Local Heroes
Montclair’s Laptop Upcycle Provides Free Refurbished Computers to Children in Need By Jackie Schatell
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here is a wonderful resource in Montclair for older schoolchildren who don’t have a home computer. Laptop Upcycle, located at 60 S. Fullerton Ave., provides free upcycled laptops to local students, and to some schools and teachers in Orange, Bloomfield, Jersey City, Newark, and Paterson. Since 2016, they’ve provided laptops to over 1,100 kids, with over 150 of them also receiving free Wi-Fi, for five years. Mike Brown, strategic director of the nonprofit, says the idea for Laptop Upcycle came from a chance conversation at a school event where co-founder Sarah Damaskos asked another mom what type of computer her son would need for high school. The parent said her child was using her smart phone because the family couldn’t afford a computer. Sarah reached out to the Montclair community for help. Jon Bonesteel, another co-founder, had a laptop he wasn’t using anymore and together they delivered that first laptop to the family. “The rest is, as the say, history,” says Mike. “We came to understand that there is a gigantic technology gap for kids in our schools. Students without access to a home computer are scrambling to get their homework done and communicate with teachers,” says Mike. “There are a lot of deserving kids in need, and they would never think to ask for a laptop to get their schoolwork done. Similarly, there are so many people and corporations with unneeded laptops that would never think they could give them away securely and safely to a deserving someone. We marry these give/get opportunities.” Since 2016, Laptop Upcycle has received nearly 2,000 laptop donations, diverting over three tons of landfill e-waste. The organization’s eBay store sells parts recovered from unusable donations.
Laptop Upcycle high school volunteers, Miles Fessenden, Samantha Stulbaum, and Maxime Malaussena test laptops to get them ready for their new owners.
Laptops that kids get from Laptop Upcycle are 100% free of cost and are loaded with license-free, student-ready software. Mike says, “Laptop Upcycle doesn’t track usage in any way. The laptop is theirs to keep because school success depends on it.” The organization is 100% volunteer run and is actively looking for more volunteers. In addition to the adult volunteers, there has been over 3500 volunteer hours put into the program by more than 135 high school kids who meet twice a week to refurbish laptops. No experience is necessary as volunteers get trained to securely purge data, install new student-ready software, and test donated laptops for other kids.
March 2022
While Laptop Upcycle’s primarily focus is on high school and middle school students, Laptop Upcycle at Ramapo College was recently formed to service that college age community. For areas outside their geography, Laptop Upcycle works with the Alliance for Technology Refurbishing and Reuse, a national consortium of organizations that are likewise committed to closing the digital divide while promoting a green planet. To become a volunteer, donate or apply for a laptop, go to laptopupcycle.org. All donations are tax deductible. If you’ve got other questions, please contact Mike via email at mb@laptopupcycle.org.
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