Pictured: Bill Crowe and Mike Hutchinson with the Sarasota Technology Users Group. Photo courtesy of STUG.

How do disadvantaged youth and low-income families compete without a computer or laptop in today’s world? According to Mark Sharff, a Guardian ad Litem volunteer in Manatee County and a member of the Sarasota Technology Users (STUG), it means that most are left behind, unable to easily access educational and career training opportunities. Sharff explains that’s why, in 2004, The Children’s Guardian Fund teamed up with the Sarasota Technology Users to collect and refurbish used computers and laptops. Since the launch of the STUG Refurb Project, 20,689 renovated digital devices have been donated to residents of Sarasota, Manatee, and DeSoto counties. The recipients include disadvantaged school children, low-income adults and seniors, individuals in recovery programs, veterans and others trying to emerge from homelessness. In 2013, the program was expanded to provide computers directly to students in the Sarasota County school system. The group partners with more than 25 regional nonprofits to assist in distribution, including The Children’s Guardian Fund, Goodwill, Women’s Resource Center, Career Source, SPARCC, Take Stock in Children, Janie Poe, Literacy Center, and dozens of other area charities.

Pictured: Bill Crowe and Mike Hutchinson with the Sarasota Technology Users Group. Photo courtesy of STUG.