Page 3 - Florida Sentinel 5-15-20

Feature
Companies Unite To Provide Computers To 100 Families
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
In upcoming weeks, sev- eral families will be pre- sented with computers. The computers are the joint ef- forts of four local compa- nies in the Tampa Bay Area.
Ralph Smith, founder and Director of Computer Mentors Group, said his company has teamed up with eSmart Recycling, Quicksilver Recycling, and Wells Fargo. The purpose of providing the computers to 100 families is, “to bridge the digital divide for 100 families in Hillsborough County. Due to COVID-19, public and private educa-
tion has moved to virtual online platforms.
“The assumptions are that all children have access to technology including a computer and Internet at home. But that assumption may not be true, especially when there are multiple children in a household.”
Smith continued, “The (Hillsborough County) School District has done a wonderful job of lending 38,000 computers to fami- lies that need them. But there is still a gap of fami- lies that have multiple school-aged children be- cause the school district was only able to provide one computer per family.”
RALPH SMITH Founder and Director of Computer Mentors, Inc.
Since social distancing has taken hold, it is essen- tial that every school-aged child have access to a com- puter and the Internet to be
able to participate in the education system. That’s where the initiative led by Computer Mentors, eSmart Recycling and Quick Recy- cling come in. The group, helped by a $7,500 Wells Fargo grant, will donate 100 computers to Hillsbor- ough County Public Schools to make available to fami- lies that have multiple school-aged children within selected schools.
The 100 computer units include a desktop computer with monitor, keyboard, and mouse. They can be re- quested through the Com- puter Mentors website at https://www.computer- mentors.org/COVID-19-
computers.
The selected schools
are: Edison Elementary, Foster Elementary, James Elementary, Potter Ele- mentary, and Tampa Bay Blvd. Elementary. In addi- tion, children of several other organizations will benefit from this initiative including Enterprising Latinas, RCS Pinellas, Tampa YMCA, and Women Redeemed By God.
Wells Fargo is targeting its philanthropic efforts to support COVID-19 initia- tives in local communities and has supported Com- puter Mentors Group for al- most 10 consecutive years.
FRIDAY, MAY 15, 2020 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 3-A