Hello again fellow readers and fixers! Now, this will be different from the usual posts about computer stuff. Over the years, I’ve written about different ways to fix and reuse various tech gadgets and computers. I have aimed to educate and inform readers about how we tried to find new ways to reuse various parts.
But there was something else that I hadn’t got round to write about up until now. And that’s about how I started as a volunteer with the BitFIXit project. So, time to get the kettle on and bring some biscuits. Because here’s a story time about how I became a BitFIXiteer!
Before being part of the project…
It was in February 2012 that I got into the IT industry as an apprentice. Originally, I found out about apprenticeships when I noticed a small computer shop, just inside Hillsborough Barracks. It actually used a classroom on the ground floor as the shop itself! Back then, Sheffield College operated the multi-storey building as ‘Sheffield College @ The Barracks’.
Really Green IT, formerly known as Livetech, was a social enterprise that ran the workshop. It worked with the college to train young people and others as apprentices. Offering computer repair services, as well as refurbished PCs, laptops and equipment, helped keep the shop running. It was there that I learned how to refurbish and repair computers.
After finishing the course, I stayed on with the social enterprise, working part-time in the shop. During that time, it tried to adapt in various ways. The front of the shop became more like a proper shop, with working PCs on display. It adopted my idea of offering custom-specced computers alongside refurbished PCs and laptops. Sadly, despite best efforts, the shop closed down on January 2014. In the end, it couldn’t sustain itself in order to continue running…
Continuing my journey from there…
And so, my journey continued on, with the IT experience I gained during my time there. While looking for jobs at one of various job clubs, I learned about Aspire Sheffield. It’s a social enterprise that aims to provide stable jobs in a supportive work environment for vulnerable people. To do this, it sells refurbished computer equipment, as well as repair & malware removal services through its computer shop.
It was in March 2014 that I began working with the social enterprise. There, I met new people and learned more about the recycling and reuse of PCs, laptops and IT equipment. For three months, I helped fellow volunteers process various kinds of PCs, laptops, phones and other stuff.
Finding out about the project
Now, let’s fast forward to February 2016, when I first met Gareth. One day, I was walking through the City Centre, browsing in shops along the way as many people do. As I passed by Union St., I saw a business card for the BitFIXit project. It was on a Raspberry Pi by one of the inside windows.
At the time, he ran pop-up repair cafes there on his own on Friday mornings. He carried out computer repairs in a spare room on the ground floor. When there wasn’t anything to repair, he worked on other projects such as aquaponics.
I popped into Union St. and started chatting with him. There, as I learned more about the BitFIXit project, I became interested in volunteering at its repair cafes. And here I am, six years with the project and counting, still learning about computers and technology!
And thus, this is my story on how I became part of the BitFIXit project. All being well, I will continue to be a part of the repair cafes for years to come! And remember, just keep calm and keep on fixing!
Postscript: Gareth adds – “I’m so glad that Dale saw me that morning, it was the start of a brilliant collaboration that continues to this day!”