Gateway Experience
Fixing Computers for St. Susanna Charitable Computing Ministries
In 2018 I was approached by a family friend with a simple request: "Could you fix this laptop if I gave you the parts necessary?". I had just finished disassembling and reassembling an old Chromebook, so I decided to help him. He then told me about the charity he was leading at the local church, and asked me if I wanted to help him. At the time, I was a freshman in high school, and I was looking for a way to get involved in the community. I agreed to join the team, and I started fixing computers and sending them all over the world.
The process was quite simple, just check for any non-functional parts, replace those, then install a fresh copy of a lightweight Ubuntu distribution (Lubuntu). To make it easier for the person that would receive the laptop, I would also install software such as LibreOffice and various drivers. Then, I would load some tutorial videos onto the desktop to better understand how to do various basic functions. I had repaired multiple computers until 2021, when the charity shut down. About 15 of those were sent to Ghana, Africa. I learned a lot about how to use computers and install operating systems from the time spent on this, and I am thankful to have been able to participate in such an incredible charity.
