My grandfather is computer literate, but it doesn’t come naturally to him. Recently, he purchased a new printer, but it sat in the box until one of his children or grandchildren could come over to install it and teach him how to use it. I was the handy one.
My neighbor Sara purchased a new Ring doorbell camera. She had a traditional doorbell but did not know how to update it to Ring. I was able to take off the old doorbell and replace it with the new Ring camera.
In my own house, our clothes dryer suddenly stopped working. To fix it professionally would have cost a diagnostic service call, then a parts order, and then another installation service call. I took a look at it and was able to determine that it needed a new belt. I ordered one for $15 and installed it a few days later. Fixed!
My name is Daniel Shiner and I am a junior at Yeshivat Frisch, in the Engineering track. I am the rising captain of the Frisch Robotics club, a 70-member club and the largest at Frisch. I was also a FIRST Inspire Dean’s List Semi Finalist (named for Dean Kamen, inventor of the Segway), and one of only two sophomores to be selected for the varsity FTC robotics club. Between school, my engineering track, robotics and tinkering around mine and my grandparents’ houses, I have become an above-average handy high schooler.
My friends and I are starting a new venture – Handy High Schoolers – to try and use our talents in the community and give ourselves some experience, but also to help our neighbors who need a bit of assistance from someone a little more handy than they are.
Handy High Schoolers is a group of Jewish day school high schoolers in Bergen County who can help with computer, printer, or odd repair jobs. We are only high schoolers, but are anxious to roll up our sleeves and try to use our various talents to help our friends and neighbors.
We can be reached at our website www.handyhighschoolers.org. There you will find a brief form that will reach our team of helpers, who will determine if we can do your job, and then schedule a visit.
Handy High Schoolers is a private, non-profit venture and not sponsored by Yeshivat Frisch.
By Daniel Shiner
