Working with Phones for Life and the National Council of Jewish Women, Peninsula Section, the Town of Hempstead has begun collecting cell phones to be reprogrammed for 911 emergency use by seniors.

Town of Hempstead Supervisor Rich Guardino and Councilman James Darcy announced this new initiative at a press conference held Monday, March 18.

"In the past, cell phones have been collected for domestic abuse victims and there has been an overwhelming response," said Guardino. "Phones for Life is a wonderful organization that has taken this distribution of unused cell phones to another audience, bringing the safety feature to senior citizens who may not be able to afford to buy a cell phone."

The phones will be distributed, at no cost, to seniors. Eligible seniors will not have to worry about the cost of the phone itself or any monthly fees usually associated with cellular phones.

Residents who have cellular telephones that they are no longer using are asked to drop them off at one of the town's four collection sites - Rock Hall Museum, 199 Broadway, Lawrence; Levittown Hall, Levittown Parkway, Hicksville; Hempstead Town Hall, 1 Washington Street, Hempstead; or Echo Park, Nassau Boulevard, West Hempstead.

"I ask residents who may have a cell phone that is not in service any longer to please donate it, along with the recharging unit, to this worthwhile cause rather than discarding it," said Darcy.

Once collected, the phones will be passed along to the National Council of Jewish Women, Peninsula Section, a Five Towns based organization. The phones will then be reprogrammed and distributed through Phones for Life, a national organization, based in New York that reprograms the phones and distributes the phones with recharging units to eligible seniors.

"This is a very important program," said Joan Ivler, National Council of Jewish Women, Peninsula Section, president, "We are extremely grateful to the Town of Hempstead for their assistance in the collection of the phones and for getting the word out to residents."

Dr. Dee L'Archeveque, director of Phones for Life, added, "We are only able to distribute the cell phones that we have. The efforts of the Town of Hempstead and the Peninsula Section of the National Council of Jewish Women will make it possible for us to assist many more seniors."

Seniors who would like to receive an emergency cell phone can contact Phones for Life at 718-869-7224.

"I wish to thank all those who have been involved in this program," concluded Guardino. "The added security of having an emergency cell phone available will add to the quality of life of our seniors."