Bell Atlantic Provides Cash, Volunteers, Materials to Link James Paige Learning Center to Internet

Bell Atlantic Provides Cash, Volunteers, Materials to Link James Paige Learning Center to Internet

Other Volunteers Bring 'Christmas in April' to Chesapeake Families

April 23, 1998

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Bell Atlantic's Telephone Pioneers will be out in
force in the Kanawha Valley Saturday (April 25), linking Charleston's
James Paige Learning Center to the Internet and bringing "Christmas in
April" to two needy families in the Chesapeake area.

In addition to the free wiring for Internet connections, the learning
center also will receive an $8,000-donation from the Bell Atlantic
Foundation. The funds will buy computers for the James Paige Learning
Centers in Charleston and Wheeling.

Bell Atlantic's contribution follows a pledge the company made last
summer at the Governor's Summit for West Virginia's Future. The
company agreed to contribute $100,000 over three years toward
after-school programs.

"This is a wonderful partnership for the youth of West Virginia. We
know that this venture will provide greater educational opportunities
for many years to come," said Jim Paige, director of the centers.

"We're delighted that Bell Atlantic has chosen to focus much of its
charitable effort on improving the quality of after-school care. The
company has truly become a leader in corporate citizenship in West
Virginia," said Dallas Bailey, director of The Governor's Cabinet of
Children and Families.

The Bell Atlantic Telephone Pioneers and other telephone volunteers
often devote their weekends to wiring schools for high-speed Internet
connections. Through NetDay activities over the last two years,
Pioneers have connected over 100 West Virginia schools onto the
information superhighway.

To date, West Virginia is leading the nation in providing students
access to the World Wide Web with over 815 schools connected directly
to the Internet. Direct connections allow schools to provide
Internet access to all classrooms simultaneously, versus dial-up modem
connections, which allow only one computer at a time to connect to the
Internet.

'Christmas in April'

While a number of Bell Atlantic's Telephone Pioneers are installing
wiring at the James Paige Learning Center, other Pioneers will be
bringing Christmas in April to needy families in the Chesapeake area.

The volunteers will be clean, repair, paint and do other
home-improvement jobs for families at 11807 MacCorkle Ave., and 6
115th St. Christmas in April is an annual effort by the Pioneers to
assist low-income families in cleaning and fixing up their homes.

The Bell Atlantic Foundation supports a variety of projects
domestically and internationally, with an emphasis on new technology
applications in education, health and human services, the arts and
humanities, and civic development in the communities served by Bell
Atlantic. For more information, visit www.bellatlanticfoundation.com
on the Internet.

Bell Atlantic - formed through the merger of Bell Atlantic and NYNEX -
is at the forefront of the new communications and information
industry. With 40.5 million telephone access lines and six million
wireless customers worldwide, Bell Atlantic companies are premier
providers of advanced wireline voice and data services, market leaders
in wireless services and the world's largest publishers of directory
information. Bell Atlantic companies are also among the world's
largest investors in high-growth global communications markets, with
operations and investments in 21 countries.