Guelph Storm fans rallied to help fight hunger and divert waste from local landfill sites by donating their old cell phones to the Phones for Food program during Friday’s Rogers Night with the Guelph Storm.  Rogers and Guelph Food Bank representatives collected 130 old cell phones at the game, along with $397 in cash and 174 lbs of food donations for the Guelph Food Bank.

“As the leading television provider of OHL coverage, Rogers is thrilled to work with the Food Bank, the Guelph Storm Hockey Club and the fans to give back to our community,” says Rick Rathwell, Supervising Producer, Rogers TV. “We’ve successfully diverted these devices from our local landfill and will turn them into food for families and individuals in need.”

"This year’s Phones for Food drive at the Storm game was a great success and we are thankful for Rogers’ continued support,” says Tracy Marchesich, Operations Manager, Guelph Food Bank.  "Donations like these are invaluable to our food assistance programs. Now more than ever, supporting the Guelph Food Bank is vital in order to help those in need in the community." 

Fans who donated at Friday’s game were eligible to win one of two prizes, courtesy of Rogers. Sharon Morris of Guelph won an Apple iPhone and Frank Petric of Guelph took home the Grand Prize of a 42” Plasma TV.

The goal of Phones for Food is to alleviate hunger and divert waste from landfill sites. Proceeds raised through the process of recycling used wireless devices are donated to Food Banks Canada. One wireless device, depending on its age and condition, can generate an average of $2 to $5 which is equivalent to one carton of milk, a jar of peanut butter or even a whole meal to someone in need.

Rogers Night with the Guelph Storm, hosted by Rogers TV, Rogers Plus, AML Communications and Rogers Home Phone featured a host of additional onsite activities and giveaways. Prizes included; a Blackberry Bluetooth headset and visor mount; a Rogers Home Phone gift pack; $100 Rogers Plus Entertainment Package; and three authentic Storm jerseys autographed by the entire team.  Rogers also presented a $100 Rogers Gift Card to one fan every time the Storm scored. Guelph’s 6-3 win over Sarnia on Friday meant six lucky fans were issued $100 gift cards.

Rogers TV is a one-of-a-kind TV channel tailor-made for local audiences. In 2010, our stations will produce 17,000 hours of original, informative local programming; reinforcing Rogers Cable's commitment to the communities we serve.  Rogers TV is a service available exclusively to cable customers as part of the basic service of Rogers Cable Communications Inc., Canada's largest cable company, delivering high quality entertainment, information and communication services to 2.3 million customers in Ontario, New Brunswick and Newfoundland. Locally, Rogers TV, Cable 20 serves the city of Guelph and surrounding area. For more information, visit www.rogerstv.com.

For more information contact:
Lisa Leachman
Publicity & Promotions Coordinator, Rogers TV
519.824.1900 ext.3272
lisa.leachman@rci.rogers.com