Verizon Appoints Sheila Lau President of National Operations for Northwest Region

EVERETT, Wash. -- Verizon has selected Sheila Lau to become president of the company's National Operations unit for the Northwest. On Sept. 1, she will replace David Magnant, who was recently named Potomac region president for Verizon in Baltimore.

Currently, Lau is responsible for Verizon's customer response in the Midwest, South and West, including repair service for the company's residential and small business customers. Lau will be relocating to Everett from Dallas, Texas.

In her new position, Lau will oversee installation, repair, construction and customer service for 1.6 million phone lines in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Northern California. She will be responsible for ensuring Verizon customers in the Northwest receive dependable, reliable, high-quality service.

"Sheila continues the legacy of strong leadership in our Northwest operations," said David DeStefano, senior vice president for Customer Operations. "During her 21-year career in telecommunications she has been responsible for providing exceptional customer service while achieving solid operational results."

Lau joined Verizon in 1981 and has held positions of increasing responsibility in Operator Services, Centralized Services, Customer Sales and Customer Operations.

She has been very active in community organizations, serving for the past five years as a board member of Edinboro University near Erie, Pa., the United Way of Erie County and the Erie Conference on Community and Economic Development.

Lau received a bachelor's degree in criminology from the University of California, Berkeley, a juris doctor degree from the University of California's Hastings College of Law and a master's degree in business administration from the University of Hawaii.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) is one of the world's leading providers of communications services. Verizon companies are the largest providers of wireline and wireless communications in the United States, with 135.1 million access line equivalents and 30.3 million Verizon Wireless customers. Verizon is also the largest directory publisher in the world. With more than $67 billion in annual revenues and approximately 241,000 employees, Verizon's global presence extends to more than 40 countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Pacific. For more information on Verizon, visit www.verizon.com.

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