Nominations are being accepted for a laptop-related scholarship program locally.
Gateway To The Arts and Nick’s Place For Us are teaming up with a Toronto-based design company for the Moving Forward Computer Scholarship.
Mark Wilson, co-owner of Envision, has close family ties to North Bay and had an idea to refurbish laptops, load them with programs and donate them through a scholarship program.
The first year of the program will see 25 laptops refurbished and distributed to several local youth.
Included are emerging artists, a student from each North Bay high school moving on to post-secondary studies in the arts or a related field, youth under the age of 30 and several youth aging out of local services.
“Over the last decade, there has been a marked increase in the number of homeless in Northern Ontario. With this comes a marked increase in the number of addiction issues and overdoses and an increased crime rate,” says Wilson. “Add into these factors a global pandemic and we begin to see a multitude of issues emerge. Many of these issues take root in the early teen and young adult years making this segment of the population the most vulnerable and the most in need of outreach in positive and meaningful ways prior to the development of lasting and prolonged issues.”
The goal of the program is to meet some community needs and forge positive connections and relationships as well as to fulfill a real need among youth just beginning their journey.
For more information or to nominate a youth visit: https://nicksplaceforus.ca/programming
