U.S. Cellular, Boys & Girls Club of Southwest Va Announce BHM Art Contest Winners

Pictured here: Left to right: First Place – Donovan Starkey from Roanoke, Laurie Gibbons, chief professional officer, Boys & Girls Clubs of Southwest Virginia, Second Place – Garrett East, from Shawsville, Dana Dorcas, director of sales for U.S. Cellular in the Mid-Atlantic, Third Place – Alex Watty from Christiansburg.

U.S. CELLULAR AND BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA ANNOUNCE WINNERS OF BLACK HISTORY MONTH ART CONTEST

ROANOKE/CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. (March 22, 2013) – U.S. Cellular (NYSE: USM) and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southwest Virginia announced the winners of the Black History Month Art contest at a special ceremony at the club’s ninth street location in Roanoke. The contest, now in its sixth year, is designed to honor influential African-Americans and inspire students’ creativity.

“This contest is a great way for area children to get excited about, research and explore aspects of our diversity,” said Mayor David Bowers. “I am impressed by the level of talent, and the innovative and creative way the children display our heroes and role models through their portraits every year.”

Members of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southwest Virginia were invited to select an influential African- American and develop his or her likeness into an original 8.5 x 11 portrait using any art medium. This year the club received over 300 entries from 9 area clubs from which the top 10 finalists were chosen. The top 10 finalists’ entries were on display at area U.S. Cellular stores where the public voted for their favorites during the month of February:

The winners are:
• First Place – Donovan Starkey from James Madison Middle School in Roanoke won a $500 gift certificate for a portrait of Malcolm X. Donovan also won second place in last year’s contest!
• Second Place – Garrett East from Shawsville Middle School in Shawsville won a $200 gift certificate for a portrait of Jackie Robinson.
• Third Place – Alex Watty from Christiansburg Middle School in Christiansburg won a $150 gift certificate for a portrait of Ray Lewis.

“We believe in partnering with the community to celebrate our county’s rich culture, heritage and diversity,” says Dana Dorcas, director of sales for U.S. Cellular in the Mid-Atlantic, “The portraits are amazing this year.”

“Rewarding relationships with partners like U.S. Cellular help us inspire young people to recognize important contributions that people have made and use their creative expression at the same time,” said Laurie Gibbons, chief professional officer, Boys & Girls Clubs of Southwest Virginia.“ The children look forward to this program every year. In the past six years, more than 1,500 club members have participated in the contest and the competition gets tougher every year.”

About U.S. Cellular
U.S. Cellular rewards its customers with unmatched benefits and industry-leading innovations designed to elevate the customer experience. The Chicago-based carrier has a strong line-up of cutting-edge devices that are all backed by its high-speed nationwide network that has the highest call quality of any national carrier. Currently, 61 percent of customers have access to 4G LTE speeds and 87 percent will have access by the end of 2013. U.S. Cellular was named a J.D. Power and Associates Customer Service Champion in 2012 for the second year in a row. To learn more about U.S. Cellular, visit one of its retail stores or uscellular.com. To get the latest news, promos and videos, connect with U.S. Cellular on Facebook.com/uscellular, Twitter.com/uscellular and YouTube.com/uscellularcorp.

About the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southwest Virginia
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Southwest Virginia was incorporated in 1997, when it was known as The Boys & Girls Club of Roanoke Valley. Since then, Clubs throughout Roanoke and in the New River Valley have arisen with the support of the original Roanoke club at 9th Street in SE Roanoke. Together, the clubs now operate as a regional effort, working together to maximize resources and serve children. The organization is affiliated with the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, the nation's fastest growing youth development agency. Regionally, over 1,000 youth in the Roanoke and New River Valley areas have become members. Boys & Girls Clubs of Southwest Virginia are committed to the positive development of quality after school and summer programs. For more information, please visit our site at www.bgcswva.org.