KLEIN, Texas — Darla Purce is a neighborhood hero using Nextdoor to find old computers. She fixes them and then donates them to families who need a one for virtual learning. KHOU 11 shared her story on Aug. 11. Two weeks later, we checked in with Purce.
“Oh my God! Just so many emails the first few days. The first week,” Purce said. “So I had like 150 emails, total. It’s just been crazy. Just as fast as I can get them ready, I’ve had requests come in. My husband is being very patient with me having turned the entire living room and dining room into a computer hospital."
Purce’s son is the quality control department. He tests the computers to make sure they can work properly with the applications required for virtual learning. Purce’s mother pays for parts. One of Purce’s neighbors donated the first computer.
Strangers are buying up software. All N One Tech Solutions is accepting donations since not everyone can make it to Purce’s Klein home. So really, when you think about it, the community’s helped about two dozen families so far, including Esperanza Zuniga.
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“Whenever you posted it on Nextdoor it popped up on my phone,” Zuniga said. “And I was like, 'Oh Lord, Jesus, Thank you!'”
Zuniga commented on KHOU 11 Reporter Melissa Correa’s Nextdoor post. Zuniga asked for a computer for her two daughters. They were going to attempt virtual learning on one cellphone, but, now they have a laptop.
“That helps out a lot. The girls take turns because they don’t have the same schedule,” Zuniga said. “They were like, 'Do we have to return this?' I was, like, 'No, it’s for you to keep.'”
“Before I started this, I would avoid watching the news at all costs. Because it just made me feel so powerless about all the horrible things that are going on right now. But then, when I have a specific thing in my lap ... when I can make a difference, it just lifts my spirit up so much to know that all I have to do right now is work on what God put right in front of me,” Purce said. “It gives me a great sense of hope.”
DONATE YOUR OLD COMPUTER: Email DarlaDPurce@gmail.com