Tech Buddies shatters digital age gap

East County resident Irma Byrd grew up amid typewriters, black-and-white TVs and home phones.

Braden River High freshman Bella Romo has been using computers since she was in elementary school. The 16-year-old rarely leaves home without her smartphone and spends her summer snapping photos and videos to post on social media sites and apps, such as Instagram.

"Back in the day" to Romo means the days of decorating web pages on "dinosaur networking sites," such as MySpace, whereas Byrd can remember the introduction of the first computers and color television.

But this summer, Byrd and Romo are working together to help bridge the digital divide spanning generations. Romo is volunteering alongside nine other local students in Braden River Branch Library's Tech Buddies program.

On Wednesdays through Aug. 19, the volunteers are earning community service hours for school by aiding Byrd and other individuals who want to learn to navigate laptops, Tablets, cell phones, email addresses, social media sites and other technology and Internet hot spots.

"So, what is Twitter?" Byrd asked Romo during a recent session.

Teens become the teachers. Program advisor and librarian Aileen Tojais assigns the Tech Buddies groups based on the teens' technology strengths. Romo is one of the group's social media gurus, and June 24, she helped create a Facebook account for Byrd, whose family has been heckling her for years about joining.  

"It's a site where you can connect with your family and friends and tell them about your day," Romo replied. "You'll like it once I show you. There's also this site called Facebook."

East County resident Ann Gowen, who retired a few years ago, worries her helper, Brandon Slowick, may have created a retail monster by showing her how to shop for shoes, clothing and jewelry online.

"This could get me in trouble," Gowen said, laughing.

Tojais launched Tech Buddies in East County after watching a series of webinars on Pasco County's similar program that linked teen volunteers with individuals who sought help learning today's technology.

"The program has been successful there for more than four years," Tojais said. "I hope we can build a long-standing program in Manatee County, too, and that other branches will start offering this program or a similar one."

She also noticed the popularity of free technology classes hosted by college interns who work at the library during spring and fall semesters. The classes addressed computer basics, such as using the Internet and Googling.

"People who came to those classes really wanted that one-on-one attention," Tojais said. "But with only three or four of us and a class of more than 25, that was hard."

Instead of assigning high school volunteers with restocking returned books onto shelves, Tojais thought Tech Buddies would allow teens to earn their hours in a more beneficial way.

The perks of the program are multifold.

Students acquire skills, such as teaching and leadership, which could earn them bonus points on a college application and resume, Romo said.

They develop an understanding of other generations.

"Technology is a generational thing — something that can bring people together, but also separates age groups. I've been using computers most of my life, and, I've met people already who don't have email addresses. It's interesting to see how times have changed. It makes me wonder what technology will be like if I ever have children" — Bella Romo, Tech Buddies volunteer

Although most of the middle-age and seniorindividuals who have participated in the program so far are anxious to get online, some have expressed concerns about Internet security and whether their personal information is safe.

"It's scary putting your credit card number and personal information on the Internet," Gowen said. "That idea has held me back with being more active online. But, learning to only using secure sites makes me feel a little more at ease."

With their new knowledge, Byrd and Gowen plan to start paying their bills and using bank websites to view account balances— tasks they say are the norm for their family members.

In a tech-savvy world, they don't want to be left behind, they agreed.

"Technology is the way the world is going," Gowen said. "Kids today are so connected. If you aren't connected, you can't accomplish anything. We need to know how to use technology just for our everyday lives. I'm excited to get connected, after living so many years without using technology."

Contact Amanda Sebastiano at [email protected].