'We want people to have healthy habits': Phone company rewards people for not using their phones

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Zigging and zagging across Milwaukee's Cathedral Square on Tuesday, May 2, members of the U.S. Cellular Phone Force 5 team were on a mission.

"We're giving away a lot of free tickets," said Larry Gardner with U.S. Cellular. "Brewers games, Summerfest, Wisconsin State Fair."

The ticket giveaways were a part of the company's efforts to celebrate Screen-Free Week, a week dedicated to encouraging people to put their phones and other gadgets away.

"We're a technology company and that seems contradictory," Gardner said. "We want people to have healthy habits."

Studies show adults in their early 20s spend roughly 29 hours a week in front of a screen. For kids? A study published on the CDC's website shows kids spend roughly 7.5 hours in front of a screen for entertainment every day.

"High school students, it's interesting to kind of inform them on the importance of not having their screens on them all the time," explained Zoe Lord, a free ticket recipient who also works with area kids for her profession. "Showing our high school students social interaction is so important and practicing engagement with other people by looking at them and speaking with them; it takes practice."

U.S. Cellular is looking to continue to reward those who are practicing screen-free habits. The team will be handing out tickets across the state all week to remind people to look up and look around.

"We really want to make an impact and make sure people are also using technology as a benefit, because it definitely has a place in our world today," Gardner said. "We also want to encourage people to get out and spend time with their families and friends and focus on that human connection as well."

For more information on Screen-Free Week, visit the website HERE.