Catholic Charities, Diocese of Venice, Inc.

Florida Gulf Coast University donates
50 computers to Catholic Charities

By Judy Bokorney
Web Site Editor

Florida Gulf Coast University  (FGCU) recently gave 50 personal computers to Catholic Charities, Diocese of Venice, Inc. The university was in the process of upgrading and replacing its computers and chose the charitable organization for the donation.

The gift will ensure that every staff member of Catholic Charities will have access to a computer and to e-mail. The remainder of the computers donated will be used for educational programs with the bulk going to the Haitian Center of Catholic Charities in Fort Myers.

“This donation from Florida Gulf Coast University will be utilized for students and staff at many of our 27 programs located in the ten-county Diocese of Venice,” said Peter Routsis-Arroyo, president of Catholic Charities. He recognized and expressed gratitude to Dr. Kathleen Davey, Dean of Instructional Technology and Broadcast Services and Pat O’Connor-Benson, Director of Instructional Technology at FGCU for their efforts in making the computer donation a reality.

The donation concept began with Dr. Joseph Ravelli who is a retired Dean of Planning and Evaluation at FGCU and a member of the Catholic Charities Board of Directors. “I followed through with the appropriate FGCU administrators and we succeeded in obtaining the 50 computers,” Ravelli said. “I was very happy to learn that some of the computers will be used for teaching Catholic Charities clients computer-related job skills and assist needy students with their school work,” he said.

According to Pierrette Faustin, program director for the Haitian Center, the computer donation will help the program offer improved services. “Our clients really are in need of computer training to help them obtain employment,” she said. “These computers will really make a difference for the Haitian community in Fort Myers and the surrounding areas.”

Faustin said the computers would also be used in the After School Tutoring program to assist the students with their schoolwork. “Many of the children do not have computers at home or internet access,” she said. “Our tutors can also go to school web sites to check homework assignments.”

Staff members of FGCU technical groups volunteered their time to prepare and clean the computers, and a crew of Catholic Charities staff and volunteers donated their vehicles and labor to pick up the CPUs, monitors and keyboards from FGCU and deliver them to the Haitian Center.

The Haitian Center assists clients with case management, after school tutoring, English classes, translation, interpretation, community education, employment and literacy classes. Services are designed to help Haitian immigrants develop an aptitude for social functioning as individuals and in the community at large.

Click here to contact the Haitian Center of Catholic Charities.

Photo: Pierrette Faustin (left), program director of the Haitian Center of Catholic Charities and Peter Routsis-Arroyo, president of Catholic Charities, unload computer equipment donated to the organization by Florida Gulf Coast University.