Old cell phones help troops call loved ones

GRAVETTE - Gravette residents can turn old cellular telephones into something valuable and at the same time help a serviceman or woman call home to their loved ones.

The Sons of the American Legion in Bella Vista are collecting used cell phones and sending them to a group in Michigan that will eventually convert the devices into calling cards for the troops.

The program is called Cell Phones for Soldiers and was begun by brother and sister Robbie and Brittany Bergquist of Norwell, Mass.

The phones are sent to ReCellular in Ann Arbor, Mich., which pays Cell Phones forSoldiers for each donated unit - enough to provide an hour of talk time to soldiers abroad.

The organization is a registered nonprofit organization.

Any model and type of cell phone is accepted.

Drop phones off at the Eagle Observer Monday through Friday between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. or the Bella Vista American Legion, located at Kingsland Road and U. S. Highway 71, any Saturday between 10 a.m. and noon or the first Thursday of the month between 6 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.