The results are in!
AbleVets, and our partners Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC) and the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce, proudly announce that the Veterans Technology Drive to benefit Tech for Troops exceeded the goal of 5,000 pieces of technology in five weeks. In fact, the drive yielded technology donations with an in-kind value of over $132,700, beating a Tech for Troops record! The drive was so successful that Tech for Troops enlisted the help of local media to find volunteers to help sort through all the desktops, laptops, hard drives, monitors, keyboards, mice and more collected.
Our heartfelt thanks go out to everyone who donated, especially the following companies:
A special thanks to AbleVets’ summer intern Katherine Lewis who spearheaded our participation and coordinated our partner efforts. Katherine also helped create an AbleVets webpage for the drive and worked closely with our partners to help establish donation sites, identify corporate partners and get the word out via traditional and digital channels.
ABOUT TECH FOR TROOPS
Tech for Troops is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Richmond, Virginia. The organization’s mission is to eradicate homelessness and poverty in the Veteran community by bridging the digital divide. Tech for Troops does this by refurbishing and distributing technology and providing computer literacy training for Veterans and their families. Notably, Tech for Troops trains and employs Veterans to carry out its mission. Veterans serve as the technicians who wipe all donated technology clean and refurbish it with the latest operating systems. They also process requests for technology and package and ship items all across the United States. Last, but not least, they oversee volunteers, giving them an opportunity to develop leadership and public speaking skills. When they finish their four months of training at Tech for Troops, these Veterans are set up for careers, not dead-end jobs.
Micah Chelf, Director of Operations, Tech for Troops, says, “We assist Veterans who have fallen on hard times who may be in a homeless or impoverished state and get them back online where they are. We help them to become fully capable to apply for jobs that will help them improve themselves and the situations in which they have found themselves.”
“We’ve gifted over 1,500 computers in the past four years to Veterans in need and their families across the United States,” says Mark Casper, Tech for Troops President and Executive Director. However, Casper is not content with the status quo. “Our vision is to expand across the United States with multiple locations, impacting the homeless and poverty level of Veterans significantly.”
DONATIONS ARE ALWAYS NEEDED
Even though our technology drive concluded in August, Tech for Troops still has an urgent need for technology donations. If you would like to donate, please contact Tech for Troops directly. Their address and phone number are:
4840 Waller Road
Richmond, VA 23230
804-521-7979
Tech for Troops seeks laptops (with or without power adapters); working flat panel monitors; RAM, video cards and network cards; keyboards and mice; servers and network equipment; desktop computer towers; cell phones and tablets; and power and network cables. They cannot accept old-style CRT monitors, printers, cracked or damaged monitors, scanners and televisions.
All donations are tax deductible. Digital receipts for donated items are available.
