Sunset Tech Connect Archives - Community Tech Network

Connecting Seniors in the Sunset

Anna Beth Lane — Wed, 19 Jan 2022 14:53:33 +0000

In 2019, CTN received a grant from Metta Fund to provide digital skills training and tablets to monolingual seniors in San Francisco’s Sunset District. This new program, called Sunset Tech Connect, would pursue Metta Fund’s mission to reduce isolation and loneliness for older adults by leveraging technology as a form of connection. Throughout the year, CTN staff worked with small groups of English-, Cantonese-, and Mandarin-speaking learners. A total of eight sessions were offered at Sunset Beacon Neighborhood Center and the San Francisco Public library. By October, 48 older adults graduated from this 12-week training program and took home a Samsung Galaxy tablet. The program’s success led Metta Fund to provide an initial grant to continue supporting the program for two years. In March of 2020, we were ready to kick off the next round of classes. Of course, March didn’t turn out quite as planned for anyone. The pandemic caused both Sunset locations to halt in-person activities indefinitely. Uncertain of when we could return, Metta Fund agreed to modify our initial plan to accommodate remote instruction. Soon we began training the 39 learners who originally signed up for the Sunset Tech Connect program through our virtual training program, Home […]

The post Connecting Seniors in the Sunset appeared first on Community Tech Network.

Increasing Social Connection with Metta Fund

Anna Beth Lane — Fri, 27 Aug 2021 13:43:07 +0000

“There’s sort of this invisible population that, due to some of the structures that we’ve built — and internalized ageism — we don’t really see or want to see. As a health foundation, Metta Fund is interested in reducing social isolation and loneliness in the older adult population.” — Catherine Collen, Senior Program and Grants Officer at Metta Fund. A longtime supporter and funder of CTN, Metta Fund is a private health foundation dedicated to San Francisco’s aging population and those furthest from access and opportunity. Taking a creative and holistic approach to equity in aging, Metta Fund works closely with both direct service and policy advocacy organizations to address the unique needs of older adults. One of their primary focus areas is social connectedness — an increasingly important issue in a city where 31 percent of adults over age 65 live alone. Lacking social connectivity has damaging effects on one’s mental health, increasing chances of depression and anxiety. Yet it can also severely affect one’s physical well-being. According to the CDC, loneliness and poor social relations increase risks of early mortality, dementia, heart disease, and stroke. In researching strategies to address social isolation among older adults, Metta Fund found […]

The post Increasing Social Connection with Metta Fund appeared first on Community Tech Network.

Seniors in the Sunset Learn Tablet Skills

Annie Tan — Tue, 07 Jan 2020 18:22:49 +0000

At the end of October, we taught our final class as part of Sunset Tech Connect in San Francisco. In total, 48 older adults graduated from this 12-week training program and took home a Samsung Galaxy tablet. Through this course learners were introduced to email, social media networks, and communications tools. They learned to navigate and engage with the community and the world marketplace, among many other important internet skills. A total of eight sessions were offered at Sunset Beacon Neighborhood Center and the library. Five sessions were taught in Cantonese, one in Mandarin, and two in English. Here are the comments they shared with me about the program: “I love the program. I feel more confident using technology, less frustrated. I always share what I learned to people. That’s a good thing.” “I have so much fun watching entertaining movies, and I learned some new recipes online. I also made connections with friends using WhatsApp. I have a few good friends in the Bay Area, so I can ask for help if needed.” “Great program! Not only can I make some good friends in class from around the neighborhood, I also learned how to check bus times using the […]

The post Seniors in the Sunset Learn Tablet Skills appeared first on Community Tech Network.

Tablet Training Builds Connection and Confidence for Seniors

Annie Tan — Tue, 16 Jul 2019 15:21:19 +0000

Two groups of Sunset Tech Connect learners recently completed 12 weeks of basic tablet and internet skills training. Both classes were taught in Cantonese and ran from April 16 to July 2. During these 12 weeks of lessons, learners were taught a variety of new technology skills, including sharing photos and videos they took on their tablet, learning where to find and how to install apps on their device, and using Google to search for useful information online. They gained more confidence about avoiding scams and frauds on the internet. Beyond safety, the classes focused mainly on hands-on activities that were easy to engage in, like using WhatsApp and WeChat to connect with friends, family, and community. One of the learners remarked, “Because nowadays everyone needs computer skills, we’d better know more about it. I’m very thankful that CTN has such a great program for seniors. I learned quite a lot of new tech skills, which are very useful and beneficial in my life.” Now that they’ve finished the program, they get not only certificates, but also tablet devices, so they are very happy with what they learned.

The post Tablet Training Builds Connection and Confidence for Seniors appeared first on Community Tech Network.

CTN Receives Metta Fund Grant to Bridge the Digital Divide for SF Seniors

Jessica Looney — Fri, 04 Jan 2019 15:24:08 +0000

Community Tech Network is delighted to announce receiving a grant from Metta Fund, a private health foundation dedicated to San Francisco’s aging population and those furthest from access and opportunity. The grant provides digital literacy and tablets to older adults in San Francisco through a new program called Sunset Tech Connect. In partnership with Community Living Campaign, Sunset Neighborhood Beacon Center, and the San Francisco Public Library, Sunset Tech Connect will provide tablets and training to 48 monolingual seniors in the Sunset district of San Francisco. It will teach them to use tablets safely and to independently connect to the internet to access services and information. The tablets were donated by Sprint, and each participant who completes the program will get to keep the tablet and receive six months of service. The program focuses on a diverse set of older adults who face chronic health conditions and regular feelings of isolation and loneliness. Digital literacy is often overlooked in elder care, even though it has great potential to open the wider world to aging individuals. “Metta Fund is proud to partner with Community Tech Network to provide digital literacy for older adults in San Francisco,” said Metta Fund CEO Janet […]

The post CTN Receives Metta Fund Grant to Bridge the Digital Divide for SF Seniors appeared first on Community Tech Network.