Thanks for taking the pledge!
Help us spread the word about Phones for the Holidays!
Phones for the Holidays began seven years ago as a small but deeply meaningful community effort rooted in the legacy of Patti Melanson. Patti was the visionary behind the creation of MOSH, dedicating her life to ensuring that people experiencing homelessness and housing instability had access to compassionate, judgment-free health care.
After her passing, those who adored her wanted to honour her in a way that reflected her values, connection, dignity, and care for those often left on the margins. A used phone drive was born from that desire to carry her spirit forward.
As community organizer Joachim Stroink recalls:
“Patti Melanson is a good friend, was a good friend of mine, and I always followed her and watched her great success with MOSH. And so in Patti’s memory and for MOSH, we started this campaign of collecting phones.”
From the beginning, the goal was simple: collect used mobile phones, refurbish them, and place them directly into the hands of people who needed them most. A working phone can be a lifeline, a way to keep medical appointments, connect with outreach teams, seek housing or employment opportunities, call for help, or stay in touch with loved ones.
Patti’s daughters, Mackenzie Ross and Ella Debow, shared how deeply this project reflects their mother’s values:
“Our mom valued connection over almost everything. She believed that everyone should have access to care and to those who love them. This project was one of the many initiatives she started during her legacy. Having a phone allows for people experiencing homelessness to keep track of medical appointments, call for help, keep in touch with loved ones, seek employment and housing opportunities and beyond. We appreciate the continued dedication to one of her many passion-led projects.”
Each year, the campaign has grown as more Nova Scotians, local businesses, and community partners came together to support it. What began as a memorial initiative has become a province-wide movement powered by people who believe in connection as a fundamental human right.
Phones for the Holidays is an annual community-driven initiative that collects used cell phones to support people experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity and/or gender-based violence. Donated phones help individuals stay connected to essential services, support networks, housing and health providers, and employment opportunities.
In previous years, the campaign has collected more than 50 devices to support organizations like MOSH.
This year, Phones for the Holidays is entering an exciting new chapter. Through new partnerships with GEO Nova Scotia, Geebo Device Repair, and Boom12 Communications, along with a province-wide network of registered GEO community partners, the initiative is scaling up to meet the increasing need across the province.
Together, we are working toward our most ambitious goal yet:
Collect and distribute at least 1,000 mobile phones and raise funds to provide each device with a one-month prepaid phone plan.
These phones will be distributed throughout Nova Scotia to organizations supporting people in crisis, ensuring that more individuals can stay connected to essential supports.
GEO Nova Scotia (Getting Everyone Online) is a nonprofit dedicated to Digital Inclusion – ensuring that everyone has the devices, connections, and basic skills needed to use the internet, regardless of their economic circumstances.
Working with contributions and in partnership with the public sector, the private sector, and the community sector since 2022, GEO Nova Scotia has distributed over 7,000 devices and provided over 4,500 connections through a network of over 125 partners.
A new partnership with Geebo Phone Repair, who has volunteered to do the work required to refurbish donated phones, means GEO now has the capacity to join Boom12 Communications and build on the legacy of Phones for the Holidays to reach even more people in need.
Geebo Device Repair will assess every device and fix what needs repairing when possible.
If you can’t charge your device or get it working in order to remove your accounts before donating it, simply include a card or post-it with your name and phone number. When the team at Geebo gets to your phone, if it can be fixed, they will contact you to help remove your accounts at that time.
Android instructions:
Tips: If the device has multiple Google accounts, remove them all if you want a fully FRP-free reset.
Apple instructions:
**This can be an issue if the device is broken so we will need to take customers’ contact details to follow up with customers once repaired to properly erase the phone.