose child was very severely asthmatic and had an episode at school, and the school was able to reach out to that cell phone,” Mills said. “And, my goodness, what would have happened if she had not been able to get that call?”