Cellular phones seem to have pervaded the lives of Americans just like baseball, hot dogs and apple pie.
The Cellular One Group said it set out several months ago to find intriguing and funny stories involving cellular phones by sponsoring a contest called “Cellular One’s Search for the Great American Cellular Story.” Entries flooded in from cellular users of all ages, said Cellular One.
“The `Search for the Great American Cellular Story’ is a celebration of the importance of cellular technology in American culture and the role cellular phones play in our lives,” said Richard Lyons, executive director of Cellular One Group, the management arm of Cellular One and contest sponsor.
Winning entries were chosen by judges for six categories: adventure, children, safety/hero/rescue, humorous, business and other amazing cellular stories. Each of the six winners will receive a cellular phone and $500.
The winner of the adventure category was Michelle Lynn Williams of Chicago Heights, Ill. During a performance by comedienne Rosie O’Donnell, Williams’ cellular phone rang. The ringing caught the attention of the entertainer, who insisted that she speak to the person at the other end.
“I complied with her request and Rosie O’Donnell spoke to my mom in the middle of her act,” said Williams.
Maria Ney of Dubuque, Iowa, an expectant mother of twins, went into labor a month earlier than anticipated while her husband was out of town on business. The trucking company owner had no way of returning to Iowa in time to be with his wife in the delivery room. As he was driving on a North Carolina interstate on his way home, his cellular phone allowed him to hear the first cries of his new daughter, Alicia Marie, followed by his son, Andrew Michael.
Jonathon Beniers of Abington, Mass., winner of the safety/rescue/hero category, said he never had a desire to own a cellular phone and always joked with his father about bringing his on their snowmobiling trips. However, on one such wilderness trip outside of Quebec City, Beniers’ father hit a tree stump while speeding down a trail. Losing control, he was thrown from his snowmobile and hit another tree, resulting in severe internal injuries and a ruptured spleen. Beniers used his father’s cellular phone to call an ambulance.
“I often think of what would have happened if he did not have the phone with him that day,” said Beniers. “Having that phone saved his life and has changed mine forever.”
Dr. Lawrence Bunsick and his wife were driving to Jupiter, Fla., from their home in suburban Kansas City, and stopped for breakfast along the way, leaving their dog, Whitney, and their cellular phone that was left on in the car. Bunsick recounted what happened next in an entry he submitted from the viewpoint of his dog:
“Said the dog, as interpreted in `Millie Bush’ fashion by her owner: `I was getting homesick and decided it was my big chance to call my cousin Taffy (a cocker spaniel belonging to a relative of the Bunsicks). I stepped on the send button, and Taffy’s mom answered. I guess she didn’t recognize my bark because she hung up. I had to call her five times.”
The winner of the business category was Shirley Spitler of Marietta, Ga. Spitler’s friend, Lorraine, a government employee, needed to speak with a personnel adviser about her job and decided to stop by the adviser’s office. However, the receptionist explained that she would need to make an appointment. When Lorraine asked to be scheduled, the receptionist told her she needed to call in for an appointment so she pulled out her cellular phone, asked the receptionist for the number of the office and arranged an appointment over the phone.
Under the category of amazing cellular story is an entry submitted by Joseph Scapelitte of Jamestown, N.Y. Scapelitte suffers from agoraphobia, an anxiety disorder involving panic attacks that make it difficult to leave one’s home.
“While I have received conventional therapy, nothing seemed to help as much as having a cellular phone with me,” said Scapelitte. “Now, I could feel the security of a loved one or friend at my fingertips. I now could also be talked through the anxiety as I take each and every new step.”
Cellular One said its service is offered in 11,472 cities and towns throughout the United States, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Cellular One Group is a partnership comprised of AT&T Wireless Services Inc., Southwestern Bell Mobile Systems Inc. and Vanguard Cellular Systems Inc.
