KarunaNews Story

Craig Clark may call himself ‘the oldest computer technician in America’, but everyone else calls him the Tech Fairy because of all the wishes he has granted to strangers. In his field, people sometimes give Craig their old computers after he sets up their new ones. Then about 8 years ago he began to take those used laptops, rebuild them, and find someone who needs a computer because they can’t afford one. It suddenly became easier to find people in need once Craig discovered Nextdoor—an app and website where neighbors in localities talk to neighbors who live in the same area. “I began posting pictures on the website of the smiling folks with their “new” laptops,” he said. “Then somehow I branded myself as the ‘Tech Fairy’. I have no memory as to why I did that, but it turned out to be a stroke of genius.” People started hearing stories about deserving people who’d received a free laptop from the Tech Fairy—and readers began contacting Craig, who is now 79-years-old, to offer up that old laptop they had in a closet. After 8 years, he has re-homed over 700 devices around Sarasota, Florida. “I get a lot of credit for this project but I never forget that this effort is possible only because of the selfless folks who donate their used devices to me. It’s a true community project…”