I don’t know about you, but when it’s time to upgrade to a new cell phone, I never feel right about just throwing away the old one.

For that very reason, I have three or four old ones just sitting in the bottom drawer of my filing cabinet, complete with all their chargers, hands-free headsets and other accoutrements. They’re right next to my and my husband’s old Palm Pilots and other obsolete gadgetry that I spent too much money on to ever get rid of.

But good news! The FCC requires that any working cell phone, whether or not it is linked to a service plan, must have the ability to dial emergency calls to 911. That means old phones are ideal for elderly family or friends, those with disabilities, people who live alone, or anyone who might ever find themselves needing emergency assistance. Many senior centers, churches, shelters and charities solicit used phones and distribute them to folks who need them.

There are several really great programs out there just dying to get hold of your old cell phones and put them to good use. Here are a few:

The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence collects phones, then distributes them to abuse survivors as a safety life line, should they find themselves in a dangerous situation. You can print a postage-paid label with which to send yours at

www.ncadv.org

. Call to Protect is another organization working to end domestic violence. It has several collection sites around the country. You can drop off used phones where it’s convenient for you, and the organization pulls them together for distribution.

Visit www.DonateAPhone.com/

CalltoProtect/donate. cfm to find your nearest collection box. An organization out of Oklahoma called Cell Phones For Life acts as a clearinghouse, collecting phones and getting them to people who need them. Visit CellPhonesForLife.org or call 1-800-585-5503. You can mail them in a padded envelope, or have batches of six or more picked up free by UPS. The organization asks that you unlock your phone before sending it, and vows to clear your personal information.

If you would prefer to recycle nonworking phones (which is a good idea, because they and their batteries can seep hazardous chemicals once buried in landfills), there are several ways of doing that, too:

When you buy a new phone, most companies will provide postage-paid packaging for you to send your old phone for recycling.

Wireless Zone on Transit Road in East Amherst has a collection box to recycle old phones to benefit the Buffalo Zoo.

Most big box electronics stores, such as Best Buy and Radio Shack, and office supply stores such as Staples have collection boxes on site for recycling.

Call2Recyle, a nonprofit public service provided by the Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation, has collection boxes throughout the country. Visit

www.call2recycle.org

or call 1-877- 2-RECYCLE to find your nearest one.