Tech Tuesdays Draw Huge Crowds To Smith Village

CHICAGO, IL — Tech Tuesdays, the free technology classes offered at Smith Village every Tuesday in June thanks to a grant from AT&T, have turned out to be much more popular than even the organizers expected. Susan Flood, executive director of the Beverly Area Planning Association, said nearly 100 showed up for both of the classes taught by Amplify7 Owner Claire Richards thus far.

"Clearly this is something our senior community needs," said Flood, who was proud to have a packed house on hand for the June 12 class that was attended by an official from AT&T. "I know something like this has been on the radar for AT&T for a long time, and this is a great way for their store in our community to partner with local organizations like BAPA."

There were about 40 signups for the first class held on June 5, but Flood said about 90 people showed up.

"When we first put it out for signups, we didn't see a big number sign up," Flood said. "But for the second class, they all signed up ahead of time. The phone (at the BAPA office) was ringing every 15 minutes with someone wanting to join the class."

Interested students have learned about their phone and how to manage their photos so far. The next two classes will touch on texting, email, storage and apps.

"I'm looking forward to putting out a survey at the end of the month and find out what everyone learned," Flood said.

RELATED ON PATCH: Free Tech Classes At Smith Village Led By Beverly Native

With baby boomers continuing to age and having a facility like Smith Village in the neighborhood, the senior population in Beverly/Morgan Park is higher than what is seen in most, if not all, other city neighborhoods.

"We want to find out the needs and interests of seniors in our community, and this is something that they clearly wanted," according to Flood.

It's an example of how BAPA acts as a "parent" in the neighborhood.

"We like to keep our pulse on everything," Flood said. "Just like Food Truck Fridays, we start something and then another entity in the community keeps it going. In that case, it was Cork & Kerry. When we find a need or want in the community, we'd like to get something going and then hand it off so we can focus on starting something else."

Tech Tuesdays may eventually be the next example. Flood says Smith Village is looking at the possibility of offering these classes again.

"It's a good way to get people to come here, look around and see the beautiful rooms they have," she said.

Smith Village residents can sign up for Tech Tuesdays at the front desk. Others can call BAPA at 773-233-3100 or sign up online here.

Photo courtesy of the Beverly Area Planning Association