Overcoming Barriers to Education
Bishop Edward Turner of the New Power of Love Christian Fellowship in South Central Los Angeles has spent a lifetime dreaming of creating opportunities for the congregants of his church and the young people in his community. He has witnessed great disparity in their access to technology and the resources necessary to develop the computer skills that would give these folks a leg-up in the world.
The Bishop had many conversations with his assistant and good friend, Joseph Muhl, a brilliant Mathematician who is also a professor currently teaching at CalTech. The two of them were determined to develop a STEM education program for their community and to that end, they needed the help of an angel. Bishop Turner says God delivered – with the support of Elevated Life Solutions and Rama Arya.
In the Bishop’s words –
“Birds of a feather don’t necessarily flock together but they eventually find each other”.
Rama is on a mission. Through Elevated Life Solutions he is committed to keeping valuable discarded technology out of landfills. His goal is to provide new and refurbished laptops to underserved and marginalized communities, creating equity. Coming from a poor village in India, Rama understands the power of education, especially in the fields of science and technology. He strives to help underprivileged people everywhere change their lives, by entering the workforce with vital computer and technology skills that are currently in demand.
The three men got together for a meeting and discussed the value of STEM classes for community members. Crucial to the success of such a program, The church desperately needed new laptops. Elevated Life Solutions was the answer to their prayers. Rama secured the necessary donations and was quickly able to provide 27 refurbished and brand-new laptops for the church. With the help of Elevated Life Solutions, they finally have the tools they need to bring STEM classes to South Central Los Angeles. Bishop Turner was overcome with gratitude.
“Rama is an amazing angel and an inspiration. He’s just the kind of person the world needs right now”.
After the pandemic hit, Rama’s support for the church continued. The Church was suddenly struggling to continue its outreach, and Bishop Turner needed help to deliver the powerful and inspiring Sunday sermons his community relied upon via Zoom.
Bishop Turner turned to Elevated Life Solutions for help.
“We were in need and Rama said, ‘Hey – let’s get to work!’ He’s a man of his word. A man of integrity.”
Rama came to the church and set up three different web cameras from different angles. He connected them to a computer with dual-monitors so when congregants watched from home, they could feel connected to the Bishop and his message just as if they were all in the same room together. Rama graciously continued his support by teaching the church’s technical assistant how to run the setup, including optimizing the presentation’s audio and switching between cameras when necessary.
With the support of ELS and Rama’s technical knowledge and expertise, Bishop Turner’s sermon was transformed into a professional broadcast. Moving forward, ELS and New Power of Love Christian Fellowship plan to work together to broaden the church’s STEM program. They are committed to delivering the support that the community needs to achieve a lifetime of success through computer-based training and education in STEM.
