GE Donates Refurbished Laptops

To United Way Partner Agencies

DANBURY — Twenty-five local United Way partner agencies, including the Family Counseling Center of Newtown, have received refurbished executive laptop computers through a donation from General Electric.

The addition of these tools will have a tremendous impact on the administrative capabilities and efficiencies of local nonprofit organizations supported by United Way, according to June Renzulli, president of the United Way of Northern Fairfield County.

“It was so rewarding to be able to tell our agency partners these laptops were available,” Ms Renzulli said. “This is a great example of how we can impact a wide cross section of community needs through partnerships like the one we have with GE and the knowledge we have of our community.”

According to Dan Henson, president and CEO of GE Vendor Financial Services, and a new board member of the United Way of Northern Fairfield County, finding ways to give back to the community is at the heart of GE’s involvement as a local neighbor.

“GE has a longstanding history of supporting United Ways across the country through volunteer efforts, annual campaigns, and donations,” said Mr Henson. “This was just another way we were happy to meet a need in our local Danbury community.”

The value of the donation is priceless to the recipients, many of them said. The Rev Phyllis J. Leopold, executive director of the Association of Religious Communities (ARC), described her old computer as being from the Stone Age. “Now my computer’s capabilities are uniform and compatible with the rest of our office,” she said. “It will be wonderful to have the same technology throughout our agency for my staff, myself and our volunteers. My old computer was like using a horse and buggy in the jet age.”

Other agencies will use their laptop computers to take the office to the client. The Family Counseling Center, based in Newtown, plans to bring the computer to its outreach programs and into the homes of its clients and will begin using this concept in the development of its gerontology case management program. “We will be able to enter our notes directly into the computer while sitting with the client,” said executive director Terry Blackmer. “It streamlines the entire process.”

“Sometimes we take for granted how much we rely on technology in the business world today,” said Mr Henson. “We have to remember that in the nonprofit sector where resources may be tighter, just one computer can have a major impact on an agency’s ability to provide its services to those in need. To be able to help them do their job helps us make a difference for our local neighbors.”