Minnesota Lynx Team Up with Verizon Wireless to Promote Healthy Teen Dating Relationships
July 8, 2008 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Minnesota Lynx News Release
MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL - The Minnesota Lynx today announced that they have teamed up with the Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women (MCBW) and Verizon Wireless to create greater awareness of teen dating violence at home games this season and to host a Choose Respect Night.
The Choose Respect Night is scheduled for Saturday's game between the Lynx and the Houston Comets at 7 p.m. at the Target Center. It is the tip-off event for participating programs that are doing outreach activities with teens throughout Minnesota that promote healthy dating relationships.
Choose Respect is a campaign of the Centers for Disease Control to motivate adolescents ages 11-14 to challenge harmful beliefs about dating abuse and sexual violence and take steps to form respectful relationships. During home games this season, seven Lynx players have taped in-game video messages urging teens to "Don't Stand By, Stand Up" and to learn about healthy relationships at www.chooserespect.org.
In addition, Verizon Wireless is sponsoring a text messaging Healthy Relationships Quiz through the end of the Lynx season. Anyone can take the quiz by texting the word "respect" to 49640, standard text messaging rates apply.
"The Minnesota Lynx are proud to partner with Verizon Wireless on the Choose Respect initiative," said Angela Taylor, Lynx Vice President of Business Operations. "The impact of healthy relationships and the importance of encouraging our youth to respect one another is so vital to our communities. Programs like the Choose Respect initiative have a positive impact on the lives of our future leaders and will empower individuals to fight dating violence while teaching them how to foster solid relationships."
Verizon Wireless and the Minnesota Lynx will present a check for $7,500 to the Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women prior to tip-off on July 12 to fund the third Verizon Wireless/Minnesota Lynx Teen Leadership Summit, hosted by MCBW, in the winter of 2009. At the Leadership Summit, selected high school youth from all over Minnesota will receive training on how to organize their peers and communities to end sexual assault and domestic violence.
"With the support of the Lynx and Verizon Wireless, we've been able to expand our reach to hundreds of youth throughout Minnesota" said Deb Foster, Director of Development and Communications for MCBW. "We truly appreciate this partnership as we continue to empower and help ensure youth have the tools and resources they need to stop teen dating violence before it starts."
Verizon Wireless has a corporate commitment to domestic violence and teen dating violence awareness and prevention through its exclusive HopeLine® program. For more information about the program visit www.verizonwireless.com/hopeline.
For more information on Choose Respect go to www.chooserespect.org.
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