Case study: Maria saves time and travel

Maria is a widow who lives in south-west Sydney with her three school-aged children.

Until recently, she spent a great deal of time and money travelling by bus to the nearest public library to use its computer facilities. At the library, Maria would look up the information her children needed to complete their school projects, and take it home for them to complete.  She had to pre-book the computers, and was only able to use a machine for an hour or two at a time. Then Maria found out about WorkVentures Connect IT.

“Because my children needed it, we budgeted and went without a lot of things for a while and we managed to save the money to buy a WorkVentures refurbished personal computer (PC). There is no way I could have afforded a computer without this scheme.”

In Maria’s case, the major benefit of owning a PC is the availability and readiness of it for her children to complete their school projects. “As well as this, I notice the kids reading and finding out more about things now that they have a computer at home, it keeps them busy in the holidays and is so practical as a way of entertainment and learning.”

Maria’s children are not the only ones who have benefited from this program and she says “being computer literate is important to me and now I have enrolled myself in a course to learn how to use the internet and email better.” She is looking forward to emailing her brother and sister in South America, especially because “sending email is much cheaper and quicker than using the telephone or post.”

Since Maria does not have to travel to the library to help with her children’s projects, she can stay in touch with family living overseas and improve her own computer skills.