Bridging the Digital Divide One Family at a Time

Although technology has been rapidly advancing throughout the 21st century, access to new technology unfortunately has not been advancing as quickly. Just imagine for a second what your would be like without the device you are reading this on right now. Hard to imagine right? For so many people, even in Michigan, having access to technology is a luxury. In fact, for many children, the only computers they've used are the ones in their school. As a high schooler, I know from experience, the extent to which computers have improved my life. Education seems almost impossible to me without reliable access to the Internet. My mission is to build and donate computers to shelters across Michigan. Many of these shelters have extremely worn and dated computers that can barely open a Word document. My friend Akshay and I built and donated a computer to the Catherine Cobb safehouse in Adrian, Michigan. When we were setting up this computer, it finally became apparent to us the impact that this would have on so many lives. Many of the people living in the shelter would finally have the opportunity to create resumes and search for jobs. I am determined to continue my mission and continue building and donating computers to people who don't have access to them. With the money we raise, our goal is to build 4-5 computers, as each computer costs around $400. A world in which basic technology is a luxury is a world that should be in the past. The Internet is an incredibly powerful tool and our goal is to bring that power to as many people as possible.

EDIT: With the money we raised, we were able to build and donate five other computers. Three of the computers have gone to families in Detroit, previously without any devices in their home. The other two computers have gone to another shelter in Adrian, Michigan. Thank you so much to everyone who has donated! 

COVID-19 EDIT: Right now, the need for computers among families is growing more rapidly. Students are being required to sign into online school and to do this, they need a computer in their house. With the current high unemployment rate and poor socio economic conditions, not many have access to reliable technology at their homes. Although the state has promised to distribute technology, many many people are still in need of a computer in their house. Please consider donating now. 

Our goal now is to build and donate 10 computers in the next 1-2 months. If anyone has any old TVs or monitors that they would be willing to donate, please let me know. My email is [email redacted].