“I’ve had an intuitive understanding of computers since a young age,” says Ellen who was a Computer Comfort volunteer tutor from October 2010 to May 2011. “I wished to use my abilities to help others understand and embrace computers and technology.”  According to Ellen, volunteering with the Neil Squire Society was an opportunity for her to sharpen her communication skills, and to find out if she could effectively teach computer skills to others.

Ellen learned about her volunteer position on the website GoVolunteer.ca (new window). She chose to volunteer with the Computer Comfort program because she felt that the skills she honed there would be easily transferable to a co-op position. She also liked that the Society’s Burnaby (new window) office was close to her home.

During her time at the Neil Squire Society, Ellen had a chance to meet many of the staff, volunteers, and clients, all of whom she describes as “genuinely nice, caring people.” She also learned about some of the challenges facing Neil Squire Society’s clients and the assistive technology available to help them meet these challenges. While tutoring clients with little or no computer experience, Ellen learned to be creative in her explanations as she tried to “draw parallels between how something is done on the computer and how it is done by hand.”

Recently, Ellen has been hired as a co-op student by the CAPTURE Project (new window) where she will be doing quality assurance for their web platform. We are so happy that Ellen chose to hone her skills in the Computer Comfort program!

If you would like to make a donation to support others like Ellen, you may do so here.