Connect Military Families, Donate Old Cell Phones

With cell phone technology improving and changing every day,  it’s hard to find someone who hasn’t upgraded and put the old phone in a drawer somewhere. By donating your old cell phone, you can help connect families with their loved ones serving overseas.

Sierra Management and Technologies, Inc. and nonprofit Cell Phones for Soldiers Inc. need your donation of a gently-used cell phone to help troops call home.

Although the military landscape is ever changing, as many as 290,000 troops are serving in the U.S. military overseas around the world. By donating to Cell Phones for Soldiers, Southern Maryland residents can provide troops with that precious connection to loved ones back home.

Residents can donate their phones at Sierra Management and Technologies, Inc. locations, including:

44427 Airport Rd., Suite 150,California, MD  20619

Cell Phones for Soldiers was founded in 2004 by teenagers Robbie and Brittany Bergquist at the ages of 12 and 13. The charity has since provided 181 million minutes of free talk time to servicemen and women stationed around the world. Funds raised from the recycling of cellular phones are used to purchase prepaid international calling cards. On average, Cell Phones for Soldiers distributes 12,000 calling cards each week to bases around the world, care package programs, deployment ceremonies and VA hospitals.

“Each year we have been humbled by the amount of people and organizations like Sierra Management and Technologies, Inc. that take the initiative to support our troops,” said co-founder Brittany Bergquist. “The communication gap between those serving and their families is a crucial need that Cell Phones for Soldiers is committed to addressing for years to come.”

Donated phones are sent to Mindful eCycling for recycling. For every donated phone valued at $5, Cell Phones for Soldiers is able to provide 2 1/2 hours of free talk time to deployed troops.

Approximately half of the phones Mindful eCycling processes are reconditioned and reused. Phones and components that cannot be refurbished are dismantled and responsibly recycled to reclaim materials, including:

• Gold, silver and platinum from circuit boards
• Copper wiring from phone chargers
• Nickel, iron, cadmium and lead from battery packs
• Plastic from phone cases and accessories

For more information, please visit www.sierramgt.com  or www.cellphonesforsoldiers.com.