Petra 1-800 Number Quirk Leads Some Astray

April 25, 2005 == MEDIA ADVISORY

A quirk in the 1-800 number for the Petra: Lost City of Stone exhibition at
Calvin College has led to more than two dozen phone calls to a roofing
consultant in Coraopolis, Penn., located about 15 miles northwest of
Pittsburgh.

The 1-800 number for Petra at Calvin is 1-800-PETRA05 with the last two digits
- zero, five - pointing to the year - 2005 - that Calvin is hosting the
traveling, museum exhibition.

In fact, Calvin's number, using just numbers and not letters, is
1-800-738-7205.

But there's a 1-800 number for Coraopolis resident Jack West's company, Roof
Inspection Service, that is awfully close to that.

His number is 1-800-738-7265. It's the same as Calvin's except for the
second-last number.

The problem arises when people mistake the zero in PETRA05 for the letter O.

Dialing the letter O (which is six on the telephone pad), instead of the
number zero, leads them away from the Middle East - due West.

Happily for Calvin, West is a bit of a Petra fan.

He first heard of the city through the writings of turn-of-the-century
adventurer Richard Halliburton who visited Petra. West also recalls a National
Geographic cover story on Petra a few years back that had him glued to the
pages as he read more of the mysteries and marvels of the rose-red city.

So, when he started getting calls on his business line about Petra he was
happy to explore further and soon learned that Calvin would be hosting Petra:
Lost City of Stone through August 15. And he began telling people a little
about the exhibit, while also passing on the right 1-800 number. He's gone so
far as to return calls left on his voicemail service, including a recent call
from a teacher in Muskegon!

And West is making plans to visit Petra at Calvin himself. In appreciation
for his services the college has given him a discount on a room at its Prince
Conference Center, where Petra is being housed, and added a couple of free
tickets to the package.

Calvin vice president Henry DeVries says simply: "It's the least we could do.
 It's funny how things worked out. Jack could have ignored these calls, or
gotten mad. Instead he's become an advocate for the exhibit. We appreciate
his efforts a great deal."

For his part West is happy to help.

"I thought the Calvin (1-800) number was pretty clever," he says, "but I can
see how people might make a mistake. The exhibit sounds great. I hope I'm
able to get to take advantage of Calvin's offer, get to Grand Rapids and see it
for myself."

Organized by the American Museum of Natural History and the Cincinnati Art
Museum, and presented under the patronage of Her Majesty Queen Rania
Al-Abdullah of Jordan, Petra is the first major cultural collaboration between
Jordan and the United States. Air transportation generously provided by Royal
Jordanian.

-end-
Received on Sun Apr 24 23:59:04 2005